Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artists: Jorge Jiménez & Belén Ortega
Colorists: Tomeu Morey & Luis Guerrero
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Cover Artists: Jorge Jimenez & Tomeu Morey; Guillem
March & Arif Prianto; Alex Garner; Inhyuk Lee; Ryan Sook; Jock
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $4.99
Release Date: September 6, 2022
Batman feels blessed to have fostered so many capable
sidekicks. They are more than fellow crimefighters. Bruce Wayne regards them as
his sons and daughters. When he needs them, they drop everything and leap to
his aid. But Bruce and his proteges cannot stop Failsafe. With the robot intent
on killing him, Batman seeks his former Batcave.
Failsafe feels familiar to him. Bruce believes he knows
why he does not remember the lethal Bat-robot. Who created Failsafe? And who is
the hero who emerges from Batman's old Batcave? Let's leap into Batman #127 and
see!
Story: Failsafe Part Three
When Tim Drake next sees Batman, his mentor wears a
different costume, and his voice has changed. Tim wonders if he can trust this
man. But as Batman reveals a secret control room, he explains that Bruce Wayne
created him as a backup personality. Zur-En-Arrh is in charge, and his first
job is to take down Failsafe.
Chip Zdarsky steps outside the chaos in the old Batcave
to revisit the scene of Failsafe's clash with Batman and his proteges. GCPD
Commissioner Renee Montoya confers with Nightwing as medical attendants treat
Duke, Cassandra, and Stephanie. But she cannot protect Batman and his team from
censure if Failsafe continues its reign of terror. Unfortunately, that is what
is occurring in Wayne Manor, as the robot pursues Zur-En-Arrh and Tim Drake
through Bruce Wayne's beloved home.
While Batman #127 is a fast-paced thriller, Zdarsky
ponders how people who work outside the law must self-check their actions. Like
in Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #1, Batman prepares for every contingency.
But as Failsafe tries to shut down Bruce Wayne, Batman realizes all this is his
fault. Superman challenged Bruce to ensure that he could prevent himself from
hurting others should he become someone he does not want to be.
Art: Failsafe Part Three
In a glimpse of the past, Jorge Jimenez shows Batman in
his Batcave. We see Batman from a distance, and from above, but mostly he keeps
his back to us. When Superman appears, he faces the camera and demands that
Bruce remove his mask. Bruce faces his friend. But he closes his eyes.
In his gold, red, and purple suit, Zur-En-Arrh shows
solidarity with Robin's gold, red, and green. And instead of gray,
Zur-En-Arrh's secret ops room shines with pink lighting. As the black
Terminator-like robot hunts them, Failsafe's head glows red and projects beams
of red into the darkness. Tomeu Morey adorns their battle with radiant colors,
enhancing the big-screen spectacle of Batman #127. But while Batman and Robin
fight for their lives, police tape and emergency vehicles surround the crater
in a Gotham intersection where Failsafe leapt into the air before crashing down
and flinging vehicles away.
Clayton Cowles places black uppercase dialogue in white
balloons. Zur-En-Arrh speaks white uppercase letters into bluish-purple
balloons. Failsafe's white utterances change size and case within their red
boxes, while Batman's white lowercase thoughts fill black paper scraps. Sound
effects accompany Failsafe as it demonstrates that it can be a more ruthless
Batman than Bruce Wayne or Zur-En-Arrh.
Story: Two Birds, One Throne Finale
While Chip Zdarsky began this series with a nightmare
of Jokers, the Penguin fuels the engine. In this short story, Catwoman
discovers the truth behind the Penguin's ruse. She has gone from being a
spectator to a reluctant participant. In the final issue, Catwoman goes beyond
her brief to learn why Oswald Cobblepot had to die.
This second story in Batman #127 ponders how our
environment and adversaries shape us. While seeking to be a force for good, the
way we go about solving problems can create conflicts. The short tale also
addresses the possibility of starting afresh. Yet it leaves the reader
wondering if someone can turn their life around, once they have blackened their
soul.
Art: Two Birds, One Throne Finale
Belén Ortega transports readers to Metropolis, where a
man purchases a muffin from a bakery. When he returns to Blossoms and looks
into his bag, a bat-like shadow appears on his counter. Catwoman enters the
brightly lit shop in a black cat suit and blazer. His reaction, colored
entirely in blue, evokes his previous place of business.
Luis Guerrero fills the shop with yellow light as
Catwoman confronts the man surrounded by brown wood, green plants, and colorful
blossoms. While his face glows pink as he makes a point, the man later plucks a
pink rose as he justifies his decision. Clayton Cowles fills this quiet
interlude with black uppercase letters in white balloons and shares Catwoman's
thoughts with white lowercase letters in black boxes. Thanks to DC Comics for
providing a review copy.
Now, let's take a look inside:
Final Thoughts
As someone who inhabits the night and attacks from the
shadows, Batman prepares for the day when others will lash out at him. Batman
#127 ponders how circumstances can force people into roles, making them wonder
if life will ever allow them to fulfill their dreams.
Rating 9.6/10
Batman Vol 1: Failsafe is available in hardcover, paperback, and digital formats.
