STORY: Tony Daniel
ART: Tony Daniel & Sandu Florea
COVER: Tony Daniel
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE DATE: Wed., May 20, 200

Say Whaaaat?! 

I'm picking a "Battle for the Cowl" book?  Why, that just don't make no sense.  Trust me, I'm shocked. 

Third week in a row that even I can't believe what I'm doing up here behind this microphone.  But this is just what the doctor ordered for "Battle."  Finally, we get to see some of the real nitty gritty behind what's going on in this post-Batman Gotham City.  Not just melodramatic, inactive busyness about the passing of the mantle, but some real, tried and true superhero fighting!  In a cave, on a boat, on a train, with green eggs and ham.  This is what I wished the last two issues of this mini had been.  Daniel is finally exploring the emotional states of his characters and how that affects their decisions through their actions rather than their words.  And when you're writing superheroes, this means action!

The same goes for the world of Gotham city, which is very much (or at least should very much have been) a character in this story.  News crews are out on the streets interviewing Batman experts; Two Face is doing what he does best throwing informants into shark infested waters; even Damian is given some real, honest to goodness home-grown drama with Squire.  He makes his foolhardy decisions to not be shown up by a girl.  

Of course I couldn't review this book without tipping my hat to the wonderful final conflict between Nightwing and Jason Todd (Anti-Batman, as my illustrious partner, Adam C., says).  All in all, their final showdown was wrought with baggage from the past, pleas for redemption, antipathy, comradery, poison, rope-swinging, hard kicking, and a moving train.  A moving train fight.  That's what I'm talking about, Mr. Daniel!  This issue is as sharp and concise as it is deep and eventful.  Awesome.

If only the  past two issues were as gripping.  All things being equal, I think this will tie the story together very well, but I stand by my assertion that you could read this single issue as a stand alone book without missing much.  In other words...

Pick it up!

See you in the Future,

AS