“Every Man Has His Flaws”
Creative Staff:
Story: Tom King
Art: David Marquez
Colors: Alejandro Sanchez
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
What They Say:
A shocking heist has the mysterious and deadly figure called the Help cutting his way through Gotham City in search of Catwoman and the Riddler and their stolen artifact. Only the Dark Knight stands between this strange new villain and his prey…but can even Batman stop his bloody rampage? Tick-tock…the clock is drawing nearer to the Killing Time!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The first couple of issues of this series has been enjoyable enough in that early phase of Batman’s career that Tom King has opted to play in. There’s definitely appeal to that even still since so much of modern Batman often just has him so overpowered and capable that it’s a frustrating experience. Where King plays more is with the villains here and that works well enough but also feels pretty tread worn still. What helps is that David Marquez’s artwork is strong as we tackle the early days of these villains, which is where I think the more interesting material will come from overall. I really like the designs that we get throughout it and especially some of the action sequences with how it flows. But Marquez is really capturing the look of pain on the Riddler’s face and I’ll admit that I really like seeing that.
My frustration does continue once again with this issue in how the timeline is structured. Again, I get why King does it and I won’t dispute that it works, but it’s still coming across as frustrating because of the kinds of back and forth durations and placement. Breaking it out, there are still things going on int he past that slowly get closer to the present, with Batman involved in why it’s being so sought after with what the Riddler and Catwoman has, so it is interesting to connect with the flashbacks that go really far back. For Riddler and Catwoman, we see them still on the move in trying to get to the buyer so they can make their score but it’s getting increasingly problematic, especially after Riddler gets himself shot and is close to bleeding out. The dynamic between these two is a lot of fun and the dialogue that plays out definitely makes for some earned laughs.
Where this installment expands on things a bit is that the Penguin, having survived the betrayal, has now called in The Help. This is a pretty fun character in a classic way that’s essentially a fixer-type with a good history of knowing how to fight and kill. He’s sent to deal with Catwoman and Riddler but ends up dealing with the buyer as they showed up there. But that’s only after Batman gets there and the two engage in the first of a few legendary fights between the two.It’s one that doesn’t have Batman saying much while The Help talks way too much, but it’s a way of talking about his past and experiences so that we know that he’s just as varied as Batman in his training but with decades more experience. That he doesn’t end Batman is probably too simplistic when looking at it in reality because it is just leaving a loose end that will come back to haunt him in the future. But in terms of Batman comics, yeah, Batman ain’t dying here.
In Summary:
Batman: Killing Time doesn’t do anything new here in a way as it’s just continuing on with the events and shifting back and forth with it. The extended flashbacks into the past make it clearer what the thing everyone is after is and give it the history it needs. I like the story itself but the decompressed mode of it is already proving somewhat frustrating. The artwork is a big draw and the addition of The Help adds a new layer of fun since it’s not just all about the usual crowd that we’ve seen before. Plus, he throws a curveball into events as well as he starts to realize what’s really going on as well. It’s fun and enjoyable but feels like it should be just a bit more.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: DC Comics
Release Date: May 3rd, 2022
MSRP: $4.99
