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Batman #600
Bridget Haines |
| Title: |
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The Scene of the Crime |
| Cover Date: |
April 2002 |
| Story: |
Ed Brubaker |
| Pencils: |
Scott McDaniel |
| Inks: |
Andy Owens |
| Colors and Separations: |
Gregory Wright / Wildstorm FX |
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Synopsis: (WARNING! SPOILERS!)
Part One of the "Bruce Wayne: Fugitive"
storyline picks up immediately
after the
events of Birds of Prey #40,
in which we
learned that Bruce Wayne had
escaped from
Law Enforcement officials. It
opens with
a pair of police officers camped
out in front
of Wayne Manor, given the job
of waiting
to see if the alleged murderer
returns to
the scene of the crime.
Inside a particularly grim Batman gazes out
at them from the window, before turning to
begin his trek towards the clock passage
to the cave, reminiscing on the failed aspects
of Bruce's Wayne's life along the way. From
an argument with Vesper (the timeframe of
which frighteningly appears to be the night
of the murder...as Bruce seems to be in the
same outfit...or could just be McDaniel drawing
it similarly) to one with Silver St. Cloud
that heralded the end of their relationship,
to a breakup with Selina Kyle due to bad
timing, Bruce's poor romantic track record
is viewed. Then at the staircase his inability
to show Dick much fatherly love is shown
as he was unable to say goodbye the day Grayson
left for college. Past the painting of his
parents he is immersed in the memory of Alfred
trying to comfort him as a child. Then down
the cave stairs the spectre of Jason Todd
argues with him about his freedom to make
decisions. Past the computer the ghostly
memory of Barbara appears telling him Jim
Gordon was retiring.
Finally a real voice comes from
the memories,
as the Bat is confronted by his
"family",
Oracle via computer, and Nightwing,
Robin,
and Batgirl in person. He rails
against Barbara
calling him Bruce in front of
Cassandra,
and Barbara retorts that she
already knows.
Batman asks if its an intervention
as he
packs up the Batmobile. Barbara
relates that
he left them all in the dark
about the escape
and asks him what his plans are.
He replies
that he is going back to work,
what he could
not do from a cell. She asks
him where Bruce
Wayne fits into it all, and he
responds "He
leaves..." and tells them
that for all
intents and purposes, to the
public Bruce
fled the country in a private
jet. Nightwing
asks him how Bruce proves he's
innocent.
Batman says he doesn't.
Dick reacts to that as one would
expect and
asks him if he's lost his mind.Batman
says
the conversation is over. Tim
grabs a hold
of his cape and declares that
the conversation
hasn't even begun and demands
that Batman
tell him he didn't kill Vesper.
Batman turns on them and asks if that is
what this is all about. .Dick responds no,
Barbara yes, and Tim maybe. Barbara voices
her doubts and that anyone would have to
doubt with the evidence at hand. Nightwing
denies any doubt in Bruce's innocence. Batman
stops to listen, allowing Barbara to say
her piece. She replays the video of him buying
the murder weapon, and Dick asks him why
he bought it. He responds that Dick wouldn't
understand. Dick asks him to try him. He
doesn't respond.
Oracle asks Bruce if he knew what story Vesper
was working on. He says she was trying to
find out who Batman was. Barbara drops the
bombshell that Vesper had already figured
it out and was going to broadcast it within
a week, from a reconstruction of her partially
erased notes. Batman claims that its not
true. Babs reads back passages of the notes,
and Bruce gets very grim.
Dick tells him he needs their
help, to talk
to them. Batman is silent a long
moment,
then tells them he's leaving,
and for all
of them to stay away from him
for the foreseeable
future. Dick begins swearing
at him to stop
and calling him a hippocryte,
hollering about
the rules only applying to them
and not to
him. He tells him he doesnt believe
he did
it, and that like Bruce made
him solve things
and face them when he was accused
of murder,
Bruce had to too. He asked him
how he could
just walk away from it. Batman
replies "Because
there IS no Bruce Wayne."
Dick, aghast,
asks him what he is saying. Bruce
declares
that Bruce was just a mask he
wore and it
had become a liability, so it
was over. Dick
protests. Batman declares Bruce
Wayne and
his troubles are no longer his
concern.
Nightwing asks where that leaves them. Batman
tells him they should do their jobs. Dick
asks what happens to Dick Grayson then, Bruce's
adopted son. Bruce goes silent, then says
he is leaving, and whatever is left of Bruce
is staying up in the house. Dick screams
for him to answer him. Batman says its over.
Dick decks him with a left cross. Batman
tells him he gets one for free, and that
he's now leaving. Dick slams him with an
uppercut amid Bab's protests. Dick declares
he won't let Bruce run away from his whole
life. Bruce declares he can't stop him.
An amazing battle ensues, Batman actively
avoiding an enraged Nightwing in an amazing
display of acrobatics through the cave.Tim
and Cassie follow to watch. Dick screams
for Bruce to acknowledge him. Batman lands
two monstrous punches on his once ward. He
says coldly for Dick to stop calling him
that. The fight continues with the offense
shifting back and forth. Dick screams for
him to stop evading, and Batman's tactics
become known as Dickis duped into slamming
his fist through the glass case of Jason
Todd's memorial. That ends the fight as Dick,
horrified, freezes up, and Batman gets to
the car and drives off. Babs asks if Dick
is ok, and Tim says that the fight was crazy,
but that he'd always thought if those two
came to blows, Batman would nail Dick. Dick
says solemnly "He did, Tim." and
stalks off bent and broken. Cassie mentions
that Batman never did answer the question...he
didn't say he did not kill Vesper. "but...he
didn't, yes?" Babs, crying with her
head in her hands, doesn't answer.
Batman drives through Gotham to another reserve
Batcave which Alfred has set up. He tells
himself that nothing matters anymore but
his mission, and that none of them, not even
Alfred, understand that Bruce Wayne was a
terrible weakness for him. He expresses he
has nothing but relief being rid of his mask.
He stops a carjacking and declares he feels
free.
Analysis:
Cover:  (4 of 5 cowls)
This is a pretty solid McDaniel cover, with
a looming creepy Batman, from the dark chest
area of which hundreds of bats stream. I
do have to knock a cowl off though for the
straight red of the colors, it hampers the
detail work and made it hard to spot in the
stands. Nice reflection of how consumed the
man has become by the Bat though.
Story: (5 of 5 cowls)
Ed...you are THE man. Wow, what a roller
coaster ride of a story. The revelation that
Vesper knew the truth about Batman...the
declaration that Bruce Wayne was gone forevermore,
the confrontation between Bruce and Dick...wow...just
wow. I couldn't put the issue down, and I
was wanting the rest of the 64 pages of the
special to be more of the story. I only hope
when you take over 'TEC you can do this caliber
of work and keep our Sasha a part of the
Bat's life. PLEEEEAAASSSE! Great delving
into the failures of Bruce Wayne and the
insecurities and still desperate need for
acknowledgement as Bruce's son by Dick.
Artwork: (5 of 5 cowls)
Scott, you're amazing. The fight scene was
incredible. The expressions, always McDaniel's
strong suit, were incredibly meaningul against
the backdrop of Brubaker's storyline. The
battle between Batman and Nightwing was incredibly
intense and like a combat ballet, it far
outdid the Batgirl/Shiva fight, and that
in and of itself is incredible. The brooding
dark of Batman was well envisioned, the deep
concerns and frustrations of the rest of
the Bat family was vivid. Thank you for not
overlooking Cassandra's grave injuries from
the Shiva fight either...some artists would
be prone to fudging that for their own ease.
Outstanding work on this issue.
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