Rebooting a title with a new number one is par for the course for the modern comic industry. Not to put on my old man voice, but nowadays it feels like we get a new volume of a storied title once a year, with no real difference between the previous volume and the new one, other than a change of artist — and sometimes not even that. Well, DC Comics‘ Batman has entered the chat, and thanks to an advance read of Batman #1 and Batman #2, I can confidently say that from the tone to the layouts, Matt Fraction and Jorge Jiménez’s new run on the title is fresh, exciting, and perfectly captures the beautiful chaos of Gotham City.
What’s perhaps most surprising about this is Jiménez’s contribution. Unlike Fraction, who is returning to monthly comics for the first time since 2020’s Sex Criminals and Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen, Jiménez has been the consistent Batman artist through multiple runs: James Tynion IV, Chip Zdarsky, and now Fraction. So you’d expect Jiménez to be consistent as well… Except the artist has shown remarkable breadth in his work, like in the recent Summer of Superman Special, which had three writers, and Jiménez tailored his pencils and layouts to each style.
Same here. While this continues the status quo of Zdarsky’s run, the way Jiménez has revamped his style to create a neo-future Gotham, a slick Batmobile, and a Batman in blue and gray are more than cosmetic changes… The pacing and feel of the book are entirely unlike the issues Jiménez has done before. The same kinetic action style is there, but he’s seemed to take a number of approaches and thrown them into a blender for this book… There are notes of Greg Capullo’s take on The Dark Knight, a bit of Juan Ferreyra was doing with the feel of the city over in Batman & Robin, and of course a style all its own.
It’s hard not to think that Fraction isn’t bringing some of this collaboration here, too. Working with David Aja, Fraction reinvented how comics were approached over at Marvel with Hawkeye (having read hundreds of scripts from that period, the amount of times “you know, like in Hawkeye” would pop up from other writers… The limit does not exist). And while this new run on Batman likely won’t Change Everything ™ in the same way, the pacing of the book is a masterclass in comic book writing — speeding up and cluttering the action both from writing and art when necessary, and slowing down to highlight quieter scenes between Batman and members of the Bat-family. It’s a perfect synthesis of writing and art, in the way comics always should be, but rarely are.
And as for Fraction’s take on Batman, as noted, it picks up directly on where Zdarsky left him. This is a Batman who is softer, open, kinder, and more supportive of his friends and enemies. After years, if not decades, of a growling avenger who refuses to work with others, it’s a delight to find a Batman who is a real hero who cares.
Don’t worry, there’s plenty of danger in Gotham City for him to face… I keep using the term “chaos” and that’s appropriate here, as while not quite as day-glo Gotham, under Fraction’s pen feels like the wild world of the Schumacher films, where thugs are around every corner, the city is about to explode, and Batman somehow needs to be everywhere at once.
Despite all that, there’s also a remarkable amount of focus on the single issue. Of the two issues I’ve read, both have their own done-in-one adventures, while the ongoing stories and mysteries thrown at Batman continue to pile up. Again, this is the sort of thing that should be par for the course for monthly comics, but rarely is: you can hand either of these issues to anyone as a starting point, and they can jump right in… But if you read both, you’ll get a richer, more fulfilling experience.
Overall, this is a thrilling start to a new run that truly deserves the title Batman #1. It’s a new beginning for The Dark Knight and Gotham City, with a new cast of characters, some shocking old favorites returning, and the best of Batman, beginning again.
Batman #1 hits stores on September 3, 2025. Batman #2 hits stores on October 1, 2025.
Batman #1 And #2 Rating:
Batman #1 Official Synopsis:
A BOLD NEW ERA OF BATMAN STARTS HERE! A new day dawns for the Dark Knight Detective as Eisner Award-winning writer Matt Fraction (Hawkeye, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen) joins forces with superstar artist Jorge Jiménez (Batman, Summer of Superman Special) for an unforgettable new era of Batman! The best superhero in comics gets a brand-new first issue to kick off this new era that will test Batman and Bruce Wayne like never before!
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Hello, I heard that batman uses a lot of gadgets in these issues, frankly that’s one of my favourite aspects of him, can you please tell me the gadgets he used thus far, thankyou.