Comic Review: Batman: The Smile Killer #1

Batman: The Smile Killer

DC Comics

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Artists: Andrea Sorrentino and Jordie Bellaire

I didn’t read The Killer Smile. A Joker story is just not something I have much interest in despite my affection for the Lemire/Sorrentino team. However, a straight-up Batman tale by said creative team? That’s something I can get behind, and I’m happy to say my faith was not misplaced.

On the surface, this book seems like a fairly standard Batman vs Joker story with all the psychological intrigue that entails. This story, however, doesn’t feel as stale as it may in your standard monthly issue of Batman. This is largely due to it’s existing outside of any strict continuity. The issue leans so heavily into hallucinations and mystery that if it were in the main universe it wouldn’t be difficult to ascertain that everything is in Bruce’s head, and all is well in the end.

For the stakes in this story to feel real, it’s essential that what’s real and what isn’t is genuinely in question, and that does seem to be the case here. Having read the story, I still don’t know what to expect the end result to be. Perhaps Batman isn’t real in this universe and Bruce is just unwell, or maybe the opposite is true, but it’s the shadow of a doubt that intrigues me.

The book also has incredible pacing. It’s no secret that Lemire’s strength lies in his scarcity of words without sacrificing substance. He has this sought-after talent of minimizing dialogue and utilizing only the exact words necessary to convey his proper meaning. It’s artfully done, as are most of his books. It reads quickly, but there’s clearly no lack of content. I also attribute this to the fact that he’s an artist himself, which likely leads him to understand the importance of leaning on his own artist. Especially with one as talented as Andrea Sorrentino.

Sorrentino’s art in this book is, frankly, some of the best I’ve seen from him. There are multiple points where a page turn left me completely awestruck. His mood and atmosphere blend so perfectly with Batman, but he also manages to switch things up throughout the issue. His style, while still recognizable, is completely different in the flashbacks to Bruce’s childhood. He opts for more traditional panel layouts, as well as cleaner and more definable lines. The present scenes with Batman, however, are more of his usual style with heavy silhouettes and experimental layouts. Of course, Jordie Bellaire plays a huge part in selling these stylistic shifts. Her colors are incredibly dark and moody in the present, while in the past they become brighter to accommodate Sorrentino’s more simplistic layouts.

Batman: The Smile Killer #1 manages to breathe life into a Batman story that could easily come off as bland under a team with less experience and talent. Sorrentino and Bellaire are an art force to be reckoned with, and they bring so much subtlety to Lemire’s concise script. In future issues it’s many mysteries will need to pay off in a way that’s satisfying, and as of yet, I’m only assuming they will due to my confidence in the team. As an issue on its own, though, it’s very well done.