Hello again readers, B@tgirl here. Sorry I missed Sunday; I’ll be honest, it was my husband’s birthday and I completely forgot. However I am updating today for two reasons: 1- I loathe to let you down and 2- I’m terrified that Kspaz will hit me in the face with a 2x4 should I miss a post. I hate splinters. So here we go; my review of (duh duh dunnnnn)

Batman: Terror

(Spoilers as usual, also foul language)

The beginning starts out thrilling enough as we watch “Batman” kill a man in his sleep and draw a bloody bat upon the wall. At this point I openly let out a “What the fuck?!” only to turn the page and find out that it was Dr. Strange. Maybe the whole dressing like the Bat thing has been done before, but this felt somehow original and far more terrifying and I was excited as to what would happen.

My main problem with the comic was Jonathan Crane, now don’t get me wrong, he is one of my favorite villains, but his character was a very weak one in this comic. His mind is completely broken in the Arkham cell when Dr. Strange tries to rehab him into evil again, all the while slowly stocking him up on straw, and while this is interesting, I as a Scarecrow fan am not buying it. One of the wonderful things (I use wonderful as a loose term here) about the best villains of the Batman universe is that they are secure in their Psychopathic ideals, they do not wane in their shared hatred of Batman, just as they do not ebb in their psychotic delusions of righteousness and self importance. This is one of the things I love most about the portrayal of the villains, the realistic way in which they are presented as pure psychos. So you can see why I am upset with the fact that they depicted the Scarecrow as a simpering school girl ready to follow the orders of Dr. Strange. But back to the story…

Scarecrow breaks out with Dr. Strange’s help and we get a glimpse of what made Jonathan Crane become the Scarecrow, and while not my favorite, it serves it purpose. Strange inhabits the house of the stranger he killed all the while Scarecrow is biding his time by placing traps around the house.

Meanwhile we find that Dr. Strange has not only broken into Wayne Manor, but has tied Alfred to a chair and left a message for Batman in the dummy or Strange’s likeness. A little bit hard to believe since we have seen Alfred kick ass many times, even in the early days of Batman, but whatever.

Later in the house we find that Scarecrow has not only attacked Strange in his sleep, he has drugged him, given chase and lead him to his doom as Strange is impaled upon a weathervane, left to die a slow painful death. Now that’s the Scarecrow I know and love! So Scarecrow takes the house and Strange is out of the picture, which is just as well because at this point in the story it is getting a bit confusing and hard to keep up with.

It is halfway through the comic and as the reader; I’m not entirely sure where this comic is going to end up, since Strange is dead. So you can imagine my wonder when Scarecrow captures Catwoman and blackmails her with photos of her demasking all to get her to bring him Batman. I personally don’t think he would have had to go through all of that trouble had he simply played his cards right, but whatever. So Catwoman leads him into an alley way as Scarecrow beheads a man, who is hung upside-down and dosed with fear toxin, with a scythe. Have I mentioned how much I love Scarecrow? Anyway, plot ensues as Catwoman and Batman temporarily team up to bring down Scarecrow, in a few days time. Meanwhile we get the rare treat of seeing Bruce visit his parent’s graves, looking just a little too eighties for my comfort, especially seeing as this was written in 2001. But enough complaining. We cut to the storyline of Scarecrow torturing two victims, victims who turn out to be some of the bullies we saw in his flashback earlier in the comic. I can’t say that I saw this coming because I was hoping for something a bit more left field, as this rest of the comic has proven to be. From here on out the comic becomes a slope of sheer predictability. Batman and Catwoman arrive; Batman tries to save the bullies while accidently falling into the pit where Strange is, dragging Scarecrow along with him and the prisoners, Catwoman is off burning the photos of her face. A little bending of the rules of Physics and Batman and everyone else escape in an explosion, along with a strangely alive…Strange. Unfortunately he was washed away into the lake surrounding the house so, yet again, no one is sure if he is alive or dead. Sigh. The comic ends with a predicable dialogue, filled with sexual tension of course, between our main character and Catwoman, and one last witty remark.

Overall the Comic wasn’t bad. I’ve read worse, but I have also read better. I was really taken in by the complex, yet sometimes confusing, plot of the first half but unfortunately the second half did not live up to the expectations and hopes that the first half had readied me for. Batman: Terror gets about a 3/5.