The cat’s been out of the bag long enough now that I think I can talk about the last page of
FLASHPOINT #1: In this altered world, instead of he and his wife being murdered by a street mugger one fateful night, it was instead Martha and Bruce Wayne that were killedby Joe Chill. Because of this, in the world of
FLASHPOINT, Dr. Thomas Wayne has become a very brutal Dark Knight of Vengeance. That’s the only information you need to know going into this.
Ready? Okay, good….
Writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso (who both created the critically acclaimed series 100 BULLETS for DC’s Vertigo imprint, as well as crafting the BATMAN: BROKEN CITY story) make a rare incursion into the world of event comics and crossovers to bring us a short, three-issue mini-series entitled FLASHPOINT: BATMAN – KNIGHT OF VENGEANCE.
Paralleling the main FLASHPOINT story, where our familiar Barry Allen has awoken powerless in this cracked mirror of the regular DC Universe, KNIGHT OF VENGEANCE gives us some needed exposition on what this Thomas Wayne is like. At first glance, this is a callous, brutal, angry old man with very little patience -- and even less compassion.
The characterization and even the visual of a grey-haired, scar-faced scowler can’t help but make me think of Bruce’s look in THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS. This Thomas can’t even stop his growling from escaping his body when he’s frustrated, and that’s when he’s not even in costume.
This issue begins during a psychiatric evaluation, where Dr. Wayne is being evaluated for insurance purposes. He quickly makes the attending psychiatrist realize that he’s “pissed off” at the very prospect of having to do this, and makes the young shrink realize that it’s better to certify him insurable than listen to this brutal old man’s coldness and distaste for her and her job. (Chances are things would’ve gone badly for her if she had managed to crack any of Dr. Wayne’s layers.)
We then get a hint at the type of people that Dr. Wayne surrounds himself with: Oswald Cobblepott -- apparently running the Wayne Casino that criminals frequent, funding their own nightmare in Batman -- and Jim Gordon, still apparently a good man and confidant to Thomas.
In the climax of the issue -- in addition to getting the slightest hint of what the FLASHPOINT Joker may hold for the future -- we get to see exactly how Thomas Wayne works as Batman. When in a sticky situation, expect a very visceral, straightforward, non-creative, and potentially lethal solution to Thomas’ predicament -- in addition to a great representation of his seething rage.
Risso’s artwork is very strong here. While he is slightly stylized, his technique doesn’t call attention to itself, and he’s very good at showing you exactly what kind of grime this Gotham City has. There are moments that look like they could be interchanged with panels from DARK KNIGHT RETURNS as it definitely seems to be an influence on this version of Gotham, but in a lot of ways this Gotham, and this Batman, are more brutal than even that dark interpretation.
All in all, this has been my favorite of the slew of tie-ins released so far for FLASHPOINT, and it’ll be interesting to see where things go next. If you’re wary of the event but interested in a different take on The Dark Knight, this book may be exactly what you’re looking for. Highly recommended.
