The Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries #12 - DC Comics

THE BATMAN AND SCOOBY-DOO MYSTERIES No. 12, November 2023

As “time-twisting final” issues go, Ivan Cohen’s storyline for “Scooby Beyond” must have landed quite well with its audience, even if Hugo Strange’s “job of predicting the future” à la Warner Brother's 1999 animated television series, is far too spot on to be even slightly believable. Indeed, the fact that the super villain miraculously guesses that Bruce Wayne’s city will be renamed Neo-Gotham, have flying cars, another incarnation of The Royal Flush Gang, the lawless Jokerz, Barbara Gordon as its Police Commissioner, and a protégé Caped Crusader, is surely three or four too many contrivances for most bibliophiles to comfortably stomach.

However, for those readers able to do just that, and accept the Professor’s plan for Mystery Incorporated to inadvertently reveal Batman’s true identity in a virtual reality as silly nonsense, then this comic’s twenty-page plot will probably provide a bit of senseless fun - particularly once Scooby-Doo and Shaggy Rogers accidentally clamber aboard a pair of flying playing cards and start whizzing across the metropolis’ fluorescent blue skyline; “I’m trying Scoob! But I don’t have four feet, you know!”

Perhaps slightly less enjoyable though is the former editor’s determination to depict Fred Jones’ gang as being perfectly happy to stand toe-to-toe against the King and his “multi-generational crime family”, despite the felons clearly being able to lethally “kzzzap” the teenagers with all manner of high-tech weapons. This fearlessness debatably proves particularly incongruous to the “Hanna-Barbera” characters when Daphne Blake pre-emptively attacks Jack and Ten with hot-dog relish from a nearby stall, and then later joins her friends to defeat the “playing card-themed” evil-doers with several blasts from some conveniently-located fire extinguishers.

Arguably far more impressive than this book’s penmanship, are Dario Brizuela’s prodigious pencils, which genuinely do a great job of capturing all the bright lights and glitz of Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and Alan Burnett's programme for "Kids' WB". Admittedly, Terry McGinnis’ heavily muscled physique is a little disconcerting for supposedly a sixteen-year-old boy. But alongside Franco Riesco’s vibrant colours, the “artist of comics, cartoons, and the box art that some of your kid’s toys came in” genuinely gives all the figures an impressive, dynamic physicality.

Written by: Ivan Cohen, Art by: Dario Brizuela, and Colours by: Franco Riesco

Batman Beyond #4 - DC Comics

BATMAN BEYOND No. 4, November 2015

Mismanaging “the challenge of being essentially one long fight scene” this fourth instalment of “Brave New Worlds” arguably only succeeds in demonstrating just what a poor choice writer Dan Jurgens made when deciding to have Tim Drake as his “Batman Beyond”. For although this entire twenty-page periodical does little else but depict Brother Eye’s metropolis-scale invasion of Neo-Gotham, it also shows a frustratingly gullible and incompetent “replacement” Dark Knight, whose gross ineptitude whilst fighting the autonomous entity’s cybernetic subjugation simply reinforces Micron’s opinion that “the clothes don’t make the man.”

Indeed, having naively allowed his enemy to penetrate the Batsuit’s artificial intelligence system and thus take the City of the Future’s protective “veil” offline, this comic’s titular character is unrecognisable as the same “smart” youth who once “solved Gotham’s greatest mystery in order to discover Bruce Wayne’s secret identity and was actually “worthy of being Robin”.

Such a series of disappointing failings must inevitably fall upon the poor penmanship of this book’s Ortonville-born author. Whose “some thirty-five years from now” narrative would arguably have been far better served if he had created an all-new personality to don the state-of-the-art costume, rather than seemingly try and re-invent the personality of one “who once held a… prominent position in the DC Universe.” The creator of Booster Gold certainly doesn’t seem to have any problems in ensuring that Commissioner Gordon is given plenty of strong resourceful moments within this issue’s storyline, as the tough, determined fighter soon realises the hopelessness of battling Brother Eye one-on-one, as Terry McGinnis’ substitute tries to do, and instead logically reasons that they need ‘something Batman can fight the invasion with’ other than his fists…

Competent yet visually rather cluttered, Bernard Chang’s artwork for this comic is as furiously busy as one would expect from an illustrator depicting all the action and high-octane drama of a city-wide incursion. In fact despite the plot predominantly centring on Drake’s disheartening efforts, the Asian American designer still manages to provide the reader with plenty of glimpses as to just how wide-scale this robotic annexation is by ‘littering’ his pages with numerous micro-panels depicting battles further afield.

The regular cover art of "BATMAN BEYOND" No. 4 by Dan Panosian

Batman Beyond #3 - DC Comics

BATMAN BEYOND No. 3, October 2015

Writer Dan Jurgens’ pre-publication declaration that this third instalment detailing his ‘take’ on the DC Universe “thirty-five years in the future” would contain a “nice little surprise” at the end, doubtless had many comic collecting cynics believing that the National Cartoonists Society Award-winner was simply trying to increase the title’s distribution sales. But on this occasion “DC Comics” advertising hype would actually seem to have been correct, albeit this twenty-page periodical’s greatest ‘bombshell’ is not the fact that Tim Drake was duped into leading Brother Eye back to the secret location of Neo-Gotham. But that the former Red Robin ever actually survived his incarceration at the hands of the “semi-autonomous artificial intelligence surveillance system” in the first place.

Indeed, when it comes to portraying a superhero somehow surmounting overwhelming adversity in order to succeed then the young (future) Batman’s escape from the very heart of the supervillain’s “Cyborgian Army” factory in “Brave New Worlds – Part Three” has to be viewed as a genuinely miraculous exodus. Either that or an especially contrived narrative which defies all common sense, logic and practicality, and one which disappointingly actually generates far more questions than it answers.

Foremost of these convoluted conundrums is the American author’s explanation as to why Inque is a ‘loyal’ lieutenant of Brother Eye and willing to subserviently do whatever the one-time orbiting satellite commands. Initially Jurgens would have his readers believe that the shape-shifting femme fatale ‘sold out humanity’ simply because “I’m a survivor. You’re dead. Reason enough?” Yet then divulges that Jack Kirby’s creation is actually holding the daughter of Terry McGinnis’ ‘most powerful adversary’ as a prisoner on the moon.

Such a revelation makes perfect ‘motivational’ sense unless in the very next panel, the distraught mother immediately endangers her child’s life by forming an alliance with Batman, simply because the costumed crimefighter confidently asserts “Help me burn this place to the ground and I swear I’ll bring your daughter back to you.” Why having clearly spent so long under Brother Eye’s thrall helping the mechanical monstrosity subjugate the planet’s entire population would Inque suddenly risk all on the say-so of her one-time greatest foe? Especially when he’s trapped deep within the bowels of one of the artificial intelligence’s most notorious strongholds?

Equally as mystifying is Drake’s somewhat superficial rematch with his former Teen Titans team-mate Cyborg. Vic Stone arguably pummelled Tim in their previous encounter, yet Jurgens suddenly has Batman, despite clearly have been tortured by his captors for a considerable amount of time, truly trounce the mechanically enhanced superhuman by simply giving him a face full of jet boots; “You beat me once. No one beats me twice.”

The variant cover art of "BATMAN BEYOND" No. 3 by Carlo Pagulayan

Batman Beyond #2 - DC Comics

BATMAN BEYOND No. 2, September 2015

Having introduced any prospective “readers… to who Batman Beyond is, what the world is, and who else might be there as quickly as we can” in this title’s opening edition, Dan Jurgens takes something of a step backwards from such global grandeur in this second instalment of “Brave New Worlds”, and instead simply concentrates upon the powerless superhero’s survival within a “processing” prison for Brother Eye. Such a simplification of his story’s earlier scope really lets the former “Superman” penciller pay a good deal of attention to the exploits of Tim Drake and as a result the story’s futuristic events are far easier to understand for any bibliophile who hasn’t read almost a year’s worth of “Future’s End” back-issues.

The Minnesota-born writer is also able to utilise a rather elderly-looking Barbara Gordon to inform both Batman and the reader as to just who the villains of this piece are and what they are doing. Admittedly it’s pretty clear from Bernard Chang’s artwork that the Lodge’s ‘terminator-like’ cyborgs are to be avoided whilst the simpleton-faced inmates to be pitied. But the former Batgirl provides plenty of backstory as to how this “world has become a rather awful place” due to the Eye spending “years infiltrating computer networks and data systems worldwide.”

Followers of the “Warner Brothers” 1999 animated series “Batman Of The Future” will find little to disappoint them with this integration of their beloved cowled crimefighter “into the DC Universe”  either. For having introduced a Victor Stone who has bizarrely somehow retained more of his physical body than his previous incarnation did as Cyborg, Jurgens has Drake additionally confront Inque; “Terry’s most dangerous foe” from the television programme.

Indeed the shape-shifting femme fatale’s introduction really imbues the American author’s narrative with some much needed pizzazz. Especially as it coincides with Tim’s ability to recharge and thus reactivate the Batsuit; albeit “the suit will be less than fully functional, sir.” Such a classic clash between this “new improved version” of the Dark Knight and McGinnis’ powerful adversary is an absolute delight despite its brevity, and even provides the opportunity for some nice interplay between Drake and his digitised butler Alfred.

Disappointingly Bernard Chang’s illustrations whilst competent do little to add to a rather exciting action-packed issue. In fact the Asian American artist arguably has some extremely ‘wobbly’ moments whilst trying to depict the numerous brainwashed inmates of the Lodge, with his rendition of a pink-haired ‘zombified’ Max towards the end of the comic proving especially disturbing and peculiar. It is also not clear why Marcelo Maiolo seems to think it’s a good idea to leave the odd panel predominantly white with garishly red inking instead of colouring them as normal. 

Admittedly such a monotone technique makes these small scenes ‘pop’ from the page. But there doesn’t seem to be any particular rhyme or reason as to why certain pictures are chosen for this effect. Something which quickly lessens their visual impact and essentially makes the blood rouge ‘mini-sodes’ an annoyance rather than an artistic enhancement.

The variant cover art of "BATMAN BEYOND" No. 2 by Andy Kubert and Brad Anderson

Batman Beyond #1 - DC Comics

BATMAN BEYOND No. 1, August 2015

Set thirty-five years from now “in the definitive future of the DCU”, this “mini-relaunch” by “DC Comics” of their “Batman Beyond” title has clearly given Dan Jurgens “a lot of room to develop a new path” much removed from anything which has previously happened in the DC Universe or even “what’s been established in the animated series”. However for those readers unfamiliar with the events depicted within this comic book's forerunner, the eleven-month long mini-series “Future’s End”, the Minnesota-born author still wisely begins his narrative by ‘reacquainting’ readers with a few (semi) familiar elements such as ‘Alfred, “Joker cosplayers” and of course, the red and black Batsuit. 

Unfortunately such an intelligently written ‘acclimatization’ process to such a very different looking high-tech Neo-Gotham barely lasts half a dozen pages, as the Minneapolis College of Art and Design graduate quickly succumbs to the temptation of populating his “almost limitless canvas” for this ‘Batman of the Future’ reboot and disconcertingly starts to imbue his storyline will all the hallmarks of an “Elseworlds” comic book.

To begin with the titular character is no longer the Terry McGinnis of “Warner Brothers” fame but rather a time-travelling Timothy Drake who was “supposedly” given the suit by Paul Dini’s co-creation. Such an arguably controversial move is even voiced within “Brave New Worlds” itself as Matt McGinnis bitterly states that “if I had been there Terry would’ve given the [Bat]suit to me.” Infinitely more perturbing though is the appearance of a “turned” Superman; a laser-carrying cyborg with four metallic spider-legs, who seems far closer to a mixture between supervillain Hank Henshaw and Metallo than the popular Man of Steel. This abomination of Joe Shuster’s boy scout, coupled with the later appearance of a somewhat emaciated Barbara Gordon provides a disappointing glimpse as to the “exotic… wide-open adventure” Jurgens plans ‘to enjoy in having such latitude’ with this title.

Equally as uninspiring is the artwork by Bernard Chang. The Asian American designer draws an extremely impressive looking Batman and some mean-looking Jokerz. But as soon as the action cools and the Montreal-born illustrator starts to have to pencil less dynamic scenes, such as Drake having a hot beverage with Nora Boxer or being incarcerated within the Lodge, his quality sharply declines. Indeed by the end of the former Red Robin’s confrontation with Superman, Chang’s pictures bear little resemblance to the artist’s earlier work and seem almost to have been rushed in order to meet some imminent fast-approaching deadline.

The variant cover art of "BATMAN BEYOND" No. 1 by Kalman Andrasofszky