Storyline: Gathered Pieces
Date: August 6, 2008
Price: $2.99
Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Artists: Joe Bennett and cover by Freddie Williams II

Synopsis: A “Batman: R.I.P.” story! The shocking conclusion that will start of the rest of Tim Drake’s life - or is it the end? With Batman missing, Robin becomes the new Dark Knight. It’s Robin and Spoiler in an all-out brawl with Gotham City’s underworld - but with Batman’s trail growing cold, the end of this fight will decide the future of the Bat family!

Opinion: First of all … THANK GOD. This issue makes more sense than any of the “Batman RIP” ones have. Seriously, it’s that helpful. If you’ve been confused as hell like most of us have and frustrated with what Grant Morrison is doing, then this comic is a great tool to help put things in perspective. Morrison still has a lot of explaining to do with what he’s doing in “Batman RIP,” but Fabian Nicieza is apologizing for him—and showing us some mercy.

Skip through the jump for a run-down of the comic.

Whew! This comic was NICE. Unlike most of the “RIP” tie-ins (sans Detective), this comic isn’t messy at all. Sure, “Batman RIP” overall is still confusing, but at least we get some continuity here. So let’s dive in!

It starts where the flashbacks from the previous Robin issue left off. Robin and Nightwing are in Hong Kong—where they’ve tracked down Intergang, who are supplying a gang called the Golden Dragons with advanced weaponry—and it’s now the 36^th day of Bruce’s “rebirth” in a cave at the temple of Nanda Parbat in Nepal.

One of the things that is so great about this issue is that at the same time it’s telling the “RIP” story from Robin’s (and Spoiler’s) view, it’s catching you up on everything that’s happened up to this point: tying plot threads together to make better sense of the entire story arc/crossover. This is done through a lot of narration, but it pays off and we still have some good dialogue happening in the present. Now if only Morrison could pull this off …

In Hong Kong, we get the revamp of Robin’s suit: from the red, yellow, and green old version to the new red, yellow, and black one today that’s so awesome. Why is this important? Well, it’s subtle, but I’m wondering if Tim Drake’s self-designed diamond mask—with a built-in voice command self-destruct feature—has anything to do with Nightwing being captive in Arkham Asylum in the previous Batman issue (I haven’t read the new one, #679, yet, but I’ll be reviewing it soon). Lately the continuity with the main title and then the “RIP” tie-ins has been a mess, but Robin #176 is the glue that’s endeavoring to pull everything together—quite possibly saving both the reader and “Batman RIP.” Am I exaggerating? I don’t think so. Anyway, at the end of Batman #678 Nightwing was in Arkham, and we saw his mask in focus. So, as I said, I’m wondering whether the note about Robin’s upgraded diamond mask here has anything to do with that.

“Shut up,” Tim tells Dick, who is teasing him about the mask. “This will work! You’ll see!” Is it safe to assume … point taken? I guess we’ll find out!

In the present, we see Spoiler (Stephanie Brown) tagging along with Robin, who’s determined to find some proof of Batman’s questionable sanity. She’s incredulous about Robin’s idea. It’s interesting to note Tim’s change from the person he was in the flashbacks to the Robin he is now. With the new suit design, which allows him to be more intimidating—well, as Spoiler mentions to Robin, “You have been working on the tough.”

Anyway, the narration recaps why Nightwing and Robin were in Hong Kong and why Bruce went into that cave for seven weeks in the first place.

Now, Robin and Spoiler are beating up the Golden Dragons—who have gone international—in Gotham because he received a phone call from them bragging that they had a picture of Batman “going crazy.” It becomes obvious right off the bat (excuse the expression) that Spoiler is hiding something, and in this issue we find out why (and what) she’s been holding out on Robin.

Meanwhile, at the Gotham City Police Department, Robin meets up with Officer Harper for a status update. In the last Robin comic, he asked her to compare the information in Batman’s black case book to files in Gordon’s office and see if they matched up. Just as Tim thought, what Batman wrote in the case book doesn’t match the files; he gets the proof he needs about Batman’s state of mind.

Bruce finally emerges from the cave in Robin’s flashback, and in the present Robin looks back at that in retrospect, quickly naming some of the major things that have happened since then, which is helpful.

Interestingly, we see a villain in this issue that was masked in the shadows at the end of the latest Nightwing comic: RPG launcher-wielding Swagman, a member of the Club of Villains, the group responsible for the Black Glove and what’s happening to Bruce. Tim comments, “He’s been chasing me all night. Obviously, the Club is making their move. That could be why Nightwing didn’t make our meeting. He could be in trouble.”

From what I gather, the events of the Nightwing “RIP” satellites are taking place before the Robin “RIP” satellites, and what’s happening in the Batman title seems to connect between the two. Or something like that.

Overall, I’d say this issue is a definite must-read for the “RIP” series. It’ll help sort things out for you, trust me. The last Robin comic didn’t deliver—in fact, in was confusing as hell (and rightly called “Scattered Pieces”)—but writer Fabian Nicieza really steps it up in this new comic, giving us a much-needed perspective on “RIP.”

Note: By the way, the writer/artist info on the last Robin review was wrong. I got the names off of the DC website when I should have taken it from the comic itself, and the information wasn’t updated on the site. Sorry about this! I’m fixing it as you read this.

See you next week!

// Remember! You do not have to register in order to post comments!

// Subscribe //

Rate This Issue:

(1 votes, average: 4 out of 5)

 Loading ...