“Robin Vs Hawke! For the Last Time!”
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Gleb Melnikov and Max Dunbar
Color Artist: HI-FI
Letterer: ALW’s Troy Peteri
Review by Fay Clark
I don’t know how much more intense this can get. That’s what I’d been thinking for months, then Robin #8 came out of nowhere and just blew that out of the water. After the last issue, it would be easy to think we now knew everything there was to know… that is not correct!
On Lazarus Island, we solve things with Violence
Good lord. My gosh. Holy cow… I think you get the picture. Why is it that just when I think Joshua Williamson’s done, he just keeps getting better? If you’re not reading this current run, then you’re just plain missing out. Robin #8 is nothing short of UH-MAZE-ING. I cannot comment on basically anything anymore, because spoilers. However, I can tell you that Damian is still a smart little so-and-so, and he knows it!
Williamson writes like he’s been to Lazarus island and lived this all out himself, as there isn’t even a slight waver in how the story-line could go. There’s always been only one way to do this, particularly when the snarky lines get better and better in each issue. There is still mystery in Robin #8, but definitely less with each chapter, as more and more answers are given to us. I feel like people forget how smart Damian Wayne is, they just focus on the violence and the sass. Don’t get me wrong,as I know I’ve been doing the same thing. Williamson shows us how good Damian really is at battle strategy, and it is b@d@$$.
There’s painful… then there’s THAT!
The artwork in Robin #8, just goes above and beyond. There’s nothing about any of these panels that I would change, and there are about three in particular from the issue that stick in my memory. Gleb Melnikov and Max Dunbar have created something amazing, add in the color talents of Hi-Fi and you have artwork that I’d happily put up on my walls. Everything that happens in this issue feels like a gut punch, but it looks so good that I keep saying “Hit harder!” This could be my all time favorite issue of this run, so far.
The shadow and highlight work in later pages is stunning. The color green seems to keep running throughout the whole run so far, and I have a feeling that it ties everything back to the massive, green, resurrection, sludge pit under the island. It somehow ties everything together really well and makes all the panels flow beautifully. The last panel in the book is a masterclass in how to ruin a fan’s day. It was so well drawn and colored, and yet… I have no idea how to react to that. It was so well crafted I made a visceral sound in my throat!
Conclusion
I cannot tell you any clearer; Read Robin #8, and read it now. It’s so good that it will leave a gaping hole inside of you, that you can’t fill with anything else but the next issue of Robin! Damian has so much to deal with already, but trust me, you’re going to want to see how he deals with the craziness of Lazarus island.
Please, just read it so we can freak out together, I have no idea how I’m dealing with this.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
