Welcome back to Talking Absolute…, where we focus on the storylines, controversies and themes that have captured our imaginations in the Absolute DC titles each month. Today, we’ll be covering the first half of May and three new issues. Guest artists, surprising alternate origin stories, villains in starring roles: Absolute DC has sprung some surprises…
The second arc of the Absolute Universe’s inaugural title begins with Bruce Wayne and his friends eulogizing a lost comrade. Bruce begins to more deeply research Ark M and meets the scientist Victor Fries. Absolute Batman #7 is written by Scott Snyder, drawn by Marcos Martin, colored by Muntsa Vicente and lettered by Clayton Cowles….
The Bat family has grown considerably over the years. What started out as Batman and Robin now contains what seems to be a dozen or more characters. And recent years have seen many attempts to add characters who would be big hits and draw massive popularity. And while this has created some good characters, none…
As Batman lays siege to Black Mask’s yacht to try to stop the chaos he has started in Gotham, his friends reckon with the knowledge that he is Batman, Alfred has a conversation with his daughter, and Jim Gordon and Martha Wayne face Gothamites turned Party Animals in the final issue of the inaugural arc…
Bruce Wayne faces a moral dilemma: let the Party Animals operate without Batman’s interference for a week and receive a large sum of money and the gang going easier on Gotham. As Bruce tries to make his decision, political wrangling makes it more clear exactly who is behind the chaos in Gotham. Absolute Batman #5…
Step back to Bruce Wayne’s earliest days as Batman, and to a time when Thomas Wayne was still alive, as the background of this new Batman starts to be filled in. Absolute Batman #4 is written by Scott Snyder from a plot by Snyder and Nick Dragotta, drawn by Gabriel Hernandez Walta, colored by Frank…
Batman has teamed up with pretty much every hero in the DC Universe because he’s, well, Batman. He’s also teamed up with many a villain. We’ve read stories where he worked with Lex Luthor, Ra’s al Ghul and Bane. But Patreon backer Ross Holmes very specifically wanted us to read a story where he teams…
Bruce Wayne faces a moral dilemma: let the Party Animals operate without Batman’s interference for a week and receive a large sum of money and the gang going easier on Gotham. As Bruce tries to make his decision, political wrangling makes it more clear exactly who is behind the chaos in Gotham. Absolute Batman #3…
Alfred Pennyworth watches the Batman’s war with Roman and his Party Animals, while readers get a better feeling for the world of this very different Bruce Wayne. Absolute Batman #2 is written by Scott Snyder, drawn by Nick Dragotta, colored by Frank Martin and lettered by Clayton Cowles. Batman and Robin must escape the inferno…
A new world, a new Caped Crusader. Absolute Batman #1 is written by Scott Snyder, drawn by Nick Dragotta, colored by Frank Martin and lettered by Clayton Cowles.Things seem to be improving in Gotham. Bruce Wayne’s new nonprofits are making a difference, and Batman is able to work less. But things never stay that way….
It’s the dawn of a new age. The heroes of the DC Universe have survived Amanda Waller, and now they’re trying to make a better world for themselves and everyone. But as that hopeful day begins, something darker arrives, too. Darkseid is here, on a mission like never before, and his attack will create something…
It’s time to celebrate! Matt’s other show, The ComicsXF Interview Podcast, reached episode 300 this week. And so for that celebration, that show’s co-host, the first ever BatChat guest, Matt’s best friend of over 30 years, ComicsXF Editor-in-Chief Dan Grote, is joining BatChat again. We are talking stories from three creators who have been interviewed…
We’ve done episodes before that look at three versions of one story. But of there’s one story that has seemingly been retold more than any other, it’s the first Batman story, “The Case of the Chemical Syndicate.” This week, we’re reading four versions of that story over three issues, plus some other stories in an…
Commissioner James Gordon has existed literally as long as Batman has, having appeared in Detective Comics #27, the first appearance of Batman. Over the years, he has changed and evolved as many comic characters have. Originally mostly a deskbound civil servant who was just here to turn on the Bat Signal, Gordon has become an important…
So, Will has been asking for it since about episode 3, and this week, it begins. For our 75th episode, we are covering the year long, weekly series Batman Eternal. But because it’s so long, this isn’t a normal episode. The series was collected in three trades, so we’re covering it as three stories in…