BATWOMAN #1

Hydrology, Part 1:  Leaching

November 2011

Written by J. H. Williams II and W. Haden Blackman

Pencils by J. H. Williams III

Inks by J. H. Williams III

Cover by J. H. Williams III

Synopsis

Felipe Lopez explains to Detective Sawyer of the Gotham police how a strange woman took their children, despite the arrival of Batwoman.  So far, 12 children have gone missing.  Later, Sawyer runs into Kate Kane and the two make a date.  That night, Kate Kane (aka Batwoman) and Better Kane (formerly Flamebird but not just a plebe under Kate’s guidance) patrol.  In New York, Director Bones of the DEO orders Agent Chase to investigate an organization called Medusa, which may be connected to terrorist act that recently occurred over Gotham, which involved Colonel Kane and caped vigilante:  Batwoman.  Meanwhile, Batwoman and the plebe watch as the police investigate another missing child before returning to base.  There, Kate’s dad is waiting for her, but she wants him to leave because he lied to her about the death of her twin sister.  Later, Batwoman is investigating the scene of the missing child when Batman appears.  He has a proposition for her.

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

Here is the short story, as far as I know.  After the run on Detective Comics ended in early 2010, DC decided to launch a new Batwoman comic.  So, it was announced and Williams started work on it.  It was solicited, then pulled.  A #0 issue was released in late 2010.  Then, nothing.  Now we know why.  When DC decided to do the re-launch, they held onto the book and waited.  They were going to release a new #1 anyway, so why not wait until the rest were being done?  What this means, of course, is that this is not a reboot of the character or even a soft re-launch, but literally a continuation of the original story in Detective Comics.  And it shows in this issue, although I do have to credit Williams for doing a good job of providing the backstory to her relationship with her father. 

Anyway, enough of that.  The important thing, I think, is that this issue stands out on his own, with an intriguing mystery with the urban legend of the Weeping Woman, the involvement of the DEO, and Batman’s proposition.  I loved the opening scene and thought Williams effectively created a chilling scene that evoked the ghostly tales of the Weeping Woman before Sawyer revaled the legend later in this issue.  However, the best part is the characterization of Kate Kane, either in the scene with Sawyer as they find a way to ask each other on a date or he role with Bette as he mentor or her decision to cut off her dad from her life.  We can see the conflict in her life and how she is dealing with it while at the same time trying to get involved with the case of the missing children.  This story is not just about the plot, but about Kate as well and I am eager to see what Williams has in store for her. 

So what is the status of Renee Montoya in the DCnU?  Did she die, as suggested by the picture on the wall?  Does everything think she died when in reality she picked up the mantle of the Question?  Except Kate knows Renee is the Question and knows she is alive, so her constant looking at the picture doesn’t quite make sense. 

Before they go on patrol, Kate is wearing a pink bra and Bette is wearing no bra.  When they return, Kate has no bra and Bette is wearing a gray bra.  One could say the artist lack consistency between the two scenes or you could argue it is just a function of when the pictures were drawn within the sequence of events.  I will give Williams the benefit of the doubt and believe we just never say Bette put on her bra or Kate take it off. 

Yet another comic featuring Commissioner Gordon with red hair. 

Bette references her time in the Teen Titans.  Supposedly, the new Teen Titans comic about to come out is going to be the first one, retocnning out all of the other versions.  I am guessing this was written (and probably completed) before the re-launch, which explains how Bette’s reference made it into the comic.  Blame it on the editor, who should’ve caught it. 

Strange Sighting

Page 15, top of the double-page spread on the right hand side, between Gordon and Sawyer among the crowd, visible just above the “come again?” word balloon. 

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