The first issue of Batman: Europa has arrived. And guess what? The world didn’t end!
Still, it took 11 years for this project to finally be released. I suppose I should be grateful I’ve only been waiting since 2011, when it was initially solicited (but then mysteriously disappeared).
But now it’s actually out there in the wild, and so far? I’d personally say it’s shaping up to be exactly what I wanted to see from such a premise.
First of all, the art is absolutely gorgeous:
I really dig the no inking style, just laying the color over Jim Lee’s pencils. But I love plain, ordinary graphite sketches and drawings anyway (my favorite medium), so it’s a style I naturally appreciate. It works really well for this book I think, and this issue was so pretty, I’m a bit sad to think this is the only issue of the 4-issue series that we get from Lee. Though had he drawn the entire book, it likely would have taken another 11 years to come out. So there’s that. But based on the cover art alone, I think the artists for the subsequent issues should be fantastic in their own ways.
Story wise, this is the first issue, so I get that it was mostly set-up. The most exciting thing about it was simply the promise that Batman and Joker will be teaming up. It’s the upcoming issues where things should get really interesting. Can. Not. Wait.
Plus, there was that innuendo. I knew Azzarello wouldn’t let me down. xD
Here’s a rather fair review though:
Batman Europa #1
Written by Matteo Casali and Brian Azzarello
Art by Jim Lee, Giuseppe Camuncoli and Alex Sinclair
Lettering by Pat Brosseau
Published by DC Comics
Review by David Pepose
‘Rama Rating: 7 out of 10
While Jim Lee began a storied career at Marvel Comics before becoming one of the co-founders of Image, his pinnacle as a superstar comic book artist was arguably his work on the Batman storyline “Hush,” as his iconic designs helped take the character’s sales into the stratosphere. With that in mind, any reunion between Jim Lee and the Dark Knight is reason to pay attention, and it’s that same artwork that helps elevate Batman Europa #1. While Matteo Casali and Brian Azzarello’s story feels fairly run-of-the-mill, Lee’s artwork keeps this book from feeling anything but.
What will likely surprise readers – and perhaps polarize them – is a notable shift in Lee’s artistic style. Working from layouts by Giuseppe Camuncoli, Lee opts for a wispy inking style with this series, reminding me a lot of Andy Kubert and Richard Isanove during Marvel 1602. It’s a bit of an adjustment, as Alex Sinclair’s colors wind up doing just as much heavy lifting as Lee’s finishes, but once you get used to it, you can still see Lee’s blockbuster style underneath. In many ways, Europa feels like a greatest hits album from Lee, as he’s able to draw upon the duality between Batman and the Joker – Batman is serious and stocky, while the Joker is rubbery and thin, the consummate trickster set alongside the ultimate straight man. But even pages that are just marking time wind up looking superb in Lee’s hands – a sequence of Batman tearing the Berlin underworld apart looks spectacular, with Camuncoli’s sharp compositions reminding me a lot of Jae Lee’s ultra-deliberate work.
With this spectacular artwork, it can be expected – perhaps even forgiven – that the story doesn’t quite measure up. How could it? Writers Matteo Casali and Brian Azzarello have put Batman on a globetrotting case, unfortunately leaning into the old Arkham City trope of infecting the Dark Knight with a deadly disease that will kill him swiftly if he isn’t cured. But whereas Arkham City used the Titan infection to give Batman a ticking clock, Casali and Azzarello go one layer deeper, using the Colossus disease to force Batman to team up with his most hated adversary. Azzarello and Casali don’t go too deep into this unlikely partnership in this issue – and with some surprisingly entrendre-filled lines like “our blood, on each other’s lips” and “this time I’m ready to go all the way… and do it,” that might be for the best – but there’s some great potential here for this off-kilter dynamic duo.
But what ultimately Azzarello and Casali don’t sell is why the European setting. Admittedly, Azzarello’s noir-infused voice doesn’t really carry here, but beyond a few factoids in Batman’s narration about the history of Berlin, we don’t really get the unique flavors of each locale. Europa could be a really fascinating way of showing how Batman operates in different locations – similar to the ideas that Grant Morrison used in Batman Incorporated – but for now, there’s so much about this story that still feels like any other traditional Batman story. When you have an artist like Jim Lee on board, you know he’s already done the traditional Batman story with “Hush” – what twists can you throw him to make this project really worth his obviously scarce time?
Perhaps you can chalk it up to a slow week at DC, or simply a slowing down on all fronts with the holidays approaching, but Batman Europa winds up being one of the strongest of the DC books this week. Ultimately, that praise is due primarily to Jim Lee flexing his muscles, treating readers to see a master in action. While the change in styles might not be to everyone’s liking, it’s Lee that makes Batman Europa worth your time – hopefully, with that hook in place, Casali and Azzarello will up their game in future installments.
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