“Crack-Up!” – Part Three
Writers: Alan Burnett and Paul Dini
Artist: Ty Templeton
Color Artist: Monica Kubina
Letterer: Josh Reed
Review by James Attias
Batman: The Adventures Continue #3.5 brings us to the climax of a battle royale! Who will emerge victorious? Batman, Joker, Task Force X, or the sinister Hugo Strange?! Let’s find out!
Let Them Fight!
One of the most fun things about being a superhero nerd is the hypothetical “Who would win?” games that we ALL play. The fun comes as much from using our imagination as from pitching characters against each other that, in the source material would likely never meet, let alone fight. This issue felt a lot like that! Batman, Robin, and Batgirl, fighting against Joker, fighting against the Suicide Squad, fighting against Straightman. With the ringside assistance of Amanda Waller and Professor Hugo Strange.
Now, in Comic Book shops around the world, there would be a Nerd who could argue how each of these various contenders would win, and why. Batman because he’s Batman, Joker because he’s unpredictable, or Task Force X because of powers and numbers. What did this issue tell us?
Straightman is a formidable foe. This iteration of the character seems to be up there with the likes of Bane in terms of strength, if not even stronger. His weakness? His mind. (the McGuffin of this whole arc). We see that he’s quite unhinged in this issue and it takes the full force of Batman, Robin, and the Batmobile to even get his attention. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t happen often. This is worth noting friends!
The version of Task Force X we get in this issue showcases a strong line-up. Of course, we have the staples: Harley Quinn, Deadshot, and Captain Boomerang, as well as the almost regulars; King Shark and Katana, not to forget newcomer The Muscle. In terms of skill set, we’ve got a lot of strength and precision in this team, but not too many other powers. These are individuals that either have super strength or are good at hitting a target. Is this what you need in this kind of fight?
The bottom line of this issue is a huge melee of fisticuffs, explosions, and Joker gags! Not to mention that the comic/animated series Harley has a more Task Force X look, rather than her usual jester suit.
What Next?
This story was wonderfully drawn and written in the perfect tone of the show with a small dash of adult sensibilities. There’s not much else I can say about the issue without giving too much away.
It didn’t have as many references to previous episodes of the series, compared to the last issue, so feel like as much as I enjoy that it may get repetitive and alienate those few who have mistakenly not watched the animated show as much as I have. (Seriously, go watch it, even if you’ve seen all of it, watch it again). The issue was well-rounded, and the few small issues I had with it would be spoilerific… but we can talk about that another time.
Conclusion
Batman: The Adventures Continue #3.5 was a fun, energetic, explosion-filled issue that brings this storyline to a neat and tidy conclusion.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
Review Written In Loving Memory of Kevin Conroy. Always Our Batman.
