Batman Inc. #11

The Team

Writer: Chris Burnham Artist: Jorge Lucas

Before reading this issue readers need to completely adjust their expectations. Writer Grant Morrison is taking a one issue break from the series as he readies the conclusion in the next two issues. Series regular Chris Burnham switches from pencilling to writing here as well. The focus strays away from Batman as well, and references The Super Young Team established in Final Crisis. We are also given a peek at the Batman Of Japan who we have not seen since the last volume of Batman Incorporated. This is a curious place to position a fill-in issue as the series is literally 44 pages away from the conclusion of an epic comic book run. In order for the average Batman Incorporated reader to receive any enjoyment from this issue they need to shed their pre-conceived notions on what this series is entirely. Even with the following in mind the opening pages are a jarring transition, due to the fact that these people have barely been seen since the first volume of the title. Many readers will likely have no idea who these people are going into this issue.

The issue serves as an entertaining over the top Batman Inc. adventure. The Batman Of Japan, or Jiro as Bruce calls him is very silly. His girlfriend, who is a take on The Black Canary is only six inches tall. Together the two of them meet a couple of foul mouthed motorcyclists that work for Leviathan, and the story gets even crazier from there. Jiro is  very wacky in the role of a superhero. His costume has an interesting combination of black and yellow that is very silly and oddly endearing. The phrase oddly endearing can be a mantra for this issue as it is charming but strange. Burnham’s writing is much like his art, with time it could likely drastically improve. The way he throws everything at the wall and sees  what exactly sticks is bold. He has an eccentric mix of a sweet love story and a horrible group of evil biker chicks trying to kill the main character.

The art by Jorge Lucas functions in a similar way to the story as it seems to be an artist learning his craft. The pages with the couple flirting have some incredibly expressive facial work that is lacking from the rest of the issue. Brief moments of greatness often pass by the pencils as the splash page of Jiro in full suit looks incredible, and the next page is somewhat uninspired and dull. The penciller clearly had a great time depicting some of the tigers and sci-fi elements in the back half of the issue as they have massive detail. The cover to this issue by Burnham shows a different side to the artist as he is channeling a cuter storybook feel.

This is a culmination of some valiant effort from Lucas and Burnham. The duo made for an outlandish story and learned something along the way. This issue is unfortunately scheduled in an awkward position around this title. This team should continue to hone their craft and try another shot at Batman soon.