As Man of Steel Sequel Gets Crowded, Let’s Hope There’s Room for a Sense of Humor

With confirmation of only that Batman (Ben Affleck) and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) will appear, the Man of Steel sequel has been ripe for speculation, with everyone from Nightwing to Martian Manhunter rumored to make an appearance. Will this still untitled Super-sequel be a backdoor Justice League movie, or will it simply be the DC Trinity as a set-up, with the rest of the League being primed for future solo or team movies (via post-credits teasers). In addition to those, I've heard rumors of Flash, Aquaman, Green Lantern and Doomsday. They can’t all be showing up for this film, can they?

One thing we do know for sure is the tone established by Zack Snyder and David Goyer, both back for the follow-up. With Man of Steel set as the opening salvo in a shared DC cinematic universe, we can expect some major differences from the Marvel universe which takes a more light-hearted approach. There was not an ounce of humor in Man of Steel and I don’t see how the addition of the Dark Knight Detective and a warrior Amazon are going to change that tone very much.

Presumably the movie will pick up on the fallout from the invasion of Zod and Battle in Metropolis (not to mention Smallville), where Superman may have saved the day, but not without a lot of collateral damage, and a fatality to his name. Repercussions are sure to follow and leading the charge are likely to be Lex Luthor (currently rumored to be Joaquin Phoenix) and fellow wealthy philanthropist Bruce Wayne. The movie could use some lightening up, but I think we've all seen enough of a movie Luthor played for laughs, so that isn't the route to go either. Maybe the secret identities of the world’s finest heroes can work in some humor as they play off of each other in their “disguises.’

While my initial response to Superman killing Zod and the massive destruction was disappointment, I recognize the storytelling possibilities it provides and visually, the movie looked terrific. We asked for a Superman that would actually hit someone, and boy did we get that. I can only hope that the sequel will indeed face the climactic actions head on and hold him accountable. You don’t destroy a city and kill your enemy without there being some push back from the government, concerned citizens or fellow “do gooders” This movie should be Superman’s redemption and emergence as a leader, a real super-hero. He still has to earn trust. I hope that having Batman and Wonder Woman join him will help set that up.

The Dark Knight trilogy did very well by playing it very serious (with occasional moments of levity) and I expect that the new DC movies will follow a similar formula. I just hope the movie aren't too much like video games that is just confrontation after confrontation with nary a laugh to be found.  I do hope Nightwing shows up, because having a Robin around is sure to brighten things up a bit. Even if he’s rebelling against Batman.

Review: Legends of the Dark Knight: Alan Davis Hardcover

Unlike most of DC’s other hardcover volumes focusing on a single artist’s Batman work, “Legends of the Dark Knight: Alan Davis" (Volume 1?) actually includes a continuous run of Detective Comics stories  (#569-575) with the same creative team, as writer Mike W. Barr and inker Paul Neary join penciller Davis for most of the book.

Barr and Davis’s stories are an entertaining throwback to the “superhero” Batman in the months just preceding (and then briefly concurrent with) the constant Miller-angst that reigns til this day. Batman smiles, cracks jokes, and frequently calls Robin “chum.”  Alan Davis’s art is crisp, clean, almost but not quite veering into cartoony. He homages the giant prop Sprang era quite a bit, but he can do grim as well, as seen in one panel where Batman backhands the Joker in a burst of anger.

The first few stories feature Catwoman (in her purple dress with green cape outfit) and the Joker. Next up is a Scarecrow story that seems to have been the inspiration for one of the later Timm animated episodes featuring the villain, in which he removes people’s fears rather than creating or exploiting them.  An over-confident grinning Batman is as unnerving as the grim look you normally see, especially when he plays chicken with a couple of trucks.

The highlight of the volume, is the anniversary issue of Detective Comics #572, reprinted in its entirety even though it includes non Davis art, where Batman teams with fellow detectives Slam Bradley, Elongated Man  and even Sherlock Holmes (featuring guest art by Carmine Infantino, Terry Beatty and ER Cruz) in a story that focuses on a century-spanning mystery book.

Following that is a Mad Hatter story with a tragic ending that leads directly into the next issue. This issue “…My Beginning and My Probable End” is billed as “the new origin of the Batman” which signals the changes in Batman’s history, as his origin is retold with echoes of Year One and the upcoming Year Two, the first chapter of which is also reprinted here (subsequent chapters are penciled by Todd McFarlane and are not included in the volume), and ends Davis’ Detective run. I believe this is also the first appearance of Dr Leslie Thompkins and her clinic, vs. the pre-Crisis version of her as en elderly lady still living in Crime Alley.

That leads to another observation about the uniqueness of this volume – that is, it’s place in Batman’s history, as it straddles the time period between pre-Crisis Earth 1 Batman and post-Crisis/Year One Batman. This is most evidenced here by the prominent inclusion of circus acrobat Jason Todd, as established back in 1983. By the end of the run, there is allusion to the new Jason Todd origin that was established in the “Batman: The New Adventures” era that followed “Batman: Year One” in Batman, but that’s inconsistent with how Jason is portrayed throughout the book. This version of Jason would less likely have been voted to be killed by readers, as he actually seemed like a genuine kid who was thrilled to be at Batman’s side and eager to be a worthy partner.

The collection concludes with the Year Two sequel, Full Circle, originally a standalone graphic novel, and a short story from the Batman Gotham Knights black & white back-ups that features characters from the original Barr/Davis run.

All told, this is one of the more satisfying, straightforward volumes of artist-centric Batman volumes. It takes place during a transitory period in Batman history, but that makes it no less enjoyable for fans of old-fashioned superhero Batman fun that combines the tongue-in-cheek sensibilities of the 60s with the burgeoning seriousness of the 80s, with beautiful art to carry the reader along.  The art reproduction is also consistent throughout the volume. Not sure why this is called Volume 1 though, as I believe this includes all of Davis’ Batman work. Highly recommended.

You can also read this review at the Collected Editions blog.

Yes, this is actually happening

Is this thing on.....?

Yes, yes it is. With new content coming very soon.