Review by Ian Keogh

It’s been a rare writer who’s revisited the 1950s idea of Batman equivalents in other nations, but Sholly Fisch jumps right in, realising they’re ideally suited to the all-ages Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries. He featured them in the crowded closer to Vol. 2, and is a little more selective in who appears in the opener here, perfectly illustrated by Dario Brizuela. The Turkish Batman is brilliantly used, and we’ll say no more.

It’s not the only occasion where more outrageous aspects of Batman’s past are revisited in this selection. It’s the ideal venue. A younger audience isn’t going to complain about stuff that’s not serious, and in the cartoon context of Batman becoming part of Scooby-Doo’s world Matthew Cody reviving the Batusi from Batman’s 1960s TV show makes perfect sense. If they’re familiar with obscure references, older readers can admire the audacity. Even when Batman’s foes appear it’s in a version allowing for them to be funny in a world where realism doesn’t matter. Ivan Cohen having Shaggy and Scooby chased by a killer tomato devised by Poison Ivy is beautifully realised by Brizuela.

Drawing half of the six episodes, Brizuela remains the star artistic turn, but newcomer Erich Owen is one hell of a talent. As seen on the sample art, his digital cartooning has greater detail than Brizuela, but on other pages the figures can be too posed. Scott Jeralds works more in the style of the 1960s Hanna Barbera cartoons, so technically more authentic than other artists as far as the Scooby-Doo cast are concerned, but his stiff Batman doesn’t fit as well. He’s good with exaggeration, though.

Several ghosts, villains bemoaning they’d have got away with it if not for those pesky kids, Shaggy and Scooby’s gluttony and Batman taking it all with a pinch of salt makes for another great set of adventures. It’s an all-ages title in the widest sense of the term, not just for children. More in Vol. 4.