Broken Frontier

The mystery of the Black Glove deepens, as does the relationship between Jet and Bruce. With the Batman’s world tumbling down around him, deep dark secrets from the past surface and threaten the Dark Knight’s sanity.

Grant Morrison was a busy man this week. With the first issue of Final Crisis, the penultimate chapter of All-Star Superman, and this second part to his climatic "RIP" storyline all hitting the shelves. Most writers would be satisfied with one good comic a month, Grant decides we need three great books in one week.

The maniacal gears in his brain turn so fast that it can be hard to keep up. Several times since he has taken over this flagship of DC publishing, I have found myself needing to reread the whole epic for important details. These minute clues may necessitate my redipping, but the excitement of the story allows me to relish the process.

As always with this book, this issue references almost all that has come before it. However, Morrison goes even further as a breaking news story threatens all that we have held certain about the Gotham Vigilante’s past. To even suggest what Morrison writes in this issue is pretty much geekdom heresy, but it lends a vitality to the book that has been absent since Frank Miller reorchestrated the Caped Crusader’s origin. Things are dangerous for Bruce Wayne again and the change in the charged air of the book is palatable.

Daniel has grown by leaps and bounds with just about every issue. Where I thought his style was jarring in its lightness when he took over the reigns of the book, he is now as dark and gritty with his art as Morrison is with his words and ideas. Daniel matches the frantic pace of the story with an epic feel to his panels - the art adds to the urgency that this very undecompressed tale brings to the reader. He easily handles all that is going on and compliments the script while helping to add to the details that might be lost in the leaps of the narrative. With little flourishes like the Robinmobile along the way, it makes for a very entertaining book.

Together Daniel and Morrison are meeting to create one of those legendary comic runs where everything is perfect. You know, like Stan Lee and Jack Kirby or Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean or Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra. It is exciting to watch this saga unfold and worth the time & effort to reread to catch all the nuances. It makes this reader feel like a kid again. Rushing home from school to give that favorite new comic another go, not wanting to miss out on a single clue or portion of story while waiting with baited breath for that next issue.