Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Batman & Two-Face #25
DC Comics
Tomasi, Gleason & Gray
The reinvention of Two-Face continues with this issue and it turns out to be a decent read despite the character reboot. Tomasi weaves in the tidbits about the new villain in with the origin of Two-Face and it makes for a smoother read than the previous issue. Still, the comic book doesn't provide much bang to make this terribly memorable but it does contain a page or two to smile at. A good but far from great read.
This book starts off with Two-Face sabotaging police headquarters in order to get Batman's attention. While the set up to the confrontation is a good one the execution is slightly off. Batman arrives to confront Two-Face but rather than pouncing on him, Batman engages him in some conversation first. I found this to be too convenient for the story and not terribly realistic given the circumstances that Batman rushes into.
From here the book picks up nicely. There is a nice flashback that ties Erin McKillen to Two-Face. The book then ties McKillen to Bruce Wayne helping to round out the character connections. I like what Tomasi is doing here as McKillen is kind of like Two-Face without the disfigurement. She is part criminal and part wealthy brat. She provides enough of a foot into both worlds that Two-Face, Batman and McKillen can be shades of each other.
The comic book throws in a couple of little surprises here and there that I won't spoil. The book struggles a little bit with the ending as while it makes for a grand exit, it doesn't seem too realistic given the circumstances. Overall, the book has a good flow despite the dialogue heavy scenes that help define the McKillen character.
Generally the artwork is good. Gleason has good command of the action and definitely knows how to show some spectacular visuals when it comes to Batman looking awesome. There are some panels that simply don't measure up to his abilities. The one that comes to mind is the awkward depiction of the chop to the throat during the prison riot. Overall, the comic book helps support the story nicely though.
Batman and Two-Face seem to take a bit of a backseat with Erin McKillen and I think that is a good thing. I almost prefer that Two-Face fade into the background for the rest of the arc as it seems she is a good match for Batman. This issue is a solid read and one to pick up if you are interesting in seeing a different, non-costumed, Batman villain.
3 out of 5 Geek Goggles
