DC Comics 2016
Plot by Steve Orlando & Tom King
Written by Steve Orlando
Illustrated by Riley Rossmo
Coloured by Ivan Plascencia
Lettered by Deron Bennett
Night of the Monster Men Part 1.
I’m not ashamed to admit i’m not a big Batman fan i’ve always been a fan of Dick Grayson thought, I discovered him when I was thirteen after all and could identify with him more. So when that this is the first part of a crossover and the fact that I do enjoy Riley’s work a lot I had to pick it up. I might skipped the entire crossover but i’m reading Detective which is the third series in this crossover. So by limiting it to three of the Bat books i’m okay with picking up an extra one.
Batman has a plethora of unused and forgotten villains at the writer’s disposal and i’m waiting for one of these three series to bring someone back and make them a legitimate threat, much like the Calculator was made. The villain here however I haven’t seen in awhile and god knows I have never seen him the way Riley introduced us to him this issue, swoons at the sheer amount of nudity and muscles. For the first crossover event in Rebirth he’s definitely fulfilling a new gap and a new role.
The concept and then execution of this story is amazingly well done. It reminds me completely of the old House of Horror or any of those “horror” comics DC used to do back in the day. The boys however have updated that concept and turned into some mixture that incorporates the Island of Dr. Moreau and the Strain. Also that it’s hot on the heels of what just happened in Detective makes it even more impressive when we see that first strike force team being called upon to be a part of this story.
Huge accolades need to go out to Riley here for his work on this book. The page layouts use of panels, angles, perspective, backgrounds and the sheer use of imagination and creativity in bringing this to life is utterly amazing. The way he can bring this all to life with Ivan’s ability to colour it really makes this have that impact that’s needed to turn this from a simple crossover into a must read event. The emotion and feelings you get from them here really makes me think twice about adding Batman to my reading list.
Now i’ve mentioned that the Detective team is in this but to see those who are in the Cave and seeing the kind of network Batman has created around him is wonderful. Yes he’s still the James Bond of superheroes and it even has some elements that remind you he’s the world’s greatest detective, which need more focus in my opinion, but the overall effect of seeing flesh out his supporting cast and to use their strengths the way we see here is great.
How Steve brings us this introduction to the crossover is superbly done. The city of Gotham used as a character, the way Bruce’s mind works, the Monster Men themselves and the choice of villain all leave you with this incredible feeling of greatness is in your hands.