Batman Battle for the Cowl #3 Spoilers

Tragic Angelus · Post by **Tragic Angelus** » Wed May 20, 2009 3:11 pm

So I just bought and read all three issues of BftC now that it's all out, and it was honestly a great read. Action packed, good art from Daniel, and a fun story where the real villain was one of their own in some ways.

I liked how each issue was narrated by a Robin, and it of course ended with Dick's narration of the events.

Only thing I really really want to know is just who was the Black Mask.. I never read stories with him before, but remembered hearing about him and when Dick mentioned that Catwoman killed him it made sense of the scene where he's talking in shadow, and seen holding the Black Mask in his hand. My money for now wanted to go to Joker but I'm just not sure I wanted to put it all on him, though it seems like something he'd do since he attacked financial institutions and government buildings.

As for the ending and who's under the cowl, it's not exactly definite, but it's heavily heavily heavily implied that it's Dick. The last two pages switches from narration by Dick in the Blue, Nightwing mask boxes to one of Gray with the Bat symbol in it, where he continues to talk about Jason and realizing who you need to be, which ends with this person saying that he now knows he needs to be Batman. I suppose we'll know for certain that it's Dick when Batman and Robin launches, but I'm definitely sure it's him right now.

Daimien is Robin by the looks of it again, and Tim was saved from hi snear death experience by Daimien and Squire, though we don't see him at the end in what I'm sure he'll be as Red Robin.

Todd supposedly falls to his 'death' in the waters of Gotham, but we all know he'll be back, and I assume he'll attempt to be Batman again or go after Tim.

Great story, and I'm glad I read it all at once!

Mr Wallstreet · Post by **Mr Wallstreet** » Thu May 21, 2009 7:07 am

Was Jason Todd acting villainous in this storyline?

MGM · Post by **MGM** » Thu May 21, 2009 7:57 am

Yes, he's the reason Dick's picking up the mantle.

Mr Wallstreet · Post by **Mr Wallstreet** » Thu May 21, 2009 8:41 am

From word one, Todd has been a failure as a character. Everything from his inception as a character, his tenure as Robin, bringing him back from the dead, to the way he was brought back and pretty much all his actions throughout the Bat-titles, 52, & Countdown.

It seems to me, as though were getting mixed messages about the direction of Jason Todd from the editors. DC editors knew the fans didn't take to him so they killed him off but they figured if enough years passed, fans might forget their hatred for him so they ressurected him.

They tested the waters with how fans would react to him in HUSH, then tried to play the sympathy card with the Red Hood, and when that didn't take - rather than kill him off - they slowly turned him into a villain. very, very slowly.

It appears DC sometimes follows the way the wind blows. The wind being fan reaction.

jedispyder · Post by **jedispyder** » Thu May 21, 2009 9:08 am

I still don't get who the Black Mask was, lol. Good issue, wish it was more than just a 3-issue mini, it coulda easily been 4 or even 5 to give more character development...

Mr Wallstreet · Post by **Mr Wallstreet** » Thu May 21, 2009 10:12 am

Tragic Angelus wrote:
Only thing I really really want to know is just who was the Black Mask.. I never read stories with him before, but remembered hearing about him and when Dick mentioned that Catwoman killed him it made sense of the scene where he's talking in shadow, and seen holding the Black Mask in his hand. My money for now wanted to go to Joker but I'm just not sure I wanted to put it all on him, though it seems like something he'd do since he attacked financial institutions and government buildings.

jedispyder wrote:I still don't get who the Black Mask was, lol. Good issue, wish it was more than just a 3-issue mini, it coulda easily been 4 or even 5 to give more character development...

I haven't been keeping up with Batman by the minute so my knowledge of Black Mask may be a bit dated also, please be aware there are some spoilers below if you haven't been reading Batman.

Black Mask became top boss in Gotham after Spoiler (Stephanie - who was briefly Robin but then got fired and stole Bruce's contingency plans) set off the chain of events that started the War Games storyline.

In the wake of War Games, Black Mask killed Orpheus, captured Stephanie, tortured her and left her for dead. Bruce found Steph, and took her to Leslie Thompkins who withheld medical treatment from her and let her die. Yes, one of the biggest character assassination in the history of comics, and the justifcation for that was so lame it made me throw the book in a corner with disgust. However, it appears they retconned Stephanie's death so...

After the War Games storyline ended, Black Mask emerged as the top mobster in Gotham City.

After IC, The Red Hood showed up and began messing with Mask's operation to the point where Mask had to join the Secret Society this was back during Infinite Crisis) in order to get some help to stop the Hood. Didn't work.

There were a few more storylines, mostly inconsequential about the Mask that elude me at the moment. I haven't heard much about Black Mask since then. Hoped that helped, and here is a wikipedia link that fills in any blanks I may have missed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Mask_(comics)

Tragic Angelus · Post by **Tragic Angelus** » Thu May 21, 2009 12:59 pm

Thanks for the info on Black Mask! I knew he had some connection to Spoiler and he was a relatively new Bat villain but other than that I was kind of out so that helps. However, if Catwoman really did kill him or set off events that let him die, then just who this new Black Mask is still remains to be seen.

jedispyder · Post by **jedispyder** » Thu May 21, 2009 6:56 pm

Oh, I knew who the Black Mask was pre-BftC. I begrudgingly read War Games/War Crimes and was glad when Selina shot him in the frickin face. So after seeing his head 'splode, how the hell did he pop back up in Battle for the Cowl? My comment shoulda been "I still don't know who the Black Mask in BftC was".

Tragic Angelus · Post by **Tragic Angelus** » Thu May 21, 2009 8:40 pm

Right, no I got that, and I assumed that's the Black Mask you were talkinng about.

Again, my money wants to go to the Joker due to the anarchy of banks and government being targeted, cause like the others said it really only hurts every last mob boss that way.

But he's been.. slightly over used lately so I'm not sure they'd go for him that way, but he was also one of the prime Bat villains I didn't see in the main mini.

XIII · Post by **XIII** » Mon May 25, 2009 5:13 am

This was lame, average at best.

jedispyder · Post by **jedispyder** » Mon May 25, 2009 8:21 am

Evidently the Black Mask segment wasn't finished on purpose, same reason Catwoman wasn't in the episode. There are plans in other series for them...