DC Sneak Peek: Bat-Mite

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Next up on our tour of DC’s sneak peeks is the one for Bat-Mite. I’ll readily admit that I love Bat-Mite. He is a zany Silver Age character that first appeared in 1959 and then largely disappeared ever since the 1986 Crisis on Infinite Earths. I am certainly glad to see DC bringing back some of their Silver Age characters like Bat-Mite who are a welcome contrast to the typical New 52 offerings. Bat-Mite is being written by Dan Jurgens who is another personal favorite of mine. So, with the combination of Bat-Mite and Dan Jurgens there is probably little chance of me not enjoying the hell out of this preview.

Words: Dan Jurgens
Art: Corin Howell
Colors: Mike Atiyeh

Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10

Synopsis: We begin with Batman stopping the plans of several robbers. During the brawl, one of the robbers said that they planned for Batman. The robber whips out a bazooka. Suddenly, Bat-Mite appears on the scene (complete with him singing the tune from the 1960’s Batman TV show.) Batman yells for Bat-Mite to stop because the bazooka has a hair-trigger. The bazooka fires and blows up the building that the robbers were trying to break into.

One of the robbers takes his gun and shoots Bat-Mite several times. Bat-Mite falls to the ground. Batman calls Bat-Mite “Kid” and rushes to save him by taking down the robber. Bat-Mite gets up showing that he is perfectly fine and the gunshots did nothing to him. Bat-Mite angrily tells Batman that he is no kid. We get lots of witty banter from Bat-Mite as he annoys Batman to no end.

Batman says that thanks to Bat-Mite the robbers could have been killed and that the building was destroyed along with everything in it. Bat-Mite suddenly disappears and then reappears with two briefcases full of stock certificates. Bat-Mite says that he saved the stock certificates (Which were the target of the robbers).the bad guys were busted and the accountant gets a new office courtesy of insurance. Mission successful!

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Batman growls “If I ever see you again-” But, Bat-Mite cuts off Batman and says Batman makes a good point. That it is the others that Bat-Mite is worried about. They are the ones that need fixing. Bat-Mite teleports away from the scene. Bat-Mite then reappears in Times Square. We see video screens with the Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Firestorm, Superman and Wonder Woman on them. Bat-Mite says that some of these heroes need major fixing and that he is just the guy for the job. End of sneak peek.

The Good: The Bat-Mite sneak peek was a fun read. I am definitely going to be getting this six issue limited series. This should be a true breath of fresh air in the otherwise dark, moody and violent New 52. It is okay to laugh and have fun. I wish DC Comics would realize that and give us more titles that are not so 1990’s Image. DC does need more diversity. And I am not talking about diversity in terms of sex and ethnicity. DC is doing fine in that regard. What DC needs is more diversity in terms of the tone and theme of their New 52 titles. Some titles that have classic super heroes, titles with more positive characters and titles that have humor. Bat-Mite is a step in the right direction even if it is just a limited series.

DC Comics is billing this as an all ages adventure. Imagine that. A title that does not target readers between the ages of 20-30. Stunning concept. This is what DC needs to do if they want their comics to remain relevant and to continue to grow in the future. Targeting readers under 20 should be the primary objective of any comic book company. And just because something is all-ages does not mean that it has to read like a “kiddie” comic. Not at all. Jurgens delivers a fun read that is not “kiddie” and can be easily enjoyed by readers of any age.

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Jurgens crafts a well paced sneak peek. The story has a pleasant flow and is a fine balance of action and humor. Jurgens’ Bat-Mite is spot on perfect. I love the dynamic between Bat-Mite and Batman. Batman is such a dark, moody and gruff character that it is hilarious to see Bat-Mite act as Batman’s foil. The way that Bat-Mite innocently pushes all of Batman’s buttons is quite humorous. Exasperated and irritated Batman is always entertaining.

Jurgens effectively gives the reader the mission statement of this mini-series. I like the idea of having Bat-Mite trying to “fix” all of the Justice League members. The idea of Batman being perfect just the way he is and in need of no fixing is great. It works with Bat-Mites undying love for his idol. And the thought of Bat-Mite bugging the crap out of all the other Justice League members is going to make for some entertaining issues.

Howell’s artwork is fantastic. It is the perfect match for Bat-Mite. Howell is able to give the character’s such wonderful facial expressions. Howell is also able to use body language to help convey the characters’ emotions and reactions. DC deserves credit for truly doing a masterful job of selecting the right artist for this title. This is not easy and is something that editors often screw up. Atiyeh does a great job with the colors. They are just dark enough for a Batman franchise title, yet still lively enough for a humorous and absurd title like Bat-Mite.

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The Bad: I have no complaints with this sneak peek. My only complaint is that Bat-Mite is only going to be a six issue limited series.

Verdict: Success. Now this is what I wanted to see DC roll out in the sneak peeks in the various Convergence issues. If DC wants to reclaim the lapsed long-time readers then they need to show those readers that the New 52 has evolved into something more than a rehash of 1990’s Image. The Bat-Mite sneak peek certainly did that. Now, I readily admit that Bat-Mite is not going to be a monster seller. This is probably going to be a nice niche title. But, honestly? Aren’t many of DC’s New 52 titles niche titles anyway?