Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (The New 52)

In every comic characters catalog, they have at least one event that either changes the characters image in a defining factor or is just so well done the whole world is taking notice of it while it's happening. For someone like Batman, he's had his share of both of those qualities numerous times in his lifetime. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Year One, Batman: A Death in the Family, and Batman: The Long Halloween or Batman: Knightfall saga, are just a few examples of such stories that come to mind. We might be adding another story to that list in the future. Ever since writer Scott Snyder has come on into the comic scene as a relative little known until his run on The Black Mirror, the man has become synonymous with Batman. BUT...his run was with Dick Grayson as Batman. Not Bruce Wayne. With the DC New 52, Snyder has become a hot community now and has been given the chance to tackle Bruce Wayne as Batman for the first time ever. And let's just say, it's one hell of an introduction. I'll try to keep it spoiler free.BATMAN VOL.1: THE COURT OF OWLS collects issues #1-7 and finds Bruce Wayne back in Gotham, as well as returning to the title of Batman *(everything before the New 52 reboot carry over in Batman. But don't worry, you don't need to have read any of that to understand or enjoy it this book. So new readers should have no problem coming in to this story, even with this little plot detail.)* Batman and Bruce Wayne are on an all-time high: Batman is completely self assured of his position since returning (he just about effortlessly defeats most of his rouges gallery within a jailbreak at Arkham asylum) and Bruce Wayne is looking into the future. Gone is Wayne being haunted by the past and loneliness, now replaced with a positive attitude and outlook into rebuilding a bright shining future for Gotham. Added to his cause, a new candidate for mayor that believes in Bruce's cause as well. But things start happening weirdly in Gotham when the appearance of a deadly assassin by the name The Talon shows up and demonstrates incredible skills that almost rival Batman. The Talon also mentions the court of owls, an urban legend/bedtime story that starts creeping its head into the larger influence on Gotham that Batman ever though possible.The Court of Owls Vol.1 is something of a precursor to a summer blockbuster and the famous Knightfall saga. The main villain is new and shows it's every bit as up to the level of Batman himself, the side effects of working alone, and yes folks...Batman almost physically and mentally gets pushed to the limit (the sold-out issue #5 is something you will truly be stunned by in this regard). All the while bits and pieces Snyder has built up on since Gates of Gotham (and even The Black Mirror) about Gotham's legacy finally come to ahead with the threat of The Talon, combined with the Court of Owls themselves, is something of such dread and scope we haven't feel for since Knightfall and No Man's Land. This is truly epic in perception and depth in Batman that might find its place in the Bat mythos years to come (if Vol.2 ends up just as well as Vol.1, for example).If your one who's become a fan of Snyder's work in Batman, such as Scott Snyder's other Bat-book Pre-52 was the Black Mirror, which was a dark, horror-like take with Dick Grayson as Batman...Snyder's take on Bruce Wayne is more suspenseful, action-packed sort of history lesson on Gotham. This makes Court of Owls a very different beast then Black Mirror. So if your one who loved BM, you might quite not be into CoO's as much (though I doubt it. Snyder's work is still solid). And if you're a new reader, this will be a great jumping on point (the other Snyder Bat-book is Gates of Gotham which isn't necessary, but still an interesting read).Greg Cappullo's art work flourishes here that is a mix of sketchy and precision at the same time. I've seen his work from years of doing Spawn, but it never awed me in anyway. I like his art; I just never was blown away from him. His current work for Batman has changed my mind. His artistry holds up just fine without seeming scary or too simple. His highest compliment for his art narrative, combined with Snyder's script comes to ahead in issue #5 for example (again, issue #5 is an exceptional issue).If there's any faults I can think of, there minor and personal on my behalf. I feel Batman is a tinny-bit too arrogant then I think he would be or I can remember in most Batman books. Also his attitude toward much of the Bat-family feels disconnected for no reason at all, considering Batman's attitude toward his fellow Bat-crime fighters has been reasonably tight ever since Jason Todd's death (his rebirth doesn't change this notion). The other thing is Batman is considered the worlds greatest detective, yet --*SPOILER*-- He disregards the Court of Owls existence. Even worse, after being attacked by The Talon and finding evidence of The Court itself...he still denies them.--*SPOLIER END*--. It just doesn't sit right with me on that information, but Snyder backs up these problems I have as well. Batman's arrogance stems from single-handedly taking out his entire Rouges gallery, so this does seem possible.*SPOILER* And my qualms with Bat's denial of The Court are told by Snyder by through a flashback explaining his reasons for denying the Court*SPOILER END*. So my problems are counteracted by Snyder's explanations (and even furthered when Vol.2 comes out), added with so many of the positives that I still keep my score at a perfect 5.BATMAN VOL.1: THE COURT OF OWLS is an event that is fresh, exciting, epic, mysterious, and just plain fun. Heck, I bought the single issues upon release and bought this collected book because I enjoyed it so much. Old Batman readers will easily enjoy this (considering most fans accepted Snyder from his work on The Black Mirror) and new readers will have a blast coming into a new legacy of the Batman-lore. Hopefully, just hopefully the entire arc that finishes off in Vol.2 known as the "Night of the Owls" will be as powerful as Vol.1. Either way, this is a great book that I highly recommend.

This collection contains Batman issue 1-7, the first chapter of the main Batman title of DC comics relaunch of September 2011.Bruce Wayne is very confident in his abilities as the Batman to contain crime in Gotham City. Bruce Wayne is confident in his ability as a billionaire philanthropist to make his beloved city a better place to live. Bruce Wayne knows Gotham City. Or at least he thought did...As Batman, he is plagued by some unusual events, a random breakout at Arkham Asylum, a grisly murder of a John Doe, all the while an old urban legend of a group of powerful people pulling Gotham's strings keeps popping up. They are known as The Court of Owls and Bruce refuses to believe they exist. Bruce will be forced to change his mind when the Court calls for him to kneel before them.Scott Snyder is really dominating the graphic story medium with everything he does. And of course, credit the artists he works with as well. His American Vampire series gets better and better with each trade. His first journey into Batman, during his run on Detective Comics right before the relaunch in Batman: The Black Mirror, is one of the most pulse pounding adventures I've ever read. He also did such a great job on characterization with Batman (at that time Dick Grayson) and James Gordon by making them drive the story in a tense unforgiving narrative. I cannot wait to read the first trade of his highly acclaimed run on Swampthing.Ok, back to this story. Snyder, again, weaves an incredible tale that really challenges Batman (back to Bruce Wayne) and keeps the reader twisting, turning, and craving more. Snyder is also great at adding to the Batman mythos. There are some big shockers here but it does not detract from previous stories or the legend we know, again, it adds another jaw-dropping layer. Another trait Snyder does so well that I have only really seen Grant Morrison pull off so well during his run, is to be able to balance the man and the dark knight. We get a nice dose of scenes with Bruce Wayne being Bruce Wayne and doing what he needs and wants to do as that persona. It's not all a guy in a really cool military costume with a bat-theme for an entire issue. We get both worlds and Snyder manages to mix both as crucial parts of the unfolding story as a nice payoff.Now to give credit to the fine art of Greg Capullo. This man can really draw a deep psychological Batman story. He manages to set great tones and mood for however the story is going. A Wayne fundraiser is a joyous event with beautiful people and clean surroundings. Arkham Asylum is a slime ridden hellhole crawling with the worst the world has to offer. The agony and torment Batman goes through in issues 5 and 6 is some of the best art I've ever seen in a comic book. It cannot be described other than unnerving.This is an incredible Batman story, making it a great time to be a Batman fan. Bring on the Night of the Owls!!!