Batwoman Book 3: World's Finest (#12-17, #0)

"We will go to Gotham together.  And when we do find Medusa, she will regret ever leaving the safety of her cell" - Wonder Woman

So my month of comics devoted to the ladies continues. When I did my first of these estrogen soaked months I failed in a big way because I did not pay tribute to the ultimate female superhero - Wonder Woman.  Reader I will now 'fess up I own no Wonder Woman comics. The runs I've been interested in like Gail Simone and Greg Rucka's can be hard to find. But for this month I present the next best thing, Wondy teaming up with lesbian superhero Batwoman.  This is the New 52 incarnation of Batwoman, created by Greg Rucka but now written by JH Williams III and W.Haden Blackman.  I make no bones about it, I am reading this series mostly for Williams's amazingly beautiful art and layouts.  The writing has been average to poor at best mainly tied to the fact they have dragged the first story arc out to an incredible seventeen issues with a lot of extraneous padding along the way.  Batwoman is Kate Kane by day, a socialite who is dating policewoman Maggie Sawyer who is unaware of her secret identity.  Maggie is looking for some missing kids, unbeknownest to her they've been taken by an Occult organisation called Medusa.  Batwoman has been blackmailed into working for the D.E.O - The Department of Extranormal Operations who have kitted her out with all sorts of nifty technology in return for her help.  This volume sees Batwoman working with Wonder Woman to bring down Medusa for good and save the kids.  There is also a zero issue which explores Batwoman's origins but you're better off reading Greg Rucka's single volume reboot of Batwoman that I already covered with art by JH Williams III.  So lets have some World's Finest action.

We start with the narrative switching between Wonder Woman and Batwoman. Batwoman sums up the story so far by thinking that Maro the leader of Medusa has taken the kids they kidnapped through a wormhole and though she has "interrogated" a lot of Medusa agents and has all the resources of the D.E.O at her fingertips, she is no closer to finding them.  Meanwhile Wonder Woman contemplates her nature and how there are many stories about her:

Wonder Woman: "But in this moment, I'm only this flashing sword, impaling an eye the colour of fallen leaves.  I'm only the gleaming shield, blocking my enemy's arrows with the ring of wind chimes.  I'm only this golden cord, coiled and waiting for the truth."

Batwoman has teamed up with her werewolf allies lead by Abbot, to investigate the Bloody Mary legend, because Medusa has been using urban legends to capture children and battle her.  She's catalogued several variations on the legend but they all end in Bloody Mary's death and her being summoned by chanting her name in front of a mirror.

Wonder Woman at work.

As Batwoman summons Bloody Mary, Wonder Woman slices up serpents that have murdered children, as she kills them she thinks that "Clark would be horrified, Batman would be reluctantly impressed, Aquaman would call it defence of the realm".  As Bloody Mary appears to Batwoman, Wonder Woman keeps laying into the serpent monsters.

Batwoman smashes Bloody Mary's mirror and demands to know where Maro took the children.  Mary says Maro abandoned them "and fled to Medusa's lair".   She says Medusa is "not a group.  Medusa is the Queen of Monsters".  She says she can't be stopped and Batwoman crushes the piece of mirror Mary was talking through.

Then we cut to Batwoman as Kate Kane on board a yacht with Chase and Mr. Bones of the D.E.O. Kate tells Chase Maro isn't in Gotham anymore and they are going to need some help so what about Wonder Woman, Medusa is a Greek myth after all.  Mr. Bones agrees but they are going to mike her up so they can get some intel on one of the World's Finest.

Mr. Bones, Kate and Chase.

Meanwhile  the families of the missing children are protesting outside the Gotham police station because it's been months now and the lead detective on the case, Maggie Sawyer is no closer to finding them and they want her replaced.  The media is there as well and even as Maggie assures them they are working hard on finding the kids the TV people record one of the couples saying if it was Maggie's kid missing she wouldn't be satisfied with just updates. Commissioner Gorden brings the press conference to a close after that.

Back at home with Kate and Maggie, Kate says she has to go out tonight. Angrily Maggie says if Kate cared she'd stay with her tonight and not be so selfish.  When Kate says she can't really tell her where she was the night before they made love the first time Maggies shows her the door saying, "don't come back until you can."

We then visit Kate Kane's father who Kate isn't speaking to right now and who is taking care of his neice Bette "Flamebird" Kate who is still recovering from being gutted by one of Medusa's minions in book one.  He promised to teach her how to be a hero who is even better than Kate.  She tells him "I am going to hold you to that promise."

Wonder Woman has defeated all her enemies.  She washes herself in the sea thinking how she is "more than just my brilliant sword... more than my balanced shield... more than just my nimble rope... more than Amazon... more than demigod.. more than human." Then something rises out of the sea and startles her, it is Batwoman in a small sub.

Batwoman finds Wonder Woman.

After one year, every series that was part of the New52 took a one issue break from their on-going stories and did a prequel issues.  Thing is Batwoman had the perfect prequel story by Greg Rucka that established her origins.  I covered it here and as the issue zero pretty much just summarises it, so I am skipping it and carrying on with the Wonder Woman storyline.

Wonder Woman and Batwoman sit together as the sub takes them to where Medusa is supposed to be.  Batwoman thinks that what she is doing is the only way she can think to help Maggie.  Wonder Woman thinks about what Batwoman might think when she looks at her, "a goddess wrapped in her own nation's flag? Does she see a warrior?  A hero?"  She also ponders Batwoman cloaked in the colours of death and war, one of Batman's loyal soldiers.

They arrive at the prison that holds "mythology's most dangerous villains".  Batwoman says it sounds like "an Amazon Arkham Asylum".  Medusa is supposed to be held in the deepest cell far from the world she wants to destroy. There is no sentry on guard which doesn't bode well as the venture inside.  The place is strewn with dead bodies. They venture further inside:

Wonder Woman: "Be wary.  Any creature worthy of being imprisoned here has been deemed more dangerous than me."

They come across a surviving guard, a minotaur.  Wonder Woman questions him and he says this is the work of "Black hearted Nyx.. Mistress of the night".

Attacked by Nyx.

Then huge black centipedes come after them and start attacking.  They are both quickly overwhelmed and everything goes black. We are then privy to Wonder Woman's thoughts against a black background.  She feels like she has been buried alive as the centipedes wrap tightly round her.

Nyx speaks to her, saying "Medusa has brought you as my morsel" and that she is guarding the gate for her, Medusa is the "mother of all monsters."  Then Batwoman interrupts, tells Wonder Woman to close her eyes and sets off a flash bomb, freeing them.   Then she uses a explosive flare gun to blast open a way out through the wall.  Then they escape the island by hi-jacking Black Manta's flying sub, the D.E.O might be super shady but they do have some wonderful toys.

We take a quick visit to Kate's dad and Bette meditating together. Unfortunately all she can think and brood about is what it felt like to be gutted and how much pain she is still in and how she must try and be stronger than Kate.  Back with Batwoman and Wonder Woman they are in a desert looking for Medusa's other son "Pegasus" the brother of Falchion who was defeated in the last book.  Wonder Woman calls Pegasus out of his lonely home and out he comes.  He has festering wounds showing through to the bone in places.

An ailing Pegasus.

Wonder Woman warns Batwoman to be careful of him, he is still Medusa's son, but Pegasus collapses at their feet saying "only her bastard. But now I am gutted and clipped."  Batwoman kneels by him and checks his wounds and realises it was Falchion who inflicted them.

Pegasus: "Dying. For a thousand years I will die.  If we live forever so too do our wounds.   Mortals will have vanished from the earth before I am whole again."

She says to him that Falchion tortured him, Pegasus says his brother would call it "coercion". He has tried to recruit Pegasus to their mother's cause and Pegasus declined.  Many times over.

Wonder Woman asks him why Falchion wanted his help.  Pegasus says for "horror.  Madness. Death.  A reaping of all mortalkind.  I don't know how..."  Batwoman says does he know where this will happen.  Pegasus says yes, and he will tell them for a price.  Wonder Woman must take his head, "give me a warrior's death."  This shocks Batwoman and Wonder Woman tells him humans have no faith in him now he will not be brought back.  "I do not care" he says sadly.  So Wonder Woman, over Batwoman's protests, agrees.

Pegasus then tells them it's a "city where shadows are deepest and evil is born".  Batwoman realises what that means, "Gotham".  Then Wonder Woman cuts off Pegasus's head. She asks if Batwoman thinks she committed murder.  Batwoman doesn't know and asks if he can come back like Bloody Mary and The Weeping Woman.  "Maybe" says Wonder Woman.  "Then I choose to believe" says Batwoman as she immolates Pegasus's corpse.

Then Batwoman expresses her irritation that she dragged Wonder Woman halfway around the globe when Medusa was in Gotham the whole time.  Wonder Woman says Medusa is a powerful witch who has kept herself concealed for centuries, "but she will come out of hiding to complete her dark ritual." Batwoman asks if Wonder Woman wants to come with her, "or do I smash this bitch in the teeth all by myself?"  Wonder Woman will come.

Medusa in Gotham.

Batwoman thinks to herself how much she wished she had telepathy to warn Maggie to get out of Gotham, but it's already kicking off there.  Killer Croc in his new, even more mutated form is rampaging through the streets as Maggie and Harvey Bullock are fighting him.  Then they come across Medusa herself:

Medusa: "Long have I sat in darkness sharpening  this dream like a blade...My dream is a blade to carve out the heart of this city, bleed its lambs into goblets of gold. A blade to hack off our enemies heads to make the world safe for all my kind".

As she and her minions fight the Gotham PD she thinks about how Falchion failed her, but did at least raise this army for her.   They are the ones who scoured the world and freed her.  Falchion also found Maro who created her supernatural army.  So s/he wasn't totally useless then.

Medusa then tells Killer Croc he can become more powerful, Maro using a blood ritual causes Killer Croc to mutate massively becoming a hydra like creature, "the beast of Babylon" says Medusa.  Backed into a corner by Medusa, things look bad for Maggie and Harvey then suddenly down swoop Batwoman and Wonder Woman to the rescue.

Kick ass.

Trevor McCarthy takes over as artist for the next issue meaning the loss of the lovely layouts of Mr. JH3.  Maggie is stunned and confused by the arrival of her rescuers and a fractured narrative follows showing us the events leading to this moment.   She flashes back to an hour ago as she reviews the missing kids case for the umpteenth time. Then we see her shooting Medusa's soldiers, there are no cries of pain where the bullets hit, the dying call for "Mitera" (Mother).

Everything is confusing out on the streets, "why is a Chinese gangster speaking in ancient Greek?"  She demands to know who "Mother" is from someone she has a hold of.  "She is the end of Gotham.  The end of your world" she is told.  "Zealots in my city" she thinks.  She bumps into Agent Chase of the D.E.O and wants to know why they aren't helping the GCPD on the front lines.  Chase says that is not her orders.

Chase tells her to have the GCPD fall back and the D.E.O will cover them.  Maggie doesn't trust her.  She and Harvey head towards a church where she has been told some people are preparing to become matryrs.  It's a Catholic church and inside are the mainly hispanic parents of the missing children.  They have heard "that these monsters have our children.  Then have our children on chains."

Maggie defuses the mob.

Maggie tells Isabella the leader of the mob that they should let the police handle this. Isabella says "you will just keep failing".  Maggie says the things can't be fought with baseball bats and kitchen knives nor guns either.  Maggie points her gun at the man toting a shotgun telling him to put it down.  When he won't she says:

Maggie: "I'm trying to save your kids. But if you get killed, what will happen to them?  Where will they go?  Who will take care of them?  Foster homes? The street? The church".

She then disarms the shotgun wielder.  But Isabella starts to freak out, her husband Felipe went out there alone looking for their children.  So Maggie goes back out to find and save him.

He is outside shooting down Medusa minions until he runs out of bullets.  Maggie and Harvey find him, but then water coutesy of the Weeping Woman sweeps over them.  Felipe kneels before her and when she tells him she will "free" the whole place he forgives her and she fades.  Maggie comes over and comforts the distraught man and when he says of his kids "I miss the so much" she hugs him.  And she worries maybe she'll never be able to bring them home.

Maggie comforts Felipe.

She returns Felipe to Isabella at the church then she and Harvey venture out through the rubble of Gotham's streets. Then we arrive at the moment when BatwMoman and Wonder Woman arrive, and as they do so Maggie thinks "God loves me enough. To keep Kate out of this madness. And bring her home safe."

JH Williams III is back on art for the rest of the book now.  Batwoman drops down to where Maggie is in the middle of all the chaos.  But Maggie yells at Batwoman to forget about her an Harvey and take out what Killer Croc has turned into before it destroys the city.   She starts to fight her way to it, horrified that it is breaking her "building... my base.. home... everything". Wonder Woman meanwhile is also fighting and feeling oddly responsible for Medusa, and now her senses are "dulled by shame, guilt, rage".

As Batwoman head towards the Hydra, Wonder Woman stops her saying she is not capable of taking it on. Batwoman says she's lost her home, her pictures of her sister, her mother's journals... she tails off.   Wonder Woman promises to kill the Hydra, but Batwoman needs to concentrate on getting back the children.

Medusa is waiting for Ceto, the mother of all monsters to appear from the sea.  She will rise, devour all mortals and make a world safe for the monsters.  Then Mr. Bones appears pointing a gun at her.  Medusa says he should be an ally what with him being a skeleton and all.   She tries to uses her petrifying eyes on him but fails. 

Flamebird back in action.

Then the hook handed creature attacks Chase, she fires on him but he shrugs it off and advances on her, but then Bette Kane as Flamebird appears ready to extract revenge on the being that so badly injured her. Her inner monologue has her as terrified, but she punches him and keeps punching him but he manages to grab a hold of her and she wishes that if he guts her again she wants to die.

Medusa stands at the sea's edge with the children and Maro.  The children ask if they are going to be killed.  Medusa says Ceto needs "your souls to bind her to this world".  Right now Ceto is a "dream. A ghost. A myth" says Maro, but once she was feared throughout the world.

We then get a quick history lesson on her. She became Goddess of the Oceans, she fell in love with Phorcys, Mystery of the Deep.   Many wonders were born from their union. Those wonders brought awe and adventure to the world. "We gave their frail lives meaning".  They were killed by mortals who wanted to prove they had mastery over all the primordial forces putting them and their followers to the torch and spear.  Ceto was brought to Mt. Olympus and judged.  "Zeus claimed there was no room for both mortals and monsters on Earth". He banished her, stripped her of her beauty and power reduced to the one cruel epithet, "The Mother of all Monsters".  So that's what she will be "and the mortal world the gods love will suffer for it".

Batwoman is fighting her way to Medusa and fighting the urge to go back to Maggie.  Also Abbot and his werewolf coven are also helping her despite how mean she usually has been to him in prior volumes.  Wonder Woman is taking on the hydra.  She discovers that whipping her sword fast enough makes it hot enought to cauterise the neck and stop another head growing.

Wonder Woman takes on the Hydra.

Batwoman and Abbot arrive at where Medusa, Maro and the children are.  Medusa calls the Weeping Woman again, but Batwoman shouts "what if they were your children, Maria?!" And Maria pauses remembering the two that were.  She attacks Maro who killed them saying "you are my grief" and melts Maro's face. Medusa says the Batwoman it doesn't matter now, "My mother is coming."

Batwoman can't process what she sees next,  "it's a tear in the fabric of reality.  As if it's something we can just stitch up". A huge squirming, many tentacled thing has appeared.  She realises there are somethings you can never unsee and never fix. Wonder Woman jumps down saying "please tell me you know what the hell this is, Batwoman".  Batwoman can only tell her Medusa and Maro performed a ritual and summoned the Mother of all Monsters.

The Mother of All Monsters is summoned.

Wonder Woman says "Ceto".  Batwoman says so she knows her name but does she know how to stop her.  "Haven't a clue" replies Wonder Woman. So Batwoman decides they should start by kicking Medusa's ass. We return to the hook-handed monster holding Flamebird by the throat.  Flamebird using arm mounted flame throwers (!) blasts the hook-man in the face then as he kneels holding his bubbling face she attaches a bomb to his hook and blows it off his arm then tosses it in the sea where it fastens onto a crab.  Catharsis!

Maro makes it to shore, but her twin who inhabited the same body is dead now.  On land an almight ruckus is taking place.  Batwoman, Wonder Woman and the werewolves versus Medusa's minions.  Abott gets turned to stone by Medusa and as she kneels by him, Flamebird appears and helps her up.  They quickly formulate a plan, they shatter Bloody Mary and use a piece of her mirror to reflect Medusa's glare back on her and she turns to stone.  Batwoman then smashes the statue for good measure.

Medusa defeated.

They look out to sea and there is no monster, just some rainbow smoke. Wonder Woman thinks "we broke the spell somehow."  The Weeping Woman holds Medusa's head and says she was as Medusa made her, but actually she wants to erase all the stories ever told about her.  Wonder Woman is about to kill her saying her stories always end in death but Batwoman stops her.  And Wonder Woman helps her up saying she keep her safe instead.

Flamebird points out the D.E.O is about to arrive so she makes herself scarce telling Batwoman her new name is "Hawkfire".  Wonder Woman says she too has no wish to meet the D.E.O.  Before she leaves Batwoman gives her the recordings she's made of her the past few days.  Wonder Woman crushes them and says, "if you ever need me again, just ask."

Chase catches up with them and is pissed about the loss of intel on Wonder Woman.  She then takes the children to a park close by where Maggie is moodily sitting on a swing. When she realises Batwoman has bought them all back and has called her "Mags" she realises who she really is:

Batwoman: "Marry me Mags".

The book then ends with Mr Bones interviewing Alice, the crazed supervillain sister of Batwoman and he says "oh I know who you are.  You have our sister's eyes."

And that was the end of the series and they both lived in marital bliss and lalalalala can't hear you DC editorial!

Once again it's the art that sells me this series, with stunning layouts and gorgeous renditions of everything from eldritch abominations to caped crimefighters.  His depiction of Wonder Woman is superb, she fit and athletic looking rather than skinny and top heavy. She looks like a woman who gets shit done as does the bustier fetish clad Kate Kane.   But I keep circulating round to my major problems with the series so far, this arc went on far too long, the dialogue is often stilted and unnatural which suits the narration of the mythological aspects of the story but not the voices of the characters. Also the happy ending is somewhat soured by knowledge of what happened next which was DC vetoing the marriage. In their sort of defence I don't think that was homophobia at work, DC simply didn't want any of their New 52 characters to be happy.  Seriously, that was an editorial edict.  This then resulted in Blackman and Williams III quitting the title and DC spiking their final issues.  I haven't read any further Batwoman after this one mainly for those reasons, while the series had flaws it had potential and this just felt like the straw that broke the camels back regarding DC's overbearing editorial attitudes during this period. Still, curiosity might compel me to check out the next volumes and If I do I'll cover it here.

Batwoman Book 2: To Drown The World (#6-11)

"God I hate that woman" - Kate Kane

If there ever was proof that I was mainly reading Batwoman for the art it's how much I found my interest dropping and my attention wandering when during this arc within an arc J. H Williams III steps away from art duties and just writes it with his co-writer W. Haden Blackman.  And I guess Greg Rucka's run, collected as Batwoman: Elegy, set such a high standard for the character but I find the writing here muddled and somewhat dull.  I'm being unfair on Amy Reeder and Trevor McCarthy who are arting this arc, because they're pretty good by any normal measure, but how does anyone measure up to one of the finest sequential artists currently in the business?  And their main problem is that they try hard to duplicate the complex layouts JHW3 executes so effortlessly but whereas he knows how to draw your eye round the pages in the correct order, several times I found myself unsure of what order to read the panels in.  Not good.  Also the whole six issue arc is told in "anarchronic" order, ie: it's all over the place, flashing backwards and forwards in an attempt to put some life into the story but instead makes it frustrating and confusing in equal measure.  This is like having a three course meal, but it's been cut into tiny portions and you're fed your starter and dessert in bits between your morsels of your main. It probably would be a pretty bland meal eaten in the normal order but now it's indigestable.  Anyway,  the story arc continues the larger arc of Batwoman Kate Kane and her girlfriend Detective Maggie Sawyer looking for missing children who have been kidnapped by an organisation called Medusa.  Batwoman is being blackmailed into working with the D.E.O - The Department of Extranormal Operations and her handler is a very angry woman called Cameron Chase. Her cousin Bette Kane who is also a costumed hero called Flamebird was gutted by a man with a talking scythe for a hand in the previous book and now lies in a coma on life support.  Now we're all caught up, lets begin.

Now: Batwoman is fighting the hook-handed man, he attacks and knocks the wind out of her as the leader of Medusa, Falchion, looks on.  One Month Ago: Kate's father Jacob is visiting Bette in hospital because she is his niece.  She is still comatose.  The nurse tells him she might respond to his voice, so although dubious it will help he starts reading "You Only Live Twice" to her.

Batwoman vs. Mr. Hookhand.

One Week Ago: Maggie is being yelled at by the mother of two of the missing children.  She says she doesn't think her detectives are doing enough because they aren't working 24/7 on it.  As she departs she says to Maggie:

Ms. Lopez: "With respect, detective Sawyer.  I don't think a woman like you has any idea what it's like to have a child.. then have that child taken away."

Once she is gone, Maggie takes a photo out of her desk and regards it sadly.  Four Months Ago:  A man called Maro is drowning Maria's (see book one) children.  This will cause Maria to become The Weeping Woman, "with the deaths of Maria's childen, Maria's story has begun". Falchion is dubious as to why they bringing folk tales to life.  But Maro says that with La Larona "Gothan will start believing in monsters again".

Maro drowns Maria's kids.

Three Weeks Ago: Maggie is round at Kates looking for where her badge fell after a vigourous bout of love making (which we aren't shown dammit!).  Maggie notes a bruise on Kate's shoulder, Kate says she has taken up boxing again because her father taught her to keep in shape.  Maggie says that's the first time she's bought up her father, but Kate says she is not going to talk about the past, she kisses Maggie saying "this is the only place I really want to be".

Two weeks ago: Batwoman is out with Chase, they have taken down a man but Chase says he is not a full member of Medusa and he won't know anything.  Someone opens fire on them and Batwoman blocks the bullets with her body, protecting Chase.  Chase asks if she likes the new outfit.  "I'm a damn superwoman" says Batwoman.  It's nanotube armour invented "yesterday", one of the perks of working for the D.E.o.

Now: Batwoman gets up and manages to get the hook-handed man in a chokehold.  She gets a hold of where the hook joins his body and says, "I'm going to make you cry for your mother". She keeps him in the chokehold and yells at him for hurting Bette, he responds, "So warm... can still feel her insides on me".  Batwoman hurls him aside in disgust then rips the hook off his arm. The man cries "Aaaauagh my hook!"  And the hook cries "My body! My Body!".  Somewhat taken aback Batwoman turns and sees Falchion summon "all of my monsters".

Batwoman rips off his hook.

Three Weeks ago:  Jacob is visiting Better again.  He tells her about Kate and her twin Beth (see "Elegy").  How different they were growing up.  He caresses Bette's cheek and asks if she can hear him.  Two Weeks ago: Maggie and Kate are having a meal in a fancy restaurant when Kate spots the were-man Abbott lurking outside and goes to confront him. 

He tells her the Religion of Crime has nearly been wiped out by Medusa and that she'll need his help fighting Falchion their leader.  But Kate tells him to get lost and tell "your freaky werebeast cult to stay the hell away from me". When Maggie joins her Kate says it was just a piece of her past trying to crawl out of the gutter.

Maggie and Kate's meal interrupted.

Two Months Ago: Maro is bringing the "Bloody Mary" urban legend to life.  He calls her via the incantation into the mirror, then binds her by knowing her true name and offers her three captured teenage girls as a sacrifice to her.

One Week Ago:  A much mutated Killer Croc, now with the head of a crocodile is rampaging around killing off The Religion of Crime, the police are there as well although they are not sure what is going on.  A woman called Sune, working for Medusa lets some members of the Religion of Crime go, saying she'll tell Falchion they're all dead and Abbott has gone to ground.  Then Maggie surprises her, arrests her and tells her she is going to tell them everything she knows about Medusa.

Even more mutated Killer Croc facing down GCPD.

One Week Ago: Chase is showing Batwoman some new gadgets.  Which include a dart that is self propelled, voice activated and has a rudimentary A.I.  Batwoman is dubious about using it, but Chase threatens her father with prison if she doesn't play along.  Batwoman is also given a hypodermic full of tranquilizer and laced with Scarecrow fear gas.  Batwoman is to go and grab Sune, who they have just been notified of the arrest of, and bring her to the D.E.O.  Oh and handling the transport of Sune is Maggie.

Now:  Batwoman is facing down La Larona and Bloody Mary.  Falchion says Gotham has provided him with such monsters.  Batwoman replies "This is getting ridiculous.  Falchion!  Let's get on with it!"  Facing Killer Croc, Bloody Mary and an apologetic La Larona (Maria was exorcised at the end of Book 1, doesn't seem to have taken) she unleashes the flying dart at them.  It shocks the Croc, slashes Bloody Mary's throat and sets Maria on fire.  But Falchion holds a sword to the throat of one of the kidnapped children and so Batwoman shuts the dart down.

Batwoman ordered to grab Sune.

One Month Ago: Maro slices the hand off a man called Rush who appears to be a serial killer.  He attaches the talking hook - The Ashoth - to the stump and transforms him into another of his monsters.

One Week Ago: Chase is showing Kate photos she has of Maggie looking like she is thinking of leaving Kate, and Chase wants them to stay together at least until the Sune transfer happens.  Kate says they are not breaking up and is outraged when Chase tells her to mine Maggie for information on the Medusa case.

Chase: "Oh don't pretend you haven't already crossed that line.  Frankly I don't know whether she is dating Kate Kane or Batwoman.  Maybe you don't know either."

Chase leaves and Kate reluctantly phones Maggie to get together that night...

Six Nights Ago: Maggie is handling the transfer of Sune to a safehouse via boat.  Batwoman leaps aboard and Maggie sanctions lethal force against her, but the bullets bounce off. Batwoman knocks them all out and heads to where Sune is, armed with the fear tranquiliser in case Sune proves difficult.  But then Maggie grabs her from behind and without thinking Batwoman jabs her with the drug and is horrified when she realises what she has done.

Whoops!

Two Weeks Ago: Jacob is sitting by Bette's bedside.  He felt her move and is encouraging her to do it again.  The doctor says it was probably an involuntary responds, but says keeping talking to her may help.

Six Nights Ago: Chase fights her way across the docks to where Batwoman and Sune are.  Batwoman is furious that she was put in the position of harming Maggie and her people and won't do it again.  Sune asks if the drug was meant for her, Chase says yes and that they have plenty more if she doesn't cooperate.  Sune says she didn't hear the magic word - "Immunity".  Chase says they can figure something out as they escape via helicopter.

Now: Falchion tells Batwoman she will never find out why he took the children.  They begins to fight, Falchion slashes Batwoman saying no armour can protect against a sword forged by "The Mother".  Things look bad for Batwoman, then suddenly a volley of arrows fire by Sune hit Falchion in the head and chest. "The Mother crafted arrows, too" says Sune.

Sune.

This only makes Falchion angrier as he attacks her shouting "betrayer" and "traitor". He says she "can't hide your secrets from my God's eye" as he gets ahold of her.  She uses a "Blackout Bomb" and plunges the area into darkness, escaping his grip.  She gives Batwoman some goggles so she can see.  Sune wants to kill Falchion, but Batwoman says she can't let her murder him, so Sune says she let him live, "for now".

One Week Ago: Jacob is in Bette's room as her hearts stops.  As the nurses usher him out he yells to her that he is here for her and not to go.  He can only numbly watch as the doctors work on reviving her.  Two Weeks Ago:  Maro is on the beach and summons Maria's spirit, he tells her if she doesn't come back to Medusa her children's ghosts will be damned and "wander the spirit world alone forever".  So Maria becomes La Larona again.

Jacob watching over Bette.

Three Nights Ago: Maggie is attending a party on Falchion's yacht.  She sees Kate and Sune together, and when Kate returns to her she asks who Sune was.  Kate says she is just "some entitled musician" who chatted her up in the queue for the toilet.  Then Maggie gets a call saying there has been another kidnapping and she has to leave. She and Kate kiss and Maggie makes her promise not to "take a ride from an entitled musician".

Four Days Ago: Sune has told them Medusa's headquarters are in the Gotham harbour.  A deep underground lair, cloaked with protective spells.  Chase wants to send in combat subs, but Sune says that would doom the children.  When she prevaricates about knowing Falchion has a secret entrance, Chase dangles her out of the helicopter.  Sune says the information will be on Falchion's yacht and handily Kate has been invited to a gala aboard it the next evening.  Chase tells Batwoman to attend with Maggie and Sune will be there as well, which means Sune will know Batwoman's identity.  Batwoman agrees if it means the children can be saved.

Three Nights Ago: Sune and Kate are at the gala and have snuck off to look through Falchion's things.  They find an ornate box and between them manage to get it open and find what appears to be a map.

Now: Falchion wounds Sune and knocks her to the ground.  Before he can kill her, Batwoman jumps on him and jams one of the arrows into his eye, which then burns off half of his face.  Batwoman goes over to check on Sune who is gratified Batwoman saved her life and in return, kisses her. There is a long moment, then Batwoman recoils, asking Sune what the hell she thinks she is doing. "I craved a little taste of you" Sune says rather creeepily.  Then Sune grabs Falchion's sword and impales him with it.

Unsolicited!

Eighteen Hours Ago: Maggie is at a crime scene with Commissioner Gordon.  They have found the body of a girl.  Gordon says she reminds him of Barbara at that age.  He tells Maggie to imagine the girl is hers and catch the killer.  Maggie walks off and phones someone she calls "Pixie" saying she just needed to hear her voice.

Thirty Five Hours Ago: Bette is still alive but comatose.  Jacob tells her the story about how he euthanised a terminally pet cat of theirs with a gun (the bullet is one he has on a necklace round his neck), both the girls saw him.  Beth cried for two days, Kate grabbed a shovel and helped him bury it.  He finally admits that he loved Beth more than Kate and has a bit of a breakdown.

Two Hours Ago: Chase with some D.E.O operatives, Batwoman and Sune are fighting Killer Croc.  He gets away, but Batwoman and Sune know where the secret passageway is and follow while Chase stays with an injured operative.

Twenty Five Hours Ago: Batwoman appears at the window of Bette's hospital room and observes her father sleeping next to her.  One Week Ago: Maro feeds Killer Croc virgins blood to transform him into a more crocodile like creature.  He says he is the latest in a long lineage of crocodile beings and people's belief in them helps Croc change.

Killer Croc is further transformed.

Now: Batwoman wrestles the sword off Sune.  Sune says only Falchion's sword can kill Falchion.  Batwoman says she won't let her murder him.  Sune then says maybe it is enough that Falchion is "well past dead" and now she can take her rightful place as the head of Medusa.  And her flesh starts to melt and reforms into Maro her "brother". 

Maro: "I am Maro Ito, once Falchion's warlock, now his successor.  And I would be honoured if you'd kneel before me."

Batwoman is confused.  "Who are you?" she demands.  Maro replies that he is the creator of monsters and slayer of demigods, so in fact "I am a God."  He says he will deliver the children to The Mother and "their blood will drown the world". Batwoman says he is just a shapeshifter.  Maro disagrees, he is a puppetmaster who manipulated Batwoman and the D.E.O into helping him kill Falchion.  They will take the blame for his death.  Batwoman says she's going to kick his ass, so Maro orders Maria to flood her lungs.

Sune was Maro all along!

Now: Jacob is standing by Bette's bedside, he says her parents are talking about organ donation.  He places a hero mask over her face and says:

Jacob: "Open your eyes and I will teach you everything Kate couldn't".

Bette does open her eyes and says weakly can she keep the mask?  "Always" says a relieved Jacob.

Fiften Minutes From Now: Maggie has been called to suspicious goings on at the harbour.  She sees water fountaining up and on the dockside is a coughing Chase who tells her Batwoman "screwed us all".

Now: The children are bathed in light.  Chase arrives on the scene and points a gun at Maro, but for some reason Batwoman electrocutes her with her gloves and Chase's shot just wings Maro.  Killer Croc joins the children in the light, and Maro transforms into a white wolf and jumps in also and they are all teleported away.

What did you THINK would happen Kate?!

Batwoman drags chase outide before Maria can drown them both and leaves her on the dock.  She observes Chase and Maggie from afar as Chase tells Maggie that Batwoman "let that monster take the kids", but Batwoman thinks to herself that she'll find the children no matter what.

The Next Day: Kate and Maggie are sitting together discussing their pasts.  Kate tells her everything bar being Batwoman.  Maggie tells her she has a daughter who she lost custody of to the father and lives in Star City with him and her step-mother.  She says when she thinks of the missing kids it's like losing her all over again.  This upsets Kate and Maggie hugs and comforts her.

The book comes to an end with Wolf Maro telling The Mother that Batwoman and her allies killed Falchion.  The Mother doesn't seem too upset.  The children are there as well.  The Mother says Batwoman "will be devoured by the Mother of all monsters."

Kate and Maggie have a moment.

And the Medusa arc is dragged on for yet another arc, the storyline being clumsily elongated by Batwoman's inexplicable decision to allow Maro to get away with the children. Probably the best parts of the book are Jacob's talks to Beth, it enriches his character and rounds him out nicely.  Otherwise the structure of the arc, jumping forwards and backwards doesn't really flow like a good story should.  And bloody hell, I know I am a fan of decompressed comics, but this storyline isn't strong enough to run as long as it has done, because we've got the team up with Wonder Woman in the next volume still to go before Medusa is finally put to rest.  Luckily JH Williams III is back on art duties for that volume so at least I can squee about how good it looks.  As I said in the intro, Reeder and McCarthy are actually pretty good, but might have benefitted more from a more traditional panel layout rather than trying to ape JHW3.  I did get some enjoyment from the book, some nice conversations take place, I actually wish there had been more dialogue and less action because that was where the writers strength seems to lie. Batwoman is still an appealing character, and does get some badass moments, I just keep coming back to the structure of the book, it really doesn't work for me.  These kinds of stories can work, but only when the underlying structure is rock solid, and with only five issues prior to this, the writers simply haven't nailed things down heavily enough to then get experimental with.  Ah well, can't all be winners eh?

Batwoman Book 1: Hydrology (#0,#1-5)

"I will soldier on" - Batwoman

Although this is officially Batwoman's first volume set in the New 52 universe, it actually follows on from her pre-New 52 run in Detective comics which was collected as Batwoman: Elegy and which I covered here.  In that story we were told the story of how Kate Kane became Batwoman after being dishonerably discharged from the army for being homosexual.  She tangled with a villain called Alice who turned out to be her twin sister Beth who was kidanpped when she was a child although her Army officer father Jacob had told her she was dead which leads to a big rift between the previously close father and daughter.  Kate Kane in her civilian identity had also met the lesbian Gotham police officer Maggie Sawyer at an offical function and had a dance and flirt with her.  Now the big change with this new series is that Greg Rucka had left DC and so is no longer on writing duties, alas.  JH Williams III still provides most of the art and shares a writing credit as well with W. Haden Blackman.  Kicking off this collection is an odd little zero issue, not to be confused with the zero issues that every DC comic ran at the start of the New 52's second year.  I believe it was an aborted start to a Batwoman series post the Detective Comics run before it was decided to delay the start of the series and make it part of the New 52 launch leaving this issue orphaned as it were.  So having it collected here for completists sake is a nice touch.  So without further ado, let's dive into the murky and somewhat magical world of Batwoman.

Batman stalks Batwoman.

Issue zero is an reintroduction to Batwoman and Kate Kane.  Narrated by Batman/Bruce Wayne it covers him stalking Batwoman at night and Kate Kane during the day in varying disguises to support his hypothesis that they are the same person.  The pages are split horizontally in half, JH Williams III illustrates the Batwoman half and Amy Reeder the Kate Kane part.  Their styles mesh well, and in fact Amy Reeder will take on a future arc in volume two giving JH Williams III some breathing room and allow him to keep his output to the highest standard.

The Batwoman sequence is her fighting the Religion of Crime on a dockside over a sarcophagus which I assume either contains or she thinks contains the remains of her sister Alice who fell in the harbour at the end of Elegy.  Batman assesses her fighting styles with approval and notes she appears to use military training.  When it looks like she might have met her match and he thinks about stepping in, she uses some tech to overload the cybernetic arm of her attacker.  Unfortunately for her, the Religion of Crime keep her away from the sarcophagus long enough for it to leave by boat. 

Kate visiting her mother and sister's grave.

During his tailing her by day in disguise he notes she likes to go clubbing and hook up with chicks for one night stands.  He knows her mother was killed when she was young and her sister too (although we the reader know her sister survived).  He notes this tragedy is definitely an incentive to become Batwoman.

Lurking outside her building he sees that her father comes regularly but she refuses to let him in.  While she is clubbing, he feels a little envious that she can let herself go "in a way I can't".  Next day he contrives to bump into her in a bookshop and sees she is reading a book on Exorcism.  Finally he decides on one last test.  He comes up behind her and swings a baseball bat at her head.  She predicts the attack, flips and kicks him in the face.  Impressed he runs off, he decides his theory is correct, Kate Kane is Batwoman. and he thinks:

Batman: "...She has the one thing I cannot teach. That hole inside her that can never be filled, no matter how many criminals she takes down... it gives her the drive to do this.  It's time she and I have a serious discussion about her future.

La Llorona, the Weeping Woman.

The story begins proper with a look at a ghostly female figure.  She is abducting some children as their parents watch helplessly.  They are recounting this to Maggie Sawyer after the fact.  Apparently Batwoman crashed in but was too late, "she said she would save them, Batwoman promised" they say.  The kids and the woman vanish and Batwoman assures them she'll "save them all".

Maggie then tells them that twelve kids including their own have been abducted, she says it would be unethical for her to give them the same promise Batwoman did.  "But I promise I won't ever stop looking".  She takes them out to the lobby and they leave.  Waiting there for her is Kate Kane.

Kate notices a photo of Renee Montoya on the wall of rememberance for cops killed in the line of duty on the wall, and says to Maggie that she and Renee were involved for a while.  Now this is where the book strikes a somewhat sour note for me.  Although he didn't create the character, Greg Rucka in Gotham Central and later the maxi-series 52 spent a lot of time developing her, including having her outed as gay, getting involved with Kate, leaving the police force and becoming the new The Question.  So The New 52 not only undoes her becoming The Question, it also has her killed off as if to spite Greg Rucka for leaving DC (I think the parting was less than amicable).  Now when there was a backlash against this, DC said they'd bring Renee back when the time was right.  However she never returned until after The New 52 officially ended (yay!) after Convergence. She's now a Gotham PD cop again, her missing time being accounted for as being in Seattle.  Her relationship status with Kate Kane in the new continuity is as yet unknown as Batwoman was included in the mass wave of cancellations that ended The New 52 (boo!).

Kate Kane flirts with Maggie Sawyer.

Anyway, Kate asks Maggie if she wants to come out for "beer and a band?"  Maggie says it beats another night in a cop bar.  We cut to later on where Kate is getting into her Batwoman outfit and her cousin Bette into a pair of plain overalls.  When Bette asks where her "Flamebird" outfit is, Kate says she burned it.  Bette sulkily says she has a spare.  For now though she is going on patrol with Kate in a plain outfit.  She wants to know why Kate isn't talking to her father, Kate says it's not up for discussion.

We then are introduced to Agent Chase who works for the D.E.O or "Department of Extranormal Operations".  Her boss is Director Bones, a skeleton in a suit who smokes cigars.  He has some work for her in Gotham.  He wants to find out more about the Operation Jacob Kane covered up in Book One.  There is a new terrorist threat appearing there called "Medusa" and finally she is to discover Batwoman's real identity.

Agent Cameron Chase.

Back in Gotham, Maggie and Commisioner Gordon are at the site where some drowned kids have washed up.  This makes it six drowned, thirteen missing.  The only lead Maggie has is a local legend called "La Llorona".  A woman who let her kids drown then drowned herself and came back as a vengeful spirit.

Kate and Bette are back after their night patrol. Kate says she thinks Bette isn't taking things seriously and not pulling her weight.  Then her father appears.  She chews him out over lying about her sister then tells him to get lost.  Later that night as Batwoman she checks out the place where the drowned kids were found and Batman approaches her, "I have a proposition for you" he says.

Later Kate and Better are out crimefighting and Kate says she told Batman "I'd think about it."  She says Batman Incorporated is "either a stroke of brilliance or totally insane."  She doesn't like the idea of taking orders from Batman:

Batwoman: "I don't even want to think about the daddy issues that might imply."

Bette says her father will keep calling on Kate until she agrees to talk to him.  Kate says Bette gets either her or her father in her life and she needs to decide which soon, or "I'm going to take the decision away from you."

Kate and Bette fight crime.

Next day Maggie is confronted by Agent Chase who tells her Maggie is at the top of her "who is Batwoman" list.  She hands over her card so Maggie can contact her to prove otherwise or suggest an alternative.  Later in a church, the weeping woman La Llorona abducts another child.

Maggie and Kate are on a date flirting heavily with each other.  Maggie tells her about having to deal with the Weeping Woman while having a government bureaucrat breathing down her neck who thinks she is Batwoman.  Maggie then says she'd arrest Batwoman for intefering in her case.  Then she says "can we get out of here?"  They walk back to Kate's place and kiss goodnight.  Kate says she wants to see her again soon and they part.

More Kate and Maggie flirting.

Maggie is called to a crime scene where Agent Chase is waiting.  Some of the dead are were-people from the Religion of Crime.  Maggie doesn't recognise the uniforms of the other dead bodies.  Maggie speculates on how it all went down.  That the initial victim had his hand chopped off before being dragged away by one of the sides, but it is unclear which.  The watching Batwoman says "nice work babe".
Batman appears behind her and she tells him she hasn't made up her mind about joining his organisation.  She asks him what Agent Chase wants with her, he says Chase will tear Gotham apart to find her real identity.  He also advises her to keep Flamebird out of the Weeping Woman case.  "Murdered sidekicks tend to come back from the dead as super villians."

In a house on the pier, Batwoman is having a look round.  She is surprised by Maggie but says to her, "It started in the boat house didn't it?" before escaping.  Maggie calls Chase saying she knows where she can find Batwoman, who is currently exploring under the pier, and who then gets dragged under the water by a mysterious force.

Batwoman faces her past underwater.

As she is pulled under a voice says she is "such a sad little girl" and that "I can taste the deep scars on your soul."  She says Kate can leave it all behind and "you can sleep with me here forever."  But Batwoman breaks free and surfaces gasping for air.

She clambers out of the water and is greeted by Agent Chase and her people.  She says Batwoman is wanted in connection with a terrorist attack, that being the situation in Book One her father covered up.  Batwoman breaks free and knocks out the men guarding her motorbike and races off on it.

She's missed a date with Maggie.  She arrives back home and tells Bette she is done trying to train her, she "doesn't have what it takes."  She cruelly says that the only thing Bette ever lost was a beauty pageant.  Bette slaps her and runs off saying she's a control freak.

Kate: "You're a bitch Kate Kane".

She says sadly as she sits on the bed.  Meanwhile Agent Chase has gone after Jacob Kane next.  She asks about the cover-up but he refuses to speak about it.  She needles him about the way his daughter is living her life right now and if he is proud of her.  He says he will be proud when "she starts doing something worthwhile with her life."  He then asks Chase if her father would be proud of her and leaves.

Bette suits up to crime fight despite Kate's rejection.

She calls Director Bones and he says to forget about the father for now and concentrate on the sidekick next.  We then see Bette getting dressed up as Flamebird.  Kate goes to Maggie's place to apologise for standing her up, then ends up crying in her arms.  She says Maggie is beautiful and they passionately kiss. Then sex happens.

 Ah....

...hmmm..

...hrmmm..

...sigh.

As Maggie and Kate make tasteful black and white love, Flamebird is fighting La Llorona and a large man with a sycthe for a hand.  He guts her and leaves her for dead.

Flamebird meanwhile is nearly killed.

In the morning Maggie and Kate discuss the case of the missing kids.  Meanwhile Chase finds Flamebird just clinging to life and has her taken someplace else.  Batwoman is speaking with a woman who worked at the morgue when two kids who were killed when playing in a disused boathouse were bought in.  Apparently the mother still reeked of gin when she came to identify them.  Her name was Maria Salvaje.

Back with Agent Chase she tricks the barely alive Bette into giving her a name so she doesn't die alone. "Kate Kane" whispers Bette.  Chase says that's an interesting coincidence, then orders Bette to be dropped off at Gotham Central Hospital.

Tricked by Agent Chase.

Batwoman has found Maria's father and he says she drowned herself to be with her children.  Agent Chase meets with Director Bones who has come to Gotham in person because she has "unmasked one of Batman's shadow soldiers..."

Director Bones: "...there's no way I'm missing what comes next."

Batwoman goes to the boathouse and calls for Maria, who appears saying "you can't be here.  This is desecration.  This place is sacred."  Batwoman says it is the site of her suffering.  Maria says she will share her suffering with everyone starting with Batwoman.  She gets into Batwoman's head, Alice/Beth bursts out of Batwoman's body.  Maria says "now face what you have lost".

Batwoman faces down La Llorona.

Batwoman manages to break free of Maria's control saying she is not responsible for what happened to her sister, but Maria did choose, "to be a drunken careless mother".  She needs to look at what she has become.  In distress, Maria says "they made me do things".  Batwoman says she can atone by telling her where the missing kids are.  Maria turns back into a normal looking woman and fades away, just before she disappears she says:

Maria: "The others are in Medusa's coils. But you can still save them.  Please save them".

Then she is gone.  "Who the hell is Medusa?" says Batwoman to herself.  Then back at home she finds Director Bones and Agent Chase in her flat.  She goes to attack Chase who fends her off saying they know she is Batwoman.

She shows her Flamebird's blood-stained costume and tell her they found Bette bleeding out in an alley and that she is now in a stable condition at Gotham General.  Director Bones gets to the point, he wants Kate to work for the D.E.O and dismantle Medusa.  When she asks what it is, he says it is a criminal cartel getting a foothold in Gotham.  If she joins them she gets access to technology not even invented yet and her father won't go to prison for orchestrating the cover-up of the events of Book one.

Director Bones gives Kate no choice.

Thus blackmailed, Kate goes and sits by Bette's sickbed.  Batman is there as well, and Kate doesn't seem bothered he knows her identity now.  Batman says her working for the D.E.O will put her at odds with him.  She says she knows what lines don't get crossed.  Batman says Bones will "eventually force her into an impossible choice."  The book ends with Batwoman telling the parents from the start of the book that the Weeping Woman is gone and she will do everything in her power to bring their children home.

This is a good start to Batwoman's New 52 run.  It goes without saying that JH Williams III's art elevates the thing as a whole, even if the writing isn't as tight and focused as it was under Greg Rucka.  Giving Batwoman a more "magical" enemy to face off against makes her stand out from the run of the mill criminals and psychos that the rest of the Bat-family deal with and of course give JH Williams III carte blanche to go crazy depicting the ghostly and monstrous across gorgeous double page spreads.  Agent Chase, the D.E.O and Director Bones aren't new characters, in fact JH Williams III drew a miniseries they starred in early in his career and which I may feature on the blog at some point in the future.  The romance and instant connection between Maggie and Kate is well written and the love scene treated as erotic and sexy, rather than tacky and explotative.  Now I know some people will say that any sex scene between two women is pandering to the male gaze, but guess what?  Us lesbians quite like seeing two women fucking as well and I don't see why our fun has to be curtailed just because we share predilections with heterosexual men.  Anyway, Batwoman at this point was one of the high points of the New 52, gorgeous to look at and an enjoyable read, roll on the next volume "To Drown The World" which continues the hunt for the lost children and what exactly is Medusa.