Batman and Robin or Dark Knight Rises??
Though the new 52 Batman and Robin hasn't been as great a run as its predecessor. The clash of the Robin's sub-story is amazing. Morrigan's run was alright and this new guy Bane...Terminus... is an alright villain at best.
The Good
Jumping into 12 we see Batman and Damien getting electrocuted by an enormous bat signal....(read the first page in dim light as it hurts to look at). Aside from the glowing blue page 1 the art is wonderful. A bloodied and beat up Batman a few pages in makes you think that Terminus will actually break the Batman....hmmm. Anyway, the use of the augmentation suit is outstanding and immediately brings the fight up a few notches when Batman slides into the Batmobile's undercarriage to suit up (what CAN'T this car do). The arrival of all the Robin's mid fight got me really excited and was wondering if they'd all beat Damien to death in retaliation for their previous humiliation....wishful thinking. At the end we see a very mature side of Nightwing. Instead of accepting Damien's wish to fight he instead throws him an escrima stick and pretty much tells him that he has and always will be a Robin.
The Bad
The cover page throws me off with Terminus' Uncle Same pose. Seeing him hold the cowl my initial thoughts were "This better not be a reprise of the Dark Knight Rises plot." Page 1 a timer....Terminus has a bomb...great. As we see Batman and Damien get the crap knocked out of them and Damien getting shot AGAIN!....Okay, up until now I can deal with Damien's incessant banter and horrible personality, but he's trained by the LEAGUE OF ASSASSINS! why does he keep making strategic fighting mistakes! I know he's not infallible, but dear lord. It makes me wish somebody would just end him for good and get it over with, but I digress....
During the fight Terminus yells at Batman saying "The only thing about to be broken...is you!"....(oh please take a number and step in line) So Terminus' timer hits 0 and a bomb is launched at Gotham. Batman, being the unstoppable man of steel (the augmentation suit remember), rushes to the missile faster than... a speeding missile (no, not a bullet)... and overrides the guidance system crashing it into the Gotham Bay (Somebody saw a recent Batman movie....) Though this has nothing to do with the plot I would've rather dealt without the floppy old woman breast on the fused pile of mess that looked like Clayface if he had downs syndrome.
The Verdict
Though I don't regret picking up this issue I do feel like it lacked in creativity with its plot. So, if you want to see an alternate version of The Dark Knight Rises or like a good ol' beat em up action packed comic then Batman and Robin 12 is a comic you need to grab.
