4. The Big Finale And The Al-Ghuls
So we get to the big ending. Batman, buried alive, gets out because he's prepared for this scenario too. Bench-pressing his way out of a wooden casket with 600 pounds of loose soil on top? Hell, that's why he lifts weights! He fights the Black Glove and chases Hurt, sans mask, across the Gotham River (the preceding scene is when Hurt begins telling Bruce his lies about being Thomas Wayne), hanging from Hurt's helicopter and then... BOOM! Helicopter explosion. Is the title realised? One of the last images we see is of Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing, holding the cowl, setting up Act 2 of Morrison's Batman run where Dick and Damian will be the new Batman and Robin (this scene also makes the entire Battle for the Cowl storyline redundant). The next time we see Bruce is in Final Crisis where he again "dies", this time at the hands of Darkseid and his omega beams - to see the connecting story between Batman RIP and Final Crisis, check out Batman: Time and the Batman. Bruce will start Act 2 travelling forwards through time in The Return of Bruce Wayne. Before we get to the end end, I want to mention Damian and Talia, both of whom barely feature in this book but when they do are amazing. When Gordon goes to Wayne Manor, he's saved by Damian who destroys the Black Glove's traps and is also invited to join Talia and Damian as they investigate the whereabouts of Batman. Totally deadpan and looking towards the reader, Damian says "Mother. I want a Batmobile". Later as Joker is escaping, having made his speech to the Black Glove, he's driving an ambulance and is rammed off of the Gotham bridge into the river by Damian, driving the Batmobile, having saved Alfred who's sitting shotgun. Alfred: That was an ambulance, Master Damian. Damian: What was an ambulance? I love Damian's character because I know the kind of adventures he and Dick are going to get up to in later books, but I think his brief moments in this book are really funny and add an unexpected humour to this generally doom-laden atmosphere. Talia too has a great scene at the end as she deals with Jezebel Jet by sending her manbat ninjas - from Batman and Son - after her private plane to enact her retribution.