Christmas with Batman 3
(3 minutes reading time)
I think I accidentally started a tradition, one that is increasingly difficult to maintain as I struggle to uncover the Christmas delights from the Bat-Grotto. Here is my 3rd post and some joyous yuletide bat gifts!
Batman - The Adventures Continue #15 to #17
The same comic book creator crew as the Batman Adventures series of the 90s came back this year and what a series it’s been. A digital-first comic that’s excellent, with Ty Templeton’s crisp and clean art and Burnett and Dini’s easy going stories.
We see Harley and Ivy throwing a Christmas party for their fellow rogues, with a recovering Ventriloquist turning up to share in the Christmas cheer. Until a miffed Clown Prince of Crime crashes the party.
Although it’s a fairly predictable tale that has yet to conclude. One can’t help seeing the huge billboard sized signs that Scarface is coming back for the final installment of the 3 part arc. This episode will be released on New Year’s Eve 2020.
The Brave and the Bold #148
A really odd tale for me. Batman chases after “buttleggers”. This turns out to be slang for selling illicitly smuggled in cigarettes from another state. Batman is incensed that these swindlers are causing tax receipt losses to Gotham. I mean… this doesn’t seem the kind of thing that Batman would really care that much about. Nor does this remark about the Lacey’s department store Christmas lights being such a big deal. But apparently it is. The appearance of Plastic Man is brief too. The book is meant to be a showcase of team ups between Batman and other heroes. Sadly Plas spends most of his time being sombrely incognito as Santa Claus.
Justice League of America #110
A tenuous Christmas story… The only part that’s in the slightest bit to do with the season is a splash page featuring a murdered Santa dresser. And not a great tale it is either! Superman didn’t have the super speed to save anyone. He falls down a trap door. The man you believed can fly, but he falls!
A frankly ridiculous plot.
Batman #27
A warm hearted tale with a very dodgy moment. A boy who inherits a fortune but inadvertently funding a Christmas tree racket is taken out for a lesson. Which of course is a parallel to A Christmas Carol, but taking a child away against his will is… par for Batman I guess.
Batman #291
We finish with a truly cheesy but lovely short story featuring great art by the masterful Neal Adams. Batman spends Christmas Eve convinced by the Commissioner to sing carols with the squad. He’s startled as he realises the night has had no criminal transgressions (reported) in Gotham. It’s a Christmas Miracle!