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In Batman & Robin #9, Shush is revealed, and Robin must save Batman from the clutches of Man-Bat.
Title: Batman & Robin #9 – “Cool Kids Table”Writer: Joshua WilliamsonArtist: Nikola Čižmešija; Simone Di MeoColor Artist: Rex Lokus; Giovanna NeroCover Artist: Simone Di MeoVariant Cover Artists: Gleb Melnikov & Howard Porter, Erica Henderson, Ivan TaoRelease Date: May 14, 2024
This comic book review contains spoilers
Man-Bat is taunting a trussed-up Batman in the Man-Batcave. They argue about Man-Bat’s past and his current experiments.
At Gotham City High School, Damian and Nika bond over mutual skepticism of the cafeteria food. They plan to get close to Principal Stone via detention and brush off Ms. Hall’s attempts to speak with Damian. They earn detention by starting a food fight. There, Damian goads Principal Stone, who eventually can take no more and reveals herself as Mistress Harsh. She directs the soccer team to assault Damian and Nika, who summarily dispose of the bullies.
She then points a firearm at one of the defeated students, only to be stunned into unconsciousness from behind by Ms. Hall. Ms. Hall taunts then threatens the remaining students, who rush out. Damian attacks the person he now knows is Shush. She defends, and they break apart to talk.
Hall explains that her true identity is in fact a high school teacher. She became Shush after training as a physician under Thomas Elliott (Hush). Batman’s apprehension of Hush ruined Hall’s career, resulting in her termination and the revocation of her medical license. She became a teacher but remained unhappy and was seduced by Man-Bat’s rhetoric. Hall explains the rest quickly, including Batman’s current state. Damian is enraged and is ready to fight, but Hall collapses. Man-Bat injured her during her escape from the Man-Batcave.
Hall hands Damian a guide to track Batman but warns him that he’ll have to decipher the map that Batman couldn’t read. Nika tells him that she will handle Hall and Principal Stone and that he should go. Damian does and finds the map. He interprets it quickly and takes off.
Across the rooftops, he reveals the pattern: bat flight movements in Gotham, suggesting that Man-Bat plans to use bats to distribute something across the city. He arrives at the origin point and engages Man-Bat, who has some kind of chemical he plans to disperse across Gotham. Man-Bat releases his bats, and they fly out of the Man-Batcave as Robin and Batman look on.
Batman & Robin #9 by Joshua Williamson, Nikola Čižmešija, Simone Di Meo, Rex Lokus, and Giovanna Nero. (Images courtesy of DC Comics)
Batman & Robin #9 continues writer Joshua Williamson’s energetic, enjoyable arc. The strengths of this book are consistent. For example, both major and minor characters are written well. Although we do not get much of Batman in this issue, Damian is represented here as a complex, layered individual for whom you cheer. He is not above his adolescent struggles (who among us is?), but he is nevertheless mature, focused, and fearless. What more would you expect from Batman and Talia al Ghul’s son? In this issue, Williamson wisely casts Nika in the background, not because she is unworthy of the limelight, but because the energy here is intentionally Robin-centric in showing off his detective abilities.
Furthermore, Williamson’s story-telling is refreshingly simple and straightforward. As I’ve said repeatedly in reviewing this book, here we are focused on Batman and Robin. Convoluted plot lines, wild flashbacks, multiversal mayhem, and labyrinthine chronologies do nothing so much as dilute the focus away from the titular characters. This book needs to be character-driven and to accomplish that the writer must essentially stay out of the way and resist the temptation to do too much. Williamson is the rare current TBU writer who seems able to do this and the payoff is considerable.
Unfortunately, DC is continuing their practice of having multiple artists work on the same book. The results are not spectacular, as artists Simone Di Meo and Nikola Čižmešija have distinct styles that do not mesh easily; it is quite obvious which artist is drawing which page, and even gimmicks such as flashbacks and dream sequences can only be used on occasion to account for the discordance. I am personally loving Di Meo’s work on the book and hope that in the near future he will be designated the primary artist.
Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with an advance copy of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by pre-ordering this issue digitally on Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
Final Thoughts
While the juggling of multiple artists is a detriment to this book, the story is refreshingly simple and straightforward.
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