Scott Snyder is easily one of my favorite writers right now. His work on American Vampire proved that he had the ability to breathe life into a genre, which was quickly growing stale, and his work on Swamp Thing showed that he could take a series influenced by one of the greats and make it his own. What is really surprising is that these series are coming from a relatively new writer. It might give one pause that he was being handed such a pivotal character from DC, but rest assured that Snyder proved he was more than up to the challenge. Combine that writing skill with the formidable artistic talents of Greg Capullo and you get a line which I will be happy to read for as long as this team is at the helm.
[Caution: Contains Some Spoilers]
Now onto The Court of Owls. Out of the multitude of different Batman-characters, this is my favorite type. It seems that so often writers forget that Batman is a relatively normal guy (aside from the billions of dollars and top of the line martial arts training) whose real ability lies in uncovering obscure clues and using his intellect to decipher their meaning. This is where Snyder hits gold as he takes Batman right to what he’s best suited for: uncovering a mystery which spans so far back into the history of Gotham that it is seen merely as a nursery rhyme used to scare children. While no one should really be surprised that the organization known as the Court of Owls is not just a myth, the real mystery lies in their plans for Gotham.
Now, I know what you’re thinking because I was thinking the same thing: owls, who cares what they’re up to?
Granted, owls are not exactly the most intimidating figurehead for a malevolent secret society, but the guy to the right might have something to say about that society’s ability to inflict pain and unleash terror. And the “family” photo pictured below proves they have got creepy in spades.
Snyder, with some help from Capullo, definitely changed my views on owls as far as symbolic figures for evil cults go. Without giving too much away, the Court of Owls gives the detective a mystery to unravel and a thorough butt-kicking to go along with it. Not a bad beginning for Batman’s re-launch and certainly worth the read.
Title’s importance to the New 52:
Night of the Owls. The story line started here is one of the more widespread threads from the early releases of the New 52 lines. The Court of Owls pops up in most of the other Batman-related titles even if they are only small threads at times and gives the DC universe a new character, Talon, with his own line. You are going to be missing a lot if you are not up on Snyder’s Batman. Aside from that, you will be missing some of the best writing that is going on in comics right now.
Rating: 5/5
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