3. The Arcs Thus Far; Part One - The Court Of The Owls
This, or in fact any articles related to the arcs would be difficult to discuss without spoiling the plot to some degree, however we can talk with the right level of precision and vagueness so as not to totally ruin anything. With so much riding on the first arc of the reboot and, as previously stated, following on from a predecessor of such magnitude one can hardly be surprised that Snyder's initial arc has met with the level of derision and criticism that it has. Many would agree that it was perhaps the final act that was the downfall, the let down, the point where the story jumped the shark. The final act also seems to lend weight to the argument that this arc is in essence a shoddy plagiarism of Morrison's R.I.P. That said the aim of this article is to convince you to read this arc so let's try and sell it a bit shall we? One of the characteristics of a protagonist, often a male investigator, in both the hard-boiled and noir genres is a certain degree of hubris, a false sense of pride and infallibility. This is definitely a quality that Snyder brings to the world's greatest detective. Coming after Grant Morrison's undefeatable Bat God many have chosen to interpret this Batman as dumb, and while there does first appear to be an incredibly stark contrast, such a sweeping statement is ultimately unfair. True we have a Batman who has endured Thogal, isolation chambers and military grade and street level narcotics, amongst other things, now losing it somewhat when trapped in an underground maze for several days. On first read this seems almost insulting, but we're forgetting this isn't Bat God, this is a somewhat self absorbed and all too self assured Batman. A Batman who despite all his prior adventures and assumptions comes to find that his city is not his own not even after the defeat of Simon Hurt. In a sense giving Batman a reality check is quite a logical step after Morrison's Bat God and a step Morrison works towards as he wraps up his run, albeit dressed in a drama of espionage, terrorism and super weapons worthy of James Bond. On the surface the similarities between the Court of the Owls and the Black Glove are there. However on closer examination they are quite different entities. Both are groups comprising the wealthy and the powerful, but the Court exists to protect it's somewhat corrupt interests on a local level, namely Gotham. The Black Glove operate on an international level, with no real interest beyond their jaded entertainment and wagers. So despite many reader's protest it is highly plausible to have the two co-exist, with perhaps the Court well aware of Dr. Hurt and the Black Glove but the latter in it's obsession or misguided affluence is blissfully unaware of the former. The final reveal of this arc however does seem a little too much, even for this writer. Many readers' critical of this arc saw the twist coming, this writer however didn't. But when rereading it does seem glaringly obvious and if this arc is to have one criticism and one weakness then this writer feels that this is it. Without spoiling things in the hope you will give it a passing chance the finale of the Owls arc seemed too heavy handed, too forced and ultimately too much like the reveal of a certain villain within Morrison's run. That said the story prior to this is still ultimately palatable and a refreshing introduction to a fresh way of telling Bat stories. Themes of misplaced certainty, claustrophobia, paranoia and mistrust would be carried over and put to good use in the next major arc of the series thus far...