COMIC REVIEW - Batman #666 (July 2007)

Batman in Bethlehem
Written by Grant Morrison
Art by Andy Kubert, Jesse Delperdang & Guy Major

I find it rather funny that several years ago, nothing particularly "evil" or "devil-themed" was conjured up for the 666th issues of Action Comics or Detective Comics, and yet here we are. Superman and Batman's long running series had recently reached the number of the beast and both involve the devil in some form or another. But while Superman #666 is mostly about him being a dick, Batman #666 gives way to a future storyline in which Batman's son, Damien, must take up the mantle of the Bat to face the Prince of Darkness... what?

So there's a real twist here that has the son of Batman facing off against the Anti-Christ Batman or something. Apparently, a deal was made between Bats Jr. and the devil that would prevent the Apocalypse from happening. What kind of deal was it? Well, the obvious kind, of course. There's the usual devil worshippings and satanic killings that are all the rage in this "devil-themed" stories. It's seems done to death before, but it's just a nice, slick story that it never gets boring or even remotely tedious. It's a pretty fast paced book.

And it's got nice art to compliment the book - not to say that it's breathtaking or anything like that, but the thing with Adam Kubert's stuff is that it's consistently smooth regardless of the project being worked on. It successfuly interprets and recreates that dark, moody atmosphere which depicts a city on the verge of Armageddon. I don't really have much to complain about here as far as the content goes, although I'm pretty sure some people will see this as a pointless cash in of an issue number similar to that of the Beast. But hey, I think it's a decent cash-in nonetheless.

In a time and day when comic companies rely on tiresome story-arcs and gimmicky crossovers to tell their story or lack thereof, the 666th iteration of Batman is an enthralling read for a one-shot story. The dialogue is good, the art is great, and there is never a dull moment. Perhaps most importantly, it says all it needs to say within the 20+ pages of a single issue and also offers a tease as to what happens next, leaving readers wanting more of this stuff. Definitely worth a look if you're a Batman fan or a fan of comics in general.

P.S. Waiting until All-Star Batman & Robin finishes up its eternally-long first story-arc before I give it a proper review.