Its an inspired move on DCs part - the Adam West Batman is so beloved by so many, so why not adapt it to comics and make it a series? Well, thats exactly what theyve done with Batman 66 #1, the first comic that launches DCs digital initiative DC2. DC2 utilises the kind of guided view technology readers familiar with Marvels Infinite Comics (used recently to promote their new Guardians of the Galaxy series) and Mark Waids Thrillbent Comics, where speech bubbles appear as you tap the screen forward and characters move within the panels as if animated. Writer Jeff Parker and artist Jonathan Case use the format perfectly, throwing in the classic BIFFS! and POWS! at the right moments as well as saturating colours in panels to emphasise the action. Batman 66 kicks off with Chief OHara being honoured with a Lady Gotham trophy, a ceremony attended by millionaire Bruce Wayne and his youthful ward, Dick Grayson. But trouble announces itself as a low flying biplane reveals the Riddler up to his old tricks, stealing valuable art works and gassing innocent people - who can save them? (Imagine the spinning Batman cut sequence with sound effects - really the only thing missing from this comic to make it perfect!) Enter Batman and Robin! Jonathan Case nails the look of the series brilliantly - hes not just inspired by the original series, its like hes drawing a lost episode and were getting to see it for the first time. Adam West, Burt Ward, Frank Gorshin are all in this comic as they looked back in 1966 - and the Batmobile? Oh, little chum! Also, noticeably different from most Batman stories, the action in this comic takes place during the day, in keeping with the way 60s Batman was shot. That said, the comic doesnt feel like the 1960s - it has a weirdly timeless quality to it, though it feels vaguely old-timey. It felt weird reading this straight after Grant Morrisons Batman Incorporated #12 because you couldnt get a more diametrically opposed comic tonally to that than Batman 66 #1. Whereas in Batman Incorporated #12 you literally get decapitations and a snarling, ferocious Batman breaking bones and bloodying up his enemies, in Batman 66 #1 you get a far gentler Caped Crusader (calling him the Dark Knight here just seems wrong) who barely does any fighting and tends to let Robin fire the batarangs. That Batman in this comic is charming and quaint in a delightful way that you never see in Batman comics these days. Though Batmans actions in this - standing atop the biplane after climbing onto it using a line from the Batmobile - are far more dramatic than anything Adam West got up to back in the day, theyre still lo-fi compared to the kind of stunts Batman gets up to in the 21st century. I will say this about reading Batman 66 #1 on my iPad - it crashed on me twice! That meant going back into the Comixology app to try again - and then have to do it again after it crashed AGAIN. This is the argument against digital comics right here - print copies dont crash on you. As well put together as this comic was in terms of the guided view, and I really enjoyed the way the pieces came together to tell this story in a really interesting, innovative way, reading a comic and being interrupted because the tech got in the way is really annoying. I read both print and digital comics and I was really glad that the other comics I bought today are print comics.
Jeff Parker gets the dialogue completely right especially with Batman and Robins relationship, and the Riddler is as camp as ever. The pacing of the story also feels like the same kind of structure that the original series episodes had. In short, if youre a fan of Adam West Batman, this is a comic you will adore unconditionally and read over and over again. Even if youre not that fan, this is still a great Batman comic to read as its just a fun story. So far no Batusi, but this is only part 1 of The Riddlers Ruse - part 2 is out next week! Same bat time, same bat channel!
Batman 66 #1 by Jeff Parker and Jonathan Case is out now digitally on the Comixology and DC Comics apps