Review by Frank Plowright

The title of this volume suggests something other than a regular story of Batman in Gotham, and indeed that’s what’s provided. It’s Batman recovering from the end of Failsafe, and in Gotham, just not the Gotham he’s familiar with. A literally skeletal James Gordon still with a moustache is a surprise, and this is a world without a Bruce Wayne. Is this why Gotham is a greater hellhole than usual?

Batman is Batman with or without a costume, and rather than immediately attempting to find a way home he decides to put the Gotham he’s arrived in right, for which he will need a costume…

One great advantage he has is knowing who people are while they don’t know him, although some of them do. Chip Zdarsky feeds in a hell of a lot of Gotham regulars, transforming them into fascinating and terrifying people, the way they’d be if there was no control. It’s not just the classic crew featured, though, as Zdarsky also uses more recent additions to Batman’s cast.

The Bat-Man of Gotham begins weirdly, settles into a form of normality and then becomes ever stranger as it winds towards a form of conclusion. There’s a comforting normality to Mike Hawthorne’s art going a long way to disguising the uncertainty, but that’s only some of the story. The remaining artists are those taking us on a tour of what is, what was and what might be with some knowing nods to the great Batman artists of the past. It also encompasses screen versions of Batman, Zdarsky combining with Mikel Janín for a classic Adam West homage.

Unlike other writers, Zdarksy doesn’t feel Batman works in isolation. Both here and in Failsafe he makes use of the broader DC universe, and there’s a point to be made about the multiverse. Some might feel overuse of the concept from superhero publishers over the last few years has almost wrung the joy from multiversal alternatives. Zdarsky proves it’s not the case. It just requires a more imaginative writer these days.

Multiple alternate covers from the serialised issues are included, as are the back-up strips from those issues, also written by Zdarsky. ‘The Toy Box’ features Robin (Tim Drake), and chapters are sifted between those starring Batman as the two eventually converge. Whereas Dick Grayson is cheerily confident Batman will return, Tim believes the events of Failsafe don’t guarantee that. It’s here that Zdarsky reveals how Batman was transported elsewhere in what’s a surprisingly disturbing encounter with Superman villain Toyman in which Miguel Mendonça manages to make a villain who resembles Benjamin Franklin threatening. It’s stretched a little too far, but defines who Robin is.

‘The Plans Below’ is a dip back into the past enlightening about the creation of Failsafe. Jorge Corona adopts a grittier style for a grittier Batman, but it’s filler. Onward to The Joker: Year One.