Batman: Hothouse

by John Francis Moore (Writer), Craig Russel (Penciller)

Pamela Isley is out of the asylum after her first encounter with Batman. But when one of her colleagues dies under mysterious circumstances her rehabilitation is called into question.

Genres: Batman, Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Dc Comics

65 pages, Library Binding

First published February 1, 1993

About the author

John Francis Moore is comic book writer known for stints as writer on such Marvel comics series as X-Force, X-Factor, Doom 2099 and X-Men 2099. He also wrote Elseworld's Finest and co-wrote Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop, with Howard Chaykin, for DC's Elseworlds series, and was the writer for Howard Chaykin's American Flagg! series. He wrote some episodes of The Flash and Freakazoid television series.

Reviews

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Batman: Hothouse is a fun little surprise. The story centers on Batman trying to determine whether Poison Ivy has truly gone rogue again or if there’s something more complicated going on beneath the surface. It’s a slow burn with an unsettling atmosphere that really sneaks up on you.

I went in not knowing much, especially about the writer, who I’d never heard of before, but was quickly pulled in by the strong mix of moody, expressive art and sharp dialogue. There’s a psychological edge here that works really well with Ivy’s character, and it builds toward a satisfying, well executed ending.

It’s a short, stand-alone story, but it left more of an impression than I expected. Definitely worth checking out if you're into the darker, more introspective corners of Gotham.

[Katherine (Kat) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 Stars
Individual issues rated below -

Legends of the Dark Knight #42: 3/5
Legends of the Dark Knight #43: 3.5/5

[Sarah Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this as part of an anthology as a kid and wanted to re-read as, besides the 90s movie, it was where my appreciation for Poison Ivy began. Still love the art style of this one. Also, nice to see some humour in Batman's internal monologue.

[camila · Rating 4 out of 5]

bastante chulo el monólogo interno del batman, el arte es precioso y amo cómo se ve ivy con el cabello corto. also todo el temita del amor y la obsesión es súper genial, así q sin más nada q agregar este es mi nuevo arco favorito de ivy.

[Omar Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

The beautiful art by P. Craig Russell gives this story about love and bewildering realities the perfect surreal and fantastic tones.

[Amna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty good one, but wow I forgot how uncomfy Ivy makes me

[kiara ✪ · Rating 3 out of 5]

ya se que no cuenta como libro pero no me importa
hiedra te amo

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty sweet little Batman tale. I loved his inner monologue being obsessed with Ivy. The art was overall good, with a few really standout pages.

[TheWord · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5 Um Conto de Batman: Estufa 1 e 2 (Abril)

[Zac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another cool entry in the ‘Legends of the Dark Knight’ series, and an arc I don’t see mentioned as frequently as others. P Craig Russell’s characters sometimes border on a ‘clear line’ style but the simplicity is combined with some inventive panels with interesting shadows, as well as some beautiful nature illustrations. There’s also a psychedelic sequence when Batman gets poisoned. The story sees various characters infatuated with Ivy, and she has this wavy bob haircut I’ve never seen on her before. I can’t really fault the storytelling and dialogue, and there are some all-round great scenes in this two-parter.

[drown_like_its_1999 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Several Gotham citizens have committed suicide under strange circumstances. Batman discovers a common biomarker in the corpses that leads him to Poison Ivy who has once again been luring men into doing her bidding through her botanical pheromones.

This is about as conventional a Batman storyline as you can get and is worth consuming only for its engaging art. While this wasn't quite as pleasantly colored as Russel's Robin 3000, the line work was equally delicate with some really eye pleasing compositions.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good Batman tale with great art and some of the best layouts I've ever seen. Visual storytelling at it's finest.