Batman #131 Review: A New Gotham Filled with Promise and Potential

To say that Chip Zdarsky has been doing an incredible job on this Batman run would be a little bit of an understatement. His first batch of issues building up the threat of Failsafe and ultimately culminating in a wild cliffhanger at the end of Batman #130, which left the fate of Gotham’s hero an explosive question mark, were thrilling and introspective in a way that brought a freshness to the title without sacrificing any of the familiarity of the iconic character. The issues were, in a very tangible way, a fine example of how you do a dark Batman story without succumbing to too much darkness. This week’s Batman #131 picks up from that cliffhanger and plunges the story deeper into the darkness. While it’s a move that might feel like it operates counter to the idea of balance Zdarsky created up to now, the result is an intriguing detour from what Batman fans might expect even if this first installment is a little slow to get off the ground.

The issue picks up almost immediately after the cliffhanger in Batman #130 with Bruce Wayne—in a nearly destroyed Batman costume—waking up in Crime Alley. He soon determines that he’s in Gotham, but also that this isn’t his Gotham and bluntly lets us know that yes, we’re in an alternative version of reality and a disoriented Bruce isn’t alone. He’s there with a skeletal Jim Gordon. As the issue continues, we see just how off this Gotham is, with a venom-jacked Harvey Dent and a city that feels a bit like a noir-inspired dystopia. By the end of the installment, we’ve received a brief overview of this Gotham, been introduced to a few new characters, and learned the status of that world’s Bruce Wayne as well as what Failsafe’s final “gift” for Bruce was – sending him to a world without a Batman.

Functionally, the issue does exactly what it needs to in that it sets the stage for this next chapter of the story. With Bruce being sent to an alternative Gotham, we as readers do need to get the lay of the land. After all, DC has a wide range of alternative worlds to choose from, but there’s something about this particular take on things and the way it is all set up that feels tired. The idea of an alternative Gotham where some random villain has gone authoritarian much to the oppression of the people, while providing a distinctively retro feel to the art feels very played out. It feels like we’ve seen this before and frankly, it seems like there could be better stories to tell than to send Bruce to a hellscape of a Gotham where he’s supposed to learn something. Is it really an alternative reality if that reality is not that far off the one we already know? Even though it’s executed fairly well, it still feels flat.

The only thing that really salvages it is the artwork. The comic is visually very impressive, and Mike Hawthorne and Adriano di Benedetto deliver some gorgeous clean lines that work just brilliantly with Tomeu Morey’s colors. Even skelly-Jim Gordon is well done even though he’s such a bonkers addition to this affair and one I hope we receive some explanation for soon. While the story itself lacks a bit coming out of the gate, the art alone is worth sticking through it. Here’s to hoping the story picks up to match its potential in coming issues.

Published by DC Comics

On January 3, 2023

Written by Chip Zdarsky

Art by Mike Hawthorne and Adriano di Benedetto

Colors by Tomeu Morey

Letters by Clayton Cowles

Cover by Jorge Jimenez