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by Dave Scrimgeour & Kevin McCluskey    Writer- Mike W. Barr Penciller- Alan Davis Inker- Paul Neary Letterer- Richard Starkings Colour Artists- Steve Oliff with Gloria Vasquez/Olyoptics SynopsisThe Reaper continues his trail of death and destruction, which includes ending the lives of several of Gotham's finest for simply following orders and doing their jobs. Bruce's adoption of firearms puts his relationship with Leslie under strain, which he seems oblivious too, as he's too busy lying his way into the heart of Rachel Caspian, who just so happens to be the daughter of said Reaper. Bruce's dismissal of Jim Gordon, as well as the betrayal of his trust, puts their relationship in jeopardy too, but all is well, as Bats picks up a new pal in the shape of his parents' killer, Joe Chill. Easy come, easy go. It's a one in, one out situation. Dave So, here we are, back again after a very long break to cover 'Year Two' of Batman. The first thing that occurred to me was that I hadn't realised Todd McFarlane was involved with this. Was this before he started doing Spidey? Kev It was, about a year before he started his now legendary run on Amazing Spider-Man. Did you notice that this was written by Mike W. Barr, who also wrote 'Son of the Demon,' which we covered a while back? That's like an Editor's Notes caption box. In an extremely meta sense, we are now getting bogged down in our own continuity. Just like "The Big Two" themselves. Dave Right enough, he did. So, as I'm using a digital copy of the 30th anniversary edition of the trade paperback; is the cover the solo picture of Batman standing with a gun in his hand? Was that the original cover? Kev Yeh, that was the cover for the first chapter, originally printed in Detective Comics #575. As it happens, this cover is the reason why we end-up with McFarlane on pencil/art duties for the rest of the story. What do you make of the cover? I think it's pretty arresting, what with Bruce having the gun and the holster, and all. I reckon that would’ve been intriguing enough to make me pick it up, had I been lucky enough to see it as a single issue. Bruce breaking his “No guns” rule, and all that jazz. Dave I like it. It certainly makes a statement, with Batman holding a gun, but it also has that real 80's vigilante, or cop genre feel to it. Batman goes 'Dirty Harry' or 'Death Wish.' Kev Batman goes 'Dirty Harry.' Now there's a film. Dave Plus, in comparison to the griminess of the colours in 'Year One,' this is clean and crisp looking, and it catches the eye. Kev Yeh, this is a very different animal to 'Year One,' both in terms of the writing, and the art. The art in particular is something that we'll no doubt discuss in great detail as we go on. Dave It's a total contrast to 'Year One,' which is what you want. Kev Absolutely. This must take place pretty much right after the events of 'Year One' if Gordon has just “newly” been promoted to Commissioner. Considering that occurred at the end of 'Year One' in December, then that must make this what, January of 'Year Two?' Dave And we're quickly into the introduction of the villain of the piece. Batman has now been established, so let's bring in the villain straight off "The Bat," so to speak. Kev Ha, ha! Yeh, Barr wastes no time whatsoever in introducing the spectre of “The Reaper,” does he? First page, BOOM! Straight in there. I really like that transition from the Bat Signal to the emblem on his chest illuminated by the torch.  Yes, it IS an impressive upper body. Bruce clearly does not skip chest day. Dave Interesting choice of the blue and yellow colours on the first page, which is in keeping with Batman's outfit, of course. A man of the shadows indeed. Kev The choice of palette for this is really interesting. Not least because it's We See The World In Ben-Day Dots favourite, Steve Oliff again, this time with Gloria Vasquez as well. We've also gone from the grey and black bat outfit to the more contemporary (at the time) grey and blue, with the yellow oval emblem. Dave That was the Batman I remembered from the 80's comic books. Kev Me too. This is how I remember Batman looking from my childhood. And then the all black from the '89 movie. Dave You can see how slick he has gotten at this, compared to the errors he made in 'Year One.' He looks very relaxed, but also stern and intimidating. Kev Yeh, this is definitely a much more assured Batman than the one we saw in the early days of 'Year One.' Dave He very efficiently deals with those crooks, and then vanishes, just like that. Still using the shadows to his advantage. Kev Yep, off to check on the Bat Signal. "Guns? If you’ve put your faith in those……you’ve already lost." That's pretty much the theme for this entire run. Dave It's a very contained action scene in terms of, he is striking, hiding, then attacking again. It's very fast, there's no time wasting, he's dropping them quick, with not a lot of strain or effort.  "Kill the headlights and put it in neutral. Stock car flamin' with a loser and the cruise control." Kev Yep, he's incredibly efficient. There's no wasted motion, or energy for Bruce in his sophomore year. Dave I have to say, Rachel's father looks like Tom Noonan, straight off the set of 'Manhunter.'  "But fear is not what you owe me...., you, and the others, you owe me awe." Kev Jeez. You're spot on there, man. This is breakneck pacing by Barr. Five pages in, and already we’ve been shown a Batman mission, hinted at The Reaper, established Gordon and Batman’s burgeoning relationship, and introduced the Caspians. Excellent stuff. Dave I've got to find a lookalike at least once per issue. Kev Your hit rate is pretty good, Sir. Dave Interesting name the Caspians. It gives the air of wealth. Kev Oh, definitely. These guys are Gotham aristocracy. The maid says it all. Speaking of which; Caspian as a black mirror image of Bruce is further illustrated by him having his own Alfred in Greta. Dave Either that or Matron was fired, then went to work for N.U.R.S.E. Kev Could be. Matron: Year Two. Dave I like how the story is jumping around, but doing it to establish our central characters. The writing is very compact, but it gets to the meat and bones of what we need to know. Kev Definitely, by page 6 we’re even seeing the construction of Wayne Towers with Bruce’s penthouse sitting proudly at the top. Dave Bruce Wayne is more interactive as well. He's getting out there and getting into his business dealings, not playing as much of the asshole womaniser sitting around his mansion. Kev No, the playboy facade is a bit more charming here, isn't it? In saying that, his pursuit of Rachel is..... questionable at best. I love the evil looks that Leslie Thomkins is giving Bruce as a result of this though. Dave He's playing it up there. This Gotham looks far less grimy, more bright and colourful, which sets a good tone for the story. It's funny how he just gets a knock-back from Rachel at the end of their interaction. Kev Yeh, it's tough when you're competing with God for a lady's affections. Dave I like those 3 panels of Rachel going into her house the composition is very well done.  "With a gun for a lover and a shot for the pain at hand." Kev There's a great sense of movement within that scene, eh? Dave Yeah. Ialso love that panel of Caspian walking down the alleyway, with the light shining down. It's very modern noir looking. It has great colours as well. Kev I love that panel too. In fact, I love those two pages. There's virtually no dialogue, but the storytelling is spot-on. Fantastic stuff by Davis and Neary. Dave Yeah, I think the storytelling on those pages, with only the two instances of dialogue, is excellent. We can clearly see what is happening, and telling a story, via images alone, of how the streets of Gotham are still in poverty, is just as good as storytelling with words. Kev That panel of the kids stripping the car reminded me of Jason Todd trying to rob the wheels off the Batmobile. Dave The last 5 panels on page 21 of this edition remind me of something that would happen in an episode of 'The Equalizer' TV series. Kev That's true, actually. You're almost waiting for McCall to come out of those shadows in his mack, not a scull and two scythes. Dave Ties in with the cover of Batman with the gun also. Kev Yeh, this scene with The Reaper is a pretty good illustration of just how different Batman and The Reaper’s methods are. Dave The Ripper is certainly a striking looking villain. It is not looking to make his stuff look gory, its kind of a clean kill really.  "Then the door was open and the wind appeared. The candles blew and then disappeared." Kev Well, they're all clean until McFarlane gets on art duties, then they all get very messy, very quickly. But we'll get there. This scene with The Reaper is a pretty good illustration of just how different Batman and The Reaper’s methods are. Dave Totally, he has already established how formidable an enemy he will be for The Bat. It's also interesting that they are not going for a more established, well-known, villain for 'Year Two.' Kev That's a really good point, man. They've gone for a pretty much unknown antagonist instead of one of the classic rogues gallery. Dave I wonder if 'Year One' and 'Year Two' planted any of the seeds that grew into 'Gotham By Gaslight?' 'Year One' in the style of art, and 'Year Two' in the style of villain. Instead of The Reaper we got The Ripper. Probably not, but it was a thought that occurred to me. Kev It could have done, yeh. It certainly planted the seeds for ‘Mask of the Phantasm.’ Dave Also, in 'Year Two' there is no timeline, or dates. This is going straight into a comic book format, there's not even any narrative caption boxes. Kev No, there's no voice over, first person narrative, or any of that stuff. It makes it feel less noirish than Miller and Mazzucchelli's work. More slasher horror inflected. Dave Leslie certainly isn't putting up with any of Bruce's BS, she can see right through him, eh? Kev Totally, I like that Leslie, as a surrogate mother figure, wants more for Bruce in life, than just avenging his parent’s death, but is also aware enough to request that he leaves Rachel out of the hell that is his life, but that Alfred is aware enough to know that Bruce is only himself as Batman in the Batcave. Dave Suppose in today's terminology this would be his "safe space." Kev Or just his "man cave." No bats required. Dave That's a good couple of panels on the bottom of page 24, Bruce's "man cave."  Bruce converted the basement into a (bat) man cave so he could "feel" himself. You need privacy for that, I suppose. Kev Yeh, that's some classic Batcave stuff, right there. Dave I've got to say, that first panel on page 25 of Gordon saying to Batman, "Thank you for coming so quickly Batman," sounds straight out of the Adam West show. Kev Ha, ha! It does a bit, doesn't it? Nice of Batman to gift Gordon the pipe though. Y’know, get him off those nasty, deadly mints. “Smoke up, Jimmy.” Dave That 2nd panel, of the aerial view of Batman speaking to Gordon is great, the subtle shadows and the wind blowing against the huge cape is striking. I really liked when they did that with his cape, make it ridiculously big. Kev Ha, ha! That cape is only going to get bigger and bigger as we go on. Certainly once McFarlane gets his grubby little mitts on it. Dave I doubt that Frank Miller would have drawn a prostitute with hair like Davis and Nearly have drawn Miss Pink on the first panel of page 26. Kev Yeh, it's a perm, leaning towards an afro. Dave I think she let the wind blow dry it. So McFarlane was not involved in issue 1, I see. Kev No, he jumps onboard from the next chapter, after Davis and Neary had a falling out with DC over the cover to this issue, I believe. Dave Ah, right. And we get straight into the first battle with Batman and the more physically imposing Reaper. Nice elbow on the bottom of page 27 from Batman, but then we see how towering The Reaper is on the last panel. That is a great wall-art picture there. I love the colours, but also the menace of this villain here. Batman looks out of his depth a bit, or has certainly got his work cut out for him here. The Reaper's weapons remind me of the Evil Dead's Slaughterhouse's choice of killing tools in ‘Dragons Claws.’ That's twice I have referenced 'Claws' in this issue.  "...it's me you run from. I'm the king, I do my things until my Kingdom Come." Kev True. The Reaper would fit right in with either The Evil Dead mark 1 or mark 2. You can never have enough Dragon's Claws references, Sir. More of that Ben-Day Dots continuity I was talking about earlier. I do love the full reveal of The Reaper’s costume on page 25. Even in terms of their colour schemes, Batman and The Reaper are mirror images of each other. Batman is no longer black and grey like he was in Year One, he’s blue and grey, whereas The Reaper is red and black. Caspian moves very well for a guy under all that leather armour, cape and scythes. A guy who must at least be in his mid-50s nonetheless. I don’t move that well these days, and Caspian’s still got a few years on me at this point. Dave True, plus those colour schemes are bright and eye catching. It's all very colourful. Kev Yeh, this is arguably more "comic booky" than 'Year One.' Dave Batman doesn't half get a tanking on the next two pages. The Reaper's pulling no punches. Kev Yep, Bruce takes one hell of a beating here. A near fatal one at that. He gets sliced up pretty badly. Dave I like the difference between this and 'Year One,' almost like the griminess of Gotham has cleared with the established Bat, the muck and dirt are still there but somehow it's been cleaned up a bit. Like the change in styles was meant as a bit of a metaphor for The Bat cleaning up some of the crime. Kev That's an interesting point, man. Particularly when considered in conjunction with Caspian's claims that things have gotten worse under Batman's watch. Is that just an excuse, a justification for him to get back to the killing that he so clearly loves? Dave Probably, he seems determined to carry on with his tendencies. The Reaper kind of reminds of Death's Head a bit, with in how he continually talks while giving someone a kicking. Kev Skull face too, like Death's Head. Dave And the some of the language he uses, such as, "Do not expect your parlour tricks to deter me," show just how educated a villain he is. Kev That line puts me in mind of Tom Hardy's Bane line about being born in the darkness from 'The Dark Knight Rises.' Dave True it's the Batman vs Bane fight a bit. Lucky escape from him especially as The Reaper doesn't fight fair. Kev No, those firearms came out pretty quickly, didn't they? This issue wraps up a little bit too quickly for my liking. The wow factor of seeing Bruce taking the gun out of the safe beneath that massive painting of his parents, loses some of its impact and gravitas, because it’s over so quickly. I would’ve liked this scene to have played out a bit longer, so that we got a sense of at least some of the weight of this decision for Bruce. I think it’s a bit lost, and under served here. Perhaps a victim of that breakneck pacing I referred to at the top of this discussion.  "Straight from the sewer. Straight from the sewer. Nothing can save ya!" Dave I think it has ended very abruptly as well. I get that it's trying to show a "fight fire with fire" mentality, but for a billionaire, you think he would have had a bigger gun that. It's not even ".....a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world.....” Yeah, those last couple of pages could have been fleshed out so much more, but perhaps they didn't want to dwell in the self-pity like he did at the end of 'Year One' Part One. This is the new and refined Batman now, he is just getting straight into things, or was it simply a case of them running out of space in the issue, it had to be wrapped up, and that was why the scene cut down. Kev The .44 Magnum would be more fitting, Batman does 'Dirty Harry,' yeh. It's the one that killed his parents though. The one that belonged to Joe Chill. Which takes on even more significance as we get into the next issue. Dave It seems a bit of a rash decision, bearing in mind he took down a SWAT team in the first year, perhaps some body armour might help more than a gun. I get that this is to up the ante and raise the question about where his morals are at this point though, and I suppose it does make for a good cliffhanger point to end the first part on. Kev Yeh, it seems like such a rash, rushed, maybe even unjustified decision to reach for the gun THIS quickly. Like he was almost waiting for an excuse to do it. It definitely ratchets up the drama, and the moral dilemma, but I don't know if it feels earned by just one, albeit crushing, defeat. It is a cracker of a cliffhanger though, eh? Dave It would certainly want you to read the next issue, so good job, well done there. Kev That's true. It certainly fulfils its purpose on that front. Dave It's essentially The Reapers approach to his own brand of violence that has triggered something in Bruce, but a bit more dialogue about that would have helped lead into that final panel. Kev Yeh, I think a bit more time, at least showing Bruce struggling with this monumental decision wouldn't have gone amiss. Dave This opening issue has really just been an establishing issue for all the characters concerned in this story. There has not been much in terms of characterisation, it's been more just a series of set pieces, but it's early days. Kev We get a little bit of evolution of Bruce Wayne's, and Batman's characters, but I think you're right, this opening chapter has very much been about setting the table, and in that sense, it certainly achieved what was required of it. Dave I really like the style of artwork and colour palette, it's such a big difference to 'Year One.' I can't recall if I read this as a kid though. Kev I read this one when I was about 12 or 13, I think. Which was why I was so stoked when I saw it's influence on ‘Mask of the Phantasm’ when I bought that on VHS a few years later. Dave It's nice to see that the relationship between Gordon and Batman has developed into what we now know, but again, it was very brief, almost overlooked, in this issue. It was there, but not enough time was spent on it. Kev Yeh, we get to the evolution of Bruce and Jim's relationship in the following issues. I've now become very aware that I've said that quite a few times now, which perhaps speaks to Barr's ability as a writer to tease us, and draw us in as readers. Ultimately making us stick around for the next issue, and keep us engaged for the long run. Dave Well, it's early days in terms of the story, but I do like what I have read so far. Kev Me too. Maybe I'm just so used to the decompressed storytelling in comics these days, that I think everything I re-read from back in the day should've been six issues instead of four. Ha, ha! Dave Certainly nowadays everything needs more backstory or more dialogue. Those short snappy scenes worked back then, nowadays they would probably dragged out to be longer than they should be. Kev True. More money in it that way, eh? Dave Yep. (D) & (K) Next: 'Deal With The Devil.'  ".....I never let go of the handle. Hangin' on to mommy's pantleg, double fisted. Knee deep in shells, kickin' balistics."
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