Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Huntress Year One #5 of 6
DC Comics
Madison, Richards & Rapmund

After hunting for some time for the first few issues of this mini I finally got caught up and am up to schedule. This issue is excellent. As the others have been. This issue doesn’t just tell a story, but it gives a mix of symbolism and irony that tells more than just a cool story. Add in excellent artwork and you have a pretty perfect comic. When you consider that this is a story about a C list character you can only marvel at the feat.

Huntress is in Gotham and she is staking out stately Wayne Manor. Wayne is hosting a wedding reception of the man the Huntress loves and some mystery woman. Huntress spies Wayne and the groom’s father (a mob boss) cooking up a deal. Huntress, out for revenge on the mob boss, charges in on Wayne and the boss. She assumes Wayne is a dirty criminal as well. She assumes he is a liar and weakling. She assumes he is a man without honor. Wayne plays along perfectly. He lets himself get taken just so his mob buddy can get away.

Wayne wont even allow the taunting that Huntress does about Wayne’s parents set off the Batman within him. Bruce stays in character. He is sizing up Huntress and she doesn’t even realize it. All that I have described is an outstanding take on Batman as seen through the eyes of a character who doesn’t know Bruce Wayne is Batman and who probably doesn’t even know what Batman really is. This story really nails the line of perception in terms of good and evil. The line moves depending on whom is looking at whom. It’s really great story telling.

Eventually Batgirl jumps in and gets herself knocked out. It seemed a little odd that Huntress would take her out, but I guess Huntress is about five years older so maybe that would provide an advantage when dealing with a teenager. The whit that Bruce delivers when scolding Batgirl is also priceless.

Huntress continues to pursue her revenge and she is met with some resistance. Her prey is taken out by a competitor. Distraught, she receives some comfort by the Catwoman. This occurs only when Catwoman rescues Huntress from her first encounter with Batman. It’s with great irony that Catman and Huntress should hit it off as they both find the line between hero and villain and stretch it out so much more than others.

There is a ton of stuff going on in this comic. Add in all the plot pieces involving the actual mob connections and you have a very dense story. This comic provides some excellent moments of storytelling. One particularly great moment is when the mobster’s son grapples with his father’s murder. Instead of turning the gun on himself, his wife or someone else he picks a cat. This provides some excellent symbolism and a bit of irony. However, it also shows the misplacement of anger that basically launched the whole character of Huntress in the first place. It’s just one of many of these types of moments in the comic.

The artwork is outstanding. Huntress, Catwoman, Batgirl and Batman all look excellent. The fight scenes are as crystal clear as the sitting still ones. This comic makes excellent use of color. Oh sure, most of the capes are in shades of black, but they have detail in their differences that makes them so unique.

At this point you have either read along or you missed out. However, if you have a chance to read these issues I highly recommend this title to anyone who likes mob stories. Sure, a little Batman doesn’t hurt, but he is such a supporting character in this comic it’s not even funny. I can’t emphasize how good this comic is as well as the entire series.

5 out of 5 geek goggles


Huntress Year One #5 (of 6)