Batman: The Murder Machine #1
| Event\Storyline | Dark Knights: Metal |
| Writer | Frank Tieri |
| Artist | Ricardo Federici |
| Cover Price | $3.99 |
As the events of DARK NIGHTS: METAL rock the DC Universe, the creatures of the Dark Multiverse stand ready to invade our world! How can even the World's Greatest Heroes stop a horde of deadly beings that appear to be powerful, nightmare versions of familiar figures? Find out in these special tie-in issues!
CRITIC REVIEWS
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10
GWW - Deron Generally
Sep 26, 2017This is a great one-shot comic that fleshes out the world of Metal while giving a great contextual back story to one of its villains. Read Full Review
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10
Comicosity - Allen Thomas
Sep 27, 2017Batman: The Murder Machine is a relatively fun exploration of one of the many ways Bruce could change, as well as a great portrayal of Vic as a character. In this cascade of tie-ins, while we simultaneously deal with the consequences of Metal, there is a lot to unpack, but that does not mean there is anything missing from this story. This story is connected, but stands on its own as a piece of affective storytelling, crafted by a team of creators that can unravel intense and deeply emotional themes. Read Full Review
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10
Comicsverse - Aaron Berke
Sep 27, 2017BATMAN: THE MURDER MACHINE #1 is a riveting analysis of Batman's and Alfred's relationship, arriving at a thesis more darkly profound than any we've ever read. Read Full Review
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10
The Batman Universe - Jessica Nilo Alves
Sep 27, 2017With a well-developed concept, believable backstory and faultless execution, Batman: Murder Machine is a striking comic. Frank Tieri and James Tynion IV gave a little twist to the Batman mythos and yet kept true to their core, making it even more unnerving than simply distorting Batman into an evil version. Stunning, gut-wrenching art gives us the visual to yet another Batman mourning story, one which will surely leave its mark in the history of the Caped Crusader. Read Full Review
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10
Kabooooom - Matt Morrison
Sep 28, 2017The Dark Knights Metal crossover event continues to pick up steam, as The Murder Machine rolls along. Though little happens in this issue to shed light (no pun intended) on the plans of the Dark Multiverse League of Batmen, the story contained within this issue is an enjoyable one and the artwork looks amazing throughout. This book is a must-read for anyone keeping up with The Dark Knights Metal saga or anyone who enjoys a good Elseworld story. Read Full Review
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10
Comic Book Corps - Tom Zimm
Sep 28, 2017A final twist at the end brings an amazing conclusion to an exciting book. Cyborg is stepped on by a large creature. Its unclear who exactly this is at first. However, as the story quickly progresses, we see the members of the Dark Multiverse, which were revealed in Metal 2, appear! Connections are not made between The Joker and these characters; however, their appearance resembles The Joker in the mouth area. The story is amazing as it weaves from one dimension to another pulling the Father-Son theme throughout. The art is gorgeous. I am excited to learn where this story goes after this amazing installment! Read Full Review
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9.5
AIPT - David Brooke
Sep 27, 2017Another solid tie-in that fleshes out a nightmare in unnerving ways. Read Full Review
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9.5
Lyles Movie Files - Jeffrey Lyles
Sep 27, 2017Tieri and Tynion IV tease that Cyborg is going to play a vital role in Metal, which is welcome. He hasn't gotten many moments in the spotlight. With more stories like this, Cyborg truly could become the A-list player DC execs have envisioned all along. Read Full Review
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9.0
Comics: The Gathering - Hussein Wasiti
Sep 27, 2017I was very impressed with this issue, and I'm going to recommend going out to pick this up. Scott Snyder publicly said that it isn't necessary to buy the tie-ins, but these issues seem very integral to the whole event as backstories to the villains and I don't see anyone truly appreciating what's going on without this knowledge. The writing is strong, the very foundation of the plot is creepy, and the art is thematic and great. Read Full Review
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9.0
On Comics Ground - Reed Strong
Sep 27, 2017This event is insane, and one of the craziest combinations of things to happen in an event comic in a long time. Read Full Review
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9.0
Bounding Into Comics - Daniel Mills
Sep 27, 2017The story contained therein features a heartbreaking son just trying to find his father amidst a world of madness. It seems everyMetaltie-in will play with the tragedy of Bruce Wayne to create its Batman. The remarkable tragedy Snyder and Capullo are creating has already become one for the Batman history books. Read Full Review
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9.0
DC Comics News - Cameron Tevis
Sep 27, 2017I was blown away by this issue! I wasn't actually expecting much from Murder Machine compared to some of the others like Dawnbreaker or Red Death. After reading Red Death, I thought it set a high bar, but this issue easily raised the bar. Read Full Review
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9.0
Batman-News - Jay Yaws
Sep 28, 2017What a delightful surprise this was. Rather than settling on the "easy" story that pits man against machine, Tieri and Tynion instead craft a story about grief and what it means to be human. This is as much a Cyborg story as it is a Batman story, and by using those two men to parallel each other this Metal tie-in makes the Murder Machine a terrifying yet sympathetic villain. A lot has been made about how brutal and scary this issue is, and rightly so: there are scenes of almost shocking violence, as gorgeously illustrated by Riccardo Federici, and the cold menace of the Dark Knights is unmistakable. It goes deeper than sheer terror, though, with a story that, at its heart, is remarkably sad and undeniably human. Read Full Review
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9.0
Newsarama - Joey Edsall
Sep 28, 2017With Batman: The Murder Machine #1, this event again bears some of its strongest fruit in the issues that would otherwise seem like throwaways or inessential. And while you may not need this issue to understand the main event storyline, it's hard to not emphatically recommend it for readers who are enjoying where Dark Nights: Metal. It’s also hard to not find yourself eagerly anticipating the next tie-in given the strength of this one, which is a sentiment few comic readers often have. Read Full Review
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9.0
Dark Knight News - Kevin M. Gallagher, Jr
Sep 29, 2017Out of all the post Dark Nights: Metal #1 tie-ins we've seen so far, Batman: The Murder Machine #1 is easily the best to date. The pacing felt great and I didn't feel like I was missing anything by the end of the issue. A great self-contained story that also progressed the greater event story. I really love how, although similar to Cyborg, this evil Batman is an amalgamation of himself and Alfred. It gives me hope that there is more to these evil Batmen that meets the eye. Read Full Review
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9.0
Outright Geekery - Brian A. Madrid
Oct 09, 2017This issue of the Metal tie-ins will tug a little at the heart-strings. Read Full Review
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8.5
Bleeding Cool - Joshua Davison
Sep 27, 2017Like Red Death, Murder Machine adds another cool story behind one of the members of Barbatoss Bat-League. It fleshes out their world in a delightfully macabre manner, and I recommend it. Read Full Review
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8.5
We The Nerdy - Aron Pohara
Sep 28, 2017As it stands it is a fun book and it is recommended, even though it did not have a same type of impact as Red Death standalone. Read Full Review
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8.0
The DC Bros - Dillyn Chadwick
Sep 27, 2017Batman: The Murder Machine #1 is a very good issue, but not the best Metal has offered. Some parts of the issue were less engaging than others but it was still horrifically enjoyable and disturbing in scenes, with art that complements the story this issue was going for. Read Full Review
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8.0
Big Comic Page - Chris Bennett
Sep 27, 2017All the boxes are ticked here for me, but with the bar set so high already, it did fall slightly short of a perfect score, in a 'good, but not great' way. That's not to say that this should be skipped over by any means, because let's be honest, it's still gold, and worth the cover price for the Terminator Batman alone. Read Full Review
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8.0
WhatCulture - Ewan Paterson
Sep 27, 2017Time will only tell how Dark Nights impacts the DCU going forward, but if the Murder Machine is anything to go by, then it holds some pretty massive changes in store. Be sure to keep the next tie-in, Batman: The Dawnbreaker, firmly on your radar. Read Full Review
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8.0
Newsarama - Jon Arvedon
Sep 28, 2017Frank Tieri and James Tynion IV deliver a deviously dark tale that packs a surprising amount of heart thanks to the parallel father-son relationships " one between Victor and Silas, the other between Bruce and Alfred " that form the foundation of the narrative. Read Full Review
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8.0
Comic Book Bin - Paul Mason
Oct 04, 2017The dark Bat League look and seem absolutely horrific and the creative team has done a good job making Metal fresh, while paying homage to the long history of the multiverse's history. Read Full Review
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7.7
Graphic Policy - Brett
Sep 27, 2017Overall, a solid issue that despite not quite living up to the quite high expectations set up from what has come before, it still has added a depth to the story and my appreciation for it all. Read Full Review
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7.0
NerdEnt.Net - Sinister Sheep
Sep 30, 2017The thing I don't like is the price is $3.99 and it's a short issue. cyborg while did have his own story it kinda takes a back seat to batman's backstory. It's a little to short and they do a lot of tell not show like i'm still confessed how batman turned into a cyborg. Read Full Review
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6.8
Multiversity Comics - Rowan Grover
Sep 29, 2017Computers go rogue in this interesting yet strangely executed spin-off, with some seriously beautiful art to elevate the book just above average. Read Full Review
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6.6
IGN - Blair Marnell
Sep 28, 2017In this issue's favor, it does actually further the Dark Multiverse invasion by striking a pretty big blow against the heroes. So it's not a throwaway tale, but I was hoping for more. Read Full Review
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6.0
Weird Science - Eric Shea
Sep 27, 2017While I liked the backstory for this Batman more than I did with The Red Death, that's about all I liked more about it because the art style lacked any kind of motion and the dialog was robotic.......... and while that last part should just be accepted because of what the character is........ it led to a really boring read. Hopefully, going forward, we'll learn more about a development that is only hinted at in this issue and that the rest of the one-shots start focusing around that instead of a simple counterpart beat 'em up. Read Full Review
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6.0
Comic Bastards - Justin McCarty
Sep 27, 2017Instead, what we have gotten is a dark exploration of a Bruce Wayne practically at a mental breakdown. At the start of the summer when Snyder talked to CBR he said this would be, "off-the-wall, bonkers fun, where we just want to melt your face off and rock out all summer long with everybody". I understand too if you listen to metal music it can be dark, but Enter Sandman had dark lyrics and was also fun. For me, this feels more like a story only about despair and the fun has been forgotten. I am only taking this one tie-in into consideration. The entire series could end up being fun. The individual parts aren't adding up yet for me. Read Full Review
USER REVIEWS
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9.5
It kept growing and growing with every page passing. This is amazing, I didn't think they could top The Red Death and they proved me wrong. The bar is so high now for The Dawnbreaker.
+ Like • Comment• Likes (1) -
9.5
This issue tells a very compelling and emotional story despite being very brutal and violent. It is interesting from start to finish and the whole digital Alfred thing is well explained and fits with both Batman and Cyborg. The art is what really shines though here though. The details are amazing and the darkness of the story pours through every panel. Truly a work of art.
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9.5
If you have been following Metal then this is a must. It's a one-shot as well so you can pick it up, but I suggest reading the other Metal books and tie-ins. Pick it up you'll enjoy this and great characters in this.
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9.0
Those Tie-Ins are definitely "saving" Metal *I used " ", so don't complain about the word saving, you know what I meant
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8.5
I kinda like these f'ed up versions of Batman, these versions of Bruce are willing to cross the line and they're more true to their emotions. Alfred is obviously more immortal than Ra's al Ghul but if a writer had the balls to actually kill off Alfred in continuity, Bruce would snap. Alfred's the only thing keeping Bruce sane. The way I look at it, these evil Dark Knights are what happens when Bruce gives into his fears, anger, and hatred. This is what happens when a Batman falls to the Dark side of the Force... In the Red Death, Bruce thinks Barry doesn't take full potential of the Speed Force and Batman wants that power to go back in time, save his parents, and kill all villains. Yep, Metal is definitely ripping themes from Darth Vader, w more
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8.5
Awesome
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8.5
Not quite the one-shot since it's continuing in The Dawnbreaker but the issue is good nonetheless. The back and fourth between multiverses was confusing at first. The art is great. Good stuff.
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8.5
I thought this was easier to follow then the red death. This issue was very intriguing considering it is Alfred's death that turned Bruce into the Murder Machine. I thought the art here was absolutely awesome.
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8.5
I'm beginning to like the direction these Metal one-shots are going in regards to giving solid, interesting background stories for the Dark Universe Batmen. Batmen that have finally succumb to the darkness within. All while a Joker-type character jumps amongst the multiverse to recruit them. I'm Murder Machine we get a violent and brutal story about Bruce Wayne grieving the death of Alfred, and attempting to bring him back, using Cyborg's technology. All goes wrong and Bruce chooses to defend his father-figure over his friends and his world. It's surprisingly emotional for a one-shot, and adds a good amount of depth to the core Metal series.
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8.0
Alfred :(
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8.0
Another great Metal tie-in. Loving how these oneshots flesh out the story.
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7.5
Good art, but kinda boring
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7.5
Finally injecting some emotion into this event. The baddie introduced at the end looks freakin' awesome despite being an obvious rip off of Judge Death.
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4.0
I didn't like it at all. The metal cover is nice, but this didn't help. I don't like how the story is told. We pass from present to past to present ... And so one, and this is bowering. The importante part where Bruce let the Alfred virus is only told but now show. We didn't fully understand why. Like we didn't fully understand what is this new batman ? The art is maybe to real for been good. It's like a painting with this color, but a bad one.
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