“Dreaming of Bats”
Writers: Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly
Artist: Robert Carey
Color Artist: Valentina Taddeo
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Review by James Attias
Outsiders #3 is a mad step into the mind of the one character I thought this series was going to try and avoid. Welcome to the Bat-Verse.
The Many Multiverses of Batman
So, last issue we got to see the new MTV version of the Challengers of the Unknown, in a story of Monsters and discovery and questioning one’s existence. This issue seems to have reverted to where every single DC movie, comic, and TV show eventually lands. This includes the unnecessary overuse of… Batman.
Originally when this issue started I was intrigued. Kate and Luke were going through a portal/door to the unknown and stepping “Outside” reality. Then almost immediately it turns out they were in the Wayne Manor of the Batverse and only Batman and Batwoman were allowed entry.
This was an unusual comic. It had a selection of Multiversal Batmen and women, some familiar some not, and with the current Batman run delving into multiversal Dark Knights and Zur-En-arrh Batmen, this did feel like a cheap afterthought sadly.
Slightly too Dark Knight
One thing that is fun about the multiverse in comics, is seeing all the different versions of your favorite characters. In this comic, the art’s quite dark… OK, I get it, it’s dark because of Batman, but I really would have liked to see more of these many (new) versions of the Dark Knight and Batwoman. This made it all just a little too dark, sadly.
The writing was… out there. This was multiversal, and at the same time not. I really couldn’t tell you if we’ll ever come back to this element of the story in future issues, but I hope we do.
Conclusion
Outsiders #3 was interesting. Let’s hope it was a one-and-done and that going forward we’re fighting crime and exploring new places, creatures, and things.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
