Penguins might get bullied, but they always get the last laugh!
Penguin seems like a c-list Batman villain, am I right? He's got no special abilities except his bird hobby, right? Well, if you think those things know that YOU might be the Penguin's next target. He always wins in the end. Written by Frank Tieri with artwork by Christian Duce.
The Good
This is the best .1 issue from the BATMAN title so far. We've had Joker's origin played with a bit (that didn't turn out well) and we also had a story about the Riddler. It was better than Joker's .1, but still not great. This Penguin .1 issue achieved greatness! It had all the right elements of fun and excitement and going "all out" in the correct places in terms of story and character direction. Two areas in which both the Joker and Riddler stories lacked in.
Writer Frank Tieri did a really great job in terms of story; to start off with. He wrapped the idea of bullying around with the Penguin and his persona. Knowing how Penguin was abused in school, it's great to see how Tieri really worked that in with this .1 issue and helped move the story forward on how Penguin is a true force to be reckoned with! And that plays a big role on who Penguin really is.
Because Penguin is displayed as a character that will wait to get the last laugh. He's content with losing time-and-time again, but eventually he'll be the one alive with his enemy dead. Which Frank Tieri really highlighted in this issue and showed us how that is a key characteristic of this character. So going all out with that one aspect of the Penguin was enjoyable to read.
And thanks to Christian Duce's artwork it gave my eyes something pleasant to look at while reading. Duce's level of detail to everything in this .1 issue is much to be applauded and the colors by Andrew Dalhouse mixed perfectly with Duce's art.
The Bad
No complaints.
The Verdict
This is the one .1 issue that's worth picking up! You might not like Penguin, but after this you might enjoy or respect the character a bit more. The writing and artwork were great and I'm happy to actually find a .1 issue that I will actually read again in the near future. Overall 5 out of 5.
Next review:
Batman 23-26 & issues 28-29 (cause I already reviewed 27, duh) ;)
Arrow review:
Last Batman Reviews:
Upcoming reviews:
1.Snyder & Capullo's BATMAN! -- Comic catch up! (issues 22-29)
2.Millar & McNiven's NEMESIS! -- Comic special! (issues 1-4) COMPLETED!
3.Tomasi & Gleason's BATMAN AND ROBIN! -- Comic catch up! (issues 22-28)
4.Posehn & Duggan's DEADPOOL! -- Comic catch up! (issues 12-24)
5.Snyder and Lee's SUPERMAN UNCHAINED! -- Comic catch up! (issues 2-5)
6.DeConnick's CAPTAIN MARVEL! -- Comic catch up! (issues 13-17)
7.Slott's SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN! -- Comic catch up! (issues 13-28)
8.Wood's STAR WARS! -- Comic catch up! (issues 3-14)
9.Kirkman's INVINCIBLE! -- Comic catch up! (issues 104-109)
