After the disastrous book that was Superman Earth One (my review), I was reluctant to read Batman Earth One, but then I read some very positive reviews. And Geoff Johns does a much better job with Batman, than Straczynski did with Superman. It’s not a perfect but, but a decent one. So, let’s check out what’s going on with Batman.

The first thing that is noticeable, is Alfred. Alfred is no longer a proper english butler, not even one with combat medical training. Alfred is an ex-military (served with Thomas Wayne) who is brought onto Wayne’s mayoral run as a security help. And then the first thing Thomas Wayne does with his new security advisor is ignore him because he doesn’t want it to affect his life. Note to fictional people: If you’re hiring a security person to make sure your family is safe, you really should listen to them. So, of course, Thomas and Martha are killed in a robbery and Alfred is left holding the Bruce. Thomas and Martha have decided that this security person they just met, after years of not being in contact, is the perfect person to raise their child.

So, then we have the usual Batman gets trained, takes on the Mayor (an interesting spin on The Penguin) and decides to keep up his crusade for justice. We also get Jim Gordon, as a beaten down cop who has decided to let bad stuff go so that he can protect his family. His daughter, who has some interesting sketches at the end of the book and a fun spin on Harvey Bullock (who is a Jack Vincennes type police officer who moves to Gotham because of the challenge).

Overall, the book feels short in places. It almost seems like there is a bunch of stuff that got cut out or that it should have been almost twice the length. The characterization is almost always brief and I get the feeling that there is so much more that could have and should have been explored. Johns does a good job with Gordon and Bullock. But Alfred is barely explored and most of what we know about Alfred is from his introduction from Thomas. And I love the general idea of this Alfred, so I want to see more. Bruce is barely introduced as anything other than the guy who would be Batman. There should have been more about why he decided to take this route.  I loved the ambiguous revelation at the ending about the murder of his parents and felt that it was the perfect way to resolve it.

Gary Frank’s art is really good. I’ve always been a fan of his, but he really shines in this tale. His Batman is more realistic (while still being overly muscled) and a perfect fit for this story.

And with Gordon and Bullock you can easily see where they are in life. Gordon is slumped down and rumpled with lines in his face, while Bullock is standing straight and neatly pressed. Frank does a great job of showing us the characters and making sure we understand exactly where they are coming from.

Overall it was a decent story that I wished was a little more filled out. Mildly recommended.