The Suicide Squad may have picked Bruce Wayne as its defenseless target, but as we all know, Bruce Wayne is anything but defenseless.
Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang and Deadshot learn that the hard way in this issue, as Batman and the team of super villains go toe-to-toe in an action filled issue.
The trio use all the tools at their disposal to take out the Bat but to no avail, but there are a number of cool moments regardless. One highlight is Captain Boomerang realizing how perfectly constructed Batman's batarangs are before using them against the Caped Crusader to bloody effect. Harley Quinn goes crazy with her baseball bat and Deadshot, well, Deadshot kind of gets his butt handed to him without much of a fight.
A plot twist towards the end of the issue is a welcome surprise, as is the death of a character few will see coming. Since this is the Arkham universe, we can assume the character will be down for good, though why exactly they had to die still isn't completely clear.
It's just a shame such a great confrontation is bogged down with so many inconsistencies. For starters are Ig Guara's pencils. Guara has contributed to the book before and for the most part his work is solid, but for whatever reason he cannot seem to get Harley's face right. Throughout the issue her facial expressions just seem off in a way that isn't apparent in other characters. With so many close ups of her character as she fights the Dark Knight, her odd facial structure comes off as distracting.
Writer Peter Tomasi also shares some of the blame. If you've followed this series you know he likes to write Batman with a bit of humor and absolutely zero sympathy for the criminals he beats into a pulp. That generally works fine, but here one line from Batman to Harley Quinn simply feels out of character, even more so if you consider the stoic, always righteous Batman depicted in Rocksteady's Arkham game series on which this prequel is based on.
This issue could have been one of the best yet, but instead suffers from a few problems on both sides of the creative equation that keep it from reaching its full potential. With one issue left in this Suicide Squad arc, here is to hoping it ends on a high note.
Story
★★★☆☆
Art
★★★☆☆
Overall
★★★☆☆
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Batman #42
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