Batmania Reviews!

Hey Batmania Readers

2009-12-09T14:04:00.000-08:00

Please feel free to follow my new blog over at Jason Todd's Comic Spot as I'll start posting there from now on. Thanks to everyone that read Batmania, as well as Elite, Croc, Poison Quinn and Amp. Thanks to everyone who commented as well and will continue to at my new blog, and thanks for being awesome. See ya over at the new site.

Batman Road To Arkham Download

2009-08-30T20:51:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, Jason Todd here, for those who didn't get the Batman Arkham Asylum game via Amazon.com someone uploaded scans for us, so you can download it below, remember it was brought to you by Batmania Reviews, so show us some friggin love lol. Download it below, Hope you enjoy it.

Road To Arkham

Batgirl Vol. 3 #1

2009-08-20T14:33:00.001-07:00

Good evening my wonderful blog readers. Poison Quinn here to bring you a wonderful review for the new Batgirl comic that has dropped this week. So, I'm a day late and a dollar short....lol go on sue me! :)

I wasn't one to follow up on the Batgirl Comics, BUT, since they're starting a new Volume, I figure what the heck? Why not start now. This was definitely a good start to this new series that caused me wanting more after I finished the issue. So, enough of me babbling on with the review.

The issue starts out with some minor trouble makers having a street race in the streets of Gotham City. The usual trash talking is tossed between both men in their cars and the race beginning with the drop of the flag. Here we get a glance at Batgirl making her appearance to bring this deadly race to a halt. We immediately get pulled into some action with Batgirl using her gadgets to stop the race leaving everyone safe and unharmed. Of course this leads to some misunderstanding of who truly won the race and Batgirl stepping in between the two, one pulling out a gun and her quickly disarming the trouble maker.

We see Batman and Robin over looking the scene getting a look at the new Batgirl in action. Soon after, she is revealed to be......Stephanie Brown. Now the only Batgirl I've really read about is Barbara Gordon, so seeing this new chick kind of made me iffy about if she can do the job, right. Let's just say she changed my mind by the time I finished the issue.

We are taken into a flashback of earlier that day with Stephanie awakening to her mother and what look like some cookie shaped waffles, lol. We get a hint at how old Ms. Stephanie is, a freshman in college attending Gotham University. Stephanie and her mother have a converstaion about her living a "normal life" giving info that her mother knows about her nightly duty of protecting Gotham. After their converstation we get a look-see on what Barbara Gordon is doing. Here we see Barbara having a conversation with Dr. Leslie Thompkins, as many of you may know is Batman's personal physician. From the vibe I was getting....seems to me Barbara was avoiding Dr. Leslie but, still made an effort to visit. There conversation involves trying to figure out why Barbara has been MIA along with Barbara's concern with Dr. Leslie's new patient, former teen titan Wendy Harris. Barbara clearly shows she has no further interest in conversation with Dr. Leslie and leaves after small talk with her. Next we see Barbara on a subway train where three fellas looking for trouble enter the scene, not worried, Barbara quickly takes care of them.

Now to the good stuff, as we continue to read folks, Stephanie is in class, of course her mind being else where, to a flashback three weeks previous to now. Spoiler and Batgirl are teaming up to give a few knuckle heads a butt whooping and what the two are talking about. After their battle we see the two of them talking, of course seeing Stephanie is spoiler and Cassandra as Batgirl. Cassandra pretty much gives up the role of batgirl, tired of fighting for Batman. Stephanie only stands there confused as to what to think of the situation, Cassadra is taking off the Batgirl suit and tells Stephanie the fight is hers. And here ladies and gentlemen we are presented with who the new Batgirl is, Stephanie Brown.

Presently, Stephanie is quickly awaken from her little nap at the end of her class and we zoom right into Barbara and Commisioner Gordon having a little luncheon together. Gordon is showing concern for his daughter and her mood as of lately. Thinking that not having a man is the problem he hints at a single guy that works at the precinct. They go back and forth of the situation of whether or not Barbara is really happy.

By this point...I'm on the edge of my sit with so many thoughts running through my head on this new Batgirl as well as Barbara. We transition into Stephanie back in her room listening to the police radio for any crimes she can help stop. Suddenly the Bat signal is glowing in the air, and of course, Stephanie suits up and goes to help out with a situation where more folks look for trouble are holding someone, whats looks to be a detective, at gun point. Batgirl swoops in and gets a battle going on with the criminals defeating them and helping the detective escape. Doing her job, she in and out of there and back home. The next morning Stephanie is preparing for her day with a nice hot shower and getting dressed and heading downstairs. Once in the kitchen, she is not faced with her mother, but, Barbara Gordon ready to have a little word with Stephanie.

And that is where we are left grasping for MORE. At least I am, lol. I found this issue to be a good paced opener to the new series. I liked the art and story was pretty good and steady paced. However, I felt there was so many things going on at once, not that it was confusing, but quite a few trips to flashbacks just to see what was going on leading up to Stephanie walking into the kitchen to see Barbara sitting there. This defintely left me wanting to read more, I'll be awaiting issue #2. I am going to give this issue a 7.5/10. As action packed as it was....I felt there was still something missing.

Thanks for joining in for my first review of Batgirl. Catch you all next time.

-Poison Quinn

Superman Vs. Supermen (Blackest Night - Superman #1)

2009-08-20T11:06:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, Jason Todd here with your continuation of Blackest Night Coverage. This week marks the beginning of Blackest Night Superman, and based on what issue you have, you may have the Variant cover listed above, which I used the picture of because it looks SO bad ass, I couldn't help it. So, before jumping right into things, I'm gonna go right ahead and say, I didn't used to be a big Superman fan but JLA/JLU and Superman/Batman comics changed that, either way I haven't been following the New Krypton series, but basically from my understanding, Planet Krypton is back with a bunch of Kryptonians and Earth isn't taking too kind to them. Either way, this is mentioned in BN Superman.

Our story starts off with the grave of Kal-L, Earth-Two's Superman, being resurrected from the dead like all the other Black Lanterns we've seen so far. Then we see the residents of what may be the most boring town on the place of the Earth, Smallville. Even they complain on the boring lives they live and how nothing ever happens. We see from the point of view of a Black Lantern for the first time, and we see that they see people based on emotion, and the colors correspond with the Lantern Corp of that emotion. Fear for example is yellow like the Sinestro Corps, Rage shows as Red, like the Red Lantern Corps, and Will of course is Green, like the Green Lantern Corps. It appears as if Black Lantern Superman is feeding off of the fear of these people in the city when he shows up, as each time his power level rises.

We then join the Kents, "Ma" Kent, Clark "Superman" Kent, and the recently resurrected Connor "Superboy" Kent. Their discussing the recent New Krypton news and the dinner their having in memory of the late "Pa" Kent. Then, The Kent boys and Krypto the dog hear something in town, so Clark and Conner go to check it out. They find the Black Lantern Superman resurrected and has dug up the grave of Pa Kent, and is intent on bringing him back as a Black Lantern.

Now as you guys know, I hate ruining the story, so I won't but I will say that I Loved the fact that Lanterns can see in emotion. That is what put this story into overdrive for me, the art was wonderful and the story is very very well written. As someone who hasn't been a fan of Superman for a longtime I was a bit weary about doing this review but the story sucked me in and I honestly don't know if Im more anxious for Blackest Night Superman #2 or Blackest Night Batman #2.

Now Superman isn't the only Black Lantern in this issue but I'll leave the surprise to you guys. But, Like I said earlier, The Art is excellent, the story is quite good, one of the Black Lanterns showing up kinds killed the momentum for me, I won't say which one, but that coupled with the fact that the story seemed so short, right when I was really getting into it, It just ended. It did leave me waning more so that was a big bonus. If you're following Blackest Night, it's definitely worth it to invest in one of the flagship heroes of DC, and check out Blackest Night Superman. Besides the momentum being slown down by the arrival of one of the Lanterns the story was great, the artwork was so detailed that this may be one of my favorite Tie-In's if not my current favorite. Thats why I give Blackest Night - Superman a solid 9/10.

See you guys next week when I continue my Blackest Night Coverage with Blackest Night Titans and Green Lantern #46.

- Jason Todd

Killer Croc

2009-08-18T12:33:00.001-07:00

Welcome my devoted readers!!! Today we're going to go over a mean and green villain that you'll get a chance to see in Batman: Arkham Asylum. *By the way, ONE WEEK LEFT!!!!*

Now let's take a look at Killer Croc.

Real Name: Waylon Jones
Alias: Killer Croc
Gender: Male
Height: 7'5"
Weight: 686 lbs.
Skin: Green and Scaly

Powers: Killer Croc possesses super strength, along with superhuman regenerative powers, abilities to heal lost limbs. Croc's skin has hardened to the point where it is invulnerable to most forms of abrasion.

Abilities: Street fighting, wrestling

Strength Level: Superhuman

Waylon Jones, a.k.a Killer Croc is what I call an inhumane criminal and nemesis of Batman. He was born with a medical condition that caused him to grow progressively more like a crocodile, hence the name Croc. Croc became an orphan due to his mother dying in childbirth and his father abandoning him. Soon he was then taken in by his aunt , although she was an alcoholic, he made the situation work. Croc was drawn into being made fun of as a teenager since he had no friends. Having such a hard teenage life, once he reached adulthood, he found a job wrestling alligators. This point in his life he began referring to himself as Killer Croc. He was beginning to see his strength level progressing at a great rate, beyond that of a normal human.

Realizing wrestling alligators wasn't bringing in enough money, he turned to crime, setting out to become Gotham's most powerful underground figure. One of his most significant crimes was him murdering Joseph and Trina Todd, the parents of Jason Todd. Killer Croc's crimes led him to conflict with Gotham's night guardian, Batman. Croc and Batman battled it out resulting in Croc being taken to Arkham Asylum where he recieved electroshock therapy.

Killer Croc was broken out of Arkham thanks to Ra's al Ghul plan of freeing all the patients of Arkham. As favor for freeing them, many of the patients agreed to help bring down Batman. Croc's part in this plan was to break into Wayne Manor and kidnap Alfred. Not knowing the connections Alfred had to Batman, he still brought him to Poison Ivy's Exotica Emporium, where four others were hostages. Of course, Batman soon arrived to rescue the hostages and had another battle out with Croc. Once again defeating him by subduing him with a gas pellet and returning him to Arkham Asylum.

Killer Croc eventually escaped from Arkham and began running the criminal life again. After robbing a shopping store, Croc came across a secret stairwell that led to an unfinished subterranean highway. The tunnel was shelter to many homeless people, which Killer Croc befriended them and wanted to start a new lifestyle. Happy here, this would all come to an end once Batman investigated the store robbery, tracks leading to Killer Croc's new shelter. Here they battle it out once again only to be disrupted by water being flushed into the tunnels from the river where Croc was washed away. Many of the friends he made thought he was washed away and died, BUT, Croc took shelter in the alleyways of Gotham City. Killer Croc has made his presence in Gotham City being heavily involved in the crimes of Gotham as well.

Killer Croc is one disturbed and cruel individual who seems to feed off of not only some of his victims, but crime as well. I can't wait to see his role in Arkham, I've seen the trailers and the pictures.....time can't go by fast enough for me.

Until tomorrow my good people.

--Poison Quinn

Blackest Night: Batman #1

2009-08-17T12:17:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, I'm back again, I've been having computer trouble so bare with me, either way,I'm here to jump right into Blackest Night: Batman #1. As you all know I've been the Batmania correspondant I guess you could say for The Blackest Night, and I've also decided to take on the duties of Blackest Night Batman & Superman series. So without further adieu, Lets get into Blackest Night: Batman.

Blackest Night: Batman starts off with the Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder at the graves of Thomas and Martha Wayne, and the unmarked grave of former Batman, Bruce Wayne. After Bruce's body was stolen, Alfred was the first to find out, which explains why our newest Dynamic Duo is here. Here we see a rare moment between Batman and Robin, for one of the first times ever we see Damien as vulnerable, emotional and probably afraid, it's not too often I even care about Damien personally so Kudos to the writer, Peter Tomasi.

After gathering the bodies of the Wayne's, we see Deadman a.k.a. Boston Brand watch as his body leaves its grave as a Black Lantern while he can do nothing to stop it. Also en route to the newest JLA... morgue I guess, where the bodies of villains are being held, we see a flurry of Black Lantern rings, going through police officers to their newest owners, including former Batman villains Magpie, KGBeast, Blockbuster and even former Ventriloquist Arnold Wesker.

Later on, Boston Brand decides he needs help and runs to Bruce Wayne, only he doesn't know that Bruce is no longer in the Batsuit so he's shocked to find out he just possessed Dick Grayson. Afterwards he possesses Damien as well, I felt this scene didnt really push anything forward...It just bored me for some reason. I won't ruin the story, but I will say, I loved the Broken Batsignal, because it was a Nod to Blackest Night #2. As well as the appearance by Red Robin I'll say Batman is in for a hell of a time, and Blackest Night was a good start. With Wonderful art work and a well written story, I give Blackest Night: Batman a 8/10

- Jason Todd

Comic Review: Batman #689

2009-08-17T11:02:00.000-07:00

Well here we are with Batman #689. What did I think? Do you care? Why was there a Batman: Arkham Asylum ad in my Spider-Man comic? All of these questions (not actually all of them) and more will be answered in my review.

Our story opens with Batman's raid on Penguin's 522 Club. It's a place for the who's who of the Gotham Underworld to party like they do in Vegas. Dick feels the need to narrate to himself everything that he does differently than Bruce during this sequence, which I wasn't too keen on. Still, I like seeing the different approach that Dick takes and what he get's out of it. I just hope it doesn't continue to be hammered into us as seems to be the trend with the recent flood of Batman titles.

We jump to Two-Face for a bit and see that he is still thrilled about the "new" Batman. He obviously has something planned, and am sure that it leads to the confrontation that was seen in the previous issue. While we don't really get any light shed on this, we do see that he still plans on screwing with Penguin's own plans. Back at the "Batcave" we see some pleasant conversation between Dick and Alfred. Things are getting better for the two as Alfred is somewhat eased knowing that Dick is at times, enjoying the business. Something "Master Bruce" couldn't seem to do very often.

Penguin on the other hand is not enjoying his work at the moment. Due to Two-Face's works, Batman is closing in on him. But we see that as any worthy villain, he has a plan of his own. All thanks to the mysterious masked figure. Who is this new threat? I'm sure we will find out soon enough, but we do know that his "provisions" will cause our Caped Crusader some major headaches.

We cut back to Batmobile in the city. It seems that Dick is running some tests with the vehicle when he comes across a large fire. He uses a foam projectile to put out the fire (very similar to the gun he used in Streets of Gotham.) But this is the least of his worries as a very familiar face shows up to be the cause of this mayhem. Interesting indeed.

Overall, the story didn't have anything major happening, but it was a solid, enjoyable read this month. Sometimes, that's all you need. The art was well done, though a bit too"'cartoony" at times, but Bagley still managed to capture a good balance of the action and story portions. I also, wanted to at least see some mention of how Dick came to be beaten in the Batcave. As I mentioned though, it will most likely be answered soon enough and may just flow better overall when you read the issues in succession.

Final Score: 8/10

-Amputechture

Blackest Night #2

2009-08-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night....Look out DC Universe, the dead are back for a fight. This month's installment of Blackest Night jumps from various parts of the DC Universe but does it's job, it does it seamlessly as well as leaves you wanting more. With so much action there's has to be other comics to convey how big Blackest Night is, hence the installments of Blackest Night: Batman and Blackest Night: Superman. So lets jump right into Blackest Night #2.

Our story starts off with The Atom, Ray Palmer, still mourning over the loss of his wife, he calls Hawkman once again to try to get him to join him in going to see the grave of Jean Loring, which picked up from B.N. #1, which lead Ray Palmer to going to see Hawkman, if only he knew it was a trap. Then we jump to the roof of the GCPD, where we see Oracle (Barbara Gordon) and her father Jim Gordon discussing things while the Batsignal is shown lit. While discussing things like the disappearance of Batgirl, and they have a touching moment ... until Hal Jordan is thrown into the Batsignal, shattering the glass. This is where we pick up from a fight in Green Lantern #44
between the returning Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern & the Flash.

We also see the return of the King of the Sea, Aquaman, Arthur Curry in this issue, as well as the arrival of more Black Lanterns. Which may strike some as weird, especially, is the return of Hawk, and not Dove. When Dove's ring is presented, it said he was at peace with Earth. So does that mean every other superhero had grudges they secretly held? Only time will tell.

With the return of Aquaman, the fate of Ray Palmer currently unknown, the Spectre's fate that I won't ruin for you guys, and the confusion of why Dove did not return as a Black Lantern and many more. There are many small things about Blackest Night that are little yet very notable. Some people may read past Dove not returning, I'm sure there's a big moment in there. Also I loved that the Batsignal was shattered in this issue, and then is shown broken in Blackest Night: Batman, I love small things like that, that show consistency.

Blackest Night seemed a little drawn out, so for that reason, even though It's action packed, I can't give it a 10/10, it's not perfect YET, but I am confident it will get better, So That's why I give Blackest Night Issue 2 a 8.5/10.

See you guys tomorrow for my review of Blackest Night: Batman #1.

- Jason Todd

Talia al Ghul

2009-08-12T13:52:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon my Batman and DC fans, I welcome you to another wonderful Women of DC Wednesday. It's hump day, hope your week is going by smoothly. :) Today's pick of the bunch will be a woman VERY close to Batman, Talia al Ghul.

Name: Talia al Ghul
Alias: Talia Head, Daughter of the Demon
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 141
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Brown

Occupation: Professional Criminal

Powers: Longevity (Thanks to her father's Lazarus pits)

Abilities: Business woman, advanced combatant, skilled assassin and high intellect.

Talia al Ghul, daughter of Ra's al Ghul, began her journey as an assassin at an early age. As a young girl, Talia traveled the world with her father getting a first hands-on opportunity to learn and adapt his intellect and skills. Over time she proved to be more competant than any of Ra's other children. Having this opportunity she excelled to the point in managing his criminal and legitimate operations. She was appointed as Ra's primary secondary, despite his feelings for women and feeling they were inheritantly inferior to men, he is still very supportive of his daughter.

As far as how Batman and Talia came to meet aquintances, was on the account of him rescuing her from Dr. Darkk, leader of the League of assassins. Dr. Darkk turned against Ra's and resulted in her being captured by him and Batman coming to the rescue. This battle ends with Talia shooting Dr. Darkk and saving Batman.

After being rescued, Talia develops feelings for Batman. Dick Grayson (Robin at the time) is kidnapped and Batman is caught off guard with Ra's showing up in the Batcave reavealing that he knows Batman's secret identity. He reveals that Talia also has been kidnapped with Dick and sends Batman on a chase along with Ra's to find Talia and Grayson. After this wild chase, Batman is told that Talia is in love with him and the kidnapping was setup by Ra's as a final test of whether Batman's suitable as an Heir. Batman rejects the offer but shows that he has the same feelings for Talia, as she does for him. Years go on after her meeting Batman and she is constantly torn between the loyalty to her father and her love for Batman.

Talia plays a major role in the return of Jason Todd. Jason Todd is killed by the Joker and is resurrected with a reality-altering punch brought by Superboy Prime. Returning to life, Jason's mind and body are still damanged tremendously. He's is discovered by the League of Assassins and Talia takes him in spending months caring for him. His body is recovering well, but his mind is still in shambles. Talia sneaks Jason down to the Lazarus Pit and throws his body in while her father is regenerating himself, reviving Jason mentally and physically. Knowing this would upset her father she immediately spare's his life by helping him escape informing him that Batman had let his killer live, thus my good people we get The Red Hood.

As you can see, Talia has a thing for Batman evolving into love thing, lol. Seems hard to have to decide between your father and your lover. She plays roles in the comics she appears in that defintely involve Batman, and in my book is a pretty cool woman in the DC world.

Until next time, catch you guys next week :D

-Poison Quinn

Nightwing Year One Review

2009-08-11T12:26:00.000-07:00

Hey hey hey, Jason Todd back with another edition of Graphic Novel Mondays. Of course it's now Tuesday but hey, what can you do, I was busy. So two weeks ago we saw the birth of Dick Grayson's crime fighting career when I reviewed Robin: Year One, this week I decided to continue on the trail of Dick Grayson. Robin: Year One writers Chuck Dixon and Scott Beatty team up again in the evolution of Batman's first sidekick. So I present to you, Nightwing: Year One.

Nightwing: Year One starts with Robin on his way to help our Caped Crusader out with Clayface, who's kidnapping a baby. After he's eventually stopped, it's revealed that the kid is Clayface's son, and words are had between Batman and Robin. Batman claims Robin is never around when he needs him, which he should be, considering he's Batman's sidekick, yet Robin's always busy with college and the Teen Titans. After an argument, with three little words, the Dynamic Duo is split up. "You're Fired,Dick .... Get out of my cave." And there it is, Dick Grayson is no longer Robin.

After being fired, Dick travels to have a talk with his favorite superhero, ironically it's not Batman, but Earth's favorite Kryptonian, Superman. After a talk about what a hero is, the Man of Steel tells Dick about a hero on his home planet of Krypton. A hero who was cast out by his family as well, a hero who became a Legend, a hero, named Nightwing. So with a new name, and a new understanding, Dick heads off to what can only be considered his Fortress of Solitude, Haley's Circus.

Nightwing: Year One is somewhat of a who's who of comic books, with many appearances, we see that Dick Grayson has friends in high places. Over the course of Year One we see Grayson meet up with Batman, Superman, Batgirl, Deadman, Donna Troy, The Second Robin; Jason Todd, and even his arch-enemy Two-Face. Nightwing: Year One, like Robin: Year One is written by artists who understand the inner most thoughts of Dick Grayson. You feel his emotions, his reactions, his determination to show that Batman made a mistake in casting him off.

Coupled with Great writers and a Great story Nightwing: Year One has it all, the art is very colorful and more animated series style but it fits some parts of the story better than other. You'd be hardpressed to find someone, Grayson fan or not, that dislikes this story, it shows the evolution of a man who would one day become the Guardian of Gotham. I give Nightwing a Year one a solid 9/10 and Highly recommend it to any comic book fan.

- Jason Todd

Edward "The Riddler" Nashton

2009-08-11T11:52:00.000-07:00

Hello bat world, Poison Quinn here to bring you you're weekly villain lesson. With Batman: Arkham Asylum finally being released to you gamers in 13 days, I thought over the next two weeks, I'd do some characters, that are in the game as well as playing a role in Batman comics. Get you even hyper for the game. :)So today's pick is The Riddler. So, sit back and enjoy this lovely article and fill your brain with knowledge. :D

Name: Edward Nashton
Aliases: The Riddler, Edward Nigma
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 183
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black

Abilities: Genius Level of Intelligence, Expert Detective
Powers: N/A

Edward Nashton was born into an abusive and broken home. His mother was absent and his father was very abusive. Edward started his riddling life at an early age. When he was in school, there was a puzzle contest being held and he was excited about actually winning. Showing signs of being obsessed with puzzles, he snuck into the school at night and worked on the puzzle until he was able to solve it with ease. Having this advantage, Edward won the puzzle contest and was awarded a puzzle book. Upon recieving the book, Edward completed the book with ease mastering puzzles, mindgame and riddles. He was a very intellgient young man and passed exams and tests with ease, which led to his father doubting him and becoming very jealous. Figuring that Edward was cheating, his father supposedly caught him cheating and beat him repeatedly so he wouldn't lie and stay out of trouble. From the abuse, Edward developed a compulsion, he is known for, constantly telling the truth to prove his innoncence. The abuse led to his obsession with riddles as well as driving him into the life of crime.

When Edward got older, he moved out becoming a carnival performer cheating the carnival goers out of their money with his skills. Feeling he needed something more, he creates the persona, The Riddler, and decides to pick Batman as an adversary in his riddles and games. The Riddler felt Batman was an intelligent and worthy opponent. He started out as a simple informant and criminal profiler for the underworld of Gotham City, as well as for Batman. Over time Riddler became more of a villain to Batman, becoming an adversary to the Dark Knight constantly testing his analytical abilities to the limits.

Later Riddler was diagnosed with brain cancer and cleverly found one of Ra's al Ghuls Lazarus pits and cured himself of his diesease.

The Riddler was first introduced into the DC world in the Detective Comics #140. Riddler has made his apperenaces in a number of comics, for example, The Long Halloween. Riddler appears as a smooth talking informant who was hired by Carmine "The Roman" Falcon in search of who kills the Holiday Killer. Riddler is also seen in Batman: Dark Victory, in which is opponent Batman turned to him to figure out the significance of the lost games of hangman that are left at the scenes of the Hangman killer's crimes.

As you can see the Riddler plays a big role in the Batman comic world using his obsession with riddlers to help where he is needed or a nuisance . Knowing that The Riddler is in Batman: Arkham Asylum, I'm sure we all will be faced with some mind busting riddles through out the game, which I'm absolutely excited about.

Here some fun Trivia about Mr. Edward "The Riddler" Nashton.

The Riddler is one of the few rogues that has deduced the true identity of the Batman. However, there is no major concern that the Riddler will leak the information. As Batman explains: "What good is a riddle which everyone knows the answer to?" playing with the Riddler's obsession with riddles and the greatest riddle of all: "Who is Batman?"
He often has two female assistants that help him, usually named a combination of Quiz, Query or Echo.
The Riddler has a counterpart in the Antimatter Universe called the Quizmaster who is a member of Lex Luthor's Justice Underground.
In an episode of the BBC television series Wire in the Blood entitled "Torment", psychologist profiler Tony Hill explains at length the Riddler's obsessive/compulsive nature to a young boy.
The Riddler is one of the Batman's few foes who has actually managed to discover his secret identity. Others include Professor Hugo Strange, Ra's al Ghul and Catwoman (although Batman willingly revealed his secret identity to Selina).
The Riddler's online screenname is "Wizard101."

*Trivia was used from DC Comics Database, this is not my own writing.*

Thanks for joining me for another Treacherous Tuesday. :-)

See you guys tomorrow when I'll be discussing a female who's real close to Batman, Talia al Ghul.

-Poison Quinn

Zatanna Zatara

2009-08-05T13:23:00.000-07:00

Welcome back my wonderful people to Women of DC Wednesday. Today's lucky woman is a close friend of Batman and a has a magical touch. (lol) I know I seem to say every week that each character is my favorite...but she's another favorite I've added to the list. Shoot me I have a lot of favorites. :-p So...here you go guys Zatanna.

Real Name: Zatanna Zatara

Current Alias: Zatanna

Height: 5’7”

Weight: 127

Eyes: Blue

Hair: Black

Powers: Sorcery (Elemental Magic, Telepathy, Chlorokinesis, Enhanced Strength and Durability, Flight, Telportation, Dimensional Travel, Probability manipulation, Sense Magic, Dispel, Telekinesis, Elemental and Molecular Conversion, Regeneration, Size Alteration, Spectral Sight, Elemental Transmutation, Magical Manipulation.)

Abilities: Stage Magician, Good Combatant, Occultist, Hypnotist, Improvisation

A member of the Homo Magic race, Zatanna Zatara is the daughter of famed magaician Giovannit “John” Zatara and Sindella. Zatanna is a direct decendant of the artist and magician Leonardo da Vinci and is also related to Nostradamus, Alessando Cagliostro, Nicholas Flamel, Evan Fulcanelli and Lord Arion of Atlantis.

Before she discovered her true magical powers while investigating the disappearance of her father, Zatanna was a successful stage illusionist. She was successfully reunited with him with the help of the Batman, The Atom, Elongated Man and others. Unfortunately, their time together was cut short due to the death of both of her parents, on separate occasions, while trying to save her life.

Before being elected to full membership of the Justice League of America, Zatanna assisted them with a number of cases proving herself worthy of the team. During her time with the JLA her powers levels had diminished briefly allowing her to only control the four elements: Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. After a while her powers were fully restored due to unknown causes. Deciding that her father's style of magic wasn't her cup of tea, she then decided to explore her mothers mystical heritage.

If you've read “Identity Crisis” which I highly recommend you read, lol, you all know Zatanna was apart of the incident that happened when they caught Dr. Light. Zatanna used her magic to screw around in Dr. Lights mind a little bit to erase a tragic memory that involved Sue Dibny. She also erased Batman's memory after he tried to stop them from what they doing to Dr. Light.

Batman and Zatanna were very close, childhood friends even, until he found out what she had done to him. This led to him distrusting her and his other friends in the super hero community. Over time their relationship began to re kindle and he came to her when he needed help and even gave her the nickname Zee.

Zatanna departed from the JLA and continued her stage career and her vocation as a defender against mystical threats, becoming a member of the Sentinels of Magic. Currently Zatanna is a reserve member of the Justice League aiding them from time to time when her magical expertise is needed. Feeling a need to take a break from heroics she declined a full membership to the JLA. But she still serves as a regular guardian against mystical threats.

And there you have it folks Ms. Zatanna "Zee" Zatara. Catch you all next week.

-Poison Quinn

Thomas Elliot

2009-08-04T11:15:00.001-07:00

FYI, a small spoiler alert. I tried, but the information about Thomas Elliot is pretty much straight from Hush Vol. 1 and 2. I promise I didn't spoil TOO much, I hope. :D lol

Welcome back to Treacherous Tuesdays my fellow Batman fans. Today I'll be going over a close friend turned foe of Batman, Thomas Elliot. For those of you who keep up on your graphic novels, I'm sure you all have read the great Hush novels that give you a nice tale of Dr. Thomas Elliot. So without further babbling on...I present Dr. Thomas Elliot.

Name: Thomas Elliot
Alias: Hush
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 220
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Red
Place of Birth: Gotham City
Occupation: Surgeon

Powers and Abilities: Although Thomas Elliot doesn't have any superpowers, lets not underestimate him folks. Elliot has spent a vast amount of time mastering the skills to be a match for the Dark Knight. Elliot is also a master planner with tactical skills equal if not exceeding those possessed by Batman. Hush's greatest skills is his ability to think like his opponents and use their motivations against them. Hush is an expert marksman who is able to shoot two batarangs out of the air and set off C4 using twin M1911.45 caliber pistols, his very own weapons of choice.

Dr. Thomas Elliot is a close childhood friend of Bruce Wayne, and just like Bruce, born into a wealthy family. Elliot was the complete opposite of Bruce when it came to the love of his parents. Elliot hated his parents and despised his drunk and abusive father along with his frail mother, who happened to come from a background of poverty and willingly endured the abuse to her and her son to keep the lavish lifestyle Elliot's father provided. Instead of taking the role of a loving mother, she forced him to memorize Aristotle, as a way to deal with the abuse from his father, which Elliot never forgave his mother for.

Elliot had a strong desire for wealth and independence, he cut the brakes of his parents' car causing them to be in a fatal crash that killed his father. His mother was saved in an emergency operation done by Dr. Thomas Wayne, which only lead to Elliot being enraged and very angry. While at summer camp with young Bruce, Thomas attacked a boy and ended up in a psych ward. He blamed Bruce and Martha Wayne for his outburst, but was soon released by an intern named Jonathan Crane. Thomas was forced to take care of his mother over the next few years. And well as I see I get further into this...I feel I'm telling FAR too much. I don't want to ruin too much for those who actually want to read the Hush novels. For those who have read it...you guys already knows what happens between Thomas and his mother. Let's just say..Thomas becomes a very disturbed individual, this is when he created the persona Hush.

Having a great deal of hate for Bruce Wayne, he decides to team up with the Riddler to bring Bruce down. Hush begins with with their attempt to destroy Batman, they convince and manipulate other villains to help. This included Joker, Harley Quinn, Jason Todd, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, Killer Croc and Clayface. Part of this scheme includes fooling Bruce that Tommy is the latest victim of the Joker. This results in Batman almost killing the Joker but is stopped by Commissioner Gordon. Hush manipulates his way into trying to bring down Batman. Although Batman believes Hush is Thomas Elliot...he isn't able to unmask him. Being the great detective Batman is, we all know he eventually finds out who Hush is.

And that is it for today folks. I honestly wish I could go into more detail about hush, but it will ruin far too much if you were interested in reading about him.

Here's where you can read more about Dr. Thomas Elliot and his transformation to Hush. I really enjoyed reading about Hush and I definitely recommend reading Hush Vol. 1 & 2 and Heart of Hush. I haven't read Hush Returns...BUT...knock yourself out. :)

Hush Vol 1, Hush Vol. 2, Hush Returns and Heart of Hush

Thanks for reading, catch you guys tomorrow where I'll be discussing another close friend of Batman, Zatanna.

*Three Weeks until B:AA* :-D

-Poison Quinn

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Batman: Face The Face

2009-08-03T12:20:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, after a very slow week in Batman comics, I'm back with this week's Graphic Novel Monday. This week's review gives center stage to one of the most prolific characters in Batman continuity, Harvey Dent a.k.a. Two-Face. With a story penned by James Robinson that takes place after the events of Infinite Crisis, one could say that this may be one of Harvey Dent's finest moments. We'll see in this review of Batman: Face The Face.

Infinite Crisis was a huge moment in DC Continuity, it marked the death of Tim Drake's best friend, Connor Kent. The return of the fallen Robin, Jason Todd, and caused the three biggest names in DC, Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman to take a year off from the superhero business. A year later, a rejuvenated Batman and Robin return to Gotham City, and are greeted by cheers from the Gothamites and the GCPD (even Harvey Bullock.) Batman and Robin (Tim Drake) are better than they've ever been, one person even remarks that their cohesive as Batman and the first Robin (Dick Grayson) were, which could prove that Gotham is on it's way to being resurrected as a safe city. But Batman wouldn't dare leave Gotham unprotected for a whole year, so he gives control of Gotham to former distract attorney, former psychopath, the rehabilitated Harvey Dent.

Harvey Dent is no longer Two face, and after a rough month of training, he's ready to take control of Gotham, which he sucessfully does for fifty two weeks. But when villains start turning up dead by the two's, with two bullets in their brains, all the signs point to the former DA. Batman believes Harvey is Innocent, but it wouldn't be the first ...or second time (pun intended) that Harvey Dent has gone rogue.

This story has it all, I won't ruin it, but murders, deception, mystery, everything that makes a good Batman Novel is in Face The Face. That being said it's not perfect, some of the artwork is rather dark, and although it fits the theme it may turn off some readers. Also we don't get the epic clash that we're waiting for, which made me feel a little disappointed to say the least. Overall Face The Face isn't perfect, but it's far from bad, That's why I give Batman: Face The Face an 8/10.

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 4)

2009-08-02T23:26:00.000-07:00

This week we have something a little different ... Darkwing Duck, a fellow member from the Batman: Arkham Asylum forums is doing the review of our feature this week, Batman: Return of the Joker! Enjoy!

Batman: Return of the Joker (NES)
NES, Sega Genesis

I could not possibly tell you how excited I've been to get to review this game. It's one of my earliest memories of gaming, alongside one of my earliest memories of Batman, and thankfully I've been given new reason to play this classic once again.

The plot is as basic as you get, so don't expect any award-winning material here. Put simply, the Joker is back wreaking havoc in Gotham and Batman has to stop him. Nothing more is explained, but I'm not worried about that, I'm here for some basic shooting fun.

Yes, that's right. Batman has a gun. Of sorts. You can power up your so-called "Batarang Launcher" using icons found in boxes throughout the game. Explained only by the letters N, S, C, and B. No, I haven't got a clue what they stand for either. All you need to know is that C is the best power up.

In terms of gameplay, it's really about as simple as it gets. But it seems I'm a simple man of simple pleasures, so I find it enjoyable. It is a welcome break from the complexity of modern gaming, I must admit. The game is a side-scroller in which your job is pretty straightforward. Shoot the enemies, avoid the obstacles and jump the gaps. Yet the game somehow makes this challenging, and I love it for that. The only forgiving element in the game is the password system. So when you throw your controller through the wall and pull the plug on your beloved Nintendo Entertainment System, you can come back later and have your rear end handed to you again.

There are twelve stages for you to battle through, including a snowy landscape, moving train, military base, and sewers. The first level is in a cathedral, possibly in tribute to the location of the Joker's demise in the Burton film. You will continually jump from location to location, but if you're really looking for an explanation about anything at this point, you should probably move on now. Or you could stick around for probably the best moments in the game.
Jetpacks.

Yes. Batman has a jetpack. These were the greatest levels in the game to me as a young'un, and the novelty hasn't worn off after all these years. You fly up, down, left, right, shoot and dodge. But it's Batman, on a jetpack. If that doesn't make you want to play this game, I don't know what will. It's Batman on a jetpack people!

Now for the boss battles ... These were probably the only part I didn't like about the game. Boss fights are generally pretty intense, but fall back into the pattern finding fights in which you have to figure out the pattern and exploit it. Also, who are these people? It would've been nice to have some familiar faces in there, but maybe I'm asking for too much in a NES game with no film tie-ins.

Visually, Return of the Joker looks good enough to be compared to some of the 16-bit games of the same era. While there is some room for improvement with breakdown in the images, the theme of dark shadows and dirty streets as well as intense battles is kept up fairly well. The different motions that Batman goes through in either looking straight ahead or upwards will captivate you for a while, though there isn’t much other than that. The weapons effects and the locations that you encounter are all top notch for an older Nintendo game and it shows.

The music is what you'd expect from a adventure game from the early 90's, just with a little attitude thrown in for good measure. To me, it matches up with the feel of this dark Batman venture. But others will disagree. Each to his own I suppose. The sound effects don't make much of an impact on what you do with Batman and really don’t have much demand on the overall experience of the game.

Return of the Joker is a decent game that will keep Batman fans happy throughout the various stages. You’ll find that the password feature helps to keep you in the game, even if you don’t play it for weeks on end and is always a welcome addition to the older action games. The difficulty is a little steep to start with, though seasoned vets of the action game genre should be able to kick through it with some ease. All in all, this is an above average game that belongs in any collectors bookshelf and is worth playing time and time again, that has stood the test of aging with this reviewer.

And you know, I'm still yet to complete it ...

-Darkwing Duck

Women of DC- Power Girl

2009-07-29T13:06:00.000-07:00

Hello all! It's Poison Quinn reporting in with your weekly dose of Women of DC. And as promised I'm here to bring you some info on one of DC's top heavy women, lol. I present to you Kara-Zor L aka Power Girl.

Real Name: Kara-Zor-L

Current Alias: Power Girl

Birth Place: Kandor, Krypton

Gender: Female

Height: 5’11”

Weight: 180 lbs.

Eyes: Blue

Hair: Blond

Powers: Kryptonian Physiology, Solor energy absorption, superhuman strength, invulnerability, superhuman stamina, flight, superhuman speed, super breath, enhanced senses (telescopic vision, x ray vision, microscopic vision, electro-magnetic spectrum vision, heat vision) superhuman hearing.

Abilities: Master combatant, genius-level intellect

Weaknesses: Magic, psionics, vision limitation, kryptonite

Power Girl is the Earth-Two counterpart of the Kryptonian Supergirl and cousin to Kal-L, the Superman of Earth-Two. Kara-L possessed the same superhuman strength and ability to fly, she soon took his place in the JSA after he entered into semi-retirement to focus on his personal life. Kara has become an important member of the JSA.

After discovering Krypton was about to blow up, Kara’s father Zor-L launched her as an infant to Earth in a ship at the same time that Kal-L’s ship was launched. Kara arrived decades after her cousin Kal-L due to her longer journey through space.

Unlike Kal-L's ship, Kara's "Symbioship" was designed to hold Kara in stasis during her development through the prolonged voyage. In addition, the ship's artificial intelligence had the life experiences and education of a Kryptonian in the form of a virtual reality program wherein she could interact with life-like copies of her parents and fellow Kryptonians. When she landed on Earth, Kara was the age of an adult woman in her early twenties.

Years after her arrival it was then Power Girl’s existence was revealed to the public. Cousin Clark and Lois provided her with a family environment to assist her transition toward real life relationships. In her first case Kara assisted JSA members Flash and Wildcat in containing an artificially induced volcano that had erupted in Peking, China. She also helped the JSA members defeat Brian Wave and Per Degaton’s scheme for total world domination. After her heroic help she was granted full membership when she took over Superman’s vacated spot on the team roster.

Since Kara was raised by the Symbioship with artificial Kryptonian life experiences, Power Girl had just a little trouble fitting into life on Earth. With the help of reporter Andrew Vinson, she eventually adopted the secret identity of computer programmer Karen Starr. She developed her knowledge in this field from treatment under Wonder Woman’s purple ray on Paradise Island. Never have worn a mask to differentiate between her two identities, it was bound for her identity to be revealed publicly. During this time she also developed a close friendship with Helena Wayne, the daughter of the Earth-Two Batman and Catwoman.

After the Justice Society disbanded, Power Girl joined the Justice League. Later on as a member of Justice League Europe, she was badly injured by a mystical being. Superman helped her in medical treatment, using his head vision to perform surgery on her otherwise-invulnerable tissues. Although she recovered, she was significantly weaker, losing all of her vision powers and temporarily her ability to fly.

I must admit, I wasn’t a big fan of Power Girl, for what reason, I have no idea. But after reading into her and writing this review about this busty young woman, I found a spot in my heart to want to learn more and read more about her. So there you have it folks, Power Girl. (now scroll back up and drool over the picture...I know you've been waiting. lol. jk)

Catch you all next week. :)

-Poison Quinn

Slade "Deathstroke" Wilson

2009-07-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hey guys and welcome back to Treacherous Tuesdays. Todays choice is one badass guy who I think deserved some light to be shined upon him. Without further hesitation, Slade "Deathstroke" Wilson.

Real Name: Slade Joseph Wilson

Current Alias: Deathstroke

Base of Operation: Africa

Gender: Male

Height: 6’4”

Weight: 235

Eyes: Blue

Hair: White

Powers: Enhanced: Mind, Reflexes, Strength, Stamina, Speed, Senses; Regenerative Healing Factor, Enhanced immunity, Retarded aging.

Abilities: Masterful tactician, expert combatant

Equipment: Deathstroke’s armor and helmet are lined with Kevlar and promethium mesh, which means…this man is resistant to conventional injury. He also has a specially designed multi-million dollar flash bomb capable of incapacitating the entire JLA, yes including Superman. He’s only able to bring Superman down long enough to escape…can’t blame him for trying.

Weapons: Various firearms, promethium sword, power staff, explosives and other things to aid him in combat.

At the age of 16, Slade Wilson, enlisted into the United States Army, of course lying of his age. After serving in Korea, he was later assigned to Camp Washington where he was promoted to the Rank of Major. He met Captain Adeline Kane in the early 1960’s who gave him the task of training young soldiers in new fighting techniques in anticipation of brewing troubles taking place in Vietnam. After watching Slade at work, Kane was amazed at how skilled he was and how quickly adapted to modern conventions of warfare. Instantly she fell in love with him and realized he was the most able-bodied combatant she had ever encountered.

She privately trained Slade in guerrilla warfare, in less than a year, he mastered EVERY fighting form presented to him and was soon promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Six months later Slade and Adeline were married and she became pregnant with their first child. At this time the war in Vietnam was beginning to escalate and Slade was shipped overseas. While he was gone, Adeline gave birth to their son Grant.

Some time into the war, Slade volunteered for a medical experiment designed to stimulate his adrenal gland in the hopes of increasing a soldier’s ability to resist truth serums. Slade fell into a coma due to unexpected errors with the experiment. When he awakened he discovered that he was now capable of using 90% of his brain capacity and his strength, durability and agility were increases to near superhuman levels. Slade then applied for re-assignment with the army but was refused. His condition was now stable and Slade fell into depression desperate to serve his country. Adeline then became pregnant with their second son, Joseph. Since he was unable to further his career in the military, Slade then turned to hunting. He became a world famous safari hunter and became pretty wealthy in this new career.

Some years later, a group of hired mercenaries broke into Slade’s mansion and kidnapped young Joseph. His wife tried to fight them off but was defeated due to the gas grenade that was used. Once Slade discovered this tragic event, he knew it was time to tell his wife the truth. Not only was Slade a world famous safari hunter, he was also one of the deadliest and most highly sought after assassins, Deathstroke the Terminator. Promising to save their son, they flew to Tangiers and fought off a rival mercenary known as the Jackal.

The Jackal wanted Deathstroke to reveal some information relating to a client or they would kill Joey. Thinking he could save his son before the order was sent off to kill him, he was too late. Josephs throat was slashed by one of the criminals before Deathstroke could reach him, destroying his vocal cords, resulting in Joey being mute. They rushed him to the hospital and awaiting results, his wife was enraged at his endangerment of her son, and she tried to kill Deathstroke by shooting him, only managing to destroy his right eye. Afterward, his confidence in his physical abilities was such that he made no secret of his impaired vision, marked by his mask which has a black featureless half covering his lost eye.

In Identity Crisis,(Best book ever!!) Deathstroke was enlisted as a bodyguard for Doctor Light, who was being chased by the JLA. Deathstroke nearly defeated the team of Elongated Man, The Flash (Wally West), Zatanna, Hawkman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, the Atom and Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner). Deathstroke took out every member exepct Green Lantern who was ready to defeat Deathstroke using his ring. This was interrupted by Green Arrow sticking an arrow in his right eye where Deathstroke began beating Green Arrow but was tackled down by the other members. Dr. Light used his powers and the two soon escaped. Near the end of Identity Crisis, Deathstroke confronts Green Arrow on a rooftop. Arrow sees his reflection in the windows of a nearby building, but when he turns to confront Slade, Deathstroke is gone. Instead Green Arrow finds Slade's cowl and a note stuck to the wall by the very arrow he stabbed in Slade's eye socket. The note reads, "This is yours - We're not done."

Deathstroke is one hell of a man. I must admit outside of Identity Crisis, I didn’t know much of Deathstroke….after researching for this article, he is indeed added to one of my favorite villains. There was so much more about this man that I had to leave out for you all to do some research of your own.

Until next time. Keep counting down the days until Batman: Arkham Asylum to drop and stay tuned to Batmania Reviews for all your Batman and DC reviews.

Be sure to join me tomorrow for my review of the busty and voluptuous Power Girl. Lol.

-Poison Quinn

The Boy Wonder is Born (Robin: Year One Review)

2009-07-26T15:37:00.000-07:00

Batmania readers, welcome to another edition of Graphic Novel Monday. This weeks review is on the Boy Wonder's debut, Robin: Year One. Written by Dixon and Beatty (the writers of the Nightwing series), Dick Grayson, the future Nightwing and Batman, the kid who had all the tools and determination to change the DC Universe, and one of the biggest fan favorites of all time. Robin: Year One shows the many firsts of Dick Grayson. Grayson's first year as Robin shows him tackling the Mad Hatter, Mr. Freeze, and his own mortal enemy, Two-Face.

Robin: Year One shows the untold origin of Dick Grayson, not the death of his parents, the Flying Graysons, but his first encounters with some of Batman's big villains. The novel is cut into four sections, and the first tackled is the abduction of young girls that seem to be disappearing all over Gotham. When a girl from Dick's class goes missing, he looks into it and eventually finds out that the Mad Hatter is behind the girl's disappearance. Along with Hatter's appearance, Robin tries to tackle the cold hearted Mr. Freeze without the help of The Dark Knight. And an appearance by Two-Face shows you why Harvey Dent's alter ego is to Dick Grayson what the Joker is to Batman.

Robin: Year One has a lot of recurring themes, including Jim Gordon being afraid of Robin getting hurt. He's not the only one, as Alfred also shows concern for Grayson, but Bruce believes that Grayson is something special ... and as we know Dick Grayson is. This is a very well written book, it establishes that Grayson isn't just some kid fighting adults, he's a determined, athletic young man ready to take on the world if he has to. The artwork is reminiscent of Batman The Animated Series, yet goes well with this type of story. Still, it seems a little rushed, and a little hard to believe that Dick could take on some of the biggest villains in Gotham with absolutely no help from Batman. I give Robin: Year One a 8.5/10.

- Jason Todd

Gotham City Sirens #2 Review

2009-07-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

Hey Hey Hey, Jason Todd here with a review on Paul Dini's Gotham City Sirens #2. For those that didn't catch issue one, our three favorite ladies of Gotham, Selina "Catwoman" Kyle, Pamela "Poison Ivy" Isley and Harleen "Harley Quinn" Quinzel teamed up to become the Gotham City Sirens. After being taken in by Catwoman, Harley and Ivy decided to tie up our Feline Female and drug her with a truth serum from one of Ivy's many plants. What did they wanna know? Who is Batman?
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I'm warning you guys now, there are spoilers ahead, I usually avoid them but there was so little in this issue I would have nothing to discuss If I didn't.
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So in Issue two we see a flash back to three years prior where Selina meets with Talia Al Gul, this is billed as a meeting between the only two women Bruce Wayne has loved. Apparently the guy didn't care for his Mom at all ... but anyway Talia felt the need to teach Selina a technique that allows her to bury the knowledge of Bruce Wayne being Batman, incase someone ever happened to ... give her a truth serum and ask her apparently. Catwoman must not be all that great at learning because even though we see she learned in the Flashback, she still says Bruce Wayne is Batman, along with a few other people including Jim Gordon, Slam Bradley and Harvey Dent. After convincing the other Sirens that Batman is more of a Legend than one man, everyone is now happy and friends again, despite the recent mutiny.

Meanwhile, Harley goes shopping which appears to be her new vice since she can't shower Mr. J with her love. While out she runs into the man everyone believes to be Bruce Wayne but is actually the recently escaped Thomas Elliot a.k.a. Hush. When "Bruce Wayne" is kidnapped and held for ransom, Harley see's it as a chance to save the man who granted her a release from Arkham Asylum. Now with Harley running around town with a disguised Hush, (the very same man she helped Catwoman rob) Ivy and Catwoman are out to save their fellow Siren at our issues end.

Alrighty, so first things first, I love that the Dini stories interact, Hush escaping in Streets then still being out in Sirens is very cool. That's ... about it for things I liked. Okay ... so the first issue of Sirens left us with a GREAT cliffhanger, only for this issue to say, yeah well just incase anyone ever asks Catwoman who Batman is, lets say she learned how to hide her thoughts. This seemed very meh ... for Bruce it makes sense cause he's prepared for everything for Talia and Selina ... not so much. Then it's like why did we even learn about this if on the fourth page Selina says it's Bruce anyway. Then Bruce is the first person mentioned and No one cares? Not even Harley who later saves Bruce because he helped grant her a pardon from Arkham, yet she doesn't care that he's possibly Batman? Also, is it just me or is anyone else tired of Harley walking around in whatever the hell she's wearing? She's yet to put on her costume, yet all Selina seems to own is her costume.

I had high hopes for this issue and it really let me down...there's hardly anything worth mentioning and the one fight scene was maybe two and a half pages long. I don't know if Dini's trying to set up ground work for later on but this is not something that makes me wanna read the next issue. I give Sirens #2 a 4/10.

- Jason Todd

Women of DC Wednesday- Huntress

2009-07-22T08:10:00.000-07:00

Hello Batmaniacs!! Welcome back to Women of DC. Poison Quinn here with our lucky lady for today. This sultry lady is one of my personal favorites. I present to you, Helena Bertinelli.....

Real Name: Helena Rosa Bertinelli
Current Alias: The Huntress
Birth Place: Gotham City
Gender: Female
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 130 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black

Abilities: Master Martial Artist (Dragon Style Kung Fu), Master Archer (Seen splitting a bullet sized mini-rocket in mid air), Expert Detective
Weapons: Crossbow, knife, twin-pistols, metallic staff
Transportation: Motorcycle

Known as the daughter of Maria Panessa Bertinelli and Gotham Mafia Boss, Franco Bertinelli Helena is known as the Huntress. Helena’s mother, Maria, was the victim of harsh abuse from her husband Franco which led to her affair with Santo Cassamento. Maria became pregnant after the affair, with Franco’s knowing that the child was not his, he still continued to beat Maria. Nine Months later she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl whom she named Helena Rosa. Up until Helena was eight years old, she grew up in a mafia household unaware of the criminal dealings that took place.

On her eighth year of life, a man barged into their home shooting Maria, Franco and Pino Bertinelli, instantly killing them. The hit came from Mandragora which Helena’s biological father passed the order along with the modification that “the Sister” be spared. “The Sister” referred to Maria, but the gunman confused Maria with Helena, sparing Helena’s life.

After the tragic deaths of her family, Helena was placed under the care of her Uncle Tomasso’s nephew, Salvator Asaro. She was then taken back to Sicily, where she was to be kept away, safe. While in Sicily Helena picked up the skills of the crossbow due to the training from her cousin. She was told that she could be the only one to put an end to those who murdered her family. Helena trained and practiced with weapons (Crossbow) and hand to hand combat until she was fifteen years old. The Italian government started to crackdown on Mafia families, Helena was then sent to Switzerland for boarding school to stay protected.

It was brought to light after she arrived in Swizerland that everything she had been told was a lie about the Mafia. Realizing that the Mafia was a force of corruption and evil lead by her own family she returned to Gotham, at the age of 16. At a Christmas party hosted by her family, she would catch her first glimpse of the caped crusader, Batman. Batman had crashed the party frightening her family and fought with them, giving her a realization she could fight them too.
Helena returned to Swizerland and prepared herself for her revenge on the Mafia. After college she returned to Gotham in pursuit of vengeance as the Huntress. Huntress ended the lives of Mandragora and the assassin who murdered her family.

A murder case of a police officer with connections to the Mafia resulted in a brief but, romantic relationship with Nightwing. The Huntress made an appearance in “No Man’s Lands” where later joker attacked her, shooting her five times leading to her making a full recovery, earning Batman’s respect. Batman later funded Helena for a new uniform and new bike. Returning the favor, Huntress saved Batman’s life when he took a fall in Crime Alley.

Appearing in Hush, where she was drugged by Scarecrow where she attacked Catwoman who she perceived as her “old” self. Helena made a full recovery with the help of Batman and soon allied with Oracle and Black Canary fighting crime in both Gotham and Metropolis as an official member of the Birds of Prey.

Once again one of my favorite Women in DC. She doesn't take any mess.

Until next time adios. :)

--Poison Quinn

Treacherous Tuesdays

2009-07-21T15:18:00.000-07:00

Hello world and welcome to Batmania Reviews. This is Poison Quinn here to notify you guys of a small eviction and new location!

Villainous Fridays is being remolded, revamped and taken over by, yes me, Poison Quinn.:-) It will now take place on what I would like to call, "Treacherous Tuesdays", done by me :-). Here I will take you on an in depth look at some of Gotham City's most cruel, sinful and unforgiving
criminals.

Not only will I cover Gotham, but I will also shine light on some of DC Universes heinous and vile villains as well.

So, without further ado I present to you Mr. Born on a Monday.
Christened on a Tuesday.......

Solomon Grundy

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Real Name: Cyrus Gold
Current Alias: Solomon Grundy
Birth Place: Gotham City
Gender: Male
Height: 9’25”
Weight: 971
Eyes: Black
Hair: White

Powers: Superhuman Strength, Superhuman stamina, Mystical invulnerability, Ability to absorb energy and manipulate it.

It is said that Cyrus Gold was born around the early to mid 19th century. Although depending on who you ask or what you read, his birth can differ a little bit, BUT, we’ll just go with the early-mid 19th century. There are a number of ways for how Cyrus Gold became Solomon Grundy.

In one origin, he was a wealthy merchant named Cyrus Gold, of course, who was murdered and had his body disposed in Slaughter Swamp. Fifty years later, he was resurrected super-naturally with some of his body parts composed of parts from the swamp.

Another origin, one I find wild, happens in 1895. Gold was murdered by a pimp after one of his prostitutes tried to pin and blackmail him with being the father of her unborn child. When Gold refused to pay up, he was then knocked unconscious (Can we say pimp smacked? Lol) and buried in Slaughter Swamp. Over the next fifty years his body interacted with the swamp and its compounds and he was resurrected into Solomon Grundy.

Being introduced to the comic world in 1944, Grundy appeared as a huge shambled man with not much memory of his past life. Once he was resurrected, Grundy murdered two escaped criminals, stealing their clothes and taking shelter at a hobo camp.

Grundy was asked what his name was when he arrived but was only able to mumble, “Born on a Monday”. One of the men at the camp recited the old nursery rhyme that included Solomon Grundy and this would be the name and identity Gold adopted.

Being the vicious and strong monster he was, Solomon fell into the life of crime. This only led him to his many clashes with heroes including Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, the JSA and JLA. Although Grundy is said to haunt Gotham’s sewers that hasn’t kept him from starting trouble in other places. Grundy made an appearance in “The Long Halloween” where he befriended Harvey Dent as he was transitioning to Two Face. But you’ll have to read it to get all the goods on that back story.

Despite his many defeats, Solomon Grundy, resurrects in new incarnations varying in levels of strength and intelligence. Although for the most part he’s evil a few times his reincarnations have brought him back as a heroic individual, he always seems to get defeated either way.

So who’s to say when Grundy will be back? We’ll have to keep our eyes and mind at alert when reading.

Born on a Monday. Christened on Tuesday. Married on Wednesday. Took ill on Thursday. Worse on Friday. Died on Saturday. Buried on Sunday.

Is that the end of Solomon Grundy?

See ya’ll next week.

--Poison Quinn

Comic Review: Batman Streets of Gotham #2

2009-07-20T16:38:00.000-07:00

Greetings all! Amputechture here with my first actual part on Batmania Reviews! So if I am a main collaborator on the site, why am I just now reviewing something? Well, the truth is, I have been busy behind the scenes ... In any case, you don't really care about that do you? No. Here are my thoughts on Batman: Streets of Gotham #2 ...

Summary: The story in this issue opens with Alfred watching the chaos in Gotham City unfold (apparently dusting helps to calm the nerves ... ) Gothamites are combusting into flames all over the city due to Firefly's twisted plans. It seems Bruce's old pal, Thomas Elliot, sees this as his chance to escape as he fools Alfred into thinking he himself is also a victim. We then shoot around town to see what everyone else is up to ...

We cut (briefly) to Firefly (Garfield Lynns) who shows just how twisted he really is. He isn't doing this to get money, he just likes "watching them dance," reveling in Gotham's misery. Not to mention that it brings Batman much pain. What a punk. We are then treated to the antics of the new kid in town, Abuse. It seems some of the citizens of the city have decided to loot, not from stores, but private homes. Abuse does not like this; not one bit ...

Batman and Robin encounter Abuse who was in the process of severely punishing some thugs. He remarks that he was doing "his part" and then Batman questions who this new vigilante is. Abuse proceeds to make his escape, as he is "hurt" that Batman doesn't remember him ( hey, he's a sensitive guy ... ) Batman and Robin deduce that he must have been one of the "other" Batman's friends. Interesting indeed ...

After Batman and Robin restrain the battered thugs, they move on (magically at that ...) to help Katy; the young girl from the last issue. Seems she aged a few years ... Batman is questioning her as he delicately removes the bug that she was tagged with. She doesn't offer much in the way information on Lynns himself, but the location where she was tagged gives the duo the lead that they needed.

We cut back to Lynn's who is suited up and ready for a confrontation. This he get's, as Black Mask makes quite the entrance, ( Black Mask is too evil for doors I tell's ya'! ) Apparently, Firefly's shenanigan's don't sit too well with him. He proceeds to activate the chemical in Firefly's body (the one that was injected into all of Arkham's escapees) ... but to no avail. Yes, it turns out Lynns was able to remove the chemical.

This set's Black Mask off as he orders his goons to take down the traitor. Firefly sets off a nice little trap and gains the upper hand. Just as he is about to finish off Mask, our Dynamic Duo intervene with a destructive entrance of their own. ( The building has to be seriously compromised by now.)

Batman and Robin jump out of the Batmobile and pursue the villains. Batman grapples onto a fleeing Firefly and Robin takes Black Mask. Before the Boy Wonder can do anything though, Zsasz intervenes and saves Black Mask ... So close.

Batman has more success as he floods Firefly's jet pack with a cooling round. Nice shot. They hurtle back towards the ground. The Dark Knight lands safely while Firefly is left to fall into the building which is now engulfed in flame. Thus, Firefly is left to die at the hands of his own device. Or is he?

As we cut back to the "Batcave," Dick, Alfred and Damien are in for a surprise. Dick is in the process of sending out a message to various heroes to "watch for" Thomas, when a news report catches their eye. Seems the escaped Elliot is impersonating Bruce Wayne and is being recorded live outside of the building! They approach him just to helplessly watch as he gives away One-Billion dollars, promising more every month ... Damien's closing statement says it all "We're screwed ..."

Final Thoughts: I will say this right now, I am a huge Dini fan, and this is what makes me more critical than usual. I found that some of the story-telling elements were not up to snuff. We really have no hint as to how Thomas Elliot started the fire to escape. It may seem minor, but Dini isn't writing a cartoon here, we need some shred of explanation. It was also strange that Batman and Robin "teleported" right to Katy's position after tying up the thugs that Abuse had, well abused.

The characterization of Firefly was great as it really made him into a threat, showing a sadistic side. Still, it seemed to be a waste as he makes Black Mask look like a buffoon and in turn is defeated by Batman within a few panels. Really? It also seems that Dini is striving for an expanded look at Gotham which makes the way Dick and Damien are written seem out-of- place. As if he needs to feel out the character's a bit more. And we get it Dini ... You like Zatanna.

The art lent itself to some annoyances as well. In my opinion, Dustin Nguyen is very talented, but just seems lazy on books as opposed to his various standalone artwork pieces. Katy, as I mentioned before, seems to be older in this issue. Not to mention that Black Mask looks down-right ridiculous at times. I may not be fan, but he does have some great visuals, especially in the fire-tinged scenes.

Despite these minor details, this was a solid book. While Dini may need to flesh out a few more things, the overall story was well-written with plenty of questions left to be answered. I am curious to learn more about Abuse and his role in all of this. While I find the Thomas Elliot plot "twist" a bit silly, I am interested to see how this plays out. Definitely a good read and something you should check out.

Rating: 7/10

-Amputechture

Identity Crisis Review

2009-07-20T15:11:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, it's that time again! This week's "Graphic Novel Monday" feature is brought to you by one of my favorite writers, Brad Meltzer. I'll be reviewing Identity Crisis. Many of us have always wanted to be a superhero, especially as a kid; we all wanted the fame, the fans and the lifestyle. But what happens when someone stops shooting at the bullet-proof superhero, and aims for their vulnerable family and friends? This is the story that shows what happens, and shows you that not all superheroes are truly invincible.

Our story starts with "Elongated Man", Ralph Dibny and Firehawk conducting a stakeout on the roof. As they converse we see Ralph's nose twitch, a sign that something's wrong (as a twitch of the nose from Ralph Dibny has always meant that there were villains around or something was not right.) Elongated man mentions that it's his birthday celebration tonight (not his birthday) and his wife, Sue Dibny, always finds a way to try to surprise him. Being the expert detective that he is, always figures it out. Ralph never let Sue know and always acts surprised but this night, everything goes wrong. Ralph can sense it and rushes home, to find his wife, murdered, along with his present ... a positive Pregnancy test.

With Ralph devastated, the league is out for answers, and sends out everyone from the Titans, The JSA, and The Outsiders to get answers. While along the way the killer strikes again and again, with no answers pointing towards who they are and why they continue to target the loved one's of Superheroes. And along the way there's tragic scenes involving a certain Boy Wonder, shocking betrayals, and some actions by Dr. Light which are so outrageous, that it will leave you in awe ...

This is the end-all-be-all of Graphic Novels. Brad Meltzer is a genius, the artwork by Michael Bair is both beautiful and eerie at the same time. This is honestly one of the greatest stories I've ever read. This story is so pivotal that the effects are still being mentioned today, even in the Blackest Night storyline. Identity Crisis is in my top three Graphic Novels of all time easily, possibly my favorite of all time. If I could recommend one Justice League book it would be Identity Crisis. Simple as that...There's nothing else to say, 10/10.

- Jason Todd

The Blackest Night Begins

2009-07-19T17:51:00.001-07:00

Hey guys, Jason Todd here again, this time with a review of the Epic Blackest Night issue one. As mostly everyone knows, the Blackest Night storyline is regarded as one of the biggest storylines of the year. DC Comics gave the helm to Geoff Johns for this story and decided to have Ivan Reis do the art and I think both will excel in these positions. So grab a flashlight as we jump right into The Blackest Night.

Right of the bat, the first thing I have to say is that this is one of the best drawn covers I've seen in a long time. It really draws you in and lets you know that this is a special story and something that shouldn't be taken lightly. Like Infinite Crisis & Final Crisis this is a story that will echo throughout the DC Universe for a long time after it's concluded. When our story starts we see the first Black Lantern, The Black Hand, cradled over the grave of our beloved billionaire Bruce Wayne, before sending out what had to be Billions of Black Lantern rings. If you don't believe me you go look at that page and tell me it's not billions...its like a swarm of locusts. Anyway, we move on to Hero Celebration day where heroes and citizens alike worship their fallen saviors, including fallen Teen Titans, Aquaman, and the Kents paying respect to Johnathan Kent. Even those treacherous villains are paying respects to their fallen comrades.

Later in the comic we encounter things that have clearly set up other story line's down the way, including a an update on The Atom, Ray Palmer, A conversation with Barry Allen and Hal Jordan, Alfred discovering Bruce's grave has been robbed, and the Resurrection of some of the biggest names in DC History, including Martian Manhunter and Aquaman, being brought back from the dead. And not to mention many more things that I won't ruin.

I will mention that the conversation between Hal and Barry showed just how long Barry has been gone and reminded us of how many characters have died lately. Also, the appearances of Hawkman and Hawkgirl elevated the story tenfold, as someone who's never cared for either, I for one can't wait to see what happens with them. There's really nothing bad I can say about Blackest Night, It's a great opener, packed alot of punches and set up future storyline's. But as much as I want to, I know I can't justify giving this issue a ten, only for the reason I know that future issues will be better, I have alot of faith in Geoff Johns. I Highly recommend you check out the Blackest Night Issue 1 because it's definitely gonna shake things up. I give issue one an 8/10.

- Jason Todd

Women of DC Wednesday's

2009-07-15T10:55:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Welcome to Women of DC, the place to get information on your favorite female characters in the DC Universe.

Allow me to introduce myself, the name is Falisha also known as Poison Quinn, a member of Batman Arkham Asylum forum. Every week I will be presenting you all with a little info of the many women who play a big part in the lives of Batman Characters as well as the DC Universe.

With the anticipation of Batman: Arkham Asylum, which I am just aniticipating, I’ve decided to go with a personal favorite of my own. So, without further prolongation, allow me introduce you to our first lady this week, Pamela Isley.

Real Name: Pamela Isely

Current Alias: Poison Ivy
Birth Place: Seattle, Washington

Gender: Female
Height: 5’9”
Weight: 133
Eyes: Green
Hair: Red
Skin: Green

Powers: Chlorokinesis, Enhanced Strength, Toxic Immunity, Toxikinesis, Pheromone Control
Abilities: Botonist, Toxicologist, Proficient Combantant
_________________________________________________________________________

Once a very intelligent botanist college student from Seattle, Dr. Pamela Lillian Isley knew just about everything there as to know about plants. Her downfall of being naïve, Pamela was seduced by her professor Dr. Jason Woodrue (Floronic Man) into experiments upon her, using his smooth seductive words of love. These experiments placed toxins in her blood stream that led to her touch being dealy and allow her to be immune to all poisons, viruses, bacteria and fungi. After the experiments she was allowed to produce mind-control pheromones that drove men in a frenzy at her touch. The experiments also made her unable to reproduce, allowing her to treat her plants as children, mothering them all every since.

Pamela was placed in a hospital for six months, after the experiments went wrong, allowing Woodrue to flee the authorities. Feeling betrayed, Pamela suffered many violent mood swings. Pamela dropped out of school after her boyfriend got into a car accident learning he was mysteriously suffering from massive fungal overgrowth. Leaving Seattle, she eventually settled in Gotham City.

When she arrived in Gotham, Pamela threatened to release her deadly spores into the air unless Gotham met her demands. This act caused her fame of becoming the infamous Poison Ivy. Appearing in Gotham that same year, Batman subdued and defeated her resulting in her incarceration in Arkham Asylum. As her sentence in Arkham went on her naïveté would fade as the hardness that comes with the criminal lifestyle. As the years went on she became more plant-like becoming a thorn in Batman’s side that would still remain to this day.

Poison Ivy would also become best friends with the Joker’s sidekick, Harley Quinn. Although in past villain team ups relationships have crumbled due to greed or incompatibility, Harley and Ivy have a genuinely rooted friendship. Ivy tries to save Harley from her abusive relationship with the Joker. She sympathizes with Harley as Harley is mistreated by the man she loves, just like Ivy was by Jason Woodrue.

Poison Ivy is currently teamed up with Harley Quinn and Catwoman, known as the Gotham City Sirens

And that folks is the sultry and seductive Poison Ivy. See you all next week

-Poison Quinn

Can you keep a Secret? (Private Casebook Review)

2009-07-13T11:08:00.000-07:00

Graphic Novel Mondays is back for it's fourth appearance, courtesy of Jason Todd. This week's review is Paul Dini's Batman: Private Casebook. Featuring artwork by the talented Dustin Nguyen, Dini's Bat-world is brought to life, in various short stories featuring the Caped Crusader and many of his allies and enemies. There's some definite hits and misses though, so lets get right into it.

Batman: Private Casebook is a who's who of Batman mythos, while some of the bigger names like Joker, Two-Face, Nightwing and Robin are missing from these stories, other characters step up. Casebook includes five or six short stories (I can't remember off the top of my head) about our favorite Gothamite and includes appearances by Zatanna, Mad Hatter, Scarface, The Riddler, Ra's Al Gul, Catwoman, and Scarecrow. Casebook also features a well put together format, as it ties up loose ends from some comics that take place prior, for example Heart of Hush and The Resurrection of Ra's Al Gul. While the stories differ some of them are very well done while others feel rushed or insignificant.

One of the best written stories in this Casebook compilation in my opinion is the story featuring Zatanna. Without giving away anything to would-be-readers, I will say that Bruce and Zatanna give conversations with such believability that you feel like these are characters who truly do have a history, and thats a big plus when it comes to Dini's work. Other stories I felt didn't exhibit Batman behavior, like Batman entering chatrooms looking for information seemed odd to me ... maybe thats just weird to me though. I also didnt care for the Scarecrow story, it was too short, didn't feature Batman/Bruce Wayne at all and I felt it was an odd day to close the book. I know Dini loves Magicians, but I feel that Zatanna in three stories was overkill.

Overall Dini's writing with Nguyen's gritty art style makes for a good, but not very memorable book. I'd recommend checking this out, but I wouldn't spend over 13 dollars on it. Overall Paul Dini's Batman Private Casebook gets a 6.5/10.

- Jason Todd

Batman Begins...Again? (Batman #688 Review)

2009-07-10T16:05:00.000-07:00

Batman is back, or so Gotham thinks. And in a way he is, along with a brand new Robin. Winick and Bagley reunite to bring the Dark Knight back to the forefront with what can be considered the main Bat-book of the bunch. And the main attraction Dick Grayson, the man, the idol, the Batman....except he still has a problem with the cape. Now, lets jump in, to Batman #688!

Right of the bat...no pun intended, We join our hero being beaten to a pulp in the Batcave. Dick's taking a beating by a shadowy figure that continually berates him, and tells him he's not Batman. Dick is an imposter, he doesn't posess the things that made Batman the savior of Gotham, and that Batman is dead....and pretty soon, Dick may be as well. Turns out this this three weeks into the future, so jumping three weeks back, a.k.a. now. It's reported that Batman is back and has changed his ways of tampering with evidence before the police get a chance, and while the reason for this change is unknown (to everyone but the reader) it's getting Batman many praises, especially from the GCPD.

Now outside of giving everything away, I will mention that I'm a big fan of these talks between Dick and Alfred, no matter what comic they always give clarity that this is a different dynamic, but nonetheless something special. Also, we see Damien's training session with Dick which i thought was really well done, especially with Dick showing that him being as talkative as always and how he uses it to upset his opponents into making mistakes was a great piece of advice to show him giving Damien.

Along with appearances by Two-Face, the Penguin, and a conversation between Jim Gordon and Sergeant Pike, there's alot of depth to this issue. It was very word-driven with less action than I'm used to after reading some of the other Batman: Reborn books but that was something I enjoyed more than anything. I'm starting to tire of the jumping around in time plot device, especially as it was used so much in Red Robin, but it was used sparingly here. The artwork was a plus, and even seeing Batman smiling wasn't all that weird, considering it's Dick. Either way the story left us with a great cliffhanger and me desperately wanting to read Batman #689. My final rating for Batman #688 is a solid 8/10.

With the flip of a Coin

2009-07-09T23:12:00.000-07:00

Heads I do Two-Face as the villain staring today, Tails I make it Catman...Ta-Heads. Heads it is so I am going to do a not so-lengthy summary on Two-Face, with two pairs of paragraphs. Ever think Two-Face's favorite day of the week is Tuesday? Back to that review.

Ex-politician, current don. Two-Face was a politician who was scarred at a trial when some thug threw some acid on Harvey. His whole left body was scarred with the acid causing him to go through a mental breakdown. He felt he had the power to control Gotham, and indeed he did. Now my favorite instince of this was in Two-Face: Year One he appears in a bank and crushes Penny Plunderer with a giant penny. And makes a getaway. And then he proceeds to future goals and everntually kills the man that was running against him for District Attorney.

Anyways, Two-Face is best known as one of the don's of Gotham. Consisting of Penguin, Two-Face, and Black Mask at the moment. Now Two-Face has always mad decisions with a coin and always does things in pairs. Now he usually has a gun with two bullets in it, but on occasion it differs to a Tommy Gun or two pistols. He's a dangerous gunlsinger, nothing less, but a whole lot more.

Two-Face first appeared in 1942, where he was a lot more like Penguin with stealing a pair of thigns while Penguin stole bird-related items. But he has progressed to become a mob boss and one of Batman's most dangerous foes. And not to mention he is Nightwing's arch nemisis. No doubt this character will get better with Dick being Batman, but Penguin and Two-Face aren't fairing so well against Black Mask's gang, but that's for another day.

-KillerCroc

Contest News!

2009-07-08T09:57:00.001-07:00

Greetings all! Here is the new contests details: Very soon The Riddler will leave a clue to find a riddle that he has devised! Help us find this riddle, solve it and make him go away! You can win some prizes as seen below:

There is plenty of great stuff to win for three people, so get to it! Also, please remember that if you won First or Second Prize last time, you are not eligible to win this time! Sorry!

-Amputechture

A look with a magnifying glass: Brian Azzarello’s Joker. (Written by guest columnist Drazar)

2009-07-07T16:04:00.000-07:00

Brian Azzarello’s and Bermejo Lee’s Graphic novel Joker has been regarded as a deep, disturbing take on the Joker that even rivals Alan Moore’s Batman: The Killing Joke. Now, some people do believe due to the similiar Joker look that this is based off of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Joker... That's false. The book actually was originally suppose to be called Joker: The Dark Knight (similiar to Azzarello’s + Lee’s Lex Luthor: Man of Steel), but due to DC being worried of angry phonecalls from worried parents (due to the mature story of the book) they simplified the name to simply: Joker.

I’ve seen a lot of people not seeing all the little tibits and even Joker’s jokes on the book, and as a big comic book nerd, there's nothing more lovely than taking a gold look with a magnifying glass and sharing all of this information to people. So the next time they read it, they can say, “Oh, so that's what it means!” But before I begin, I am in no way saying I found all these little tidbits by myself. The great Internet community helped find all these great little details! Now let's dig into Joker!

PS. If you haven't read this comic, the story is told by one of The Joker's thug named Jonny Frost. So, when you see me talk about Jonny you now know who the hell he is.

Joker leaving the Asylum, page 5: Looking at the second panel, you see gargoyles on the Arkham Asylum rooftops, but if you look closely, you can also see Batman sitting on there, how do we know? Look two panels below and you'll see after the lightning that Batman is gone, and Joker is giving the finger to Batman, not the asylum.

How 'bout a rabbit joke: I have to admit I never truly got this until someone told me what it is. So, we see Joker spreading his pockets (white, long) infront of Croc and saying, "How 'bout some rabbit?" Now the joke here essantually is that the pockets are the bunny ears and Joker is the rabbit!

Pedophilia in Joker?: All credits to this great find goes to frakkingoff of Superherohype.com forums. This is a scene where Joker robbed a bank without triggering the alarm or killing people. Now take a look at these:

See how even the Joker is trying to avoid touching the picture? We all see loads of red but look at the leg/skirt area of the little girl. It's white... is that really sperm? Now, this book got heavily edited due to it being even more disgusting than it already is, but could the blood there literally be red herring?! I mean, even the Joker is disgusted to touch the picture... You know something's wrong. Johnny throws the picture away in disgust and says, "Are you kidding me?" Which Joker replies with, "Birds and Bees, Honey?" Now we all know bees are used as a sexual term, but are birds also? Maybe so. This whole sperm thing comes even more evident when Joker says, "I dig driving people, Jonny" So, did Joker really robb a bank by either masturbating to the bank owner's daughter or worse (as the text implies) he made the bank owner masturbate to his own daughter?!

Why does Joker call Penquin as Abner?!: This one is either really far fetched, or too simply to be noticed. The simple answer may just be that Joker simply calls Oswald as Abner because he knows he doesn't like being called "Penguin." So he mocks him with another nickname. Now, I don't think there are any fat people known with the name Abner, but in the very old USA newsletter comic strips, there was Lil' abner who had a pig pet... Yeah, far fetched, I guess, but i'd say it's just Joker being himself.

Joker's & Batman's relationship with each other: So, now we know Batman was at the asylum, and the great mystery lies how Joker was allowed to leave the asylum just like that. We see in the comic how Joker claims Batman is watching him from the city rooftops, seeing how Joker is doing his dirty work for him, and this is essantually true because most people Joker kills in the comic are infact mere thugs and criminals. Now, is Batman using the Joker to takedown the small fishes of Gotham's underworld so he can take them down alltogether when Joker has gathered them up? This is a big thing implied on the book since Batman does appear at the very end when he becomes aware of Joker killing off civillians and planning to murder Harvey Two-Face. Now this may seem, "Woah! This isn't my Batman, at all," but we do have to remind ourselves that this is an elseworld story, so things can be taken to the very extreme.

Hope you all enjoyed this little extra look on the Joker graphical novel, and I hope you can have extra enjoyment out of reading it after this! Please leave any questions or even more inside looks if you spotted any.

- Drazar

Batman Forever Review

2009-07-07T13:50:00.000-07:00

Batman Forever is the first film in the Schumacher film series.

Story: Batman Forever deals with many things: Dick's family dying, Bruce having nightmares about his parents' death, Two-Face teaming up with The Riddler, and more. It would have made a wonderful addition to the Batman film-family, but the mediocre acting, horrendous characterization, and cheesy one-lines make this one of the worst in the Batman film series.

The movie starts out with Two-Face robbing a bank. Batman meets up with Dr. Chase Meridian (a psychiatrist with a thing for Bats). After some small talk, The Dark Knight makes his way to the action. He takes out a group of machine-gun wielding thugs as he rescues a guard. To his surprise, he fell into a trap! Acid fills up the vault he and the guard are inside of it... what will Batman do? Well, he not only gets out, he smoothly slides the vault back into place.

We are later introduced to Edward Nygma (a researcher at Wayne Enterprises with a thing for Bruce Wayne). Edward tells Bruce about his new invention. A machine that manipulates brain activity, thus making images on screen look 3D. Bruce turns Edward down, and so begins The Riddler. After going through a list of possible villain names, he chooses the one that best fits his persona.

The whole film is about Two-Face and Riddler trying to figure out what Batman's true identity is, and causing him pain by killing his loved ones?

Cast: Val Kilmer isn't a bad Batman/Bruce Wayne, he's just not the best. Kilmer at least made an effort to change his voice between characters, unlike George Clooney. Chris O'Donnell takes on the role of the Boy Wonder, Robin. Personally, I thought he looked WAY too old, and acted WAY too bratty.

The Riddler is played by funny-man Jim Carrey. He does a good job with the role for the most part, but he's a bit too excited at times. Two-Face is completely wrong, Tommy Lee Jones is a talented actor, but he played Two-Face all wrong in this film. The supporting cast was decent, with Pat Hingle reprising his role as Jim Gordon, and Nicole Kidman as Dr. Chase Meridian.

Style: Much like Batman & Robin, there are a lot of comical elements to Batman Forever's style... and a lot of unnecessary ones, too. For example, why do the guns have neon circles around them? Why are there multi-coloured spot-lights all around Gotham? And why don't bad guys wear shirts?

Much of that could have been avoided, but again, it isn't entirely Joel's fault. Warner didn't want this film to be as dark as Tim Burton's Batman ('89) or Batman Returns.

Gadgets: There were the usual Batarangs and grapnel hooks, but nothing radically new. Bruce test drove a sonar-enhanced suit during the end of the film. But what was the point of it? All he used it for was to throw a Batarang...

Overall: Batman Forever isn't terrible, but it's not great either. It's decent. I recommend this film if you're a big Batfan, otherwise, stay away.

Batman Forever's metric score is a 7/10.

-EliteF50

Batman & Robin Review!

2009-07-06T17:47:00.000-07:00

Batman & Robin is the second entry in the Schumacher film series.

Story: Batman & Robin is all about Mr. Freeze and his revenge. It starts out with him wanting to restore Nora Fries (his wife) back to life. But later when Poison Ivy and Bane are introduced into the story, things change. Meanwhile, over in South America, Dr. Pamela Isley witnesses the creation of Bane. A super-human soldier fueled with "Venom." Dr. Jason Woodrue for some reason shifts his interest from the Bane presentation to Dr. Isley. In an attempt to join forces, he gets rejected. So he felt he needed to kill Dr. Isley. Too bad for him she comes back from the dead as, "Poison Ivy."

Ivy and Bane become a team and they decide to travel to Gotham. Why Gotham specifically? I have no idea. I wouldn't mind this, but why did they have to mess up Bane so badly? Since when was Bane a scrawny little man, turned into a muscle pumped idiot? Joel, you have failed yet again.

As usual, I won't spoil the rest of the story for you, but that's pretty much a summary of the intro.

Cast: Oh Lawdy, what did we do to deserve this horrendous cast? Was it the pollution, the crime, or the war? I feel George Clooney was robbed in this film. He is usually a terrific actor. He plays a fantastic Bruce Wayne... You know, a rich playboy -- oh wait, George IS a rich playboy! No wonder he played it so well... he was playing himself. As bad as his Batman was, it was no where near as bad as Mr. Freeze or Bane.

It's amazing how wrong the characters in this film are. Freeze is supposed to be a depressed, angry man full of hatred. Not a body builder in a neon suit with more cheesy puns than a 70s sitcom.

Bane was portrayed the worst. He's not supposed to be a dumb drone, let's remember: he was smart enough to tire Batman, then do what no body else has done before... he broke Batman in two. Poison Ivy wasn't bad, she was probably the best actor in the movie... sad, eh?

Style: Neon lights, half naked men, huge statues, and Batnipples. That's pretty much Batman & Robin's style. We can't blame Joel entirely for this, Warner wanted a lighter incarnation of Gotham. But there was a lot of unnecessary stuff.

Gadgets: In the beginning of the film, we're treated a wonderful view of Batman's gadgets. But what gadgets were relevant to the film? Well, there were the Ice-skates, the laser used to thaw Robin, Batarangs, and a whole bunch of grapnel guns. The gadgets are mediocre at best.

Overall: Batman & Robin is not a good Batman film, but a great comedy. I laughed more than I should have, and I'm sure most of you have, too. As an action film, Batman & Robin earns a 2/10, but as a comedy, it earns a solid 9.5/10. If you're in a bad mood, watch some Batman & Robin!

-Elite

Batman: Lovers and Madmen Review

2009-07-05T22:11:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, welcome back to Batmania Reviews, Jason Todd here with our third installment of Graphic Novel Mondays. Today’s review is an arc from the ongoing Batman Confidential series, which establishes some of the big first moments in Batman Mythos. The issue arc for those interested are issues #7 to 12, but this is also available in hardcover format, which I’ll be reviewing today. This story was written by Michael Green and features artwork by Dennis Cowan. So without further adieu, I present Batman: Lovers and Madmen.

Over time people have always debated the Joker’s origin, whether it was failed comedian, petty crook, or as shown in Alan Moore’s “ “The Killing Joke” (one of my personal favorites) a simple family man who had a bad day. Lovers and Madmen revamps the creation of the Joker as a simple man named Jack. A master criminal and thief, a man so good even The Batman himself can’t seem to track him. But Jack’s grown bored with his profession and his life, and is ready to give them both up, until he catches glimpse of The Caped Crusader. Seeing this man dressed like a Bat, is somewhat funny to our guy Jack. And he can’t wait to play with our hero.

Without giving away too much, this is one of the best Joker stories I’ve read in a while. Things are put into perspective, and loyal Bat-fans will notice a lot homage’s to future Batman stories, including how Joker got his Glasgow smile, what makes the Clown Prince of Crime tick, we see a young Dr. Crane, and even a certain blonde waitress named “Leeny” that’s currently attending college with hopes of becoming a psychiatrist.

This is without a doubt my favorite Joker origin. No disrespect to Alan Moore but in my eyes this is the Joker’s past. I’d always wondered why Joker was portrayed as such a frail, weak guy. If that’s possible would he really have caused Batman so much drama over the years? Here Joker is shown as a guy at the top of his skills, a guy who always has a plan and may even be smarter than Batman himself. And lets not forget Batman, the debut along with hatred of The Joker causes The Dark Knight to do something so out of character you won’t believe your eyes.

The artwork is very gritty, yet it adds to the story and compliments it nicely. So with that said I label this a must-read for all Batman fans and a definite must-read for all fans of the Harlequin of Hate, The Joker. I give Batman: Lovers and Madmen a solid 10/10

-Jason Todd

Villainous Friday! Calender Man invades Batmania!

2009-07-04T15:05:00.000-07:00

I held off on Villainous Friday for this special day for a specific reason. It's a holiday for the US and what better way to celebrate it than doing a summary on the man of the dates? Calender Man.

Calender Man has a special lore to striking on holidays and usually the crimes related to those holidays. He also usually has a special costume for each holiday that he strikes but has a special generic costume seen above that he just wears when he is associated without a holiday to strike on.

Calender Man is usually described as a third-grade villain, which isn't a shocker. This dude isn't a Lex Luthor. He just attempts at first-grade crimes and usually fails. Although he has helped Batman in The Long Halloween catching a villain named 'Holiday' who uses the same patterns as him. But I wouldn't call it helping. He did know who Holiday was, but he wanted to mess with Batman so he left clues for Batman to solve this spree. I don't know how it ends thougth, maybe Jason will do a review of that for you guys soon. Now I see Holiday as a rip-off of Calender Man seeing as he came first, but people want the stronger, but I want the best, which is the man in orange.

Now Joker would be hard to put everything you know about him into a summary (see Villainous Fridays Begin!), he has been in a lot of groups, lots of crimes, and lots of danger. Now Calender Man I can go into more detail with. Calender Man was associated with one group of villains names "The Misfits". That was consisting of Calender Man, Catman, and the founder Killer Moth. Well, these guys wanted to earn there stripes, but I remember them failing a lot. Now we all know that Killer Moth became Charaxes, and Catman became well...better. But sadly Calender Man is left as being the saddest villains compared to the rest.

This villain fails a lot, but he wants you to know about him, that's part of his invasion. Someday Calender Man will earn his stripes...hopefully. But until then all we can do is treasure him as a classic Batman villain.

-KillerCroc

Batman & Robin #2 Review

2009-07-03T15:33:00.000-07:00

Hey there guys, Jason Todd here with a review of Batman & Robin #2. This is my first weekly comic review and what better way to start than with Morrison and Quitely's reintroduction of the Dynamic Duo. Well, you could call this the Disaster Duo because that's where Batman and Robin seem to be headed. Robin's constantly undermining Batman and frankly believes he could do a better job, and sets out to do so.

We start the issue with Dick telling Alfred of his latest mission, how he and Robin went to stop a supposed break out at the Gotham City Police Department. One of Gordon's men comments "Didn't they used to be taller? And didn't Batman's voice sound different?" Batman and Robin proceed to stop the havoc in the police department, but not without casualties. Something Dick believes Bruce would have been able to prevent.

"I hate the cape, Alfred -- the cape was the first thing I ditched when I got out on my own." That quote sums up the entire issue. Dick comments that no one believes he's Batman, and that Gordon and everyone else looks as him as some imposter, playing Batman. His own Robin comments that he's not Batman and he never will be. Alfred convinces Dick that as a circus performer he should pretend that Batman is a part to play, and perform everynight. Encouraging words for sure... now if only Batman knew where to find Robin, because Damian could sure use some help.

Without giving away anything that could ruin the story I will say that this issue was definitely more informative than the last. The Dynamic between Dick and Damien is still bratty kid meets forced-to-grow-up-too-soon adult. I'm getting tired of Damien's persona but what can you do? All in all I'd have to say that Batman & Robin seems to be on the right path to establishing this new Dynamic Duo. I'll give it a 8/10

- Jason Todd

I can hear the sirens oh no!

2009-07-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

Killer Croc is back in action, sorry for the delay, hectic week and thensome. Anyways I am reviewing Gotham Sirens by Paul Dini and Guillem March. I am a huge fan or March's artisery or whatever. He's an awesome artist. He got this gig because DC comics was impressed on how well he drew women in Joker's Asylum: Posion Ivy, so they made him the artist on this. Now I go on to the review...

The star of the first issue more or less is Catwoman. We all know she's a hero because she switched sides after Bruce died. But, Catwoman has tried before and we don't know what she will do. First minute into reading this I was hooked. So it starts out with Catwoman coming to the aid of a innocent in distress, by some loser villain who wantd a title. This guy has some cool gauntlets that blasts you bones with a shockwave. Talk about a punch. This comic as well catches you up to speed on what happened with Catwoman and her rivalry with Hush. Very well done. I haven't been reading comics frequently until two years ago so it was a nice catch up. Now, Catwoman looks like she will die while this dreamer thinks he can kill her and gain a title, as we know...legends don't die.

Posion Ivy comes in and saves our heroine, and gets some questions running through her head. Now in BftC: Underground we saw that Harley Quinn was searching for Posion Ivy because of Black Mask kidnapping her...in a way. So apparently Edward Nigman aka Riddler switched sides as well and helped our green friend out. I won't give any more detail than that for it. Except I can say that our three bad girls of Gotham, Catwoman, Posion Ivy, and Harley Quinn form an alliance in the end.

The art and story for this comic book was astounding. Most first issues are about introductions and no action but this comic book has it all. I was not disappointed in the least. I am eager for the next issue so much. As I said before I am a fan of March's art and this was like reading a bible for me. Excellent story, excellent art, and the best characters in Gotham, what more do you want? Best comic for the new Batman series.

On a readers note: There was a little something leading to this comic in Streets of Gotham, not much to effect the story, but it leads to the starting point.

Haven't read a comic this great since Hush #1

10/10

-Killer Croc

Wonder Woman - The Hiketeia Review

2009-06-28T22:21:00.000-07:00

Hey Batfans, welcome to the second edition of Jason Todd's Graphic Novel reviews. This week our favorite Gothamite makes a guest appearance in "Wonder Woman - The Hiketeia" Written by Greg Rucka, with artwork by J.G. Jones and starring Two-Thirds of the DC Trinity; this book has the recipe for success.

Wonder Woman - The Hiketeia's plot is simple...What happens when the Amazonian Princess Wonder Woman agrees to Hiketeia, which is the tradition that she must play host to a young woman by the name of Danielle "Danny" Wells to protect her with her life. Little does she know Danielle is being hunted by a certain Caped Crusader for committing unspeakable crimes. So what's Diana to do ... does she allow Batman to pursue her protected companion or does she aid a criminal and fight one of her strongest allies?

As always, I'm not going to ruin the book for would-be readers. The plot idea is very interesting and led me to believe that we'd see a fight of epic proportions between Batman and Wonder Woman. Sadly, I was mistaken. Over 80 pages and the fight between the two heroes lasted maybe three at the most ... The artwork was very good but the story was seriously lacking. What started out strong, quickly fell with each page, even to the point of being screwed out of a fight between two of the biggest names in comic history.

Sure Batman is nowhere near as strong as Wonder Woman, but that's never been an obstacle before. The ending seemed rushed as well and I felt letdown by Greg Rucka. Honestly, I feel that this may be one of the worst stories I've ever read ... the artwork is a plus, and the plot had potential but ultimately was a letdown. I wish I could start a Hiketeia and have someone protect me from reading things this bad in the future. Overall, I give Wonder Woman - The Hiketeia a 3/10.

-Jason Todd

Batman Returns Review

2009-06-28T15:49:00.000-07:00

Batman Returns Review

Batman Returns is the second entry in the Burton film series. It features Michael Keaton as Batman, Danny DeVito as the Penguin, and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.

Story: Batman Returns starts off with the Penguin's birth. It shows us what the doctor, nurse, and his very own parents felt when they first saw him: terror. Penguin wasn't a normal child, he had flippers instead of fingers, and his nose was bigger than most baby's arms. His parents had no idea what to do with him, so they threw him into the river. He spent thirty-three years in a sewer, plotting his descent from the underground of Gotham, to the city of his birth.

But Batman Returns features more than one villain. There's the Penguin, Catwoman, and Max Shreck. Catwoman is introduced later in the movie, when an unfortunate accident transformers her from a lonely, quiet secretary, to the beautiful, dangerous Selina Kyle we all know and love.

At first, Penguin's intentions seem genuine. But Bruce later discovers that he's not what he appears to be. When Oswald (Penguin) makes his debut to the rest of Gotham, he saves the mayor's son from a kidnapper, assumingly hired by the Penguin himself. He tells the press and the citizens of Gotham that all he wants is to learn more about his history. I won't spoil the movie, so that's all I'll say.

All in all, Batman Returns' story is even better than Batman '89's.

Cast: Most of the actors from Batman '89 reprise their roles in this film. Michael Keaton plays the Dark Knight, Michael Gough plays Alfred Pennyworth, and Pat Hingle as Commissioner Gordon. But that's not all. Danny DeVito takes on the role of Penguin/Oswald Cobblepot, Michelle Pfeiffer plays Catwoman/Selina Kyle, and Christopher Walken as Max Shreck.

Much like the story, the casting for this movie is top notch! Keaton continues to play the perfect Batman. Gough plays an excellent Alfred Pennyworth. Heck, we can even understand what Pat Hingle says this time around!

Danny's take on Penguin is truly stunning. I've never been a big fan of the Penguin, but Mr. DeVito has changed my mind. In Batman Returns, Penguin is a fat, ugly, disgusting white man. But boy does Danny pull it off. Not one complaint from me.

Michelle Pfeiffer is also wonderful. Catwoman wasn't always my favourite female comic book character, but Michelle's performance made me re-think that. Her nervous, lonely secretary act is well done, but it gets even better. Her Catwoman is terrific. The voice, the movement, everything! Her "bad" Selina Kyle is also a lot better than her nervous one.

Christopher Walken is a funny man, and it shows even in this film. My personal favourite Max Shreck moment is during the end. Even when he's about to die, he tells Selina that she's fired! What a guy.

Style: It's a Burton film, so you know there's going to be some unusual stuff going on here, but I like it. The Batsuit in this film is even better than the first one. The city stays the same for the most part, except for the weather. The weather is a big reason why I like this film. I'm a big Christmas guy, and seeing my favourite holiday mixed with my favourite super-hero was a wonderful thing.

All of the changes Burton made for this movie were the right ones, and I applaud him for that.

Gadgets: Gadgets didn't really play a huge role in Batman Returns, but the ones we saw sure were cool! In the beginning of the film, we get to see a remote controlled Batarang, capable of taking out multiple goons with one throw. We later get to see the usual grapnel gun, and even Batwings, used for gliding across Gotham!

The Gadgets weren't in short supply, it's just that Batman himself had very little screen time (a choice made by Keaton, actually). In each Batman scene, there was at least one cool gadget. And that's more than enough for me.

Overall: Batman Returns improves upon all of the first film's mistakes. It is my favourite Batman film ever made, and that title is well deserved. I recommend Batman Returns to everyone with an appreciation for terrific acting, beautiful scenery, and an excellent story.

Batman Returns' metric score is a 9.8/10

-Elite

Batman (1989) Review

2009-06-26T16:35:00.000-07:00

Batman '89 Review

Batman '89 is the second entry in the Batman film series. It is directed by Tim Burton, and features Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader, and Jack Nicholson as the Clown Prince of Crime.

Story: When Bruce Wayne was just a young man, his parents were killed right in front of him. When he grew up, he vowed revenge on the criminals of Gotham City. He planned to rid the city of all crime and evil. To do this, he must become something that they will fear: Batman.

Batman '89 shows us how Jack Napier became the Joker. He was fooled into believing he was doing something important for his boss, but instead finds himself in a trap. Batman eventually arrives to save the day, but he creates a monster in the process. Batman dropped Jack into a vat of chemicals, transforming Jack's hair and skin.

In the end, Joker's goal is to turn everyone into, "works of art." But as usual, Batman foils his plan. Overall, the story is very well done. Even though it's not completely true to the comics, it makes sense, and isn't too hard to understand. The dialogue is excellent for many reasons, one being that it really lets us relate to the characters and their emotions. Bruce Wayne is a lonely man crying out for mommy and daddy, Joker is a psychotic freak with no sympathy for human life, and everyone else fits in just as well.

Cast: The casting for this film is terrific. Michael Keaton is considered the best live-action Batman by many. However, some people strongly disagree with this. Sure he may not be in top physical shape, but that doesn't stop him from delivering one of the greatest performance of his career.

Jack Nicholson was a good Joker, for the time. But I felt he acted more like Jack Nicholson on sugar as apposed to the Joker. For every ten minutes of breath-taking Joker, there was thirty minutes of boring Nicholson. The permanent smile didn't help much, either. Even though that wasn't his fault, I feel it took away from some of the serious moments in the movie. It just looked silly.

The supporting cast is great for the most part, with Michael Gough playing Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce's trustworthy butler. Kim Basinger as Vicky Vale, Bruce's love interest. And Pat Hingle as Commissioner Gordon. My only problem with the supporting cast was Pat. He didn't look or act like James Gordon.

Style: B89's style is absolutely stunning. From the Batsuit, to the city's skyscrapers. Everything was built to perfection. Burton really created the Gotham City fans desired in a live action film. I only wish there was more outdoor action, but Batman Returns shows us some of that.

Gadgets: Something a Batman move has to perfect are the gadgets. Sure, Batman is a master in every martial arts and he's as smart as Einstein's billionaire-playboy-brother (if he had one), but there's no denying that his gadgets help him get out of most situations.

Batman '89 featured most of Batman's well know gadgets, such as: Batarangs, Grapnel Gun, Smoke Pellets, etc. He even had a neat two-way grapnel gun used to help Vicky escape from the Joker and his thugs. Not to mention the cool Batmobile (if you count that as a gadget).

Overall: Batman was a very enjoyable film, I would even say it's one of the best there is. Everything felt authentic, and there wasn't any Batnipples on the costumes. It did have a few minor issues, but nothing that made the film unwatchable.

The metric score for this film is 9.3/10

- EliteF50

Villainous Fridays Begin!

2009-06-26T09:53:00.000-07:00

Hello ladies and gents, dudes and dudetts, Bobs and Marys! Well thanks to our own Amputechture I threw an idea and he said yes! Every week I will be featuring a villain and telling you a little bit about him/her. This week I am featuring the Clown Prince of Crime. That's right the one and only... Joker!

Joker is no doubt the Caped Crusader's deadliest foe. Batman and Joker go together like PB & J, Bananana and Split, Mr and Clean. Joker has always been everyone's favorite villain or at least near the top, I haven't met one person that hates Joker, and if you do...Killer Croc will find you...Killer Croc always does.

Joker has a wide aresnal of gadgets as Batman does but resembling a comical feel to it. Joker uses laughing gas the most. Some people don't consider this a gadget, but I do. He puts it in his sleeve and then when you swing, lights out. But that's not what else he uses it for, I remember he put Joker gas (or laughing gas) in cherry bombs and flung them around. I remember the cane most of all, he used to carry around a cane that shoots laughing gas out of the top, then he would swing at you, easy finish. He also has many other things through the years such as the Joybuzzer, the *BANG!* gun, his acid squirting flower, always had the knives in his shoe top, and many other variations that never made it into the comics via Mortal Kombat vs. DCU, or the upcoming Batman Arkham Asylum.

Joker has no pattern of attack or crimes, he just wants to have fun! That's all he does is kill people, steal, and make idle threats just for fun. My favorite interpretation of this was in the Batman The Animated Series, Joker tried to trademark fish because he filled Gotham Bay with laughing gas and the fish had a big Joker smile on their face.

Joker was introduced in Batman #1 (1940) as Batman's first nemisis. This title has held and will always hold no doubt. These two will be enemies forever.

-KillerCroc

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 2)

2009-06-25T00:08:00.000-07:00

Batman: The Caped Crusader (1988)

ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, PC

We present to you the second part of our ongoing series, "The History of Batman in Video Games." Batman seemed to see a measure of success with his previous foray. How does Batman: The Caped Crusader fare? Persist dear reader ... First of all though, I will mention that my playthrough was for the Commodore 64 version. From my understanding, all the versions are fairly similar, save for some graphical differences.

The objective in Batman: The Caped Crusader is another simple one. You have to thwart the evil plans of The Penguin and the Joker. This is notable in that there were two adventures, each with it's own disc. The environments varied as did some items and what you used them for, but the main gameplay remained the same.

In both scenarios, you begin in the Batcave and need to discover the items needed to complete your mission. Some tasks are not necessary to do, save for getting 100% completion. As an example; in The Penguin mission, you begin in the cave and see that the Batcomputer is broken. You can search the rest of the cave to find various items such as: tools, a disk and a lightbulb? You can then return to the machine and use the tools in your inventory to fix the computer. You can then insert the disk! Does it help your mission? No, but completionists will want to try and conquer these tasks.

You can receive various hints when you walk by areas of importance. The clue will pop up in the corner of the screen like a story box from a comic. This leads me to the most appealing feature of this game; the comic book styling. You see, when you walk into a different room another layer or panel appears on top of the previous one. The effect is great and makes you feel as if you are in a comic book. Yet, it can be difficult to enjoy this when the controls are so horribly implemented.

A joystick is used for this endeavor but doesn't work very well. You can move left and right and point the joystick in any direction to attack where you are pointing. This is a moot point though since attacking is rather useless. The worst part though is that in order to pick up items you need to point the joystick down and press the button. This leads to many problems, as if you are not in the necessary spot to pick up said items; you will simply bring up the inventory screen. Yes they are both accomplished the same way!

The Joker playthrough ...

The sound is not as unfortunate as a catchy tune accompanies your adventures, but it comes with a downside. You never get to hear the song in full as it resets every time you pick up an item. Bummer. This is a great 8-bit melody that you should check out if possible! The sounds effects are very pronounced with jingles playing every time you pick an item and equip it; or to notify you that something can't be used just yet. Not pretty but it gets the job done.

The enemies are uninspired and at times nonsensical. The Penguin adventure offers up suited thugs, flying airplanes and bats that drop guano on you. Seriously? The Joker has the usual clown motif going for it. These things will frustrate you as you will never be able to hit everything on the screen, even with your Batarang equipped. Frustrating. Again though, it is better to just try and run if possible.

Overall, this game turned out to be a disappointment. Even if you do enjoy the mechanics presented, each adventure lasts at most ten minutes. Why you ask? Well, that is the time limit! In fact; unless you memorize which items you need and master the dreadful controls, you won't get very far. While there are some bright spots in this adventure, such as the graphical style and soundtrack; nothing else really stands out. Play this one only if you are a Batmaniac friends!

*Special Thanks to Why So Serious? from the Batman: Arkham Asylum Forums!*

-Amputechture

Exclusive: Interview with Nate Peck; Writer of Batman Retribution

2009-06-24T23:33:00.000-07:00

We here at Batmania Reviews have your first, exclusive look and interview with Renegade Comics' own Nate Peck; who is the writer for the highly anticipated comic, Batman: Retribution! Find out what he's been up to, how this ambitious project came to life, and what we can expect from the series ...

Cover Art

Amputechture: Okay, first off Nate ... When and how did you create this idea for writing your own Batman comic?

Nate Peck: Hmm, first off great question to start with. (Smiles) I've been reading comics since I was old enough to even read. My dad was constantly underway because he was a submariner in the Navy. So when he would come back from leave, he would run me up to the comic shop and we would buy comics and read them.

I've wanted to write a comic for a long time but never had the talent to do the other things associated with them like writing, coloring, etc. The how part of this question was that I decided to create a fan fiction Batman story to match Batman: Arkham Asylum to drum up buzz. My good friend Kurtis (Thebatman226) then confronted me, asking If I wanted to do something together with him. After seeing his talent, it was an obvious yes. I hope I answered that as you wanted.

AM: Definitely. That is an interesting story! So it was the game that really pushed you over the edge and into your desire to write a comic?

NP: Oh, definitely. In my opinion, none of the Batman video games were ever that great. And after watching trailer after trailer and gamplay after gameplay, I was completely convinced that this game was going to end that streak. So in a way it was like motivation. If Rocksteady can end the streak of bad Batman games, then my friends and I can create a story worth telling.

AM: (Laughs) Very true. So what was it about the writing aspect of comics that attracted you to writing one yourself?

NP: Well, I've always been a good writer in my opinion and others'. I've had countless teachers and my parents tell me how skilled I am. I've done journalism, screenwriting, novel and now comic book writing. Personally, comics can show themes and elements a lot better than say a movie or television show. You have more free roam, not a lot of boundaries. So that appeals to me a lot better.

AM: I see. As this is a Batman tale, are there any specific storylines you are following in your own comic. For example, does your story involve a post Battle for the Cowl scenario?

NP: Yeah, this is a Batman tale but we are going with a different storyline. I like the Battle For The Cowl story line and all but personally a writer has a lot more resources when you go without a follow up story. Writing on top of Battle For The Cowl would have been a great benefitiary or pissed off a lot of people if we did it wrong. This way people can understand that we are building off other peoples momentum, we are just simply creating a story with our favorite Batman characters are running our vision on it.

AM: That's a good point. Seeing as how their will be plenty of those stories hitting shops. So how did you meet the rest of your creative team?

NP: Well, most of the Renegade crew I met on yours truly, Batman: Arkham Asylum/Eidos forum. I was first approached by Kurtis (TheBatman226) and I told him my story and he immediately agreed on it. The rest I approached, first being CJ (The Comedian), he liked my idea as well. After that I approached Chris (Timeless Unknown) and he too liked the story. And I'm forgetting my buddy Michael who isn't a poster on BAA but he is a loyal friend that's been writing with me for a few years now. Last but not least Killer Croc decided to join us in hype for our story, he simply couldn't handle it anymore.

AM: (Laughs) It is very exciting to say the least. What difficulties arose when creating this particular project?

NP: Well, life is life and there are constantly difficulties and a project like this really shows you that. My artist is 14 hours ahead of me, making meetings a chore to assemble. Not to mention you have to be realistic on a release date which is one of the biggest challenges we face now. I thought a July 1st release of Issue 1 was realistic, now it seems impossible.

Thats when I have to remember that we aren't professionals. Our biggest problem as of right now is figuring out our colorist problem. They are harder to find then you think and on top of that it's a business that wants money and we are a team that doesn't have that. So we are scanning the net and our options which as of now is looking like a black and white comic, which oddly enough I think suits us.

AM: I think that may really work out well. A while ago on the forums, you had hinted the villain in your story. What can you tell us about that? Any secrets you can share ...

NP: Of course I can share. The villain is Shin Satsu which in Japanese simply means, "To die killing." He is a villain that doesn't believe in a no-win scenario like Batman. He is ruthless like Batman's rival The Joker, but where The Joker fails, Shin tops and thats fighting. Shin is a psuedo Ninja with a hidden past and many black belts. The best part of him is the machete he wields and his mask. His mask is something we based off Alan Moore's Watchmen, which is simply a Rorschach Dot mask, it doesn't move like Rorschach's. However, it is ink blotted like his and constantly stays the same shape of a smile face. The blots are created by the blood of his victims. Truly in my opinion he might be the hardest villain for Batman to face because of his knowledge in Martial Arts, his intelligence and ruthlessness. No question readers will be instore for one of hell of a match when Batman meets him.

AM: So essentially we are seeing a version of The Dark Knight that doesn't mind killing? Sounds epic! So it seems you were influenced by several comics. Are there any that you would consider your favorite?

NP: Umm, I like to always keep a comic book near me at all times just in case I stumble up on something or need a good panel shot. That comic is simply Frank Miller's Collection of Batman stories, which are The Dark Knight Returns and Year One. My favorite comic, hmm, well I've read a lot but the one that probably sticks out the most in my opinion is Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. His Batman was probably the first edgy and dark Batman ever. He was realistic with his military belt and he actually looked sorta chubby. His take on Batman was truly inspiring to me, I really do believe it should be taught in school, a simple masterpiece.

AM: An excellent choice. It's great to see you have been inspired by one of the best. When are we going to be hit by the first issue?

NP: The original date was July 1st but due to some inconsistancies we were forced to move it back. In my mind, I'd love to see it out by the later part of the first week of July or just the second week of July.

AM: Well I am glad it is sooner than later. (Laughs)

NP: So am I...

AM: Okay, are there any big surprises you can tell us about?

NP: Hmm, a few actually. We will be putting Batman to the test emotionally and physically. Be prepared to see our hero lose a few battles as well. You are going to be shown a few villains that connect with the story and Batman's battle with Shin. You will also get to see a few of Bruce's beloved family members, but not in great terms. The last thing I can tell you is that we are going to have the last issue be a deluxe issue in every way possible. The average issue I've written is around 13 pages (average for a web comic) the last is going to be around 40 pages. So be prepared to get blown away.

AM: Awesome, it looks like we will see a more vulnerable Batman. I like it! Are there any other villains that will be making an appearance?

NP: I'll only release one villain at this time, the rest are under wraps but Scarecrow will play a minor, and I mean minor, role in the story line. It's a new touch to the character but I think people will respect it.

AM: Sounds good. I am sure we will have a lot of surprises! Now, is the series one giant arc or are there several others?

NP: It's one giant arc that I've constructed to fully run it's course around 15 comics. I originally planned 30 comics but too be honest it had way too many holes and the amount of characters felt overdone and forced. I trimmed it back by half and came out with something way more enjoyable.

AM: Sounds complex. One more question for you Nate: What is the future of Renegade Comics? Is there anything else up your sleeve?

NP: The plan is to continue writing the stories we love; Batman, and to go on to new things as well. After Retribution is over I'm going to start planning out a different take on Batman that is going to be like BTAS meets comics with a twist. It's going to be exciting and at the same time fresh. I have some other ideas up my sleeve but nothing that I've been able to incorporate into a full fledge comic. I'm sure once Retribution has run it's course we will be back to work on another series

AM: All I know is that I can't wait. Thanks for your time Nate!

NP: It was my pleasure!

Stay tuned to Batmania Reviews for more exclusives on Batman: Retribution!

-Amputechture

The Riddler Strikes ...Update

2009-06-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

* All contest winners have been found. Please stay tuned for more fun contests from Batmania Reviews!*

As you have noticed The Riddler has been wreaking havoc on the Batman Arkham Asylum Forums. It has gotten out of control; even spawning copycats! Well the mayhem has spread to our lowly site as well. The Riddler has been tampering with our articles and we need your help to find out what he's up to!

You will not go unrewarded though. As seen below these are the goods we are offering as thanks for your assistance:

Battle for the Cowl #1 (2nd Print Variant)

Batman #687 (Variant)

Batman: Streets of Gotham

Gotham City Sirens

The Prizes will be given to three people in different ways:

1st Prize: Choice of (1) Variant and (1) other non-variant comic and entry into our "Graphic Giveaway!"

2nd Prize: Remaining Variant and Comic, plus entry into the "Graphic Giveaway!"

3rd Prize: Entry into the "Graphic Giveaway!"

The first three people to figure this out and PM Amputechture with the answer on the Batman: AA forums will be declared the winners! Please, help us put and end to Riddler's twisted game!

-James

Batmania Reviews: Exclusive Interview with Keir Edmonds

2009-06-23T08:43:00.000-07:00

Jason Todd: First and foremost I wanna' welcome everyone to Batmania Reviews, we plan on getting alot of interviews and things that every Bat-Fan wants to hear, so without further ado, Id like to introduce our first ever Interviewee. He's the Eidos Community Manager, and someone who has ALOT of patience in dealing with the forums, You know him, Ya love him, Ya bug him for Demos, Keir

JT: So, Keir thanks for doing this Interview with us, how does it feel to be our first guest at Batmania Reviews, and how did you like your star studded introduction?

Keir: Great introduction and thanks very much! It's a privilege to be the first here I must say. I like what you've done with the place :D

JT: So Jumping right in Keir, I know I've wondered as well as some other people, how did you get your job at Edios as Community Manager and what are some of the biggest perks and disadvantages of your job?

Keir: Well, I've been at Eidos for over eight years now, man and boy. I was lucky when I got my job here, a friend saw the vacancy - we both applied - I got it, he didn't :D

I started out testing games which was amazing (I remember dancing around the house in my underwear when I first heard I got the job) but it was also a mixed blessing. I had the pleasure of working on some really cool titles like Timesplitters 2 and Anachronox (which I still love to this day) to some real dogs like Popstar Maker and Who Wants to be a Millionaire German Junior Edition *shudders*

After a little while in test I moved to customer service before landing a job in community management, which I love because it combines my love of the internets with gaming, while also enabling me to indulge my interest in how online communities behave. There are many perks of the job, we get to sit and play games in work. The downsides are the long hours and sometimes dealing with difficult PR situations and mobs of angry fans - but I love my job so it's always OK. The best bit about working here is the people, sounds cheesy but it's true. It's a young company and a very cool environment to work in. I've made many, many friends here.

JT: So Keir...I gotta ask, you've been community manager for, I believe like eight years, and you seem like a very relaxed guy, but has there ever been a time when you just wanna get up and walk away from the computer after dealing with a member?

Keir: Generally speaking it doesn't get to me. I can always see the bigger picture and I always work out what someone's motivation is. If someone is genuinely upset because they're a fan then I try and help them and I understand their frustration - if they're just being a troll then it generally means their wife bullies them or something which causes their behaviour, so if that's the case it makes me laugh ;)

JT: Considering this is BatMania Reviews, We'd be crazy not to ask if you're a comic book fan Keir, If so, what drew you to comics in the first place, and who are some of your favorite heroes and villains?

Keir: I'll level with you - although I fancy myself as a bit of an artist and I really love Wildstorm's stuff, I'm not what you'd call a comic nerd. You guys on the forum and people like Paul Crocker put me to shame.

JT: One would assume that working at a place like Eidos, that you'd be a big gamer, So Keir what consoles do you own, and what are some of your favorite games to play in your spare time?

Keir: I am of course a gamer and have been since the old days of the Atari 2600 (then Master System, Megadrive, SNES, PS1, PS2) and now I've got a 360. I've also got a DS which I like to play on my travels. I've been playing (well beating my friends at) Pro Evo, Fifa and Virtua Tennis. I've also been playing some Battlestations: Pacific and Fallout 3 lately.

JT: Out of every game that Edios has produced, which is your very favorite and why?

Keir: That's a toughie... there have been many great games that I've been lucky enough to work on over the last few years but there are two games which stand out. The first game is old and has reserved a special place in my heart, Anachronox. It's an old RPG from Ion Storm released (late and over budget) in 2001.

It has the best story line and humour ever. I still quote lines from that game. The characters were awesome. The dev team had such imagination and created a really fantastic world.

It got a lukewarm reception but it really is an epic. It still has a cult following to this day, and I occasionally bump into fellow die hard fans.

The second game is probably the best title Eidos has published. And that game is Batman: Arkham Asylum :cool:

JT: Alright Keir, I know I said I wouldn't ask you anything about Arkham that could potentially get you in trouble with the higher ups, but I've gotta ask SOMETHING to keep the guys at the forum's tongues from watering, lol, so how many more give-a-way contests are coming down the pike?

Keir: Well, let's see... we're lining up some cool competitions in tandem with Dolby, so we have some awesome prizes for the official site and forums. Aside from that I'm hoping to get a few prints of concept art signed by Wildstorm. Now that's a competition prize. I've also got some more posters signed by the Rocksteady team which I'll give out, and maybe some other stuff along the way too :)

JT: Alright Keir, thanks again for your time and being our first ever guest here at BatMania Reviews! Is there anything you'd like to say before we get out of here?

Keir: Nothing more to add other than to say it's great to see how enthusiastic people are for Batman: Arkham Asylum. Thanks for all your support - I can guarantee you that once you've had a chance to get your hands on the game you'll see that it really is the game you've been waiting for all these years.

I'd also like to say hi and thanks to all the dudes from the official forum. Spread the word folks and let's get this party started!

JT: Alright Keir, thanks so much for your time man, and before we get out of here, I gotta ask you to drop a Huzzah! for us...after all it IS your catchphrase.

Keir:

HUZZAH!

:D

JT: Lol, awesome, Thanks alot Keir, and thanks for reading guys, we're gonna try to get more interviews in the near future so keep coming back to Batmania Reviews!

- Jason Todd

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell Review

2009-06-22T00:31:00.000-07:00

Hey there Batmania readers, welcome to our very first Graphic Novel review. Every Monday or Tuesday, Im going to review a Graphic Novel and give you guys my thoughts, good or bad, and a recommendation and ultimately a review on a scale between one and ten. So without further ado, Lets get started with Arkham Asylum: Living Hell.

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, written by Dan Slott and featuring artwork from Ryan Soot, is a story about a man known as Warren "The Great White Shark" White, a man infamous for being one of the worst men in the world (as pointed out by numerous people including the murderous Clown Prince of Crime, The Joker.) Warren is on the path to the big house after facing massive counts of fraud, when he decides to plead insanity. Sounds like someone should've warned Warren that in Gotham City it's better to be a criminal than insane. He's shipped straight off to Arkham's Asylum, home of the Criminally Insane.

There's alot more to this story, but the basic question is, do the insane go to Arkham or does Arkham breed the insane? One of the best things about this book is the fact that it shows MASSIVE character development, and this is one of the best displays of character development I've read in a while. So many characters joined the Batman Mythos here, including Warren White, Jane Doe, Doodlebug and so many more make their first appearances here. But they're also joined by longtime favorites, Commissioner Gordon, Batgirl, Jason Blood, and Batman, abeit for only a few pages. One would think the lack of Batman hurt the story but actually, It made the story stronger for not utilizing The Caped Crusader much.

Not everything about Arkham Asylum: Living Hell was great though. One of the letdowns was the ending...a strong start but it tripped just short of the finish line. The story was... over-complicated to say the least. I understood it but I wouldn't recommend it to someone without prior knowledge of Etrigan. But all in all, the Character Development, the fact the story was for the most part well written, and the art of course have made this story stand out as one of the best Arkham based stories since Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. Thats Why I give Arkham Asylum: Living Hell a solid 8/10 score.

- Jason Todd

The Final Clue ...

2009-06-21T22:09:00.001-07:00

Here is the final clue that The Riddler left! Think like The Great Detective to nab those prizes and help us stop him once again! There may be a hint in one of the last riddles, so use all your wits. The first three people to PM me at the Arkham Asylum Forums will win!

-Amputechture

Out with the old in with the new.

2009-06-20T14:25:00.000-07:00

Hello again KillerCroc reviews for a not so review. I was asked to compare the first apperance Batman to modern day Batman. I was assigned to this because I am probably the only dinosaur that has been reading Batman for a long time. Over 35 years, 35 years gone to waste JK. Okay, so the Batman I read was very how should I say very...kid friendly. He used to have a Bat-thing for everything, like Adam West. He did have catchphrases and said a lot more, eh, dorky things, like involving justice. Well, it was cool back then but if you listen to it now you have to laugh. All that justice stuff on the Brave and the Bold, yup, he used to talk like that in every issue. The modern day Batman is much more grittier and more of an adult-teen hero. True they make kid friendly versions, but the modern day one is just very adult. It's just an evolutionary stage that Batman went through.

There isn't much to compare. The modern day Batman is just an upgrade from the oldies Batman. I remember Batarangs used to just smack people in the head now they do that and more. He used to name everything with a Bat pronoun before it but now it's really simple. He just calls it what it is. Except the usual like Batarangs and Batmoblie. The oldies Batman is usually the butt of a joke nowadays, but he was cool, at least once upon a time he was.

The reason why I think Batman is better (eh, I suppose so) nowadays is because his villains evolved. Batman has always been about the villains. Now their schemes have evolved making the modern day Batman who he is. If they hadn't he would stil be saying "I'm married to justice" and actually care about Robin like he did back then, very creepy nowadays how it was back then. The oldies Batman and the modern Batman are just two peas in the same pod, just had different styles and has a bit of a difference. Some people say Batman evolved over the ages to make the two different from modern to oldies, but the credit has to go to the villains.

-KillerCroc (sorry for the lack of puns)

(Review by KC) Batman and Robin Numero Uno! (#1)

2009-06-18T21:40:00.000-07:00

Hello everyday Batman blogger. I suggest leaving if you want a good comic JK! Today I am reviewing Batman and Robin: Reborn #1, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. Everybody knows what happened with Bruce and his "death". Every Batman fan has been wondering what's happened to Gotham if you haven't heard or read the Battle for the Cowl series. Well here's a short recap for you. Batman "died" and Gotham has become a living oven. There are criminals just running aroud stealing everything in broad daylight and the GCPD (Gotham City Police Department) is having problems with this, as there can only be so much of them in one place. Batman was Gotham's god in a sense, Gotham has become chaos. But shortly after Nightwing (Dick Grayson) came to his senses and knew somebody needed to be Batman. So he took over being the Caped Crusader with the smart-mouthed son of Bruce Wayne, Damian Wayne, as Robin. Now let's get back to that review...

Batman and Robin: Reborn is most surely nothing to sneeze at, if you do, you might want to see a doctor. When I was reading this it was true that I get the same feeling as I do with every other first issue as an introductory with no action. This truely was a introduction, but it introduced the characters astonishingly, the best I have seen in a long time kiddies. As well as some new villains to match our duo with an utmost creepyness against the dark and ghetto feel that the new duo have. We got introduced to a walking Toad, a man with a head on fire, and a guy wearing a pig's face as a mask (Leatherface?) Lots and lots of villains.

The introduction starts with some thugs and a guy that looks like a Toad, ironically called Toad, driving a getaway car. Of course the duo swoop in and stop the man or thing, get the info, and look into the bigger details as Batman and Robin do. This criminal has no records except that he is part of a European circus, Toad has mentioned the word Pyg a lot, mentioning the name of his employer as the clueless henchmen do. Now the story has the creepy characters, more or less Pyg himself, with distubing scenes showing his ways of getting what he wants.

No doubt I am eager to get my hands on the second issue. I don't want to reveal too much except we have another nutjob who wants an "Ideal world" as most do. But this villain is...just...creepy. Really hard to describe. The art, story, and structure of the comic was amazing for the first issue. Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely are the dynamic duo in my opinion, but you have to go with the guys with tights and cars. I would have perfered more action myself but this issue still delivers.

9/10

-Killer Croc

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 1)

2009-06-18T11:04:00.000-07:00

Batman (1986)

Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, ZX Spectrum, MSX

As the launch of Batman: Arkham Asylum sneaks up on us like The Dark Knight himself, we can't help but to look back on Batman's history in video games. We've had some laughs and some fun outings...as well as attempts that seem more like one of Joker's sick pranks, but it all starts with this classic simply entitled: Batman.

The very first Batman game is actually not as horrible as you would think. I have played it myself, and can say that despite the archaic mechanics of the game, it is a solid entry in the Batman game world. The premise is simple; you must traverse the Batcave in search of seven parts that make up the Batcraft in order to save Robin.

Sounds simple right? Wrong. The game takes place in 3D isometric view which can make avoiding creatures difficult. Wait...creatures!? In the Batcave!? Yes. You can't attack or really evade them though. You have to time your walking so that you bypass their path of travel. There are various creatures from what I've seen. Walking Mutants, Spike Discs, and Skull-looking Bulldogs (Skulldogs?) Each with different behavior.

Before you can venture on, you need to locate all of your gadgets. The boots grant you the jumping ability while the Pack allows you carry one object or item at a time. The jetpack let's you glide over a distance after jumping off higher areas. I honestly don't know what the last item is or does despite collecting it in my playthrough.

The icons on the left side of the HUD are your various power-ups. The number beneath the Bat are your lives. I never did collect the spring power-up, but the shield means invulnerability for our caped crusader while the bolt represents a boost in walking speed. You receive these by collecting Batman Figures scattered throughout the cave. Careful though, as they only last a certain amount of "steps." All of this can actually be fun since you will be doing a lot of platforming and puzzle-solving, but will become frustrating to impatient players very quickly.

As mentioned before, the game is locked into a 3D isometric view which can make the trek very difficult seeing as how there are several creatures and dangerous objects waiting to collect one of your precious Batlives. You quickly get a feel for this portion though. It's the jumping that is killer...You will die by attempting a jump more than anything. In order to successfully "hop" to another platform you must creep onto the edge until you are nearly one pixel off of it and THEN proceed to jump. You can master this as well, but it doesn't always seem consistent.

The puzzles are an excellent addition to the gameplay but from what I saw, not varied. They mostly include finding out a way to stack different items to create a platform, which will help you get to those out-of-reach areas. One example was a room I encountered that had an elevating platform in the bottom corner. It was the only way up but there were obstacles surrounding it that could kill my poor chubby Batman. There were two conveyor belts leading to the platform but they were too high to reach. The only tools available were two circular objects and a teapot. You read that correctly...teapot.

After several minutes of experimentation, I found that I had to stack them in a specific way. I pushed one block near the conveyor belt, and then jumped on the teapot and "collected" it (You can only hold one item at a time and it must be in the same room you collected it.) Afterwards I set the teapot on top of the previous object...but I had to offset it a bit. Stepping near the edge of the first object and dropping it so that one wasn't directly on top of another. Thus I created a makeshift staircase...I repeated the process with the final portion. As soon as you drop an item you instantly appear on top of it allowing access to where you need to go. In this case, the conveyor belt which led to the elevating platform (Phew.)

There are plenty of these rooms to explore in the Batcave (150 in total.) I only visited 30 but still never found one portion of the Batcraft! It is definitely a challenge worthy of the great detective himself. This experience is still impressive due to it's presentation. Upon start up, you see an impressive Batman sprite. After the title screen, (where Bat's is tapping his toe Sonic style with impatience...) you catch a glimpse of the Batcraft pieces and the 60's theme blasts through your speakers in glorious 8-bit style. Classic. Besides that though, within the game you only get the musical pitter-patter of Batman's steps, beeps of enemies hitting walls, as well as victory or defeat chimes for collecting items; or for the failure that brings you death. Whether this is memorable in a nostalgic way or infuriating manner, is up to personal preference.

In conclusion, the first Batman video game turned out to be a fun while flawed experience. Things will annoy you (ie: Picking up an item just to forget "taking" it out of your bag and collecting it for your inventory. Not to mention the awful jumping.) Also, while being based on the '60's show, the game reflects art from the '80's comics. It is also odd that the Batcave would feature giant eyeballs, creatures, and objects that resemble elephant feet. Aside from this, there is plenty of fun to be discovered for those seeking a challenge that combines platforming, and puzzle solving as well as level memorization. I dare say this is one of the better games that was made and is definitely a worthy title of our caped crusader. I never did save Robin...but I am compelled to keep trying...

- James Gordon

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 1)

2009-06-18T00:57:00.000-07:00

Thursday we will kick off our Retrospective of Batman in video game form! First up:

Batman on MSX!

Ever seen this? Prepare yourself as we delve into a world full of mysterious noises, bizarre creatures, and...giant eyeballs!? Be brave...be bold...for it is all in a quest to save Robin!

-Amputechture

Welcome To Batmania Reviews!

2009-06-18T00:32:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, welcome to BatMania Reviews, your stop for reviews Batman & The DC Universe.

The Brain-product of Jesse, Logan & Jeff, better known as Batman Arkham Asylum forum members Amputechture, Killer Croc & Jason Todd.

In the coming weeks we'll be reviewing whatever Batman comics drop including Batman & Robin, Red Robin, Gotham City Sirens and more.

We'll also be discussing the history of Batman gaming, Having discussion panels on hot topics that revolve around Batman, allowing a lucky reader to be guest columnist of the week, having exclusive interviews and of course contests where you can win Batman memorabilia. So sit back and enjoy BatMania Reviews!

*Revision* - Current Weekly Schedule as Follows - (Subject to Change)

Mondays/Tuesdays - Graphic Novel Reviews
Wednesdays - Weekly Comic Reviews
Thursdays - The History Of Batman In Gaming
Fridays - Villainous Friday's
Saturdays - TBA
Sundays - Original vs. Modern Batman

- Jason Todd

Batmania Reviews!

Hey Batmania Readers

Batman Road To Arkham Download

Batgirl Vol. 3 #1

Superman Vs. Supermen (Blackest Night - Superman #1)

Killer Croc

Blackest Night: Batman #1

Comic Review: Batman #689

Blackest Night #2

Talia al Ghul

Nightwing Year One Review

Edward "The Riddler" Nashton

Zatanna Zatara

Thomas Elliot

Batman: Face The Face

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 4)

Women of DC- Power Girl

Slade "Deathstroke" Wilson

The Boy Wonder is Born (Robin: Year One Review)

Gotham City Sirens #2 Review

Women of DC Wednesday- Huntress

Treacherous Tuesdays

Comic Review: Batman Streets of Gotham #2

Identity Crisis Review

The Blackest Night Begins

Women of DC Wednesday's

Can you keep a Secret? (Private Casebook Review)

Batman Begins...Again? (Batman #688 Review)

With the flip of a Coin

Contest News!

A look with a magnifying glass: Brian Azzarello’s Joker. (Written by guest columnist Drazar)

Batman Forever Review

Batman & Robin Review!

Batman: Lovers and Madmen Review

Villainous Friday! Calender Man invades Batmania!

Batman & Robin #2 Review

I can hear the sirens oh no!

Wonder Woman - The Hiketeia Review

Batman Returns Review

Batman (1989) Review

Villainous Fridays Begin!

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 2)

Exclusive: Interview with Nate Peck; Writer of Batman Retribution

The Riddler Strikes ...*Update*

Batmania Reviews: Exclusive Interview with Keir Edmonds

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell Review

The Final Clue ...

Out with the old in with the new.

(Review by KC) Batman and Robin Numero Uno! (#1)

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 1)

"History of Batman in Video Games" (Part 1)

Welcome To Batmania Reviews!

The Riddler Strikes ...Update