Category Archives: Batman
Batman: Arkham Origins Announced!
As was rumored some time ago, we now know today that the next Batman: Arkham game will be a prequel set in the early days of the Caped Crusader. Whether this is a good idea remains to be seen, but I’m going to keep an open mind. It definitely gets them around the problem of Joker being dead at the end of Batman: Arkham City.
According to Game Informer magazine, Batman: Arkham Origins will be about 8 of the world’s deadliest assassins coming together on Christmas Eve to kill Batman. It’s also going to feature the real streets of Gotham City, possibly in more of an open world than Arkham Asylum or Arkham City.
Oooooh, it’s a mirrored image…I get it
The game comes out on Oct. 25 of this year!
Unfortunately, the game is out of the hands of Rocksteady, who developed both Arkham Asylum and Arkahm City. Warner Bros. Games Montreal is taking over, and I have no clue if they’ll do a good job or not. Apparently they’ve got access to all of Rocksteady’s stuff, including the game engine, so…yay? Maybe? I dunno. I’m going to try to be mostly positive. Here’s a quick video of the guys at Montreal talking about how they know damn well the legacy they have to live up to.
Another plus of a prequel is that they’ll get to tell the stories of Batman’s first meetings with several key characters. Maybe the game will also be about the Joker’s first attack? We know Deathstroke is going to be in the game.
What about, oh I don’t know, Robin?
I probably shouldn’t get my hopes up.
Also, this sounds like a good time to check out my most popular lists of all time, the 6 Things I Want in the Next Batman: Arkham Game!
Robin Watch: Carrie Kelley!?!
The ongoing search for the next Robin continues with a rather surprise arrival in next week’s new issue of Batman and Robin: Carrie Kelley!
What the what!?! For reals, people, DC and writer Peter Tomasi are bringing Carrie Kelley into modern day continuity. But whether or not she’s going to become the next Robin is still anyone’s guess. DC are definitely good at teasing that possibility, at least.
This is just a strange choice, in my opinion, but it seems like the kind of thing DC would pull off. DC loves mining their big, popular stories for little stuff they can bring into normal continuity. Prior to the reboot, and even a little bit in the reboot, DC was using stuff from Kingdom Come left and right. Heck, Tim Drake is still called Red Robin. Then there was that whole Before Watchmen thing. Now they’re going to pluck Carrie Kelley from the legendary The Dark Knight Returns and tease her as a possible new Robin.
According to Tomasi in an interview with the New York Post:
“She’s a college kid who’s got spunk and speaks her mind,” said writer Peter Tomasi. “This is not an alternate-earth Robin, this is simply a girl named Carrie Kelley, who we learn knew Damian, which in turn weaves her into the fabric of the DC Universe for the first time in 25 years. What you’ll find out once you crack the book, is that she’s not exactly the ‘new Robin,’ but I don’t want to spoil the story and her introduction into Bruce Wayne/Batman’s life. In regards to how long she’ll be around, let’s just say that it’s a helluva lot longer than ‘one issue.’ I’ve got plans for Carrie that play well into the future.”
If I’m being completely honest, and this is just my immediate gut reaction, I don’t like this idea. First of all, Carrie Kelley is going to debut in the issue that was supposed to be dedicated to Tim Drake reteaming with Bruce Wayne. The issue is going to be called Batman and Red Robin, after all. I was really looking forward to their first real interaction since the reboot. But I guess DC just doesn’t want anything to do with the classic Bruce/Tim team. What a shame.
Second of all, I’m a proponent of Harper Row as the new Robin for reasons I’ve gone on and on about on my blog. Harper Row is a new character with a new life, which is perfect for the New 52 universe. Carrie Kelley is just a weak attempt to steal some goodwill from The Dark Knight Returns. I understand that we’re dealing with some alternate realities here, and that this version of Carrie is a new version, but she’s still a character with some complicated backstory. My #1 rule for writing comics, movies or anything else is to Keep It Simple, Stupid. Are you really going to want to introduce Robin from now on as the alternate reality version of a different Robin from the future?
And who also dresses like Robin at parties.
I think this is all just one big tease. I think Tomasi has some ideas for what he might do with his version of Carrie Kelley, and he’s going to run with them. I don’t think for an instant that this is the definitive revelation of the new Robin. At least I hope not. I would probably have no problem in the long run with this new version of Carrie Kelley being the new Robin, but like I said, Harper Row represents a much cleaner, fresher sort of character. Harper Row the much better candidate.
Still, it looks like DC is going to keep the recruiting field wide open!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 3/30/13
The reviews are going to be a little short this week, I’m afraid. The problem with being an amateur blogger is that I’ve still got a day job and car problems to deal with, and it’s just my luck that I’d have to excessively deal with both in the same week. But I still bought my weekly stack of comics, I’m just going to have to cut out some of the usual reviews I would have done just to save time. Still, got a nice crop of comics this week, with some winners, some groaners and some disappointingly mediocre offerings.
Seriously, I could not be more let down by the first issue of Brian Michael Bendis’ Guardians of the Galaxy. I’m super excited for the upcoming movie, but if it’s anything like this first issue, maybe I should lower my expectations. Guardians of the Galaxy is almost exactly like DC’s Threshold, and I hated that series. I doubt I’m going to even bother with more Guardians.
And if that wasn’t the only surprise, I’m going to award Comic Book of the Week to Uncanny Avengers #5! I’ve been picking on the series since it began, but this issue gets all its ducks in a row, including a new artist, and is pretty impressive. Though apparently also very controversial, as I’ll explain in a bit. First, some levity.
FF remains pretty damn awesome.
Comic Reviews: Age of Ultron #3, Batman Incorporated #9, FF#5, Guardians of the Galaxy #1, Talon #6, Uncanny Avengers #5 and Wolverine and the X-Men #27.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 3/16/13
This was not a good week for friend-of-the-blog Jason Aaron. I’ve been a huge fan of his Thor: God of Thunder series, and have enjoyed his Wolverine and the X-Men comic, but both of them take horrifying nose dives in quality this week. I was shocked at just how bad those comics were. Maybe it’s because they both take a break from the normal storytelling to focus an issue on the villain. Is Aaron just bad at villains? I couldn’t say, but both comics were very disappointing.
On the better side of things, we have a few Batman titles tackling the fallout of Damian’s death, and we have hot and cold Brian Michael Bendis. The second issue of his Age of Ultron is a dud, but the new issue of Uncanny X-Men is everything I want from this comic. It’s on fire, and easily wins Comic Book of the Week. This is the best Cyclops has been since Joss Whedon was writing, and honestly, this is the best any superhero has been in years!
Comics Reviewed: Age of Ultron #2, Batman #18, Batman and Robin #18, Fearless Defenders #2, Thor: God of Thunder #6, Uncanny X-Men #3, and Wolverine and the X-Men #26.
Henchman-4-Hire 