By: James Robinson Publisher: DC Comics Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: DC Comics Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 192 Publication Date: September 06, 2006 Release Date: September 06, 2006
I'd rather face a different book I couldn't decide whether to give this two or three stars, but it gets three thanks to the art. Every page was consistently top-notch and well-executed, and the covers, especially the Two-Face ones, were absolutely stunning.
The writing, however, left much to be desired. As a bit of a grammar Nazi, I have to mention that Robinson's punctuation errors were rampant. (Most notably, he doesn't seem to understand the relationship between a period and a question mark.) Still, that's a minor problem.
It's clear that Robinson didn't really know how to handle his characters--Harvey Dent went from cured to Two-Face quicker than a Corvette goes 0 to 60. Poison Ivy looked like she just might turn over a new leaf (sorry, had to do it). And even Batman was not the focused, analytical detective that long-time readers have become accustomed to.
The story left me feeling that perhaps I wasted my money. Poison Ivy shows up more powerful than ever, and how does Batman defeat her? He threatens her plants, and she gives up immediately. Waste of an issue. Murders start happening, and it looks like Harvey Dent's responsible. This leads to a stupid and irrational confrontation between Batman and Dent and an uninteresting and poorly-written re-emergence of Dent's psychosis. Two-Face's first crime after his return is to take over a zoo. Seriously, a zoo. Honestly, who cares? Apparently the agonizingly boring zoo caper was just so he could tell Batman that it was his fault that Two-Face had come back. Pointless and irrational, even for Harvey. And so the book ends, having made several changes, but without any actual plot or solid character interaction.
I bought Face the Face looking for a good story and some interesting development to the complicated character that is Harvey Dent. I didn't find it here.
The return of Two Face Face the Face has many of the requisite elements that one would expect from a classic Batman story. It is a noirish flavored tale which employs many of his great gallery of rogues, punctuated by the return of possibly the greatest, Two Face. The rogue cameos are similar to Jeph Loeb epics like the Long Halloween and Dark Victory but lamentably also have the same flaws; while some do enhance the narrative, like Poison Ivy and Killer Croc, others only serve to pad pages and just make the villains appear weak and ineffectual. A few actually get killed, and it is probably no big reveal to disclose that Arnold Wesker is one of them, a decision that was controversial in some eyes. Of course the big news here is the return of Two Face; the lengthy scene with Harvey debating and battling with his evil alter ego over his possible return is the highlight of the entire story. Another entertaining aspect was the retro flavored backup feature in the `Tec issues featuring Jason Bard, a throwback to an earlier era and, if used wisely, something to possibly be explored further in the future. Last but certainly not least, much of the appeal of FTF, more than most stories, comes from its' mood provoking artwork. Considering the large group of artists that contributed to it, its' consistency is astonishing. Kudos also go out to colorist John Kalisz for his black and orange hued night scenes which immensely helped to create the proper atmosphere. Regrettably much of the radiance of the art was lost in the transition to trade and its' ill conceived use of cheaper paper. This story was the end of a very productive run in Batman comics that started with Bruce Wayne Murderer/Fugitive and continued on through Hush, Broken City, As the Crow Flies, War Games, and Under the Hood. While James Robinson is about to embark on a new run on Superman, and best wishes to him on that venture, here is one fan that wishes he was returning to Batman.
One year later... One year later after the cataclysmic events of Infinite Crisis, Batman makes his return to Gotham City with somewhat of a new outlook and attitude in regards to his crime fighting methods. No longer do we see a super-paranoid, almost fascist-esque vigilante patroling the streets of Gotham, as the year off has done both he and his partner Tim "Robin" Drake much good. While away, Batman left a reformed Harvey Dent to defend the city, which he has done quite well, until a series of lower-tier villains are murdered, with all the signs pointing to a return of Two-Face. But is it really Harvey behind it all? What makes Face to Face so good is that while it is a bit predictable, veteran writer James G. Robinson provides enough of an entertaining story to make up for the flaws. Not to mention that the closing moments between Batman and Robin aren't only generally surprising, but even more surprisingly touching to boot. There's solid art all around, and all tin all, Face to Face is a pretty good Batman story that helps re-establish the Dark Knight in a post-Infinte Crisis universe, and paves the way for the great Grant Morrison's run on the title.
Two-face at his best. Sort of. Face the Face centers mostly around a two-face plot, and really gives insight into how the character thinks. If you don't know anything about Harvey Dent, it doesn't matter, because the basics of his character are covered without being redundant for readers already familiar with him. The plot is also written out well enough that, while this plotline is clearly a continuation or result of some other events, not knowing what happened prior isn't important because everything makes sense within the context of the book. I really enjoyed this book, and would definitely recommend it to any Batman fan of any capacity.
amazing storyline bad ending well im a batman fan ... and i dont regret having this comic. this comic has an amazing storyline; however, the ending is really bad and i didnt like it it was open and as if this comic is 1 chapter of the a whole comic. also u have to read HUSH
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