It’s true, Batman isa smug asshole.
Creative Staff:
Story: Jody Houser
Art: John Paul Leon
Colors: Dave Stewart
Letterer: John Workman
What They Say:
As Mother Panic zeroes in on Remains, Violet’s augmentations continue to lock up, making her unbelievably vulnerable. Will she be able to defeat her mysterious nemesis in time, or will Dr. Varma’s warnings and predictions finally be actualized?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Mother Panic brings this arc to a close, again making me love that Jody Houser is working with shorter arcs that maintain the interest better, and it’s one that hits up some nice points. The series has done a good job of placing Violet within Gotham but not leaning on the standard elements, something that appeals to me in a big way, and this particular arc has had a really good look to it with the architecture thanks to what John Paul Leon has brought to the page with the layouts and overall designs. That was also beautifully accented with Dave Stewart’s color work that gave it some serious weight. If I had any minor gripe with this issue and this arc it’s been some of the lettering, which frustrates me as I generally like John Workman’s choices but the narration bits in this are largely unreadable for me on digital devices at normal sizes, forcing me to zoom in more than I’d care for.
The background subplot in this issue is one that in some ways I do wish had just been done as its own piece, giving us more of a look at Violent as Seventeen going through the training under Mother Patrick and the others. We’ve seen some good pieces to it so far but this is the one that pushes it to where Violet intends to not just take her name back but to take the insulting name they’ve given Mother Patrick as Mother Panic and make it her own. It’s a good bit of tension and I love Stewart’s coloring with the heavy oranges in it as she makes her move and shows that she has plenty of power to control her own destiny. It’s an area where Violet’s identity going forward is starting to form more as you see her shedding the Seventeen piece and then her future struggle over whether she’s really Mother Panic or Violet.
While this issue also gives us some time with Varma trying to get out of Gotham for a while as she’s not interested in performing the surgery with how Violet’s acting, it does bring the two back together and sets the stage for a new and improved Violet. What the bulk of this issue focuses on, however, is Violet’s plan to catch the bagman and stop him from what he’s doing. She made the public play the last time around and spends her time waiting rather than going after him, something that rankles her to be sure. The bagman does arrive eventually and makes his attempt on her, one that she turns around on him a bit, but her condition is what really gets in the way even as she’s pretty intense about dealing with him. What I love is the briefness of Batman’s arrival and quick save, and that he knows who she is, as well as the way her expressions are toward him during and after it even while dealing with her pain. She’d be dead without his involvement but at the same time she wants nothing to do with him and his ways. I’m definitely curious to see what a full on crossover will be like between the two down the line but right now I like the general distance that exists between them.
In Summary:
Mother Panic continues to delight issue after issue and I’m looking forward to reading a lot of these issues in a row eventually rather than the monthly run I’m on now. Each issue provides so much to dig into and enjoy that I’m eager to revisit it with a larger view in a single sitting to connect the threads that Jody Houser is weaving even better. John Paul Leon did a solid job throughout this arc in capturing the look of this vision of Gotham and Stewart’s colors just took it up a few notches along the way as well. It’s a very fun book that gives us a great look at Violet as we try to figure out who she really is and how she’s been formed over time and experience. Definitely worth checking out in full.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 17+
Released By: DC Comics/Young Animal via ComiXology
Release Date: July 26th, 2017
MSRP: $3.99
