- Written by Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV & Genevieve Valentine
- Pencils by Alvaro Martinez Bueno & Scot Eaton
- Inks by Wayne Gaucher & Raul Fernandez
- Cover by Francis Manapul & Dan Panosian
Batman comes face to face with Mother. Can Grayson, Bluebird and Cassandra Cain fight their way out of the Prague ballet?!
Pickup your copy of ‘Batman & Robin Eternal’ #8 at Comixology now!
Picking up right where we left off last week ‘Batman & Robin Eternal’ #8 follows the story of Dick Grayson’s present day encounter with Mother whilst her hypnotised army attempts to put a stop to the Bat-family investigation. Also in the present Red Hood and Red Robin continue their investigations in Gamorra whilst Bruce, in the past, has his own encounter with Mother.
‘Eternal’ #8 serves as a second half to the story which began in the previous issue (reviewed here) almost as if the two were really one bumper issue which was forced to be split in two. Act one (issue #7) was very much the setup whilst issue #8 acts as the pay off.
Lets get the B stories out of the way first: Bruce features only briefly in this issue. Following on from last week he has arranged a meeting with Mother and meets to discuss his interest in engaging her services. It’s typical subversive Bruce at this best but his appearance is all too short.
The Gamorra story continues to be a slow burn but given that they are the cover stars next week they are about to become the focus of ‘Eternal’ in the coming weeks. They two work well together as characters, both have the honour of being a post-Grayson Robin but their lives reflect very different paths in which the life of a sidekick to Batman can take. There’s some comedy to their relationship but also a very palpable brotherly bond.
Back in the A story there’s a balance being fought between Harper and Cain in the auditorium defending themselves from hordes of Mother brainwashes soldiers with Grayson and Mother behind the scenes. The fight is loud, brash and everything we would expect when a trained assassin takes on the brainwashed masses whilst the Grayson/Mother scenes are bathed in dark blue hues and evoke some of the Bond-esque spy nature of the ‘Grayson’ comic series.
I had never expected Mother to give up her plan this early in the series so it’s no surprise that this conversation is more about trying to subvert Dick’s feelings for Bruce and undermine his reasons to follow his teachings.
Presumably this series of ‘Eternal’ will culminate in some kind of return for Bruce to the cowl, we left him in a place where his ethics had very much separated him from his supporting cast (bar Alfred) so any knife that Mother can put in the hearts of these already weary Bat-family members will only cause more friction should Bruce regain his memory.
Harper and Cassandra Cain could very well be being setup for their own female fronted dynamic duo series given the time that is being spent on pairing the two off and showing the chemistry that they have. I have little need to see more of Bluebird as she hasn’t yet proven her with to the team but Cain’s Batgirl was a brilliant addition to the Bat-family back in the days of the ‘No Man’s Land’ stories and beyond so it would be great to see her in a Bat-symbol costume once more.
The story plotting continues to be the standout of ‘Batman & Robin Eternal’ again mixing three storylines without entering filler territory. The stories are all continuing to advance well without feeling forced and are slowly, perhaps a little too slowly, making this series one that I am more and more eager to read as soon as it is released.
4 stars
