Written by Tom King
Illustrated by Lee Weeks
Published by DC Comics
Man, I loved this issue. Mr. Freeze is on trial and one of the jurors is Bruce Wayne! All of the jurors are voting that Mr. Freeze is guilty for this trial. Well, except one.
Can you guess who?
That’s right, Bruce is not voting guilty on this one.
We see his reasoning here. And it makes total sense why he would do this.
King smartly and deftly fills the reader in on Bruce’s thinking.
I love that Mr. Freeze is playing the victim here saying that Batman has used excessive force. King uses this plot line as a springboard to Bruce questioning his methods.
I also love the scenes where the other members of the jury are really mad at Bruce, like telling him that they have kids and just want to go home.
It’s here that you realize King really has made Bruce as interesting as Batman.
Bruce starts to question whether or not to stop being Batman. Dick Grayson is already filling in and maybe this will be the perfect opportunity to give it up for him.By the end of this second part(of a three part story) Bruce has figured out the key to proving Freeze is innocent. He just may have to give up his identity as Batman to do so.
The art by Lee Weeks is tops. King has brought out the best in Weeks and his art. Everything is carefully crafted and incredibly well drawn. It’s fluid and excellent. There’s a great splash page of Freeze right in the beginning that I want as a poster. Seriously, it’s that awesome. Weeks is one of the most underrated and underutilized artists in the field and it’s good to see him working on such a high profile title.
The way King and Weeks go back and forth in time to show Batman fighting Freeze mixed with the jury’s deliberations is amazing. This is a fantastic issue that pushes and challenges the reader and rewards them for their effort. Well done, yet again.
RATING: A
