Batman: Urban Legends #1

Despite the hefty price tag, this is a very enjoyable anthology thats a must-grab issue for Batman fans. Read Full Review

Urban Legends was an enjoyable read, and while I couldn't wait to read Chip Zdarsky's Red Hood story, I liked the whole package.  Chip's story wasn't even my favorite by the end, and it had nothing to do with the quality of his story because it was great!  Check it out, and don't skip any, you hear! Read Full Review

Overall, though, a very solid first issue with no real weak spots. Read Full Review

Batman: Urban Legends #1 is a solid chronicle of the Dark Knight's friends and foes, featuring tales of triumph and heartbreak. If you're a fan of Batman or a specific character within the Batman mythos, chances are there's a story in here for you. Read Full Review

This series is off to a strong start, presenting multiple tales that show how flexible and versatile this side of the DC Universe can be. Read Full Review

Pick this up, as it will be one of your favorite playgrounds for some time to come! Read Full Review

Last, but certainly not least, Matthew Rosenberg is back at it with Grifter. The start of his five-chapter story, "The Long Con," was a bit frustrating " but in the right way. Cole Cash is something else; this story was a great way to end the first issue of this anthology. Read Full Review

Rosenberg makes Grifter a more interesting character in this short story. Beyond the characters bravado and attitude, there is potential for an evolution for the character especially given the circumstances created in the plot. Read Full Review

Batman: Urban Legends #1 is an absolute win for the anthology format that DC Comics has been trying out with all of the four stories in the comic being entertaining and shedding light on a unique cast of characters. The longer stories that bookend the comic are especially noteworthy thanks to Chip Zdarsky's pitch-perfect handle on the fascinating character of Jason Todd in “Batman and Red Hood” and Matthew Rosenberg and Ryan Benjamin's skill with verbal and visual humor in “Grifter”. Read Full Review

A well-curated mix of stories from some of the best creatives currently working in the superhero genre, Batman: Urban Legends #1 marks the successful re-establishment of the jumbo anthology into the direct market. Harley and Ivy is the highlight here, but the quality is high across the board. After 'Future State''s mixed results with the format, this successful launch bodes well for the future of the DC anthology. Read Full Review

The quality of the installments range from riveting and complex to entirely forgettable, which will surely satiate the curiosities of readers who were drawn into the book by the more well-known characters. Read Full Review

Batman: Urban Legends #1 is an old timey digest of awesome. The stories are up and down, but for the most part, this has a ton of legs. It makes sense for some of these smaller characters, who for some reason, could not sell books on their own, to be here, in a book, with the big guy's name on it to sell a few more copies. Hey, if this is what it takes to get an excellent Red Hood story, to get to see the Outsiders again, and to watch Grifter go toe to toe with Bruce and Dick, I am all in. Read Full Review

Take a trip into Gotham's darker side in four fantastic tales by creators at the top of their games. Read Full Review

Three out of four ain't bad. Not bad at all. Read Full Review

"Fine with room to grow" about sums up my feelings, and I wish I could be more positive here. I mean, Batman by Zdarsky? More Rosenberg Grifter? Wackiness with the Outsiders from Brandon Thomas and Max Dunbar? This should have been a home run, but instead it was more of a base hit. Hopefully the upcoming chapters find the stories hitting a stride, along with leaving room for some solid standalone one-and-dones. As it is, Batman: Urban Legends is a great idea that falls short in the execution. Read Full Review

DoorMan

Mar 09, 2021

I always jump at the opportunity to read Zdarsky's material. Really enjoyed his piece here and very much look forward to this series.

SenpaifenixJäger

Mar 09, 2021

I shouldn't rate this so high since there are two bad stories and mainly Harley's who was rubbish and I hate those fillers, however Hood's story destroys emotions from beginning to end. Chip develops an excellent story giving us a glimpse into the past, when he is that adorable Robin, and when he becomes a hood, Alfred that man and his wisdom that Batman does not know how to take advantage of, Jason needs Bruce Wayne, his father, says Alfred, without However Bruce opts for the bat, we all know how that ends, with a batarang cutting Jason's neck. Hood is struck by his past, I think it is seen in the little boy, he is reliving the pain he left behind, something that we thought was overcome but apparently Chip decides that he is not (this is the only part that I do not agree so much, he loses his temper at the guy who shot him but he keeps it long enough not to murder the Joker? come on DC) however let's take the ptsd. Jason is a range of emotions, angry, hurt, sweet, furious and sorry. This is definitely the result when you take an interesting character who has a lot to give and put a good writer to develop it. Jason has a lot of history of trauma and pain to explode, if you put him together with a good writer and cartoonist as a result he gives a much superior comic. Of course I will buy the comic as soon as it arrives ONLY BY RED HOOD, of course it is expensive and I would pay more if it was only Red Hood with Chip in charge. more

Stormwrath

Mar 09, 2021

Fantastic

fearUhavemeisenough

Mar 09, 2021

What can I say, this was very exciting, for years Jason finally has a writer he deserves. With the other stories he could light the fire in the fireplace, nothing really interesting.

prettythief

Mar 09, 2021

Zdarsky take to my favor character and do a amazing work, just when I'd given up hope and put the DC comics aside. It is a pity that the price does not allow me to buy it, it is a very expensive number for a single story.

Emma

Mar 09, 2021

Red Hood and Grifter was the Best, Red Hood was incredible. I love it.

Comics instrucciones de uso

Mar 09, 2021

The Zdarsky story saves the issue.

Blackgirl

Mar 17, 2021

I have this comic in my hands, I'm reading it again. There is no doubt, the story of Red Hood takes the entire book, the narration, the dialogues, the art, everything is beautiful. The other stories aren't so bad, I just didn't understand the purpose of the couple's story. Pamela and Harleen felt a bit out of place. Zdarsky does a great job, I knew he would when he volunteered for such a job, the comment he likes about the antihero Red Hood. Maybe by next year we will have Zdarsky in charge of reviving the series. cross our fingers.

redhood

Mar 17, 2021

Excuse my English I am a Spanish girl. I love Red Hood's job and it's the only reason I pay $ 8. I smell like drama on the road, I don't know if there will be reconciliation and why Bruce insists that Jason is a murderer. This new DC current of anything goes, it can make things more confusing, I think it was a mistake, unless as always Bruce is an idiot and does not care that Jason did not kill Oswald.

Vellichor

Mar 18, 2021

Red Hood was amazing.

Κυανό

Jun 23, 2021

The problem with this type of comics of variable quality with a lot of stories thrown into the content is that it doesn't work as should, that is the reason why this kind of comics stopped, and them focused on series with only one character, at most they presented one single short story, and if this comic can be placed within the list of best sellers by value, but not in those that are sold by unit due to its high cost. As good as Chip's work is, the poor man has been dragging with him, from acceptable stories to really bad ones. I can assume that only Chip and RH fans could be consuming the book, it is a mere guess of mine. Another thing that I notice in most viewpoints is the tendency to rate the main story, and I think I'll do it that way. First, I don't know where in the canon to place this, as far I knew RH and B they had not reconciled in JW, I don't understand this new distancing. But it seems that everything that is not series is an elsword, a disastrous experiment in my particular feeling. Chip is going back at the time, when readers had a special hatred for JT thanks to his disastrous first origin. Yeah I hated it too, making a copy of Dick Grayson was the cheapest thing anyone could do. And I think with that sentiment and a bit of an update Chip takes these parts to send a clear message. father-prodigal son relationship. Leaving all these inconsistencies behind, it is a really beautiful writing, Chip uses everything he has at hand to start strong and painfully showing us the demons and mistakes that father and son make to each other, and not just with JT, the new character, a child is going through a kind of parallelism that JT went through. more

Psycamorean

Mar 09, 2021

This is a really good anthology. Anthologies are usually rough, but when you put good creators on them, it tends to go better. The Red Hood story by Chip Zdarsky is my favorite. The best Red Hood I've read since... Well, honestly, ever, thanks to Scott Lobdell. That ending sure is a hook. The Harley and Ivy story is not on par, but it's not bad. I kinda found the stuff set in the past a little annoying. Harley is just annoying to me. But the stuff in the present worked better and I liked that. The Outsiders story is also in a vaguely good place. It was fine and then the ending happened, and that's where I was hooked. And finally, the Grifter story is great. Matthew Rosenberg can write scumbags well. This story also had a great hook. I feel like, Harley aside, these stories all nailed the cliffhangers, which is very helpful when trying to market a, what, $7.99 comic? more

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SenpaifenixJäger - Mar 9, 2021

from Judd Winick, yes I know, Lobdell even though he was not good gave some good numbers. It would be great if Chip continued with Red Hood in a solo series. Grifter after Hood was the only thing I liked.

Psycamorean - Mar 9, 2021

I hope Chip continues too.

sebastianorellana95

Mar 09, 2021

Amazing story of Red Hood. One of the best about this character. Give him a new solo series writed by Chip. And entertaining story of The Grifter.

Afre

Mar 11, 2021

I'm only here because of the Red Hood story. And damn it was good. Chip needs to start writing Jason as well. As for the others? I guess they were fine.

J. Rabbit

Mar 20, 2021

There are 4 stories here that I would rate 10, 10, 9, and 7.5 in whatever order you choose. Overall, an excellent book with some outstanding writing. Overall... Story: Good to Outstanding Writing: Good to Outstanding Pencil/Ink: Good to Great Layout: Good Color: Good to Great Lettering: Good to Great

Boudi

Mar 29, 2021

Lovely first issue! The take on Jason is amazing and Zdarsky makes great use of flashbacks to show us how Bruce failed Jason and continues to do so. The pencils and colours are good in all the four stories. The take on the Harley Quinn x Poison Ivy couple is good here and I like how this story is connected to the new Catwoman storyline. I was never a fan of Grifter but this story seems interesting. The only drawback is the Outsiders story, that was very short and doesn't spark any emotion.

Spacey Medicine

Jun 23, 2021

I am so extremely here for Dad Hood it’s unreal.

allenquanobi

Mar 09, 2021

Literally this rating is only for the Zdarsky story. It was so good, it was one of the better Red Hood stories I've read in a while. I'm one of those people who thinks Jason Todd works better as a mistake/lesson for Batman, and that was shown here as well as providing much needed characterization for Jason as well. The other stories were serviceable, which to be fair, is all you can ask for in an anthology. The strengh of the Zdarsky/Barrows story really carries this book, and I hope that Zdarsky continues his work in the next issue.

ICC

Mar 24, 2021

Really like this style of multiple stories in one issue. Feels classic and not to mention each story was actually good.

Merlyn

Mar 09, 2021

The Red Hood story is clearly the star of the show here, the art is perfect for this type of story and the characterization of Red Hood is really great and spot on, with a tiny thing that irked me as a Red Hood fan. I know Chip Zdarsky is pro-drugs in a very upfront way but hearing Red Hood, a guy whose mother overdosed (and I think his dad also was a pusher and eventually got to jail), that drugs "sound great" really didn't sound very in character. But that's just one complaint in an otherwise excellent story and I can't wait to see more of it. The Harley and Outsiders stories were okay at best and the Grifter one was good if I'm being generous. Stil, overall, I can't say any story here was bad and if I add the Red Hood part, I'm more t han happy about this one. more

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Svarietyy - Mar 9, 2021

Zdarsky definitely needs to do more DC work, really hyped for his JL book now

Mingthemerciless - Mar 10, 2021

Now compare Zdarskys effort here with what Tynion is doing on the main book. Tynion treads water at best. His own creations are bland and interchangeable. DC has to be realizing Batman needs a new writer at this point. Granted this is technically a red hood story but the quality difference is glaring.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 10, 2021

The Grifter story is fun for me because of the characters connection to Inage comics. DC still trying to make Quinn an A lister is foolish. The character is a psycho gangster moll. Her own movie tanked. I didnt even bother with her entry.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 10, 2021

The Outsiders was fun and I'd love to the team handled better because I've always enjoyed the concept.

Merlyn - Mar 10, 2021

I'm no fan of Zdarsky (incidentally I strongly dislike his DD run and people here are giving me a hard time for it lol) but when someone writes a good story I'm going to give him all the credit he deserves. Now I don't know what his pitch is for JL but sure, I'll give it a try. @Ming: I don't think Tynion gives a shit about his Batman book, I'm pretty sure of it by now. His Joker #1 was great, I think he's focused on that and on the Batman book he's just winging it.

Merlyn - Mar 10, 2021

@Ming: The bigger problem here is DC letting him do this to its best character. But that's probably because the company is in financial trouble and they can't afford a big name on the book as a writer.

Svarietyy - Mar 11, 2021

@Merlyn: Wow, nearly everyone I spoke to has been liking DD. If you don't mind me asking, is there any particular reasons for your preference And yeah, it's obvious at this point the main Bat title has become a factory churning out new OC's every 2 issues. I think my dream creative team for Batman now would be Cates and Stegman. As long as we get the Cates who has been delivering top-tier stuff at Marvel and not him on Crossover

Merlyn - Mar 11, 2021

I just disagree with Zdarsky's views about society and he peppers those views throught the DD book. Also, he shits just too much on Matt for my taste.

Merlyn - Mar 11, 2021

*throughout

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

It's a very good observation on Tynion with Batman. It does look like hes not interested in the main book and more engaged with the Joker story. Its almost like he needed Joker War(which was terrible) to get him positioned for the solo book.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

For me Tynion has never been good with Tec or Batman. Snyder started great and you can see where he disengaged from interest in Batman. Tynion has never hit the mark.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

I understand your beef with Zdarsky but it's clear hes got a better handle on the human side of heroes and puts them back to a street level. That's where DD and Batman work best when the city is as much a character as its heroes and villains. That's the Batman I enjoy.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

Agreed DCs money woes are an obstacle but there's good writers who aren't A list that would elevate Batman and Superman books much better than what Tynion King and Bendis have done. Let's see what Zdarsky does with JL.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

I'm already tuned out on Tamaki after seeing her drop the ball on Dark Detective

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

And Ridley is not the answer. I just read and interview with him on an upcoming superman story hes doing and he just cant get go of the racial angles and activism. I don't want that garbage in titles I go to for escapism and good stories. I know you can insinuate some into a run but to constantly push that is just one note and crushingly boring.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 11, 2021

Is asking for good storytelling too much?

Svarietyy - Mar 12, 2021

@Mingthemerciless - After seeing that horrible self-insert fanfiction Tamaki is doing with Starfire, I can't support any of her books. Also, agreed on Ridley. Why do Hollywood people come into comics with the notion they know how the medium works? See J.J Abrams for example

Mingthemerciless - Mar 12, 2021

JJ Abrams is proof of the Peter Principle. He glows onto already successful properties and ideas and writes fan fiction. Hes a company man.

Mingthemerciless - Mar 12, 2021

Typo: gloms onto.

Onomatopoeia

Mar 09, 2021

I have been complaining about Red Hood for years now, saying how DC can't find a decent writer that understands him. Enter Chip Zdarsky and my expectations were blown out of the water. What a completely refreshing take on an emotionally damaged hero. Batman did a number on Jason as a child, arguably as much so as the Joker, and we finally get to see the effect it's had on him years later. The Blue Hood scene was just the right amount of emotion and that ending... oof. Seriously, no complaints. Harley: meh. I've read this story a million times. Outsiders: meh. Really just couldn't wait for it to end. Grifter: Not too bad. Not all that familiar with the character, but I was entertained for the most part.

JHugh

Mar 14, 2021

This one is hard to rate because the Red Hood story is a 10 for me. The Grifter story is good as well. However, the Black Lightening/Katana part? What is that? Awful, I couldn't get through it fast enough. The whole Harley Quinn/Poison-Ivy thing didn't fit in with the rest of the stories for me either. Given the price tag, it is hard to warrant paying that, when less than 50% of the book is a homerun.

WhistleBlower

Mar 16, 2021

Chip Zdarsky deserves better. Lol that weirdo Red Hood fanboy is seeeeething

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Vellichor - Mar 18, 2021

You sound hurt, it is curious that you mention it since it was Zdarsky himself who asked to write to Red Hood, he confessed that he is a character he likes. So he really got what he deserves, he's a great writer with a great character.

WhistleBlower - Mar 25, 2021

lmao the salt

C.V.R. The Bard

Mar 09, 2021

Zdarsky can't go wrong with heroes in Red, putting forth the most empathetic tale with my favorite Robin, that I've read in awhile; given that most Red Hood stories recently are just usually focused on him toting guns and walking the fine line between hero and villain. This story here shined a much needed light on all the abandonment that created Gotham's favorite prodigal son, through the eyes of a kid going down the same path - and what better mirror could there be? The other back-up stories don't work as well. The Outsiders story had such little dialogue and non-stop action that I hope Metamorpho goes back to working with The Terrifics and The Grifter story was in runner-up territory, despite beginning with appearances of other Wildsto rm characters and a Batman / Grifter showdown - this would just be better off as a standalone, to keep Grifter from looking 2nd rate. The Harley Quinn story I skipped happily, almost as happy as I was finding out that this book had very few appearances by DC's most over-exposed character. Putting it in Gotham City, may be dicey, since it's a tired backdrop - but these backup stories (at least on first showing) have the opportunity to overshadow the main Bat-titles at the least. - Audiomack.com/cvrthebard more

ode_et_amo

Jun 21, 2021

took a look at some comments, indeed this is not adhering to the canon and I believe that no book is doing it, DC seems to be taking a sabbatical year in creativity due to so many layoffs, not even its new or old writers can or want give a good continuity, and less with so many nonsensical character changes. It is difficult to give a fair rating to this type of book with more than one title where stories and characters with an abysmal difference in quality and trends meet to be encompassed and give a rating, it is very unfair for well-made stories and others that grated on the definition of trash just to sell a good story at an exorbitant price. I will try to be fair.

myconius

Aug 10, 2021

not worth eight bucks!!! nice art throughout, but only one good story out of the whole bunch. and i'm not even 100% sure about how i felt about that one. will try re-reading it to see if i feel compelled to read on. but for eight funky @$% dollars, i'm not so sure about that.

RKS

Mar 09, 2021

The Red Hood story was good but then the book just dies after that. They also apparently kill off Nora Fries in the last story because you know, who needs a new and interesting character that motivates Victor around? Save your money kids as this is 1/2 a book at best.

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myconius - Mar 26, 2021

did they retcon that story where Nora Fries was thawed out and became a villain?

E-Motion

Jul 15, 2021

I can't ignore the other stories, this makes buying this book very difficult, as two reviewers said. "As good as Zdarsky's writing is, he can't bear such a high cost if the other writers don't measure up."