Following on from the last five issues of BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS, I wasn't too keen in getting a hold of the next issue. Much to my surprise, I actually quite enjoyed issue #6. After #5 left things set-up for an unholy space related mess, I was fairly impressed at a number of the choices that were made to progress this story.

First of all, Batman was in the background for the entire duration of this installment -- advising the Outsiders on how to proceed, keeping a modicum of mystery by restraining how the character interacts with the Outsiders. Secondly, Green Arrow was put in that central role, leading the Outsiders to China in an effort to hijack a rocket to aid Metamorpho in space.

It is immediately clear that this arrangement manages to finally achieve some cohesion within the world of the Outsiders. This issue also feels less obsessed with throwing everything in the blender, hoping the ingredients will mix together somehow. Fairly ironic perhaps, considering the setting and storyline but I can confidently say that this is the first time that I have actually stopped thinking about this series' problems with identity.

Perhaps I'm being controversial but I hope that they continue to keep Batman in the background while continuing to push Green Arrow to the forefront. Batman can definitely have a group such as this but it has to be done right with respect to where everyone fits in the grand scheme of things. Batman works great in a group environment as a manipulator; someone who doesn't have to fight because he's that much ahead of the crowd. As was apparent in how Nolan treated Batman in BATMAN BEGINS, why try a jumping roundhouse when an elbow to the throat will suffice? Less is better. Restraint works as seen from this particular outing for the Outsiders. I am somewhat surprised how quickly things fall into place when every character's natural boundaries are respected by the writers. Thoughts occur now that perhaps they could push the rest of the characters into increasingly extreme situations if Batman doesn't have to be personally involved.

My preferences still lead me to believe however that the settings and locations could certainly be more concerned with small details and nuances instead of inevitably ending up at non-descript factories near missile silos. Come on guys, just give me a few Gotham back-streets and a murder mystery that doesn't involve flying into space to save the world! My only other gripe about this issue is the reference to the International Space Station by Metamorpho in reference to how large the space installation is. Now, don't get me wrong I get the intention -- to provide real world context to an unreal situation. All it did though was make you think on how ridiculous the situation really was. How can we be expected to believe that a space installation, even of that size, would be considered an unrealistic development when you have like 30 super heroes, outside of the obvious, flying and morphing around the world?

There is potential here for BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS to become a really fun and light comic book, in the best possible sense of that word Not everything has to contain extreme violence and extremely depressing situations and the Outsiders has a nice playful sense of humour. If they can manage to juggle the fantastical and the restrained in a similarly encouraging fashion then this could become a really great way to engage those childlike comic book impulses. If you are having a hard time with the series, then I would recommend giving this a chance.

Small steps perhaps, but they are progressive ones.