Welcome back comic book connoisseurs to our continuing journey across Ed Brubaker’s Captain America and Grant Morrison’s Batman runs; both are very legendary and provide a strong history to the characters when these runs were originally being published.  Rafa and I are reading these two runs together to share our excitement, wonder, and views with you and hopefully you’re reading with us as well! For the reader’s sake Chris will be in Bold Font and Rafa will be in Italic Font.  This week we are looking at Captain America Red Menace which entails issues of Captain America vol 5 issues 15-17, the Captain America 65th Anniversary Special, then continues with Cap issues 18-21 while looking at Batman the Black Glove which has Batman vol 1 issues 667-669 and 672-675.  So Rafa I will kick it off to you what did you overall enjoy and like about The Black Glove?

Thank you, Chris! Reading these stories alongside you has been a real treasure, just like Morrison’s story itself is a treasure. Writing Batman is no easy feat, so when a writer is able to get into the nuances and intricacies of what makes a character great, it becomes foundational reading, and The Black Glove is a staple to what makes Grant Morrison’s run so damn good! This story arc consists of two stories that set up for the epic Batman R.I.P. that we will get to next week. The first story focused on a murder mystery with a bunch of international Batmen. With its campy set pieces like Mister Mayhew’s island and great callbacks to the silver age of comics and the different Batman from around the globe (which set up for the future Batman Incorporated) this story is everything you want from a Batman story; it’s humorous, pulpy, stylized and above all else, fun.

The second story is a continuation of the three Batman’s narrative from earlier. In this one we get another cop Batman who ends up giving Batman a heart attack. I loved this story because this is where we get quintessential Morrison with his dissociative episodes that blend reality with dream sequences. This stream of consciousness style to storytelling is both intriguing and exciting. By having callbacks to old stories from the black casebook; Dr. Hurt and the isolation chamber, we see the excellence in Batman. We see him figure everything out; like clockwork and meticulous problem solving; the Batman who is always prepared. What did you enjoy from this story, Chris?

I have to say that with The Black Glove I finally started to get in a great reading groove with Morrison’s Batman; the opener with Batmen of All Nations was fun and great set up for Batman Inc. later on like you said.  It really took me back to those old adventures and J.H. Williams III brought in some interesting art which was successful at giving the creepy vibes.  I liked that this was a shorter story and it flowed very nicely which felt like the first time in Morrison’s run.  Then things really start taking a turn with the Third Batmen and I really wish the intro issues of this story would’ve been closer with the first and second Batmen, Bat-Cop and Bat-Bane.  It was wild to see this third one, Bat-Devil, and he felt really horrendous as a villain, like this guy takes it to the max which was great.  Something of interest that I learned about was Bat-Devil is actually Michael Lane who goes on to become the second Azrael; we don’t know that at the time but that is cool to see his secret origin.

The best issue was #675 which was so different to most anniversary number issues.  This is definitely Batman R.I.P. part zero and wow…this Bruce Wayne was scary.  I love how Jezebel Jet was calling out Bruce on the date basically saying he is a shell of a man and she knows there is more and she is fine with him opening up to her.  Then when the Nine-Eyed Man attacks and the fight leads to the kitchen was nuts; Bruce burns off his “eyes” and when Jezebel sees that and Bruce tells her that she’s right and she should leave was intense; probably my favorite moment so far.  Bruce is just a mad hulk in this thunderstorm and then Jezebel figures it out as well.  That is a crazy cliffhanger; what were some things from this tpb that didn’t sit well with you Rafa?  

Very well put, Chris! I agree completely that the moment Bruce goes full HULK was an insane moment, and it really ups the insanity in this already insane book. However, that might also be my only real minor issue with the story. It is incredibly good, but it can be insanely hard to read at times. Likewise, I agree with your sentiment about wishing these stories about the “BatCops” to be closer to the beginning of Morrison’s run. There are times that I really do not like how disjointed all of Morrison’s narrative strands are. There is a lot going on and a lot of set up and world building that pays off in the end; however, it’s almost as if though the story is supposed to be difficult to read, so that it can be juxtaposed to the disjointed nature of Batman’s psyche. Stylistically, this is really cool, but from a reading standpoint, it can be a bit frustrating. But this is a minor issue because it overall does enhance my reading experience. What about you, Chris? Was there anything you did not like about this tpb?

Yea my major gripe is the Three Batmen; like on my initial read of this I didn’t think to relate them all together I didn’t see the connection it just happened then the next adventure, second one, next adventure, and so on.  Grant’s run reads better in tpb/collected format but even then with the trades I own they don’t read as well as they could’ve.  It reads better the second time knowing they are connected and that helps the story to have value and you feel for these cops plus it connects very nicely to Dr. Hurt’s origin as well.  It is funny as with this set of reads we are reading two mini-stories for each character, but Brubaker’s reads so crisp you don’t feel like arcs at all.  So I’m glad for less dis-junction but it still is there.  Okay let us take a leap over to Captain America and the Red Menace; what were your thoughts?

Once again, Brubaker delivers exciting and thought-provoking storytelling in the continuation of Captain America’s mission to locate Bucky Barnes. The first part of this story focuses on relationships. We have Sin & Crossbones causing chaos akin to Woody Harrelson & Juliet Lewis in the movie Natural Born Killers (1994).  It feels wild, raw, and out of control which is a direct contrast to Steve and Sharon’s rekindling relationship as they venture into a small town for information on the missing Bucky. This brief reprieve and hope Steve gets in searching for his friend is heartfelt and I loved seeing the joy in Steve’s face when he realizes that Bucky is still alive, and when we see him kiss Sharon. We see real happiness in Cap’s face which has been so rare in Brubaker’s story. He finally has a moment to be happy.

But of course things devolve into absolute chaos with the return of the Red Skull. This story was great because we got to see a modernization of Cap’s story with revitalized elements like Union Jack & Spitfire as well as the new Master Men! It was exciting because it had something for all fans, new and old alike. What did you like about this story, Chris?

Well all of it of course, haha, but you bring up some amazing points.  I didn’t think about Sin and Crossbones as Natural Born Killers but it works on such a great level and they really are just a menace; one major thing I forgot about with The Black Glove that you reminded me of with your  movie comparison is the vibe I got from Batmen of All Nations  felt like Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, cold and haunting and anyone could be the killer.  I have to say I even enjoyed the 65th Anniversary Special as Brubaker made the story count and it appeared in the main series, but we are also treated to pencilers Javier Pulido, Marcos Martin, and Mike Perkins which was awesome as it did give a sense of time travel to the past.  Brubaker used the special in such a great way to remind readers and also trick them into seeing Cap and Bucky’s WWII partnership being better than it was; which happens with comics as they evolved into deeper story and writing.  I really when Cap and Bucky work together in modern times and especially the cover to issue 21 with it being a recreation of the last time they partnered up before the ice.  Bucky losing his arm again but then we find out for sure he is working with Nick was a great ending.

Once again I have to say Brubaker does an amazing job with the villains; Lukin and Red Skull being merged together is such a boiler of anger that it makes for intense situations but also shows just how evil these two are.  They bicker about a plan because the other set it into motion but then when it works out they are celebrating together and they even admit when they get a chance one of them will end the other.  Sin is just chaos in a human body…like I appreciate the moments when she does something and even Crossbones looks at it and has a “woah” moment.  Now with this story arc being over we are treated to the four of them united and that is going to be a devil’s union that will be tough to beat.  Any downsides to the tpb that you saw Rafa?

I personally did not have any real issues with the story. Overall, the only real gripe I had was that we didn’t get more. I like how the story continues to build on these established character dynamics. Seeing Steve and Bucky reunited after so long was great to see, and that payoff makes anything bad in this story disappear. What about you, Chris? 

One thing I think they could’ve handled a little better was the issue of why Nick Fury wasn’t in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D. and that happened over in a story called Secret War (2004) by Brian Michael Bendis and Gabriele Dell’Otto.  Basically Fury misused his office and position to go after hi-tech villains and it led to an almost war with Latveria; wild stuff, worth a read.  So I think that would’ve been nice to see Cap say something to Carter in order to catch up the reader and also give Cap’s thoughts on the matter, but in real life/time that five issue mini took 23 months in order to be released so that could’ve been why Brubaker didn’t get too deep into it.  Overall Red Menace was a fantastic read in my book.  Were there any similarities or differences that you noticed Rafa?  

I thought both stories were excellent in the way they continue to build meaningful and thought-provoking narratives. Both Bucky and Batman center on the concept of identity. While Bucky is trying to identify who he is and how his role as the Winter Soldier does or does not define him, we also have Batman who is trying to figure out if he is Bruce Wayne playing hero or Batman playing Bruce Wayne. However, Bucky’s story is also one of atonement while Bruce’s is more about acceptance. Both stories also succeed in their dynamic and engaging action set-pieces while also using past narrative flashbacks to tell their current, new mythologies and lores. Overall, both are excellently crafted narratives worth reading. 

Those are excellent points Rafa; I especially love the identity issue that is a great insight that I didn’t think about.  I love how both writers are using time in their stories to justify certain things; Brubaker uses time to create a deeper character with Bucky and Morrison uses time to make the “silly silver-age” stories actually count for the Dark Knight.  Both writers are doing such a wonderful job with building character and adding depth to the story; Morrison does some heavy lifting on Bruce Wayne while the rest of the Bat-Family gets moments, but Brubaker does a great job of building everyone up.  Steve Rogers didn’t have much personality outside of the mask but here he is more than a man out of time and the relationship building with Sharon Carter is amazing, but it will take a turn soon, just like Bruce and Jezebel, but we will cover that next week.  

So that wraps up another week and the next read is going to be pretty big because we have a lot happening for our fourth installment. Let me break it into parts and readings:

Civil War 1- 4

Captain America 22-23

Iron Man/Captain America:  Casualties of War 1*

Captain America 24

Civil War 5

Winter Soldier:  Winter Kills 1

Civil War 6-7

Captain America 25

Civil War:  The Confession 1*

Fallen Son 1-5

These issues can be found in the following trade paperbacks:  Civil War, Captain America Civil War, and Fallen Son; the ones with asterisks are not in these trades.  Now for the Batman side of things:

DC Universe 0

(Batman R.I.P. starts)

Batman 676-681

Nightwing 147-150

(Final Crisis starts)

Final Crisis 1-3

FC Superman Beyond 1-2

Final Crisis Submit 1

Final Crisis 4-5

Batman 682-683

Final Crisis 6-7

(Last Rites starts)

Nightwing 151 

Detective 851*

Batman 684*

Nightwing 152

Batman 686

Detective 853

Nightwing 153

The stories can be found in the following trade paperbacks:  Batman R.I.P., Final Crisis, Nightwing the Great Leap, and Batman Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader.  Looking forward to see you next time and as always, GEEK OUT!