Absolute Batman #7 - DC Comics

ABSOLUTE BATMAN No. 7, June 2025

Despite this being the second best-selling comic book during April 2025, it’s probably a safe bet that a fair few of this publication’s audience were a little bemused by the contrasting quality of Scott Snyder’s penmanship with that of “the one and only super-star” Marco Martin’s disappointing pencilling. In fact, some of this twenty-page periodical’s panels are so disconcertingly dreary, such as its opening sequence which features a close-up of Victor Junior’s adolescent face as he slowly succumbs to “a rare terminal disorder” in Tanzania, that the odd bibliophile may well have been in two minds as to whether they wanted to read on any further.

For those that do persevere however, there is undoubtedly a solid, almost scary storyline to be found inside Issue Seven of “Absolute Batman”, and one which intriguingly transforms the classic character of Mister Freeze from that of a “tragic villain” desperately attempting to save his beloved wife, into a truly disturbing, thin-faced youth who can apparently transform himself into something that wouldn’t look out of place in Motive Studio’s 2023 survival horror video game “Dead Space”. So strong a departure from the ‘norm’ really must have caught a lot of readers off-guard, and (once again) helps the American author provide this ongoing title with a shocking cliff-hanger; “I felt everything. Every moment. And the pain… My god. Ice grinds and twists… The ice isn’t grace. It is fury. It’s reckoning.”

Furthermore, this comic contains some nice examples of how Bruce Wayne’s network of contacts is able to support him in his covert crime-fighting. Admittedly, the absolutely horrific death of poor Mitchell Malone to some face-popping bacteria quite possibly pushes this book’s “Ages 15+” guidance to its limit. But the information “Matches” spills before spontaneously bleeding out on Elliott Bridge also neatly illustrates just how deadly a game the Dark Knight is playing, as well as leads into the Caped Crusader vengefully setting off to V-Core’s company headquarters during a snowstorm without actually knowing first-hand what it is he's actually going to face there.

Disappointingly however, some onlookers may well say that it doesn’t matter how good the narrative may be, if the interior artwork isn’t up to scratch to help tell it, and that’s definitely the problem with “Absolute Zero”. There is no doubt that Martin can sketch both an atmospherically dark conversational piece set within the confines of a Gotham City alleyway, and an adrenaline-fuelled action scene showing Batman ducking the local authorities. Yet, along with some garish palette choices by Muntsa Vicente, a fair few of this publication’s visuals are far more likely to put people off from buying another edition, rather than draw in any new Bat-fans.

The regular cover art of "ABSOLUTE BATMAN" #7 by Nick Dragotta & Frank Martin