Batman: Broken City
July 5, 2004 | Trades
Batman: Broken City
Brian Azzarello, Eduardo Risso
DC Comics
$37.95/$24.99 US (Hardcover)
**** (out of five)
Broken City could have been a huge letdown.
Jim Lee and Jeph Loeb’s Batman story arc, Hush, was one of the most talked about events in all of comics last year.
It was the triumphant return to a monthly series for a supremely talented artist in Lee, which paired him with one of the hottest writers in the industry in Loeb. And it was everything one could ask for, smart, beautifully illustrated and a bestseller.
But it was all short lived. Hush was a 12-part story and the creative team was gone after their story was told.
This left DC Comics with some huge shoes to fill and they couldn’t have found a better fit than Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso.
The creative team behind 100 Bullets, one of the edgiest and most thoughtfully constructed series on the market, was a perfect redirection from what Loeb and Lee had done.
Broken City sees Batman on the trail of a local hood he suspects of murder. But as he closes in on his target, two parents are killed in front of their son, an eerie reflection of Batman’s beginnings.
As he works his way through some of Gotham’s biggest lowlifes like Killer Croc and The Penguin, the world’s greatest detective is forced to question his life and his assumptions, leading him to the possibly the worst situation he’s ever been: needing the Joker’s help to solve the crime.
Featuring the quick wit and dark undertones readers of Azzarello’s run on Hellblazer and 100 Bullets have come to appreciate and moody and striking art from Risso, this dynamic due seems like they might be the most natural fit for Batman in years. Broken City is hard-boiled Batman at it’s best.
It almost makes you feel story for writer Judd Winick and artist Dustin Nguyen, who have taken up the title after Azzarello and Risso.
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