Good for Winick. Even though this issue of Batwing is a letdown–it’s too action oriented, not to mention all the outdoor daytime scenes means no interesting backgrounds from Oliver–it’s just a weak issue of a decent series. Opening the comic with one of the series’s most serious looks at African teenage soldiers probably helps it immediately resonate.
But the opening flashback makes promises of a revelation Winick never delivers on. He shows his b plot hand and then turns in an action issue. When established comics “decompress” it’s sometimes more acceptable because the ground situation is so well established (by years of comic books).
With Batwing, the only connection is Batman… and not even established Batman, just the Batman Inc. stuff.
I’m assuming it’s unintentional–a weak issue showing how solid the series has become otherwise–but it’d be funny if it weren’t. If Winick planned it out.
CREDITS
We Have Blood on Our Hands; writer, Judd Winick; artist, Ben Oliver; colorist, Brian Reber; letterer, Carlos M. Mangual; editors, Rickey Purdin and Mike Marts; publisher, DC Comics.
Perhaps that’s the crutch of this artist. The overall feel of the book is just too sluggy…when I seem to feel lots of dynamic tension related in the writing, the art just seems like the out of focus, slows it down and takes away some of the immediacy of what Winnick’s trying to convey. The lead is somewhat interesting though, and the out of comfort realm of Africa should keep it fresh for a few issues, anyway.