The Bat-Man: First Knight #2 is written by Dan Jurgens and published by DC’s Black Label imprint. Artwork and main cover (left) are by Mike Perkins, colours are by Mike Spicer and letters by Simon Bowland.
The Bat-Man: First Knight #1 is available from today, in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your digital copy from Amazon Comixology UK right here.
Synopsis
Monster men continue to terrorize Gotham City, but with the body count rising, the GCPD is no closer to solving the mystery behind these seemingly undead assailants, and the Bat-Man and Gordon are the only ones willing to brave the criminal underworld to crack the case. It’s after a near-death brawl saving the mayor from the monster men that the Bat-Man must face a stark reality…are his fists and willpower enough to save Gotham?
Review
DC’s brilliant The Bat-Man is back this week with the second of its three prestige books. After a five-star debut, can the series keep up the momentum as The Bat-Man struggles to uncover the truth behind the terrible Monster men who are terrorising a city which stands on the precipice of collapse against the backdrop of a global conflict.
Three-part stories are an interesting beast. When so many conventional Hollywood stories stick to a three-act structure how to you break a three-part story in to three, three-act chapters? That’s math I don’t feel like doing right now. But Dan Jurgens has certainly done that math and has been able to break The Bat-Man: First Knight in to what is so far two incredibly compelling chunks. Whilst I can’t quite shake off the fact the series will read best in collected form, there’s no arguing against book two as a page turner as this version of Bruce Wayne struggles to reconcile his new identity.
Picking up right where we left off last month, The Bat-Man is currently in the electric chair at Blackgate Prison and facing certain doom. What a striking image to bear witness to on the page as well. It really feels like both Jurgens and artist Mike Perkins are striving to bring a new level of depth and gravitas to the classic black and white Batman film serials of the 1940s. It’s modern storytelling at its finest, distilled through a period lens.
Making his grand escape from Blackgate gives Bat-Man much needed time to recover. But also allows Jurgens to explore the inner workings on this pre-World War II Gotham. Through much of book two we explore Jim Gordon’s experience of the world around him. The corruption, the animosity and perhaps more importantly the apathy. Jurgens world-building is unparalleled in its ability to create a bleak landscape for The Dark Knight to inhabit.
Book two also picks up on one of the more interesting changes to the mythology of the character. His loneliness and isolation. We glimpsed aspects of this in book one, learning that Alfred is no longer around in this world and that Bruce lives entirely alone. Though the beginnings of relationship with Gordon as beginning to cement themselves, Bruce spends much of this book relying on others in order to stay afloat around his late night shenanigans.
Jurgens is able to tap in to a vulnerability in Bruce that we’re not often afforded the chance to see. Typically he’s able to call on Alfred (or any member of the Bat-Family) whenever he needs help. In The Bat-Man: First Knight we’re witness him being forced to confront his own isolation and ask for help. To begin with vulnerability comes only begrudgingly, turning to Julie Maddison for help to tend with his wounds. Allowing her in, even briefly and under the pretence of an accident in the home, stirs something in Bruce which later encourages him to seek out Rabbi Jakob Cohen and even – spoiler alert – reveal his identity.
Of course there is plenty of action amongst all of this emotional development. Whilst the dastardly motivations behind the monster men still aren’t fully realised. There’s plenty opportunity for The Bat-Man to do what he does best, investigate and prove why in any incarnation he’s still the World’s Greatest Detective. As with book one, Jurgens is able to delicately balance all of these elements to make The Bat-Man: First Knight an satisfyingly well rounded take on the character.
The Mike’s, aka Perkins (art) and Spicer (colour), keep consistency with book one. The Bat-Man: First Knight is a decidedly visceral take on The Dark Knight. Mostly taking place at night the colour palette is rich with murky greens and blues but is never devoid of life or colour. Perkin’s rendering of Gotham continues to feel downtrodden and reflects the depression era setting. Whilst Spicer’s Bat-Man has brilliant flourishes of colour in both his cape and traditional purples gloves.
The duo give an enthralling sense of low lighting through the shading and colour tones. The above page featuring Jim Gordon is a prime example of how emotive facial expressions are across the book thanks to both artist and colourist working in sync. Fine detail is also impressive, Bruce’s various wounds ooze and feel natural whilst the mysterious Monster men look like they would feel somehow squishy to the touch. Probably not worth taking my life in my hands to find out though…
Verdict
Book two of The Bat-Man: First Knight continues to spin a ferocious story of a Dark Knight trying to find his place in the world.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
