This
story arc began with Jason Todd seeking retribution for the death of his
friend, Roy Harper. He was prepared to burn and entire town to the ground to do
so. It ends with a team-up of the two prodigal Bat-partners destroying a single
house in the town. Oh, and the nefarious goings on – townsfolk trying to kill
Jason with EXTREME prejudice – is all because the townsfolk are emotionally
compromised.
It’s as if
it was decided midway through the story to go in an alternate direction, adding
a very thick layer of innocence to the narrative. As if no one can truly be
evil. Not more evil than Jason, anyway. In his own comic book, HE is the main
villain.
Must of the
chapter is a big slugfest between Jason and Batwoman against creatures that
aren’t much more than rip-offs of the Hulk. Or Solomon Grundy, if you prefer.
Whatever happened to that particular co-star? We don’t know, and we might never
will.
As for
Batwoman’s guest appearance, I guess DC needed to use her somewhere for
copyright reasons. She wasn’t the best choice of guest-hero for this issue, and
her departure from the stage is decidedly UN-batlike.
Rating: 4/10