kiLL tHe baTMan

Here is what’s coming up on Wednesday. Finally, the next part in the RIP story arc.

• Batman #680
• The Batman Strikes! #50

Here’s the new releases for September 24:

• All Star Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder #10
• Batman: Gotham After Midnight #5
• Superman/Batman #52

The new issue of Robin will be released tomorrow, with the second part of the “Search for a Hero” story arc (while we wait patiently for the next issues of Batman to find out why we’re searching for a new hero… they really need to coordinate these things better). Until then, here is the five-page preview for Robin #178.

Next Wednesday’s new releases:

• Batgirl #3
• Batman and the Outsiders #11
• Batman: Black and White Vol. 3
• Birds of Prey #122
• Robin #178

According to Reuters, Warner Brothers is planning to return The Dark Knight to IMAX theaters in January to drum up a reminder to the Academy that the latest Batman story deserves some awards. Of course, there has been buzz about a possibly post-humus Oscar–or at very least, a nod–to Heath Ledger for his haunting take on the Joker, but seeing the booming success of the movie, they seem to be after more.

Another thought is the possibility of rerelease as an attempt to best Titanic as the highest (domestic) grossing film in movie history, but at their current $512 million (and Titanic at $600), it seems unlikely, especially with the DVD slated for release in December. Still, that’s some major scratch for a story about a guy who dresses up like a rodent…

GameStop, in conjuction with Rocksteady Studios, creators of the upcoming Batman game for Xbox360, PS3 and PC, Batman: Arkham Asylum, are giving one fan a chance to get their face inserted into the game. To enter, simply pre-order Arkham Asylum at any GameStop store between now and October 13. The grand prize winner will get his or her likeness modeled and animated in the game, ten first place winners will receive art featuring Batman or the Joker, signed by the artist, and 50 second place winners get a DVD copy of Gotham Knight. Head over to GameSpot for more rules and details. Batman: Arkham Asylum is slated for release in August 2009.

And here’s the Batman comic releases for Wednesday.

• All-Star Batman and Robin, The Boy Wonder #10
• Batman Confidential #21
• Batman: The Black Glove
• Gotham Central Vol. 1: In the Line of Duty

As I started reading all of the issues of the Batman RIP crossover arc, I realized quickly that the “Heart of Hush” storyline being penned by the much-loved Paul Dini with beautiful pencils by Dustin Nguyen was going to be my favorite, and I have yet to be disappointed.

I’ll start with the art: I will make no attempt to hide my fanboy gushing over Nguyen’s artwork. His stuff is sharp and simple (without being too simple), and his backgrounds for the larger panels are always gorgeous. Artwise, the best parts of the book are always Nguyen’s covers, with nice composition and colored with watercolors for a very unique and interesting contrast from other books that are sure to draw a comic shop browser’s eye. My only complaint with Nguyen is the sawtooth-jaggies he uses in lieu of a more traditional hatching for some of his shadow work. But that’s just personal preference.

As for the story, you can tell that Dini is a talented writer when the most interesting scenes are the ones following a villain as historically lame and simplistic as Hush. He doesn’t take his time jumping into action with a conflict between Hush and Selina Kyle (sans catsuit), before moving on to Batman as he tracks down the Scarecrow and the child that Scarecrow kidnapped at the end of last issue. After Batman battles a ten-year-old, the Scarecrow reveals that he is simply a distraction, while Hush takes the next step in his plan. Inserted into the Batman scene is another flashback of Bruce Wayne and Thomas Elliot, that hints at a possible return to Peyton Riley, the new Ventriloquist (who is dead as of a few issues ago, but probably just comic book dead). Everything then leads into the final scene, the last page being the sort of cliffhanger that we read comics for.

Although Catwoman is one of my favorites, and I hate seeing her pegged as the victim or damsel-in-distress, this “Heart of Hush” arc is turning out to be a great storyline (thanks to Dini), and I’m really looking forward to the conclusion.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

There has been a lot of unsubstantiated gossip and casting rumors about the next Batman movie floating around, and I plan to avoid posting anything about them until someone can start backing their claims. But Aaron Eckhart, the actor who played Harvey Dent/Two-Face in The Dark Knight, recently told CHUD (and a few other places) that Two-Face is dead and will not be returning for the third film. “I asked Chris [Nolan] if there was a chance of coming back,” Eckhart said. “‘No way,’ he said. ‘He’s toast.’” A sad day for fans of Two-Face (as well as Eckhart).

Here’s the upcoming Batman comics. Enjoy.

• The Batman Strikes! #49
• Detective Comics #848
• Nightwing #148

EDIT: Due to the holiday, all new comic releases are pushed back to Thursday, September 4.