After a little bit of a falter in issue #3,
WIDENING GYRE returns from a short hiatus in great form. In his way of exploring Batman's history, Kevin Smith uses some clever methodology in explaining some of the wackier Batman foes of his early years, and gives an unexpected murderous twist to Crazy Quilt of all people.
It's not exactly a huge plot point, but it does make Batman's world work a bit more on the level of contemporary explanations for what might be deemed rash in the context of the most brilliant tactician in the DC Universe. (I doubt we'll be getting a logical explanation for Robin's pixie boots anytime soon, though.)
For me, the most memorable moment in the issue came between Batman and the new crime fighter Baphomet. The two men reach a landmark in their "working relationship" and Batman, in true Bruce Wayne fashion, isn't ready for the kind of "commitment" that Baphomet throws down. Some people perceive Bruce Wayne to be a "typical male" in the sense of commitment in anything, and this was an interesting way to play off of that classic notion. This issue also brought more exposition through Bruce Wayne's relationship with Dick Grayson. Oddly topical given Dick's current standing in the DCU, we see classic Nightwing (or as Metamorpho calls him, "Disco") travel to Markovia to assist Batman and the original Outsiders against Baron Bedlam. The theme of loneliness is brought up again, but the conversation between Bruce and Dick, as with the last installments of the series, still feels very genuine. It's not quite the tone of Clark and Jonathan Kent, nor should it be, but the father-son respect has a layer of brotherly love, and it's hard not to be drawn in by those conversations as Smith writes them.
The other major relationship explored, as with the other issues, is between Bruce and Silver St. Cloud. In an interesting scene, Silver is going through Bruce's journals that he has kept every day since he began being the Batman. Silver remarks at how good of a writer Bruce is, and at the end of the conversation, does something unexpected that I'm sure will crop up later. Then, in the final moments, a well written scene involving Bruce's ability to incapacitate people is shown, then quickly revisited when an old flame of Batman's shows up, and Bruce himself says that he's "shot himself in the foot." Flanagan's artwork continues it's pattern of getting better with each issue, and the intensity of the moments is very well rendered, especially in the final pages.
WIDENING GYRE continues to get interesting with each passing issue, and since we're now moving into Act III of the story, I'm sure that the action will amp up as needed. While it hasn't been the most action-packed title, WIDENING GYRE is a unique title among the Bat-books because it's telling a story of Bruce Wayne that's both true to The Dark Knight and dripping with character. The plot is strong, the art continues to improve, and true to it's title, Batman risks being enveloped in a widening gyre of emotional confusion that's partially his own fault. I'm interested to see if he can escape it.
