Right out of the gate, the current run of DC’s Outsiders by Peter J. Tomasi (
NIGHTWING) established itself as being a significant improvement from the previous
BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS run. Going from a series which suffered greatly from numerous changes in both creative teams and character line ups and one that spent most of its time trying to figure out how it played into the goings on of the Batman universe, to becoming a series which now accepts its role and is having a tonne of fun with it, Peter Tomasi has made me
love The Outsiders (not like at gun point or anything, I just really like what he’s doing is all I’m saying). In the initial special (
BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS cover date March 2009) a recorded message from a hologram Batman following his “death/disappearance” to Alfred indicated to me that Mr Tomasi “got” these characters and their world in a way that rung true, not only to the characters themselves, but with my personal preference for them:
BATMAN: “You’ve been my rock Alfred – through it all – through everything. And I just…and I just want you to know that I…appreciate all you have done for me – all you have sacrificed over the years. I always thought you were like a father to me. But I was wrong...You’re not like a father…you are my father Alfred. And the fact that I’ve been lucky enough to have had two amazing ones in this life of mine…well, it only makes it harder to say…Goodbye Dad.
Alfred sheds a tear.
Batman: “Ok. Onto new business and priority one…”
Now for me that one exchange sums up their relationship perfectly, and I admit to going a little geek when I first read it. Alfred had raised Bruce since he was 12 or so, so of course Alfred is his father. I had always thought of it as; Thomas Wayne was the father of the boy, and Alfred was the father of the man, and to see Mr Tomasi depict their relationship in this way made me look forward to his run even more than I had already been after following his fantastic work on “Nightwing”.
So, after the establishment of the new Outsiders team in the special, which consists of Geo-Force, Black Lightning, Katana, Halo, Metamorpho, Creeper, Owlman (aka place holder for Batman when Bruce returns, think Zauriel for Hawkman during Morrison’s JLA except Mr Tomasi may actually get to include the intended character) and being led by Alfred, Mr Tomasi took the team into his first story arc entitled “The Deep”. Now, for the official reviews of the first five issues of the arc, as well as for the review of the special itself, head on over to the Batman-In-Comics archives and check out Paul’s reviews. My general opinion of this run has lined up with Paul’s for the most part, in that it has been very good and a very enjoyable read. The penultimate issue of this arc (#19) did suffer from a change in artist, from Lee Garbett on the previous issues to Fernando Pasarin and Jeremy Haun on issue 19. Although, I feel as the events of that issue were of threat and action, the more realistic imagery by Mr Passarin and Mr Haun gave the issue an overall heightened sense of danger due to the characters pain and stress feeling all the more real, suiting the issue perfectly. However, it will make for an awkward read in collected form due to jumping from one artist to another. Overall this arc has been great so far and will no doubt be given the trade treatment in the future.
With the return of Mr Garbett to pencil duty we are finally brought to the point of this review, which is the final issue and conclusion of “The Deep” in THE OUTSIDERS” # 20. Oh, and spoilers ahead.
The main development of this issue was the team up of Vandal Savage and Ra’s al Ghul. The threat and presence of the Insiders has spread beyond that of the simple Heroes vs Villains dynamic to warrant the involvement of the other DCU “immortals”, albeit with far less altruistic motives than those of the heroes regardless of what they may say. With the Insiders having not only the Outsiders cracking down on them, but also Savage, Ra’s and the League of Assassins tyring to stop them, it is no surprise that their ultimate mission is far from a success.
As stated prior, I didn’t have much of an issue with Mr Pasarin and Mr Haun’s art in issue #19, but the return of Mr Garbett was very welcomed. As he had done in the initial issues of this arc, he brings appropriate levity to the scenarios which works marvellously for the characters Metamorpho and Creeper as well as for the overall feel of the book, but he is also able to bring out the intensity of Geo Force and the calmly collected sinisterness of Ra’s and Savage which aids in establishing the threat and what’s at stake with this conflict.
The majority of this issue is comprised of the final battle, but the highlight for myself was The Creeper living up to his name by holding the fort of “The Haven” in a manner reminiscent of the Alien films (when read in conjunction with the ending of issue #19). That is of course before he fulfils his role as the “wild card” of the team and crashes the space craft right into the middle of the ensuing battle resulting in a rather open ended conclusion -- which brings me to my mixed feelings about the ending of “The Deep”.
Overall Outsiders #20 is a great read. Very enjoyable and I love seeing the Outsiders as a formidable team again in the DCU featuring engaging team dynamics (Geo and Lightning have some great moments). Also, Mr Tomasi gave each and every character at least one moment, if not more, throughout the story to shine in their own unique way leaving no character left feeling like a third wheel to the team. However, the conclusion of “The Deep” left almost nothing resolved. The Insiders were stopped for the moment, but we find out that while their plan was to achieve total immortality they still have a couple hundred more years left to go before their current existences run out stating they will return to complete their mission, Ra’s and Savage escape vowing revenge on the Insiders, and the Outsiders and left basically twiddling their thumbs while trying to make it feel like it was a victory with the final page’s; “Our last tour of duty is over!” moment. Upon finishing this issue I was left with a lack of satisfaction for the final conclusion, despite it being a very enjoyable ride.
I am optimistic however, that the numerous dangling threads that are left at the end of this arc are designed for Mr Tomasi to address later on in his own long form story, in which case this situation is not only fine by me but also very exciting. With Mr Tomasi playing wingman to Geoff Johns over in the Green Lantern corner of the DCU at the moment he is definitely in a perfect position to be learning from the best when it comes to long-form stories. I also would have no issue with seeing the Insiders return as the arch nemeses of the Outsiders, as their purely selfish motives make them very easy to hate, while their connection to the history of the DCU leaves a lot of potential for character depth and exploration. Hopefully “The Deep” will be looked back upon as an establishing arc of many story beats that will unfold in an Outsiders epic.
Mr Tomasi, sir. Please don’t leave us hanging.
But whatever he has planned for the Insiders in the future, there is no mention of it in the solicitations available at time of this writing. For the foreseeable future The Outsiders appear to being drawn into main goings on of the Batman world, venturing off to round up the escaped Arkham inmates. Now, unlike most of my fellow BOF contributors, I have no issue with the current state of the Batman world, in fact I have been loving nearly everything that has been going on since the conclusion of BATTLE FOR THE COWL a couple months back -- Dick Grayson Batman and all. So as long as Mr Tomasi is able to maintain the high standard we saw in this initial arc as he ventures into the more shared universe that is the “Batman Reborn” world, I have very high hopes for the future of this title.
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS: "Against their will, The Outsiders help The Insiders find the last pieces of the meteorite which will restore the immortality of the Insiders once and for all. But a fateful choice has to be made by Geo-Force that will lead to a life-changing moment for him and Katana. Plus, more on the mysterious origins of Metamorpho and his connection to The Insiders."
