DC/RWBY #2 // Review
Everyone in Gotham City is getting powers. This is particularly bad considering...all of the people in Gotham City. There’s a band of mystical warrior women from another dimension who have the pleasure of working with Gotham City’s most famous detective on the mysterious matter in DC/RWBY #2. Writer Marguerite Bennett manages a truly interesting Batman story in an issue that’s brought to the page by artist Meghan Hetrick and colorist Marissa Louise. Batman has had so many stories told about him over the years that it’s hard to imagine something new and unique coming along that would actually provide a little bit of insight into his character. Bennett manages this beautifully in a really fun second issue for the mini-series.
The women of RWBY have been in Gotham City for only a brief amount of time, and already they’ve grown a following. Gotham’s a place that celebrates the theatrical, and magical warrior women are going to go over QUITE well in an atmosphere like that. The fact that they bring a dark energy with them is a minor detail for most of the residents, but it’s kind of a major issue for Batman and company, who quickly realize that the next natural place for all that negative energy to haunt would have to be...Arkham Asylum.
Bennett finds a remarkably clever little issue for Batman. He is defined by his lack of superpowers. He’s just a really good detective. So what happens when a really good detective gains...limited precognition? Batman knows that he can’t use it because he would come to rely on it, and it might come to control him. It’s a clever inner conflict that would be absolute hell for Bruce Wayne. Bennett makes for a sharp analysis of the psyche of Wayne while playfully exploring a fun and breezy crossover between DC and RWBY.
Bennett throws together every major character in Gotham City for this particular issue of the mini-series. This allows Hetrick and Louise the opportunity to do a quick tour of the Batman end of the DC Universe with some fun bits of social interaction that occasionally brush into realms of action and magic. The drama and mystery-heavy issue is given a great deal of weight thanks to thoughtful work on the part of Hetrick. Louise works wonders with the black and grey and blue and purple color palette of Gotham. RWBY’s far more colorful world adds some beautiful contrast to all the darkness.
Next month, Bennett and company slide into a deeper mysticism in an issue that features the magical end of the DC Universe, including appearances by John Constantine, Zatanna, and Wonder Woman. This milieu is a much more natural fit for a team of mystical warrior women, which could potentially work against the series if there isn’t enough contrast between the two universes in collision. It could also work to the advantage of the series, as the conflict is no longer hampered by weird juxtapositions as the series approaches its midway point.
