Salutations, traveler of The Internets! Welcome to William's Bloody Hell, so named after our founder, Sir Bloody William.
He is seen in the likeness above in a rare, 19th century woodcut. This
image was rumoured to have been
commissioned after a bout of unpleasantness
in the White Chapel district of London. Do enjoy your stay and peruse our many, varied offerings, much of which cannot be found elsewhere!
:: Batman: Hush 12 issue story arc ::
by William the Bloody
Imagine your dream Batman storyline. What would it include? A mystery with detective work? Sexual tension with Catwoman? Sexy villianesses? A square-off with Superman? Guest spots by one or more of Bat's sidekicks? A sword fight? A shootout? Tidbits about Bruce Wayne's past? Batman's secret identity revealed to an enemy?
Do any or all of these ideas sound appealing? If so, then you will love "Hush".
It all starts out simple enough. A kidnapping plot. A cake walk for the Batman, master detective. But, what at initial glance seems like it should be simple quickly evolves into a complex conspiracy aimed at bringing our hero down, and it involves every one. I don't mean involving everyone like it did in "Knightfall" or "Contagion", I mean everyone in a vast deep rooted tapestry that only the World's Greatest Detective could figure out. But how does someone get all these people, from Poison Ivy to the Joker, to participate? Simple. Give them something they desperately want. Something they want so bad they'll step on or over anyone to get it, whether it be money, love, or reconstructive surgery.
The Good: Jim Lee penciled these issues and he's at the top of his game, with contract-signed-in-blood cohort Scott Williams on inks and embellishments. Their team-up is everything you remember and come to expect. Statue-esque heroes and villains, dynamic action and camera angles. There are flashback sequences and these are done in water color wash, rather than inks like the rest of the story, and it fits. The wash gives the flashbacks a dreamy look, as Wayne looks back with fondness or regret on certain events in his past.
Jeff Loeb wrote the story and you can tell he thought it through. Every action and event which occurs therein is carefully planned and intricate to the story. He involves a wide array of Batman's allies and enemies, and does a very good job capturing each of their characteristics (Up to Chuck Dixon standards even, one of my favorite Bat-writers). I would have killed a man myself to write a really great Batman/Superman conflict and Loeb delivered. Setting up their fight, and their camaraderie after its resolution is spot on. He also did a superb job on Batman's interactions with Nightwing, who have always had a unique pattern of communication between them. Loeb also brought into use several characters we haven't heard a peep about for ages (not since the crappy Starlin run I believe). The overall mystery and intrigue of the arc is fantastic, I turned into a tiger in a cage awaiting the moment when I could read the next installment. His use of seemingly red herrings was great and the twist at the end even better (not even the who-dunnit twist, the teeny twist after that was even better).
The Bad: The Joker has always been my all time favorite Bat-Villain, and I was disappointed that he was underplayed. In a conspiracy as large as this, I had hoped he would have had a larger, more interesting role. He also had no darkly comedic random jokes. Some of the transitions from issue to issue are choppy. You don't really notice it if you read the books month to month, but sitting down and reading them all in one shot, it stuck out quite a bit.
Overall I loved it. It kept me wanting more, and eager for the resolution. And, being a mystery, kept you on your toes trying to solve it yourself. And if you think about it really hard, and go back over it when your done, you can see how clearly it fits together.
A-
