Re-introduce yourself to some familiar elements from the TV series in chapter 2 of ‘The Riddler’s Ruse’
Cover by Mike Allred
Written by Jeff Parker
Art & Coloured by Jonathan Case
Purchase your digital copy @ Comixology now
Beware of spoilers!
Following on from last weeks successful first entry in to the new digital first Batman comic series Batman and Robin return to continue chasing after the Riddler.
This week we get a first glimpse at several familiar aspects from the original TV series: the bust of William Shakespeare; the Bat-poles, the Batcave, Alfred and Catwoman (the Julie Newmar incarnation) to name but a few. Although my favourite is possibly the sight of Batman and Robin climbing up the side of a building for the first time.
In some respects this may seem like quite a long list but what this comic does so well in echoing the TV series is to pack in all the elements that we expected to see on a weekly basis.
Jeff Parker crams in all the elements of a classic episode of Batman but broadens the universe in a way which might be unexpected to some – this issue features two villains but not in the classic season 3 Batman team-up fashion.
I mentioned in my previous review that it would be interesting to add some continuity to this universe. As this story follows on directly we are yet to have a break between stories but my interest would be further piqued if the Meow-Wow-Wow club were to feature again in a later Catwoman escapade.
The quality of the art and dialogue is a continuation of the previous chapter; the characters remain recognisable as themselves and Catwoman strongly echoes her TV counterpart. One thing of note about the art is that the actors who portrayed the villains seem to be depicted much stronger than West and Ward. The Alfred of this book is not recognisable to me as Alan Napier at all.
The DC² features continue to integrate well with the story and I hope this continues through the series run.
Overall a strong continuation to the series; next week is the conclusion to the Riddler arc so it will be interesting to see how this transitions in to the Penguin/Mr. Freeze arc which is to follow.
6/10
