Legends #28
Off the Menu
Legends is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get. Last week had a good intro to the story featuring a gourmet cannibal who hears voices in his head. Does this week’s issue prove to be a feast for the senses, or is this one meal you should just skip?
In this issue, Bruce theorizes on the psyche of the cannibal and the cannibal remembers past lives. The cannibal soon meets the caped crusader, but our hero is wearing the guise of Bruce Wayne rather than Batman.
Shakes Head in Disappointment
I actually enjoyed this issue until the final panel at which point the writer unleashed a line so predictably stupid that it made me reconsider the whole issue, and upon a second reading, I found a lot of problems.
The first hiccup was the way the creative team decided to follow up a particularly good scene which explored the way the cannibal, named Abattoir, dreamed other people’s memories after ingesting them. Though the scene itself did a good job of convening a trippy vibe, it was undermined when Abattoir was seen belching in his sleep. We got it. He ate somebody. I didn’t need the reminder that he was full and gross.
Next up, Bruce Wayne confronts the killer at his business, but I could find nothing which explains how Bruce discovered the identity of the villain. Does he just happen to show up there, or was there something leading Bruce here which was not clearly explained?
Then, we have a scene with Commissioner Gordon which seems completely irrelevant to the main story. In this scene, the victim is named Anthony even though the body is clearly wearing fishnet stockings and heels. If this was supposed to be a cross dresser, then you would think that would deserve an explanation in the story, but I am more inclined to believe that something got lost between the writer and artist.
Finally, we have Bruce’s confrontation with the killer which is good except that Bruce’s face looks a bit more ragged than he is usually pictured. Oh, but then there is that lousy line to close the issue.
In the Other Column
On the other side, we have good dialogue throughout the issue. (except for the end) The story takes the time of explaining a neat little trick Batman uses to keep Bats from nesting on his equipment which I appreciated. The art looks really good except for Bruce’s face, and even the face does not look bad per say; it just looks wrong for the character. The hook for the villain is actually pretty interesting calling to mind Sylar from Heroes, and Bruce’s questioning of Abattoir was a neat little tango in an interesting setting.
Conclusion 6/10
If you haven’t shelled out money for the first issue yet, you might want to hold out until the final part of this arc comes a calling since the story as a whole is difficult to call at the moment. Hopefully, the last issue will deliver a satisfying end to this piece.