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August 24, 2006
Batman 656: Fighting Man-Bats in a Pop-Art Museum
We haven't posted on here for a bit--slackers, all three of us. There's a lot of great comics out this week: Justice League of America 1, Wonder Woman 2, Astonishing X-Men 16, etc. The one that stands is Batman 656 by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert, part 2 of "Man-Bats Of London". Morrison's recent interview on Newsarama revealed that he is trying to channel "the Neal Adams-esque, hairy-chested love god Batman". In this issue, he certainly succeeds. We see Bruce Wayne trying to woo the Jezebel Jet, who is the Prime Minister of an African nation, but also happens to be a supermodel. Wayne's thwarted by the arrival of "Man-Bats. Ninja Man-Bats. Alarming Twist." After a quick change into the caped crusader, the fight is played out within this museum hosting a Pop-Art exhibition. It's an ingenious twist on the standard superhero fight, having these paintings with the sound effects in the background as Batman takes out the Man-Bats (who carry Shuriken stars and Samarai swords). There are a few James Bond quips throughout the issue, too. Andy Kubert draws this story with a cinematic widescreen flair--Morrison molded this script to his particular talents. What a great time this is, to have Morrison writing both Superman and Batman. Nuff said.
External Link:
Grant Morrison Talks Batman at Newsarama
