Kevin Smith's Batman trilogy: Cacaphony, Widening Gyre, Bellicosity

[Red_Kamui]

First of all, you're thinking about it all wrong. Morrison is the one that gets the better deal here because his story is a part of the current canon and therefore will be more influential towards future stories, whereas this Kevin Smith book is now a glorified Elseworld.

Lots of the other bat-books have mentioned Inc, the organization if not the book itself. Morrison is known for being very secretive, you will most likely see Inc's fallout effect the rest of the DCU later on after the other writers know how its going to end. It's not insignificant at all, you just need to have some patience.

Also, I see no problem with the current Jason Todd being Wingman. It's not like both Inc. and Red Hood are taking place at the exact same time anyway, it's most likely weeks apart, and characters have juggled multiple identities before. And you're misunderstanding the "redeeming of an identity" quote. He was talking about redeeming Wingman's name, not Jason's. Besides, that conversation occurred in Inc. Vol. 1 so it may not even be canon anymore. It's an inconsequential plot point, in any manner.

And as far as Kevin Smith goes, he's generally hated in only one demographic, that being the comic nerds on the internet. As far as the general public goes, he's a popular celebrity and his name sells, no matter the medium. Either way, he's very influential in the business, so if he wants to write a comic, it's gonna happen, no matter how bad it is.

Best to just deal with it and not buy the book. Just think of it like Batman: Odyssey. It's may have been released post-Flashpoint, but it's not canon, so just enjoy the story for what it is.

[theDarkJAww13]

Yah man Kevin Smith's Bat "trilogy" (I guess you can call it that now) is widely considered to be out of continuity. The first two parts were written before the New 52 ever happened - it's only fitting that he should end it that way too.

Your love for Morrison seems to even further your bias toward Smith, judging solely from your post. You got surprised that Smith was writing an out of New 52-continuity story but that really wasn't a surprise to anyone else. And I happen to like Kevin Smith haha. I don't love the dude or anything (though I'm sure this will be accepted as me outing myself as a Kevin Smith fan-boy to most here), but I've always been a fan of Clerks, most of his other movies, & his Clerks comics. His Batman is by no means classic - or even that good - but it's not nearly as bad as most make it out to be when looked at in context (out of continuity).

Not to mention he's doing his part in keeping the comics industry alive today. Whether you like him or not - he's a Hollywood director/producer writing comics, that alone is bound to help the industry whether you like the stories/new fans or not. But if that weren't enough - he not only runs a comic shop in a world where they're steadily disappearing, but he's focusing the only episodic comic-book related TV show that I can think of on the store. None of this is bad for comics, all of it only helps ensure that the story-telling medium we all love continues.

Again, I don't love everything Smith does and yes he absolutely comes off as a tool a LOT - like when he constantly talks about himself in film commentaries/interviews or, you know, his DVD series of 3-hour long Q&A sessions which are really just excuses to film himself speaking. Either way you shake a stick at it, though, he's not a bad guy by any stretch and he's doing good for the books you dig. So instead of hate about it why not just NOT read it and let those who want to enjoy it, ya dig?

[FHIZ]

You mad bro?

[destro]

I don't feel anywhere close to as strongly about this as the topic creator. But I have learned to avoid anything Kevin Smith does, be it comics, film or whatever else.

It's there for people who want it, cool. If you don't like it just avoid it like I will.

[stk]

The thing is, I treated the two Kevin Smith minis we already got as Elseworlds stories anyway. So...... this doesn't really constitute a change, imo.

But yeah, as I said in another thread, I do agree I wish Morrison had been allowed to finish out his Inc storyline in the old continuity.

Also, I see no problem with the current Jason Todd being Wingman.

I do.

Morrison has consistently written Jason as a completely different character than any other Bat-writer handling him every time he's used him. Fine, whatever. But it's even more apparent than before when Inc is already struggling to feel like it fits in the New 52 continuity.

[shadowman79]

ive read his daredevi spiderman black cat and green arrow but never got around to his batman worth buying

[T Hedge Coke]

I like it more than some more vocal posters here, but it's not fantastic work by any standards. If you like Kevin Smith in general, I'd say go ahead and take a look.

[Coal Tiger]

If in 2012 you still think Kevin Smith is a good writer, you'll probably love it.

[SicSexSix]

It's nothing mind-blowingly spectacular, but it's not terrible either. Some of the distinctive quirks that make Kevin Smith, well, Kevin Smith worked well within the stories he's written, and he did manage to pull off a few moments that just make me smile whenever I re-read them, goofy as some of them may be. If you're a fan of his movies, more than likely you'll enjoy his Batman, he does put his signature sense of humor on full display, to varying effect, and his love for the history is obvious. Doesn't always make for a great book, but again, I wouldn't go as far to say it sucks. He's got some high points & some cringe-worthy moments woven through a sea of "meh".

[stk]

It's nothing mind-blowingly spectacular, but it's not terrible either.

Pretty much this. In terms of his comics work, Widening Gyre is possibly the most ambitious thing he's ever attempted. So it's interesting for that.

On the minus side, like all Kevin Smith work, he can't get out of his own way to save his life. Which can get real irritating, real fast.

[Batfan1971]

He gets alot of hate over this, but i actually liked it. Yes there were the sex and stoner jokes, but he also made bats seem more human than most of the other versions out there. Some people don't like that maybe Batman wasn't always the dark and grim nearly perfect crusader we see most of the time. To me this was a refreshing take on Batman and i can't wait to see how volume 2 of Widening Gyre plays out.

[golgi]

I liked it. Eagerly waiting his 3rd volume of his trilogy.

[RoughNTumble]

It was enjoyable enough. Didn't love it, didn't hate it, glad it isn't canon.