Review: Batman & Robin Eternal #6

I hope all my fellow Bat-fans out there had a terrific New DC Day yesterday. I was most excited to pick up the latest issue in the weekly Batman & Robin Eternal series, titled “Never Enough”. Many fans have been getting impatient with this title, but they should all be relieved, because this sixth issue was most definitely the breakout issue of the series. We probably learned more in this issue than in the four previous ones combined.

The issue begins with one of the Robins (you can only see his silhouette) observing a charity event that Bruce Wayne is hosting. He is pondering how Bruce is like a different person without his memory of being Batman. It’s a sad scene, and it reminded me how although I’m pretty opposed to JimBat, having Bruce in this condition is pretty necessary to tell this awesome Batman & Robin Eternal story.

We then move on to Dick and Red Hood investigating St. Elijah’s, where Scarecrow met with Orphan and Cassandra Cain and Harper Row fought against Orphan in the previous issue. They find what looks like Orphan’s hideout of sorts, and they harp on the importance of the Robins sticking together to solve this mystery.

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In our Bruce and Dick flashback for this issue, they are still on the Scarecrow’s tail, and Dick is still struggling with feeling he’s not good enough to be Batman’s sidekick. And here’s where a lot comes full circle for fans who have been kept in the dark for much of the series to this point. Bruce is at a police fundraiser, talking to a friend of his who mentions (disturbingly casually) that he purchased his wife from a woman called Mother. After making eye contact with another man (implied to be Orphan), Bruce’s friend Maxwell quickly backtracks on what he said and leaves. Bruce then does some investigating, realizing that Mother is a human trafficker in Prague who stages traumas for kids in order to take them in and essentially customize them for sale to rich people. We actually get to see what Mother looks like for the first time (so creepy!), and we find out that Bruce keeps Dick in the dark about this because he feels guilty that he basically shaped Dick into Robin the same way Mother shapes the orphans she takes in.

At the end of the issue, Dick and Jason decide to go to Prague with Cassandra and Harper for more investigating, where it seems that Mother may be waiting for them… This series began with a bang, and then slowed down for a while, but this sixth issue was excellent. It might be a combination of Snyder and Tynion IV taking back over writing duties that resulted in this and that the story reached a point where a lot of things came together, but whatever the reason, my faith in this title has been rewarded generously!

Next: Review: Batman & Robin Eternal #5

I’m giving this issue five batarangs out of five. There was really a deep dive into Bruce’s emotions in this one, and of course the flashback section also exemplified him being the world’s greatest detective. Dick and Red Hood’s dialogue was also very insightful, and while there wasn’t much action in this one, I enjoyed the story tremendously. I’m definitely looking forward to next week’s seventh issue, when Dick, Red Hood, Harper, and Cassandra head to Prague. Make sure to keep it locked to Caped Crusades for continuing coverage of this thrilling weekly.

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