January 25, 2013

Review: Batman Issue 16


What will the Dark Knight discover when he enters Arkham Asylum? What madness has the Joker created to terrorize the Dark Knight even further?



The dark saga of The Joker's revenge continues in Batman issue 16 as writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, provides readers with horrific look at what the Joker has done with Arkham Asylum. Opening the first page is terrifying enough as the mad plan of The Joker is revealed within the initial pages. These dark pages infused with a good mix of colors, draws subtle parallels to the end scenes of Apocalypse now, as Batman continues his journey to confront the clown prince of crime. Unfortunately though, Snyder continues to give The Joker, every advantage once again as the Dark Knight comes up short. Snyder reinforces the Dark Knight's true weaknesses here, which relates to the title of the storyline. Batman issue 16 is truly a frightening issue laying out the depravity of The Joker with his plans for Batman.

Kudos to the coloring work once again, with enough dark panels to set the mood and tone. Capullo's work captures every detail brilliantly, bringing readers on point visually, with Snyder's script. I did find some scenes to be a bit unbelievable for even the Dark Knight to fight out of. [SPOILERS] Perhaps Snyder should not have included a scene with Batman fighting too many armed Joker goons. The backup story also has some additional details that should not be missed either.  The extent of The Joker's sadistic ways are also evident in the second tale, with Snyder showing no honor among criminals.

On a final note, the cover art is very intriguing in that it has absolutely nothing to do with the story inside. It could be just a plain "generic" cover but does it also hold clues to the story's grand finale? 

Final Verdict: A-

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