This is Batman Incorporated: No More Teachers. This is the first volume of Ed Brisson’s run on Batman Incorporated. The Prime Illustrator for this book is John Timms. The other artist is Michele Bandini. The Colorist is Rex Lokus and the Letterer is Clayton Cowles. This book follows Minhkhoa Khan, AKA Ghost-Maker, who has been rewarded leadership over Batman Incorporated. Along with training the members, Ghost-Maker has also taken it upon himself to track down and defeat each participant in Lex Luthor’s Batmen experiment. But he has to deal with his own problems, when all of his old teachers have been murdered in brutal and extreme ways. Will Ghost-Maker be able to solve the case, or will he be the next victim?
I thought this book was pretty good. I was skeptical whenever this series was first announced, but it convinced me with this first volume. One thing that I thought was really well done was how the book balances all the different members. What they did was, instead of showing each character with their own viewpoint, they split them up into smaller groups and cut between them. This makes it easy to follow the story without being boggled down with all the different characters and viewpoints. Speaking of which, the characters are pretty good in this book. It’s nice to see that Ghost-Maker and Clownhunter weren’t immediately thrown out after James Tynion IV’s Batman run. The standouts for the rest of the team is Grey Wolf, El Gaucho, and The Knight. Each one of them gets some really good moments in this story.
Spoiler Alert: Another element that I really enjoy in this book are the villains. The villains in this book are an evil version of Batman Incorporated. They are a group of assassins who are also covered in the Batman aesthetic. And they’re all lead by a new villain named Phantom-One, who was the previous sidekick to Ghost-Maker. One thing that I really like about him is that the book never gives away his name. Even in the flashback sequences where they could have namedropped him, his name and face are blocked off. I really like this idea because it covers his identity in a unique way and keeps the mystery going.
Along with the main story, there is also another one named This Little Piggy. It is still Written by Ed Brisson and it is Illustrated by Michele Bandini. It has to do with Professor Pyg, who is tearing Gotham City apart looking for a mysterious stolen crate. I really enjoyed this story because there aren’t a lot of stories with Professor Pyg as the main focus. It also shows him as a serious threat, who has defeated and kidnapped multiple Batman rogues. And honestly, the story is just fun. It’s simple and, since its only two issues, it doesn’t overstay it’s welcome. And it has a really good character moment for Ghost-Maker at the very end. And finally, it has a great teaser for the next book. So, overall, it is quite a great experience.
The art for this book are really good. I have been a fan of John Timms for a while and this might be his best work yet. Batman Incorporated fit very well with Timms’s artistic style and the action sequences are formatted to perfection. The designs for both the Batman Incorporated and the antagonists are dynamic and sleek. Then there is Michele Bandini, who is also extremely good. The use of shadow within this story specifically fit quite nicely. Rex Lokus does a great job with the coloring. Giving the art a vibrant and somewhat futuristic tone to it. Overall, the art was fantastic and was one of the best sections.
Overall, this book is very fun. The characters are interesting are expanded on. The antagonists are explosive and conniving. The action is vibrant and energetic. The art does the action sequences with a tinge of greatness. The book is just a great time to read. I can’t wait to see what else this series has to offer.