Comics / Comic Reviews / DC Comics

Batman #620

By Leroy Douresseau
November 16, 2003 - 09:54

It's either amazing or a testament to how bad fan boy tastes are that Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso's run on BATMAN isn't creating anywhere near the controversy, attention, acclaim, or heat that Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee's lame "Hush" did. Azzarello and Risso rock the world on a frequent basis with their tremendously intriguing series 100 BULLETS, and maybe there is relative fan silence because Azzarello and Risso don't rock the world on Batman.

Because of their ongoing star creator wars with Marvel, DC Comics obviously wants to assign heavy hitter creative teams on their two big character properties, Batman and Superman. Still, having Azzarello and Risso on Batman is a waste of time, especially if the result is something only mildly entertaining like the duo's bat storyline, "Broken City."

The writing is okay, really no better than what any other comic book writer of middling talent could do. This issue's opening three pages features a Batman soliloquy on God that's so trite, so dull, and so dumb that it couldn't possibly come from the "world's greatest detective." Yes, there are a few good moments, here and there. Brian's Batman is a nice cross between (the beast that Frank Miller created) The Dark Knight and the Denny O'Neil and Steve Englehart Batman, which is a nice change from Loeb's high tech super soldier.

The most interesting element in this book is Risso's art. It's not nearly as artful as his 100 Bullets, but there are some panels that are quite beautiful, although not one page stands out as a whole. At this point, Risso doesn't really seem to have a grasp on drawing Batman, but then he hasn't spent his entire career slavishly servicing trademarks like his American colleagues. Maybe, it'll all come together…eventually. GRADE C+

Rating: C+ /10

Last Updated: November 29, 2025 - 16:51