Batman: Arkham Knight #23 Review

Written by: Peter J. Tomasi
Art by: Ig Guara, Juan Ferreira and Andrew Dalhouse
Cover Price: $0.99
Release Date: July 25, 2015


Did You Ever Meet Anybody You Didn't Kill?


My name is Jim and I am an Arkham Knight fanboy.  I am only talking about this comic as I haven't played a second of the game yet and don't know if I ever will.  Hate me for being honest, but I am a very lazy busy man.  However, every Friday night, I ignore my wife's honey-do list and sit back and read me some Arkham Knight.  It's one of my simple pleasures and after twenty some issues, I have never been disappointed...until last week.   While it was a fun issue, it was also a whole lot of setup and the closest thing to filler that I've seen from Peter Tomasi and this series.  I did mention in my review that it had a crazy cliffhanger ending and I couldn't wait to see what happened next.  Well, now that I've seen it, can I get back to recommending this book to everybody I see on the street or was it another sad night in the Werner house?  Let's find out...



The issue opens with Amanda Waller in all her glory.  This isn't any newfangled,  New 52, hit the gym for five hours a day version of the character.  This is "The Wall" and I love her.  I also loved seeing her deal with the situation at hand...or out of hand, if you will. It was a great way to get readers up to speed on the story and remind us that Deadshot is working on the (almost) good side of the fight.

We than get to see Deadshot and his new buddy, Batman, dealing with last issue's cliffhanger...Killer Croc.  It's a quick scene, but it was so brutal and fun.  It made me realize that watching Croc toss Deadshot around like a ragdoll might never grow old.  It does end with Boomerang about to become a tasty meal, which made me sad and laugh at the same time.  Talk about insult to injury...poor, poor Boomerang.

After a couple of  quick scenes with Jim Gordon bitching about fundraisers and his awful spelling ability and Alfred having some facetime with Dick Grayson, we travel to the Gotham Underground and catch up with two of my favorite characters in this series...Harley Quinn and the Penguin.  While Harley is upset over the failure of the All New Suicide Squad, Oswald isn't deterred in the least.  He unveils a little more of his grand plan and if it is what I think it is, things are going to get a bit more meta in Gotham.  I am officially intrigued.

The issue ends with Batman and Deadshot teaming up against Croc and I loved it.  Batman may not be having fun, but I want more of these two together.  It looks like I'll get my wish for at least one more issue and this one ends with such a great buddy-cop moment that I want next week's issue now!

For the finale of the "Who Wants to Kill a Billionaire?" arc, this issue was more setup than I imagined it would be.  However, I loved every minute of it.  There was no filler to be seen and after last week's lull, this book is back in all it's glory.

I criticized Ig Guara last week for giving us a Harley that was moonlighting as a Jay Leno impersonator, but he redeemed himself this week big time.  It wasn't just his awesome Killer Croc character work, but also his Harley.  No big chin this week.  Thank God because I don't want to see it ever again.  It doesn't hurt that he's joined by Juan Ferreira and Andrew Dalhouse who join in to make this one of the best looking books around.

Bits and Pieces:

This issue of Arkham Knight gets the book back on track quickly and while it was mostly setup, it was still a great read.  Peter Tomasi gives us a fun story with great characters and Ig Guara kicks ass on art.  We find out the Penguin is up to more than just kidnapping and the issue ends with the unlikely teamup of Batman and Deadshot.  That and everything else we see this issue has me wanting next week's issue right now.  Highly Recommended.

9.3/10