Batman: Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1 Review
Writers: Matt Fraction & G Willow Wilson
Layouts: Giuseppe Camuncoli
Finishes: Cliff Rathburn
Colorist: Tomeu Morey
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Cover Artists: Giuseppe Camuncoli & Tomeu Morey
Variant Cover Artists: Dan Mora; Marcio Takara; Stjepan
Šejić; Matteo Scalera & Tomeu Morey
Editors: Jessica Berbey, Rob Levin & Arianna Turturro
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $5.99 US | Variant $6.99 US (Card Stock) | Variant
$8.99 US (Foil)
Release Date: October 28, 2026
When Poison Ivy unleashed the superbloom, heroes rose to
protect the city, while villains used the chaos for their own gain. Batquinn
may be consigned to the history books. Still, Harley Quinn puts off her reunion
with Pamela Isley to protect the inhabitants of Throatcutter Hill. With the
people he pledged to protect dying, Police Commissioner Vandal Savage makes an
all-out assault on his enemies. The staff in Gotham General strive to save
people injured and infected by the plants. And as she confronts the results of
her actions, Mayor Pamela Isley fights for her life.
Who will survive the superbloom, and who will die before the
sun rises? And how will the people of Gotham carry on after enduring one of the
worst nights ever? Let's leap into Batman: Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1, and see!
Story
Before she left the mayor’s office, Pamela Isley told Janet
from HR to flee. But Pamela often changes her mind. And Pamela protected and
forgave her when Janet faltered and aided her enemies. So, as dawn approaches,
Janet prepares to resume the next day’s routine as Mayor Isley’s assistant
overseeing People and Culture. But today, prehistoric plants rule the streets,
and not Poison Ivy's eco-terrorists or Vandal Savage's TUCOs. Blimps soar
overhead, dispersing a lethal pesticide designed to kill Janet's boss. In
Throatcutter Hill, Vandal Savage finds his enemy in Gotham's government. And
just as they did in GCPD Headquarters, his "Gravy SEALs" watch as a
physically stronger man attacks his opponent.
In Batman: Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1, Vandal Savage combats the
woman who proved a thorn in his side as Gotham City Police Commissioner. The
two combatants personify the larger battle between commerce and ethics in
Gotham's government, and Humanity's drive for progress versus the need for ecological
conservation. Yet while Savage answers to the TORUS, Pamela Isley answers to
the Parliament of Trees. And after Batman and Mr Freeze bring winter to Gotham,
the Parliament of Trees isn’t happy with Poison Ivy.
As the battle for dominance of Gotham devolves into a grudge
match, Batman emerges as the glue that keeps the city together. While he
reminds the combatants and the public of the importance of the rule of law,
Matt Fraction and G Willow Wilson showcase other characters who support
Batman’s efforts to safeguard Gotham. Unlike the TUCOs, they protect the public
by helping them make beneficial choices. They may pay for their selfless
service. But after the city's strong leaders bring chaos instead of order, they
rediscover the civic activism Miss Marjorie inspired Huston Gray to in Batman:
Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1.
Art
Giuseppe Camuncoli and Cliff Rathburn portray the chaos with
rectangular scenes and white backgrounds. Larger scenes also provide a blue
framework for inset panels. A double-page spread reveals the cryokinetic pulse
that Batman orchestrated with Mr Freeze's help. The scenes turn diagonal when
events threaten to spiral out of Batman's control. Some scenes threaten to
dominate a page. But Batman commands a splash page when he achieves victory.
While most of the Bat-family sit or stand, the Signal glows
yellow as he leaps above Gotham. Vandal Savage wears a yellow-green shirt while
his TUCOs dispense yellow-brown Ivycide. Green no longer links Poison Ivy with
the superbloom. Instead, it links her hostile takeover of the planet with a
friend. Red rises to the forefront when Vandal Savage uses his living TUCOs
like Mr Freeze used his dead workers. It also highlights that he and Poison Ivy
share one overriding emotion. Tomeu Morey gets to adorn a page with a loaded
palette when the Parliament of Trees appears. Yet Batman shines bright blue,
like the premature winter that frees Gotham from Ivy’s superbloom in Batman:
Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1.
Black-and-white boxes identify time and place as Gotham gasps
its final breaths. Black uppercase letters in white boxes convey the omniscient
narration, while colored boxes deliver off-camera dialogue. Colored balloons
highlight people intrinsically linked to the Earth, leaving hope that Poison
Ivy's loss is not complete. When the epic battle between Nature and Humanity
shrinks to a clash between two opponents, sound effects convey the two
combatants lashing out in anger. Then, as Gotham begins to breathe again, Clayton
Cowles places lowercase type into paper scraps amid a change of narrator.
Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this story with us.
Final Thoughts
While some leaders cherish the gift of public service,
others use power to crush anyone who would oppose them. Dr Annika Zeller has
used her Crown of Thorns to help criminals embrace a better approach to life.
Yet when corrupt leaders endanger the friends and city they love, reformed
villains nonetheless demonstrate how different they are from Gotham's greatest
protector in Batman: Bad Seeds—Sunrise #1.
Rating 9.7/10
To look inside, see Batman: Bad Seeds–Sunrise #1: Bad Seeds Week 10 Part 4 Preview.
For Batman's recent efforts to safeguard Gotham, see my Bad Seeds Event List.
For how Miss Marjorie inspired Huston Gray, see Batman #3 Review.
