Okay okay okay. I need to start this review by talking about the first page of this issue because if I don’t get it out right now I’m going to spend the whole review gushing about this joke.
Vinnie Letterio. The Fontz.
VINNIE.
LETTERIO.
THE FONTZ.
The setup. The execution. It’s perfect. It’s literally perfect. I could end the review right here and give this thing a 20/10.
Okay now but for serious:
Times New Roman Sionis
Ra’s al Ghul has been kidnapped by Bane, and Talia needs the help of an expert detective to find him. Who better than Velma? With the help of Batman and guest star Huntress, its up to the brains of Mystery Inc. to track down the League of Assassins’ captured leader.
I don’t know how much I actually need to say here. This book is still charming. Ivan Cohen is an absolute master of this style, and the jokes hit harder than usual here. Maybe it’s the fact that the story deals with a kid-friendly version of the League of Assassins, so things like Talia and Batman having “dated” in the past and Ra’s having “attacked Batman several times” jump out for people who’ve read some of those times, but they gave me a good laugh. The actual intentional jokes are great too, like this gem:
I love it. It’s so goofy and charming. Every time I pick this book up, I fall in love with it all over again. The characters are well written and well drawn, this issue by Randy Elliot, and the colors by Carrie Strachan make this whole book feel fun and whimsical (and major props to Strachan for not coloring Talia like a white woman!! We love to see it). All of this culminates in an absolutely wonderful book that I would recommend to both kids and adults alike.
Helvetica Bertinelli
If I had to pick a complaint about this book, it would be that Huntress isn’t used well. She’s just kind of… here? The last issue had the guest stars of Nightwing and Batgirl, and they got a substantial amount of screen time and interaction with the gang, but Huntress is mostly in the background for this one. If she’s not standing around in the back, she’s off doing cool things off screen. I get that this is Velma’s story, but this could have just been a Velma issue, saving Huntress for later. It just feels like a waste of a guest star. Not book ruining by any means (if you couldn’t tell already, I loved this issue), but it is something that bothered me.
Recommended if…
- You have a young reader in your life.
- Scooby-Doo and Batman. Need I say more?
- Genuinely fun comics are your thing.
Overall
This issue is great. It’s my favorite one yet. The whole maxi has been wonderfully charming and family friendly, with continual things for longtime fans to pick up on. I love this series, and even though we’re not halfway done yet, I’m already going to miss this book.
Score: 8/10
Disclaimer: DC Comics provided Batman News with an advance copy of this comic for the purpose of this review.
