It is rare for me to pick up comic books these days, but I couldn't help but grab the three issue "Batman versus Predator" mini-series that I saw sitting on the shelf at my buddy Ryan's comic shop. (Charging Star Comics in Conklin, NY!) I've dabbled a bit in DC / Dark Horse comics crossovers (Superman vs. Aliens issue #1), so I was curious and a bit excited to dig into this trio of comics. Sadly, I was less than pleased with the first ever battle between the Dark Knight and his extraterrestrial foe.
As the tale begins, a mysterious killer begins knocking off anyone that is lauded as a champion or hero in Gotham City. The first victim is Gotham's newest heavyweight champion boxer. His demise is soon followed by the deaths of other notable figures (mainly criminals), which of course attracts Batman's attention.
Eventually Batman tracks down and squares off against the bloodthirsty hunter, and barely escapes with his life. Seriously injured, the Dark Knight is laid up for a while, as the cops and criminals of Gotham attempt to fight back against the Invisible Slasher, with disastrous results.
Eventually Bats recovers, arms himself with a suit of armor equipped with sonar, and goes after the Predator. He ultimately defeats the fierce creature just as its "posse" arrives, and is shocked when his powerful foe commits seppuku. As the other Predators load their fallen comrade onto the ship, one of them bows before Batman and gives the victorious hero a sword.
Though Batman is sure that the Predator's kin will think twice about visiting Gotham again, the transparent alien trophy-hunters would return in several more "Batman vs. Predator" adventures.
Ok, admittedly the storyline here is pretty cool, but it is basically a retread of "Predator 2" with Batman substituted in for Danny Glover, which isn't really a big deal in my book. My main gripe with the story involves the way the Predator chooses his victims. Apparently the most fearsome hunter in the universe is a couch potato, and picks his prey via the evening news.
Also, as a result of watching too much T.V., the Predator talks (or rather, mimics) an awful lot here. Guess they weren't sure how to write out the Pred's patented clicking/purring language so they figured he had to say "son of a ...." on a frequent basis. (Yeesh... and here I thought the folks at 20th Century Fox were the only ones that could sully the Predator's good name.)
Another strike against this series is the artwork. While a lot of it is good (particularly the artwork for the covers on the "Prestige Editions" of all three comics, done by artist Arthur Suydam, which is far better than the normal covers that were done by Chris Warner), there were far too many panels that were just a mess. Heck, a few times I didn't even realize what was going on until I backtracked and gave the page another thorough look.
"Batman vs. Predator" is something that sounds great on paper (sort of like "Robocop vs. Terminator"), and it could have been something special, but as it stands, this three-issue run is handled clumsily and turned out to be a (minor) disappointment. It does deliver the goods, but for me, it was a truly unsatisfying read.
There are two other "Batman vs. Predator" series: "Batman vs. Predator II: Bloodmatch," in which Batman and Huntress go after a particularly vicious "rogue" Predator, and "Batman vs. Predator III: Blood Ties," in which a duo of Predators hunts the Dark Knight AND the Boy Wonder. (Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that there's a "Batman and Superman vs. Aliens and Predator" comic out there as well.) While I'm not going to rush out and track them down, I will most likely give these comics a chance, if only to see if any improvements were made since the first "Batman vs. Predator" story arc.
If you're a huge Batman or Predator fan, you will most likely want to add "Batman vs. Predator" to your collection (if you haven't already). Otherwise, you may just want to spend your hard earned cash on something else... like the production of your very own "Batman vs. Predator" fan film!
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