ROBIN RISES: ALPHA #1 Preview/Discussion

[Knightstalker]

That was great, a very enjoyable read. Thrilled to have Damian back at last!

[K. Jones]

Did Helena actually feature in Morrison's Batman pre reboot? Nothing springs to mind....


And I agree with others, fwiw. "Grayson" feels like a continuation of the Morrison story, whereas Robin Rises feels like a continuation of the Parallel Stories that other writers would be doing at the same time. I've always felt that the Blackest Night Batman stuff, Resurrection Of Ra's Al Ghul, and the rest of Tomasi's Batman And Robin all felt like it belonged together - but in a very different "world" to Batman And Robin Must Die, or Inc.

Whereas we last left Bruce under Morrison cowed and almost defeated, told in no uncertain terms by Kathy Kane to get back in his box and play in his city leaving the world alone. Being seen to do exactly that, and then sending in his own agent to infiltrate Spyral seems a logical - and far less depressing that the alternative - continuation of that plotline. And it wouldn't be the first time that the ongoing Morrisonish plotline would sub Dick in for Bruce as a lead with a big surge in New Villains.

In fact, in a recent reread it seems notable that the last we really see Dick in Inc is him coming face-to-face with Spyral and realising that he recognises Kathy Kane.

These all factor into my continuing love for Grayson and why I feel like it's the natural successor to Morrison's run, and much of that has to do with Tim Seeley, who also brings the Morrison when it comes to Batman Eternal. Tom King had the task of having to win my favor, and he succeeded.

But B&R has always felt like a sister-title to the Morrison run, and in no small way because Morrison invented the title and then when he moved over to Inc. Volume 1, B&R continued to run alongside it, whether in Tomasi's one Dick & Damian arc or that weird Cornell Absence arc or that Winick Jason Todd story that would have actually been pretty kick-ass if Guillem March hadn't dipped out one issue in.

I haven't always known what to think about Tomasi's B&R run. I've liked it all along, in spite of "Nobody" running a bit long, "Terminus" being a little on the weak side, those two pre-DOTF issues not really going anyplace. But in spite of that it's still always felt like a "sister-title".

Damian's run-in with Joker in DOTF? Played as a strict sequel to their encounter in Batman and Robin Must Die. The one-shots like the Zero Month issue and the Annuals? Pure goodness. The requiem stuff? Mixed bag, but mostly I loved it as the proper "aftermath" to Incorporated Volume 2. I still don't know how to feel about the Two-Face story, and Robin Rises is a bit decompressed and flashy but without substance, but the actual "Hunt For" chapters were great. Ra's al Ghul, Frankenstein, Heretic Clones, and Aquaman? Win, Win, Win.

I'm willing to say that Robin Rises dragging a bit with bloat was worth it because of the thematic nature of Damian fighting Kalibak. I quite like that and I'm willing to overlook a bit of the ridiculousness getting there. At least Tomasi is not only willing to play nice with developments from other writers (Chaos Shard, much?) but is willing to take those elements and try to do something big and bold with them that furthers his own storylines. It's an ability Grant did a lot of, even though he was more "setting the pace" than picking up after others.

Anyway, where was I? Oh right ... yeah ... Helena Bertinelli appears in ONE PANEL of Morrison's run, in Batman, Incorporated # 6 "Nyktomorph", when Bats is telling his primary allies about the threat of Leviathan.

[darkseidpwns]

Glad to see Damian's back,also glad to see Talia's return,they've introduced whole new dimensions,cant wait to see them being explored.

[sicsexsix]

Seeing Damian return last week, and now this follow up has been great. Pure fan-service from Tomasi in my opinion. It's a little corny, which I expected, but at the same time, I don't care, because the return is the series of feel-good-moments it should be. Dick is conspicuous by his absence, and I'm still irked that the rest of the Bat-family isn't in on that little secret. Bruce trusts them more than anyone. At most, he could have just told them "he's on a mission for me, but he's ok and that's all you need to know right now". That was it. Keeping it from the rest is the return of Bat-Dick again (and I don't mean Grayson). I'd really like to know how it all would've played out in Eternal if they went with the original angle (Blondewing), but then we wouldn't have Grayson, which has consistently been one of the high points of each month since it's debut.

Robin Rises might be more tightly tied to Grant's run, but the quality of Grayson is more on par with it. One's a sequel, the other's a spin off, that's how I see it.

And wow. Talia Rises. I was wondering when they'd get around to addressing her body being lost in the mountains, but wasn't expecting her to come back in this story. I always figured someone would use the "Lord Death Man's Lazarus Blood" plot device that Morrison so conveniently left for the next guy to explain either her or Damian's resurrection. Bringing her back with no memory is a nice way to return her to her pre-Batman Inc. status quo, where she was kind of straddling the line rather than full on evil. Definitely curious to see where they take that one.

[Godlike13]

Not gonna lie, i wasn't a big fan of Damian's voice here.

[ispacehead]

This was really really *really* bad.
Not even worth discussing.

I was going to say "even worse than the Snyder book this week" but I guess tynion wrote the annual... so no wonder that was kinda good.

[Baggie_Saiyan]

Did anyone else feel this issue/one shot was well pointless? Ngl this feels like a holiday cash grab. And the art, what the hell man? I was at least expecting some decent looking art, based on Omega but wow, this looked bad.

Anyway, this was a fun but bizarre arc, Damian is back, let's see where they take this super power nonsense. I hope Alpha being bad was a one off, I really don't wanna drop this book.

[Punisher007]

spoilers:

Is the naked woman with no memory supposed to be Talia?

end of spoilers

Or god I hope so. Now maybe someone can fix the mess that Morrison made of that character.

[Godlike13]

Oh please. Morrison made her one of the most competent villains Batman has ever faced, if not the most. The only problem is she kind of peaked with her organization. So i guess amnesia is not a terrible move. Its basically a reset.

[Dzetoun]

Did anyone else feel this issue/one shot was well pointless? Ngl this feels like a holiday cash grab. And the art, what the hell man? I was at least expecting some decent looking art, based on Omega but wow, this looked bad.

Anyway, this was a fun but bizarre arc, Damian is back, let's see where they take this super power nonsense. I hope Alpha being bad was a one off, I really don't wanna drop this book.

Yes, it was very disappointing. All you can say is that Bat Cow stole the show by pooping. Otherwise, it was pointless. Damian's powers were not particularly interesting, the resurrection had already been better shown in BATMAN AND ROBIN, and as I feared Damian did not exhibit an appropriate reaction at the news of Dick's death. Pretty much a waste of time and money from b n beginning to end.

[Punisher007]

Oh please. Morrison made her one of the most competent villains Batman has ever faced, if not the most. The only problem is she kind of peaked with her organization. So i guess its not a terrible move. Its basically a reset.

No he didn't, he made her a cliché mustache-twirling psycho femme fatale constantly spouting nonsense and with incredibly lame motivations. He did NOTHING good for her character, and for one so competent, her final endgame was sure pretty stupid, as was her end.

[K. Jones]

I'm no Talia "traditionalist". I believe where Morrison took her was not only a logical step for her character (because Batman will never choose her as "the one" and so spurned and vengeful is the only way she can go) and as the privileged daughter of a mass murderer, she was already pretty effing heinous.

But I'm a firm believer in having it both ways - I like a more flexible, gray-area Talia that sort of helps Batman out and rebels from her father. I think this amnesia kick is a solid excuse for getting back to that, if they go that route. More than that, I've always been operating under the assumption since the Leviathan reveal that she was being affected by the same Darkseid Hole In Things that was affecting Bruce, Doctor Hurt, and all the other characters. Effectively, dark forces have been playing with the minds and histories of our characters. Now that those evil demons have been purged, a reset button to a more TAS or classic take on Talia is absolutely appropriate.

[Rakzo]

Thought this was solid but still doesn't compensate for how uneven all the recent issues have been.

[Baggie_Saiyan]

Yes, it was very disappointing. All you can say is that Bat Cow stole the show by pooping. Otherwise, it was pointless. Damian's powers were not particularly interesting, the resurrection had already been better shown in BATMAN AND ROBIN, and as I feared Damian did not exhibit an appropriate reaction at the news of Dick's death. Pretty much a waste of time and money from b n beginning to end.

100% agree the $4.99 price tag was a joke to say the least, the arc ended perfectly at #37 I thought. Cautiously optimistic about #38 now.

[Sardorim]

Well he didn't stay dead that long.