Comic Book Reviews: Batman #24 and Nightwing #24

So the Blue Beetle review will come in later today with my review of Arrow's premiere. For now, though, let's talk about the slew of sheer awesomeness that were the books this week. (As well as some of the new Batman announcements in my audio blog.)

Batman #24 was a double-length issue valued at $7 over the traditional $4. Mostly, I attribute this to the fact that the book got derailed thanks to Villains Month.

And man, oh man, did they make up for lost time.

This issue is going to compete with the Batman & Robin Annual and B&R 18 (the silent issue) as DC's best individual Bat book this year.

I don't think it matches those two completely, as some scenes are kind of hard to decipher because of their disjointed nature. But those are made up for easily with some iconic imagery, callbacks to every notable Batman incarnation, excellent dialogue (especially between Bruce and Alfred) and an addition of depth to the Batman-Red Hood showdown at A.C.E. Chemicals that has never really been hit on before.

It's an expensive issue, but if you can swing it, it is more than worth it in my view.

Nightwing #24 was a good finish to a good story, and admittedly, it came across better in this chapter than any other. The book is hitting a high point just as the universe is about to see his identity revealed, so it's nice that there is a building level of trust as we move closer to January.

The Tony Zucco stuff was tragic but well-done and the only downside to it is that the Prankster came across as kind of pathetic in comparison to his earlier issues.

I like the showdown that appears to be building for the Nightwing annual and the final pre-Forever Evil issue, though, so overall, I'd say give it a look.

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