I have been waiting for Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1 since the very end of Final Crisis #7. Tony Daniel’s run on Batman has been pedestrian at best. Grant Morrison’s Batman and Robin has been disappointing. I love Dick Grayson’s character and found Peter Tomasi’s Nightwing to be a phenomenal read. However, I have zero interest in watching Dick try and play Batman. Hopefully, Morrison has a good tale in store for us with the Return of Bruce Wayne. Let’s hit this review for Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1.
Creative Team
Writer: Grant Morrison
Pencils: Chris Sprouse
Inks: Karl Story
Colors: Guy Major
Art Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Story Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Synopsis: We begin with a bunch of cavemen from the Deer Tribe investigating a rocket ship that has crashed into the rock near the ocean. The cavemen wonder if the rocket is holy. If it is a part of the sky that broke off and fell to the ground.
One of the cavemen notices tracks in the ground next to the rocket. They wonder if the tracks belong to one of the “Shining Ones.” One of the cavemen says that if the Shining Ones come again then it is the “All-Over.”
The cavemen notice a cave nearby. One of the cavemen throws a rock into the cave. A bunch of bats fly out of the cave. We see Bruce Wayne step out of the cave. Bruce Wayne sounds funny when he talks. (Maybe the fact that Bruce is speaking a different language than the cavemen?)
One of the cavemen introduces himself as “Man” son of the “Old Man” and the youngest caveman is “Boy” the grandson of Old Man who is learning to be a Young Man. The third caveman is called Joker.
Batman says that he is sorry. The three cavemen enter the cave and see that the Old Man (Anthro) has passed away. Bruce, holding his utility belt, walks over to the rocket ship and pulls out Superman’s cape. Bruce walks back to the cave.
We cut to that night with the cavemen having buried Anthro. The cavemen decide to call Bruce, Man of Bats. They mention how oddly Bruce talks. We see that Boy is wearing Bruce’s utility belt around his neck. Bruce starts tearing into some food. Joker says that Man of Bats eats like a man. Joker says that he thinks Man of Bats is a man and is from the other side of the ocean.
Suddenly, the cavemen from the Blood Mob attack. The leader of the Blood Mob is Vandal Savage. Bruce grabs Boy and hides him. Man and Joker get killed by the Blood Mob.
Bruce starts brawling with Savage. Several other cavemen hold down Bruce while Savage gets a large rock and knocks out Bruce. Savage calls Bruce “Man-God.”
Savage yells that a sky cart brought the “Bright Ones.” Savage yells that he brings gifts for his people from the forbidden land. Savage says that he defeated the Man-God just like Savage defeated the large Bat Beast. We see a giant bat head and coat hanging on a stick nearby.
The Blood Mob cavemen lift up the rocket ship to take it with them. Savage says that they will wait for the sun or rise before he eats Bruce alive. Savage yells that he will make the Blood People the strongest of all. Savage commands for Bruce to suffer until the sun rises.
Savage says that the “Sky-Man’s” wounds will make him weak by the time the sun rises. Savage says that he prefers to have an advantage over the Sky-Man. Once they kill the Sky-Man then Savage will lead his people on a war against the Deer People. We see the Blood Mob nailing stakes into the ground and tying Bruce up to the stakes.
Bruce stares up at the head and pelt of the Bat Beast. Bruce slips unconscious as we see the Bat Beast transform into a flying bat. We see skeletons. Bruce hears the words “superstition” “terror” “terrible” “bat” “disguise” “man.”
Suddenly, Boy appears with a domino mask on and wearing Bruce’s utility belt and carrying a shield with a bat symbol on it and a sword. Boy frees Bruce. Boy then hands Bruce his utility belt.
Bruce takes out a bottle of penicillin from his utility belt. Boy then says that they have to leave now.
We cut to the morning with Savage waking up and seeing that Bruce has escaped. Savage screams for Bruce to show himself. Suddenly, Bruce leaps onto the scene. Bruce is wearing the pelt of the Bat Beast. Batman starts brawling with Savage. Batman uses various weapons from his utility belt to gain an advantage on Savage.
Boy then attacks the other cavemen. Boy says that the Blood Mob is not facing the Deer People anymore. That they are now the Bat People.
Savage then grabs a spear and faces off against Batman. Batman whips out his grappling hook and shoots it through Savage’s chest. Batman retracts the cable which pulls Savage toward him. Batman then punches Savage in the face. Savage hits the ground unconscious as Batman stands over him.
Suddenly, the sky turns red. The sun gets blacked out. Boy comments that Savage has angered the sun.
Batman hands Boy Anthro’s beaded necklace. Boy asks if Batman is scared. Batman says nothing and turns and walks away.
The remaining Mob members then collect themselves and start shooting arrows at Batman and Boy. Batman and Boy then jump off the cliff into the water.
We see Boy swimming to shore. Boy sits on the shore and stares at the water.
We cut back to the Blood Mob yelling at Savage that he made the sun go away. The Blood Mob tells Savage to leave and to never come back. Savage curses the Blood Mob and then leaves.
Suddenly, we see a time sphere appear on the scene with Superman, Booster Gold and Hal Jordan next to the time sphere. Superman comments that they just missed Bruce. Hal says that Bruce has no memory of who he is or what happened to him. Booster says that not even Bruce has a chance to survive this. Superman disagrees and points out that Bruce can survive anywhere and in anytime. That surviving is what Bruce does.
But, Superman says that if Batman survives this and does the impossible again and makes his way back to the 21st Century on his own then everyone dies.
We cut to Bruce in the water. Suddenly, a woman appears and pulls Bruce out of the water. Bruce has time jumped while he was in the water. Bruce is now in the Puritanical Era of America. Bruce asks where the boy is. The woman responds “Master Demon. Whatever you are. What horse is this you rode in on?”
We see a giant squid-like creature rising out of the water. We see a body of a Puritan floating face down in the water. Bruce stands there holding a sword. End of issue.
Comments
The Good: Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 was a solid start to this six issue mini-series. This issue was certainly a much more muted and tame beginning to this tale than I was expecting from Morrison. For the most part, Morrison plays it straight and delivers a rather linear and easy to read issue.
This is certainly not as byzantine and surreal as some of Morrison’s prior stories on Batman. Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 is fairly new reader friendly. The reader needs not know anything other than Darkseid zapped Batman with his Omega beams that sent Batman tumbling through time without his memories.
Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 was a well paced read. Morrison gets this story off with a quick start. I like the fact that we will be getting Batman in a different time period with each issue. This gives each issue a nice condensed story to tell for the specific era that the issue focuses on while still dealing with the much larger overall story of Bruce’s return and its impact on the DCU that will also be covered over in Time Masters: Vanishing Point.
Morrison gives the reader a nicely balanced issue. There is plenty of drama as well as action packed into this issue. The story has a nice flow and the scenes pleasantly transition into each other.
Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 is a well plotted issue. Morrison has a clear direction in mind with this story. Morrison has been planning this story for quite some time. I fully expect Morrison to pay attention to the details and deliver a story that keeps moving with a purpose.
Morrison crafts plenty of fine dialogue. I like the fact that Batman sounds odd to the cavemen in this issue. Yes, it made for some difficult reading at times, but it never took me out of the story. I thought it was a creative way to show that there was a language gap between Bruce and the cavemen. Also, reading Bruce’s dialogue from the perspective of the cavemen helped to give the reader a good sense of how strange Bruce appears to the cavemen.
The action was well choreographed. It was great to finally see Bruce Wayne in action again. I like Dick Grayson’s character just fine, but there is simply nobody better than the man himself. The final fight between Savage and Bruce was appropriately violent and brutal.
Morrison continues to play with themes from his run on Batman and on Final Crisis here in Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1. The Deer People refer to the “All-Over” which I guess could be referring to Final Crisis itself. We also get red skies just like we had over in Final Crisis. We also see the rocket ship time capsule packed with various mementos that we saw at the end of Final Crisis #7.
Of course, Anthro is Old Man. Final Crisis #7 ended with Anthro and Batman making cave drawings. Anthro was created by Howard Post and first appeared in Showcase #74 in 1968. Anthro is the very first Cro-Magnon boy born in the Stone Age. In the DCU, Anthro is the official beginning of the human race.
In Final Crisis #1, Metron appears and gives Anthro the knowledge and ability to create fire. Anthro then uses this new found gift of fire to fend off an attack from the Blood Tribe. Morrison does change the name of Anthro’s tribe from the Bear Tribe to the Deer tribe. This was probably done to emphasize the more gentle and peaceful nature of Anthro’s tribe compared to Vandal Savage’s Blood Tribe.
I dig how Morrison has Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 starts exactly where Final Crisis #7 ended. This seamless transition from Final Crisis #7 to Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 is appreciated as the reader does not miss out on any part of the story at all. This should also make this story read better when collected and read in conjunction with Final Crisis.
Morrison continues playing with the theme from Batman and Final Crisis that super heroes are simply modern gods and that comic books are a new mythology. Morrison’s entire run on Batman has focused on examining and reconstructing the Batman mythos extending all the way back to the Golden Age. In this issue, Morrison takes it even further and inserts the beginning of the Batman mythos at the dawn of time.
This ingraining of the Batman mythos into the history of the DCU makes Batman even more god-like. The term Man-God that the cavemen use to describe Batman is consistent with how Morrison has viewed Batman as the very pinnacle of human achievement. Morrison views the Batman mythos as a visceral and elemental force which is much different than what you see in the mythos for the other characters in the DCU.
Of course, I love the delightful twist is that Bruce himself lays the foundation for what will become his own mythology as a Man-God. Who else would actually be the source for their own mythology other than the Batman? This was perfect.
The cave drawings re-enforce the primitive beginning of the Batman mythos. Morrison has the Deer People become the Bat People in order to show the reader that through different ages people have worshiped the Bat. This will be continued when we meet the Cult of the Bat who worship the bat god Barbados later in this story. That to the people of different eras the Batman is viewed as more of a god than just a man.
Boy renaming the Deer People the Bat People shows how Batman impacts those around him no matter the time period or setting. Even to the people of Gotham, Batman is more of an urban legend than reality. Batman is more of a guardian angel to the innocent and a boogeyman to the evil. The people of Gotham, like the cavemen in this issue, do not view the Batman as just a man. The people of Gotham view Batman as something more mythological and greater than just a mere man.
No matter what the era, Batman taps into the base superstitions of humans. This superstition is manifested in the Bat. This enables Bruce to appear as a god to the people around him. The power of primal symbolism and the power of superstition are two common themes in the Batman mythos. Morrison does a nice job handling both of these themes in this story.
We also see the Boy becoming the first Robin. This continues the trend of the Batman having multiple Robins at various points in time. While the Batman is Bruce Wayne, Robin is much more of a transitory mantle that continually gets passed from generation to generation.
I also liked the imagery of Bruce handing Boy Anthro’s beaded necklace. It cannot be a mere coincidence that Anthro’s necklace looks similar to Martha Wayne’ pearl necklace that has become an iconic symbol whenever Bruce remembers his parents’ deaths. Anthro’s necklace will serve as a source of inspiration for Boy to rely upon in his role as leader of the Bat People. This mirrors how Bruce’s memory of the pearl necklace being jerked from his mother’s neck is his inspiration to continue his war on crime as the Batman.
My favorite moment was the one page scene where Bruce gets flooded with images of the bat and the various words that he spoke to himself on the night when he decided to take up the mantle of the Batman. This scene showed how even bereft of his memories that being the Batman is essential to the very core of his being. This scene emphasized the almost fanatical nature of Bruce with his obsession with being the Batman that Morrison has played with earlier in his run on Batman.
I loved the selection of Vandal Savage as the villain for this issue. Savage first appeared in Green Lantern Vol. 1 #10 in 1943. Savage was the leader of the Blood Tribe. Morrison’s use of Savage was nicely done. Savage is one of DC’s best villains and placing him in this story was a nice use of continuity. This also adds a delightful and interesting layer to the long feud that Savage has had with the DCU’s heroes.
I enjoyed the scene involving Booster Gold, Superman, Hal Jordan and Rip Hunter searching for Bruce. We learn that Bruce does not have any of his memories. We also learn that if Bruce finds his own way back to the present then everyone dies. This was a cool plot twist. I am sure we will learn much more about this plot wrinkle over in the Time Masters: Vanishing Point mini-series that is going to tie-into The Return of Bruce Wayne.
Morrison ends Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1 with a solid hook ending. We see Bruce in America circa 1765. This is the era of Mordecai Wayne. I liked the Lovecraftian styled monster that attacks Bruce in the final page. This ending did enough to get the reader to want to come back for more of Bruce’s journey through time.
Chris Sprouse and Karl Story provide for some solid artwork, but it is certainly nothing special. The pencils looked a bit rough in certain panels. The colors were muted and dull. Overall, the artwork lacked any pop that make it leap off the page and entertain the reader.
The Bad: Many readers are not going to feel that we need six issues in order to return Bruce Wayne back to the present day DCU. Personally, the fun is in the journey and getting to see Batman in different time periods. However, many readers will have limited interest in this journey. For those readers who just want Bruce back in an economy of issues and are not that interested in seeing Bruce’s journey through time might want to either skip this title or try it in trade. To be sure, Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne will probably read better in trade format than it will in single issue format.
Now, while I thought the plot twist involving Booster Gold, Green Lantern, Superman and Rip Hunter was interesting, I have to admit that I have reservations about tying the story of the Return of Bruce Wayne to another event. I simply do not think that it was necessary for DC to tie Return of Bruce Wayne into the Time Masters: Vanishing Point mini-series.
I believe that Morrison had enough of a story on his own to make Return of Bruce Wayne an entertaining enough of a read without adding more to it. Sometimes less is more and tying titles together into a large event is not always the best path to take. Sometimes a nice self-contained story in just one title is a pleasant experience.
Overall: Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne#1 was a solid beginning to this mini-series. I have to admit that this issue was a much more muted beginning than I was expecting from a writer like Morrison. This issue was not as exciting or mind blowing as I have come to expect from Morrison. Still, this was a good start to this mini-series.
The fact that Morrison played this issue much more straight than Batman RIP was a wise move. Readers who hated the style of writing that Morrison employed in Final Crisis should still give Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1 a try. Morrison employs a much more linear and easier to read style in Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1. It is totally different than what we got over in Final Crisis.