PAGETURNER POST-RETRO PREVIEW: Batman and Robin Issue #6

The [Captured] Motion Gallery returns later this week so that your comicsblog's Comics PageTurner can be one of the first to present this advance preview of Batman and Robin Issue #6!

LOL! I wish abbracadabbling could scoop the Big Boys out there with an occasional advance preview!

All fanboy wishes and smiles aside, that's not really our purpose here. Not wanting to compete in the online comics environment is tough, but there are nobler ambitions.

Ours stem from our those things most dear to us: imagination, creativity, an inspiring image, well-crafted stories, smart ideas, the sense of community, a fascination with pop culture and pop-psychology, entrepreneurial spirit, and the never-to-be-understated cool factor of comics and superheroes both. Plus, we just really want to be awesome.

That's the magic behind abbracadabbling, and the same stuff we hope -- nope, scratch that, will pass along you to, if we haven't already.

One sure step towards abbracadabbling appreciation would be to gift your imagination with Batman and Robin #6, the next chapter in the adventures of Grant Morrison, Frank Quietly, and Philip Tan's post-retro Caped Crusaders.

There's a reason this title is DC Comic's best-selling ongoing monthly book, and the answer won't be found in the story re-cap you won't find in our blog tonight. In short, Batman and Robin is the pop-culture soul of the Batman you know reincarnated in a future-spinning pastel world split by one thrill of a wicked grin.

Or, you could say the comic's a viscerally drawn 'What Was is What Could Be Concept' in 32 pages -- that concludes its opening arc Wednesday in the tale The Revenge of the Red Hood. Here's how DC sums it up:

In the startling conclusion to "The Revenge of the Red Hood," Gotham's new "protector" reveals his identity to Batman – and surprisingly poses a heart-stopping question to Dick Grayson about the future of Bruce Wayne! Plus, Robin at the mercy of Scarlet!

Everything after the "--and..." propels the action when the series swings into 2010, and why there won't be a Batman and Robin in December. Grant Morrison removed Bruce Wayne from DC's game play last spring, but whether the original Dark Knight's as dead as his comic book counterparts believe or been sent in to the past as only Tim Drake, the former Robin, purports is still anyone's guess. But he builds it up as Issue #6 wraps, and that's where January's Number Seven kicks off.

Artistic swaps can hurt the flow of any series, and if any fault can be found with Batman and Robin, it's Frank Quietly's departure after Issue #3. Quietly's Morrison's best-suited collaborator, but he's an artist in high demand. Tan's pencils are a good fit here, though his style is a departure toward the darker -- as Issue #6's covers [below] clearly convey. Morrison's stories are multi-layered, and both artists have found inspiration at different points in the thematic spectrum.

Tan's stay is nearly as brief as Quietly's, and December's long time-out will leave a blank page for Cameron Stewart's debut when he comes aboard as co-pilot with Batman and Robin Issue #7 on January 27th, 2010.

The Dynamic Duo's final chapter of 2009 comes tomorrow. Looking at our advance preview below, Bat-fans, expect this fiction to pull no punches or candy-coat Gotham City grit. But if true to form, Revenge of the Red Hood may leave us with questions, but it won't abandon the fun seat of Batman's lasting appeal.

Even as the series sets the stage for January's Blackest Knight, this is one Batman and Robin where the bright spark and humor of its heroes will never be overshadowed by the outrageous.

Batman and Robin #6 - Frank Quietly Cover Art

Batman and Robin #6 - Variant Cover Art by Philip Tan

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A huge thanks to IGN.com for the graphic assist.

For widescreen Batman action, go here.

YGI: Philip Tan's Truth and Beauty

As a recognizable artist -- an autuer whose work stands out by offering an experience worthy of investment -- Philip Tan's been on my radar for just one year. If the importance of the comics industry's relatively new contract system for artists should ever be questioned, Phil Tan's career of the past 18 months provides an excellent answer.

Tan, now thirty-one years old, went exclusive with DC Comics in April, 2008. Shortly thereafter, Tan made his first blip on my radar, and I've been tracking him with interest ever since. [But maybe not for all the reasons you might think. Keep reading.]

Prior to his contract with DC Comics, Tan had been making a name for himself at Marvel.

His "House of Ideas" credits include The Mighty Thor #57, Iron Man Annual 2004, and a six-issue run on Uncanny X-Men (#425-6, 429-433).

It's cool to see that Tan's as adept with the Marvel characters (just look at his Doctor Doom and Black Bolt pin-ups, below) as he is with DC's pantheon. But if he had to pick between the Big Two, Tan admits that he's always been a DC boy. [Sweet! That alone would make me like the dude. But it's not why Tan's still a radar target. Keep reading!]

As much I'd like to trumpet my own talent for spotting comics newest rising stars, I doubt I'd fool any of you for too long. See, Phil Tan's first assignment at DC was DC Universe Issue #0. DCU#0 was co-written by Grant Morrison and Geoff Johns as a prelude to Final Crisis. And Grant, of course, is my main man - where he goes, the 'Dabbler goes. You do the math.

Moving on. Turns out the fifty-cent DC Universe "Zero-Issue" got panned for several reasons - most of them of an editorial nature - but the comic's artwork wasn't among the complaints. The book looked great, and Tan moved on to other high-profile projects, including additional Final Crisis work (ie, Final Crisis: Revelations with Greg Rucka).

DC has obviously appreciated Phil Tan's talent since before "Day One". Chief among his admirers has been DC Comics' Editor-in-Chief, Dan DiDio. Following Revelations (2008), Tan's found himself assigned to DC's top-selling books: Green Lantern (with Geoff Johns) and most recently, Batman and Robin (again with Grant Morrison.) That's high profile, people, not to mention a good boss.

Tan's Batman run ends with November's Issue #6. But he's no less a favored son. At the Long Beach Comic Con earlier this month, DC announced that the Bat-Franchise's team book, Outsiders, will see new creative talent beginning January, 2010. A lot of folks in Long Beach were surprised to learn Dan DiDio himself was the series' new scribe, but I could only smile when Phil Tan's name was also attached.

New creative teams make for the interesting and unexpected, both in terms of storyline as well as sales. DiDio's not a proven writer, and from chatter on the net, the majority of DC's readers are ambivalent about the Top Man taking the reigns of a monthly title. No one's forgotten the considerable if not ridiculous delays Daredevil: Sins of the Father endured when Marvel's EICJoe Quesada took his stab at double duty, and Outsiders can't afford the same should DiDio's editorial responsibilities surpass his time with a keyboard.

Therein, folks, lies the truth and beauty of Philip Tan. DiDio's nurtured Tan's worthy talent with DC's best books. Now he's counting on Tan to make sure Outsiders becomes an inside success. If a picture's worth a thousand words, then at the very least, Tan's lines may help to compensate if DiDio's scripts fall below fan expectations.

Of course, the new monthly team of Dan and Tan may be a result of sheer co-incidence, though DiDio himself has already spoken on his standing interest in writing a monthly -- not to mention just how "infectious" the "level of excitement and enthusiasm Phil brings to everything he works on" is.

I can definitely appreciate - and even relate as much as my limited experience allows me to-- DiDio's sentiments, and it's cool from a fanboy perspective to know DiDio's stoked to jump on board something new with an artist he likes and believes in. From a Corporate POV, one seldom taken with comics, perhaps, because its difficult to remember there's a reality lying past the illusion, DiDio and Tan offer insight on DC Comics's culture, professional development, and management styles.

Following Phil's career path at DC has been fun and more than a little educational. Good news is, I don't see him falling off my radar anytime soon. And come January, The Dan and Tan Team's of Outsiders will remain on my list, same as always. Even if it sucks. I mean, being a faithful Outsiders fan since the title first appeared in the mid-1980's, I'm willing to throw down serious green no matter how bad it gets.

Actually, the real truth is I've always just been a sucker for a good old-fashioned bromance story. Always have, always will be. And this one's just getting good.

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For your graphic imagination, there's more Phil Tan's artwork below and on his Deviant Art page, here.

For a desktop-sized file of the black and white cover art (above, right) to Batman and Robin Issue #6 -- featuring pencils by Philip Tan and inks by Jon Glapion -- click here.