Knight Terrors: Batman #1 is published by DC Comics and written by Joshua Williamson. Artwork is by Guillem March, colours by Tomeu Morey and letters by Troy Peteri. Main cover art (left) is by March and Morey.
Knight Terrors: Batman #1 is available now in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold.
Synopsis
Ever since becoming Batman, Bruce Wayne has been a creature of the night. He transformed himself into a symbol that gave the criminals of Gotham nightmares. But now, trapped in the Nightmare Realm, Bruce is stalked by the horror he’s created! Can he escape before his own nightmares pull him deeper into the darkness?
Review
I’m sure by now you all know me well enough to know which of the Knight Terrors books I would be diving in to first after the event kicked off in the pages of Knight Terrors: First Blood earlier today. Of course it was going to Batman!
Before we even get inside the book can I get a huge round of applause for the cover artists. Each one of the various covers is stunning and more nightmarish than the last. Variant artists Frances Mattina, Puppeteer Lee, Karl Ngu, Dan Mora and Dustin Nguyen have all done incredible jobs here. It’s obvious that Knight Terrors is going to really hit hard when it comes to its design work.
As for the book itself, it went much further than I expected in developing the dream world around Bruce. We drop in to the story as Bruce and – surprisingly – Alfred are working on a way to help the Dark Knight overcome any potential flaw that may allow his enemies to get inside his head. How ironic given the subject matter of the book itself. In typical Bruce fashion his methods are rather extreme and lead to visions of his parents death. An event which was clearly going to be central to this story, if not just because of its homage on the cover.
Is this all part of Insomnia’s plan to get at Bruce? No. This is in fact setting up something important for down the line before jumping in to the nightmare where Bruce now finds himself trapped. The rest of the story finds bruce cognisant of events in the outside world and his trapping in this dream-like state. Unlike other Knight Terrors books where the characters are left to learn the facts, Batman sticks to the character’s strengths and instead focusses on his fight against the darkness.
It all leads to some incredible imagery from Guillem March and Tomey Morey. There’s a beautiful colour palette to parts of the dream world with artist and colourist working together seamlessly to execute Williamson’s well plotted and exciting story. Part of the magic comes from the construct of the story itself. Whilst Insomnia is the one controlling his victim’s dreams, being inside their heads allows for plenty of challenges. With Batman that means confronting him with dead Robins, Selina Kyle decked in her now legendary wedding dress and far more nods to stories and characters past.
It’s clear that due to the nature of the character, Knight Terrors: Batman will certainly be a standout of the event for all the right reasons.
The book also features a backup written by Williamson with art by David Lafuente, colours by Rex Lokus and Troy Peteri once again on letters. This one focusses on Damian, who has his own interesting journey amongst the nightmare world, and lays out a storyline that will be picked up Knight Terrors #3 in a few weeks.
Verdict
Knight Terrors: Batman #1 sets the bar incredibly high for DC’s latest event. A story of classic Joshua Williamson creation, it seamlessly blends together action, character and nightmarish creations to grapple and the reader and refuse to let them go.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
