Batman #65

This arc doesn't quite pack the punch I was hoping for.

SPOILERS AHEAD

I can't say that this is badly written but it does feel like Williamson is limited, that he's taking this concept only so far. What little we've seen of Iris reacting to Wally dying and heroes failing to keep her nephew safe in a supposed place of healing has been good. There's been tension between Bruce and Barry but the envelope is only pushed a tiny bit. Kings' work on Batman and HIC have to dictate how the story progresses. Bane's involvement is teased but King has to do the reveal. Barry is tired of Bruces' lies, there's tension but they can't have a falling out because their still working together in HIC.

This makes the scenes with Iris in this arc more refreshing because she's allowed to grieve more openly while Barry is distracted. What little we've gotten with him has been good but the tone hasn't really dipped into full grief. He's briefly gotten mad at Bruce but he seems like he's been handling it better than him. Last issue got Barry upset because he found a Santuary mask and demanded to know if Gotham Girl was sent there. Bruce didn't want to answer and in this issue he just says he doesn't know why she has it. This reinforces the same need for answers from HIC that I wanted since the concept was first announced: why are some people allowed to go to Santuary while others aren't given the invite?

It's supposed to be for heroes so why wasn't Gotham Girl allowed to go? Batman is one of the founders after all and he felt responsible for her. Why isn't it well known within the superhero community? Why are Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy allowed to go when their mostly known as villains? None of it makes sense. And while I applaud Gotham Girl and Barry calling Bruce out on his failings it doesn't go far enough. GG is already seen as someone that's in the wrong for her actions and is being manipulated. Barry is upset about Wally and Bruce only seems like he's trying to pacify them to get the mission done.

Nothing can come of it because Bruce keeps making the same mistakes. If in the best case scenario they save Gotham Girl then what? Bruce is still actively making the same mistakes with all of his kids. He has at least three that are in bad situations and he's not attempting to help them. Sure it's not Williamsons' responsibility but it's one of the frustrations I have with HIC and this tie in since it makes these problems more pronounced.

One thing I do find interesting that's sort of toyed with is the concept of being a hero despite others telling you can't be one. For Gotham Girl it's because her powers are killing her and she's not quite stable. She thinks real heroes push themselves no matter the outcome and that's what makes them heroic. Barry attempts to reason with her by comparing her to Wally and his own loss. While doing so he admits Wally wouldn't have stopped even if he told him to. This reminds me painfully of the "bad Robin" rhetoric that was spewed about Stephanine and Jason. There was even an issue where Bruce said it was wrong for them to remain heroes but it was fine for Cass and himself. He's always been a bit of a hypocrite in that sense. When you think about it Bruce is about as dangerous, if not more so, than Gotham Girl in his current state.

He's been hallucinating in this arc from lack of sleep but it's okay when he does it? Are we supposed to see Bruce as reckless for his mistakes with others and his lack of concern for his own health? Is he deemed okay as long as he's able to fight? HIC is sending mixed messages so it's a little confusing when a founder of Sanctuary doesn't practice what he's preaching about others getting help.

The last issue might address a few of these problems I have but I'm not too hopeful at this point.