“City of Bane” continues! The last of the independent villains are on the run, leaving Gotham City entirely to Bane and his cronies—including Flashpoint Batman and Gotham Girl! Though this means a semblance of peace on the streets, the iron grip of …
“City of Bane” continues! The last of the independent villains are on the run, leaving Gotham City entirely to Bane and his cronies—including Flashpoint Batman and Gotham Girl! Though this means a semblance of peace on the streets, the iron grip of tyranny is squeezing all life out of Gotham. And with Bane’s machinations keeping other heroes out, the city really needs the Batman to return. Is Bruce Wayne ready to face his toughest foes yet…his father and the man who broke his back?
This week Bane kills Alfred in Batman #77. This should have been expected. Alfred was being held prisoner by Flashpoint Batman on Bane’s behalf and it’s explicitly stated that if Batman or any of his family enter Gotham Alfred would be executed. Damian Wayne enters Gotham to confront Thomas Wayne this issue. This death isn’t surprising in the least. What is surprising it how it made me feel.
I honestly didn’t care much. It doesn’t feel important. And much of that is on Tom King and DC Comics for including it in the end of a year plus of porous Batman stories. Honestly if Alfred needs to die to get Tom King off Batman even faster than issue 85 it’s a sacrifice worth making in my opinion. Of course that’s not going to happen but Batman has been a series of incoherent, terribly executed stories highlighted by amateur dialogue and pretentious writing tropes for far too long. There’s nothing King or anyone at DC Comics can do to change that now. Killing Alfred, Bruce Wayne’s moral compass, father figure and the second most important character in Batman lore after Batman himself, adds no weight to King’s ‘City of Bane’ story or his entire Batman run period.
The art in Batman continues to be exceptional. I was a bit nervous seeing Mikel Janin as a credited artist next Tony Daniels this issue but it works fine. Tony Daniels work on Batman continues to impress during his recent issues on the series. The man knows how to frame and execute stories perfectly. There is a tremendous amount of dyna..
