Batman by Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo Omnibus Vol. 2

Batman (2011) #6-10

by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo (Illustrator), Danny Miki (Illustrator)

Continuing Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's prolific Batman saga, Batman by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo Omnibus Vol. 2 encompasses their run on The New 52 and more!

The best-selling Batman epic from the team that brought you DARK NIGHTS: METAL starts here! In this first of two omnibus collections, acclaimed storytellers Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo introduce the Caped Crusader to the Court of Owls, terrorize the whole Bat-Family with the Joker's faceless return in Death of the Family and retell Batman's origin for a new generation during the pivotal Zero Year!

This second volume collects Batman #34-52; Detective Comics #27; Batman Annual #3-4; Batman: Futures End #1; DC Sneak Peek: Batman #1; Detective Comics #1000 and Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1-3.

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

928 pages, Hardcover

First published November 16, 2021

About the author

Scott Snyder is the Eisner and Harvey Award winning writer on DC Comics Batman, Swamp Thing, and his original series for Vertigo, American Vampire. He is also the author of the short story collection, Voodoo Heart, published by the Dial Press in 2006. The paperback version was published in the summer of 2007.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

The latter half of Snyder and Capullo's run wasn't as definitive as the first half. Their are some misses here. Still, as a whole I did enjoy it. This omnibus does include [book"Batman: Last Knight on Earth|] as well. I do think the stories contained in Epilogue do work better when read in their proper place rather than cherry-picked out and thrown in at the end like DC originally decided to do.

My reviews for each story arc can be found below.
Batman, Volume 7: Endgame ★★★
Batman, Volume 8: Superheavy ★★★★
Batman, Volume 9: Bloom ★★★
Batman, Volume 10: Epilogue ★★★
Batman: Last Knight on Earth ★★★★

[Omni Theus · Rating 2 out of 5]

FULL REVIEW - https://youtu.be/DWjUtX4lSUs
This Run Falls Off a Cliff
OVERALL RATING: 2 stars
Art: 4 stars
Prose: 2.5 stars
Plot: 2 stars
Pacing: 2.5 stars
Character Development: 2.5 stars
World Building: 2 stars
The stories in this are a shadow of what came before. Given the high bar Snyder set on his previous omni I cannot give this a pass mark. This was just such a let down. Snyder's writing even dipped and became quite tacky in parts. Yuck. I'll leave it at that.

[Tomás Sendarrubias García · Rating 3 out of 5]

Con la segunda parte de la etapa de Scott Snyder y Greg Capullo en Batman, llega también la última parte de los cómics que coleccioné en su momento, antes de que me diera la bajona comiquera, así que podría decir que Batman fue el último héroe al que dejé de lado. Remarco que yo tengo la edición española de estos cómics en grapa, y que esta segunda parte me parece menos densa que la primera, no sé exáctamente como han cuadrado las 928 páginas que se supone que tiene este tochazo de omnibús, pero bueno, en fin. En este caso, los dos últimos arcos de la etapa Snyder/Capullo, fueron Final de Juego y Superpesado, y ambos mantienen las características del resto de los arcos que habíamos visto anteriormente: están alargadísimos. Y esto, ojo, es una percepción de segunda lectura, no recuerdo que me pareciera así en la primera lectura que hice en su momento.

Fin de Juego es heredera directa de La Muerte de la Familia, y supone el regreso del Joker a la primera línea, habiendo desarrollado un virus que extiende por Gotham, el Fin de Juego, y que además de "jokerizar" a los afectados por el gas, los mata pasadas unas horas de esto. Y la historia empieza bastante bien, con Batman teniendo que hacer frente a sus propios compañeros de la Liga de la Justicia, que han caído bajo la influencia del gas del Joker. Además, aquí es donde Snyder planteó lo que sería el arranque de su futura saga, Heavy Metal, con la aparición del Dyonesium, el elemento misterioso y de extrañas capacidades que podría haber dotado al Joker de la inmortalidad, con lo que Snyder además nos plantea que el Joker sea algo más que el "simple" Príncipe Payaso del Crimen, con la repetición de una serie de figuras pálidas y sonrientes que aparecen en los peores momentos de la historia de Gotham, un poco rollo Pennywise en It. Al final de Final del Juego, vamos a encontrarnos con la aparente muerte de los dos (esto no es ni spoiler, porque era evidente que ninguno de los dos iba a permanecer muerto mucho tiempo).

Y eso llevaría a un curioso cambio, ya que con Batman oficialmente muerto, desde Industrias Power (que ha absorbido Wayne Enterprise) y la propia comisaría de policía de la ciudad, se decide crear un nuevo Batman, con una armadura robótica y que fue un diseño como poco controvertido, ya que parecía un poco un conejito. Y en el interior de la armadura íbamos a encontrar a un repentinamente rejuvenecido James Gordon, que resulta que debajo de la gabardina estaba cuajado de músculos, así que se afeita el bigote, se corta el pelo un poco a lo mohicano, se hace con una pistola que lanza batarangs, y se lanza a luchar contra el crimen como el nuevo Batman. Y bueno, son como siete números los que duró este tecnobatman, que va a tener que hacer frente a un villano de nuevo cuño (bastante inquietantel al menos en su forma), Mr. Bloom, que parece dispuesto a destruir Gotham dotando a determinados criminales vulgares de poderes con el uso de unas semillas radioactivas. Pero la etapa de Gordon iba a ser breve, la etapa de Snyder y Capullo llegaba a su final, Tom King y David Finch ya asomaban en el horizonte, y había que dejar el tablero despejado, de modo que al final de Superpesado, todo va a volver a su sitio.

Y bueno, pues poco más que decir sobre todo esto que no haya dicho ya. Recordaba la etapa bastante mejor, las cosas como son, pero después de la relectura, creo que la etapa finalmente quedó bastante sobrevalorada. Mención aparte quizá el dibujo de Capullo, bastante interesante (aunque quizá un poco repetitivo), pero bueno, se deja ver.

[Thezachespinoza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whoever says that the second half of Synder's and Capullo's run on Batman fell off in the later half is afraid of change.

[ik.ben.henri · Rating 2 out of 5]

The arcs in this omnibus feel really terrible... Except for "Endgame" and "The Last Knight on Earth", which were the two good ones.

But I should have seen the mediocrity coming, since the last story arc in the previous omnibus, "Year Zero" was already a bad one.

I kept reading this book because this series was popular when it came out and when I look up the reviews of the individual story arcs, it seems it has a fan base. But it's not for me

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another banger of an omnibus. Continuing on from the first volume, this one is just as good. It starts off with Endgame, another Joker story where he seemed even more unhinged than ever. Just when you think Joker can’t get any worse or any scarier he does just that, infecting the whole city with his joker gas (even the justice league which provided some awesome fights). The ending of this arc was great too and changed the Batman status quo drastically. We ended up with a new Batman and a changed Bruce.

The ending of this arc leads into the next, Superheavy. I really enjoyed this part of the book and it felt so fresh to me as I had no idea what was going to happen and it featured a character I’d never heard of in Mr Bloom. It was really fun seeing how Gotham handled having Jim Gordon as Batman and how he operated both in and out of his special mech suit. The only downside to this arc would probably be that it kind of felt a little repetitive straight after Endgame as it once again featured the whole city being changed / controlled in a way. The bloom seeds distributed to the city started to turn people into monsters under the guise of making everyone powered. It was different enough though to still be enjoyable.

The best part of this arc though to me was Bruce reclaiming the mantle of Batman and seeing through the lies he’d been told when he lost his memories. Seeing this new Bruce realise who he is and who he was always destined to be gave me chills. Certain pages had me just sitting there taking it all in it was beautiful.

After this there isn’t much more story left in the main run but I felt it was a satisfying ending.

The omnibus is rounded out with a look at the “future” of this Batman (which is actually an elseworlds non canon story) in Last Knight on Earth. It tells the story of a doomed earth and Gotham City and has all the post apocalyptic vibes of a good elesworlds story. It was a fun time (especially Joker as a Robin) and at the very end comes down to being another tale of hope.

Overall I had such a blast and breezed through this book once I really got stuck into it and got through the side stories in between (Batman Eternal, Batman & Robin Eternal)

[Michael Torres · Rating 4 out of 5]

Volume two concludes Snyder/Capullo’s run and includes the Endgame and Superheavy story arcs, while also including The Last Knight on Earth. Endgame is the return of the Joker after the events of DOTF, and he is back with a vengeance. No longer toying with Batman, we see a Joker who is hellbent on tearing down Batman, and everyone/everything he has built and established. It is my favourite story arc within this collection. On the other side we have Superheavy, which in my opinion runs a little longer than needed. We see Jim Gordon take over the position as a Batman who is state funded and works with/within the GCPD. A cool change of pace and interesting idea, but is let down by a pretty mediocre villain (Mr. Bloom). The Last Knight on Earth is an elseworld style future for Batman, that references moments throughout the New 52 run. An enjoyable non canon story, that provides a potential conclusion for the Batman of the New 52 universe.

[Logan Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not usually one to really be a big Batman guy but man this whole run is really good. There’s a couple hiccups in this volume I don’t think the first suffered from but man that was good

[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. Will definitely read this entire run again.

[Patrick Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent Batman stories, not quite the same level as Omnibus Vol 1 but still enjoyable!

[OmniBen · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Zero spoiler review) 2.25/5
You know, considering Batman has some of the greatest, most well known, most memorable runs in comics, god damn it if he also doesn't have some of the shittiest ones as well. My case in point, Scott Snyder's Batman run. But before I rest my case, Lionel Hutz style, allow me to elaborate as long as my rather tenuous patience for this dreck will allow. Volume one was no better. I know a lot of people have a hyper boner for Court of Owls, but it's middling at best, and everything else that followed in that omnibus wasn't any better. Zero Year, no thanks. Quite why Snyder feels the need to fill out his run with the bloated, the asinine and the stupid is beyond me, and we sure as hell get more of that here, and then some. And I thought his half baked, overdone ideas were bad the first time around, they are positively atrocious here. Jim Gordon in a mech suit. Even the cleaning lady at DC should have cracked her broom over Snyder's head and told him to wake up to himself for having the gall to even think of an idea so galactically moronic. I get that thinking of original ideas after precisely one gillion Batman stories may be tough, but if that's the best you come up with, then it's time to chuck it in and give someone else who isn't off the reservation a turn.
It's a shame, too. For the best stories here, and there are a few of them, are the one and done single issues. For they most connect with the antithesis of what Batman is. A street level crime fighter in a bloody, brutal and dark city. When Snyder does this, he does a pretty decent job. Hell, even James Tynion turned in a few stories I didn't despise, which is quite an accomplishment indeed.
It's just a shame that the opening to this book was a handful of said single issue, unconnected stories, because damnit, it got my hopes up that the overblown mess of volume one may just be a thing of the past. Alas, I was soon to be disappointed.
Quite how or why this run is remembered so fondly is absolutely beyond me. It stands as a testament to how bad DC was creatively before they completely went off the rails these last few years or more. I'll keep this for the half dozen really good issues, or at least until these go out of print and someone will give me more than spare change to take them off my hands. 2.25/5


OmniBen.

[Joshua]

I’m so torn on this one as it includes not only some of my favorite Batman stories that I’ve read time and time again in different formats but also one-off issues of the brilliant Snyder/Capullo era that aren’t readily available outside of trades collection disjointed oddball issues, which aren’t really my bag. It’s awesome having Batman #51, Snyder’s story from Detective #27 and Snyder and Capullo’s story from Detective #1000 on my shelf and I love Endgame, Superheavy and Last Knight on Earth to no end, so obviously, pretty great collection.

I suppose I’m not entirely a completionist. Having each chapter of Endgame interrupted by backup stories was not ideal and I’d honestly be fine if they were omitted, as is ever the case with backup stories in comic books that cost a dollar extra. So there’s that. But the main thing is that these story arcs were so huge for me as they came out that they each feel like sprawling, epic films and having them in an omnibus feels kind of like having them on a DVD box set of a sitcom or something like that. I’ve long maintained that one day I want to read through Morrison, Snyder and King’s Batman runs in one long marathon and this omnibus is perfect for that. But if I’m looking to reread Superheavy I don’t know that I’ll be cracking this brick open to do it.

[Bryson Grenfell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stellar conclusion to Snyder and Capullo’s work on the main Bat title!
While volume 2 never quite reaches the stunning highs of the works collected in the volume 1 omnibus, it does float and play around with some big (gargantuan) ideas! Batman Forever! But literal this time!

Endgame is a triumphant and very Pennywise inspired return to Gotham for the clown Prince of crime, with what could very well serve as a satisfying final confrontation between the bat and the clown; naturally this being comic books it is anything but final, but it does still manage to feel climactic…….and then the rest of the run happens.

Super heavy is good, but is easily the weakest yarn Snyder, Capullo and co roll out for us. It does give us a neat look at what a Bruce Wayne living without the ptsd of crime alley would look like, and Jim Gordon is an amusing if not adequate replacement Batman. Unfortunately the villain of Super heavy (the original character, Mr. Bloom) does fall just a bit flat for me, with a not overly original SlenderMan-esque appearance and primary power set. Make no mistake; Bloom is a passable addition to Batman’s rogues gallery, but doesn’t hold a candle to the duos previous creation, The Court of Owls….who make an appearance in this volume, but sadly to little to no effect other than to remind the reader they exist.

Last night on earth is rad as hell and that’s all I’ll say about it to avoid spoiling the big finale of the run for any potential new readers.

This is a strong recommend from me, but bear in mind that vol. 1 is absolutely essential reading to get the most out of it.


P.S. there’s a single issue story co-written with Gerry Duggan that may just steal the entire show for me. I get a real kick out of someone Batman hunting down a regular “could exist in the real world” type serial killer.

[drown_like_its_1999 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Endgame - This starts out with an bombastic setup and develops some entertaining scenarios but odd and underdeveloped changes with Joker's backstory are pretty eye rolling and undercut the tension. The ending is especially soapy and the characterization of Batman & Joker feel quite at odds with the earlier stories in the run. 7.25/10

Superheavy - What if James Gordon was Batman? The concept sounds pretty hokey but could have been intriguing if executed superbly... which this was not. A story about a 42 year old detective and longtime smoker that gets jacked, operates a mech and becomes Batman was fun camp for a while but it got old quickly. There is some attempt to couch the absurdity with self aware humor but it isn't clever or consistent enough to make it entertaining. The premise is poorly explored and so fundamentally transforms Gordon's characterization that it feels completely foreign; no more Batman than Mobile Suit Gundam. 6.25/10

The Last Knight on Earth - Oof. While I can get behind a subversive Elseworlds Batman story set in an apocalyptic dystopia this ain't the stuff. Lex Luthor manipulates the whole world into violent anarchy through a televised speech? Why is Batman carrying around Joker's head in a jar everywhere? Hey is that Swamp Thi... wait they're giving Joker a mech suit now? Endless over the top plot devices and hamfisted fan service distractions were, I assume, supposed to elicit a kind of dizzy exhilaration but it all left me rather bored and exhausted. If the tone wasn't so dour and self-serious perhaps I could enjoy it as hammy camp but alas no luck. Devoid of compelling theme, plot, or characterization it's hard to find much joy in anything here except Capullo's art. 5.5/10

[Rahul Nadella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it started strong, and then got meh almost immediately. I liked Court Of Owls, but I'm not much of a fan of anything that came after it. Also, the immortal stuff in Endgame was a bridge too far for me. Jim's one of my favorite characters, but I never wanted to see him put on the cowl.

Court of Owls are a phenomenal group of villains and Lincoln Marsh had a lot of potential before disappearing forever. It also touched upon the Wayne legacy and how the Waynes may not have always been moral paragons, which only makes sense -- how can all of Gotham be corrupt except the very rich? Also Dick Grayson gets a cool lore update.

Zero Year also was an interesting take on Batman's early career, although I prefer Year One to it. A lot of cool homage moments though and I respect it as an alternative New 52 timeline. Probably one of the better Riddler stories I've read.

Greg Capullo's art also deserves a lot of credit.

Unfortunately most of his writing just started feeling soulless to me after Black Mirror. I know I'll probably get a lot of hate for this opinion, but I'm just being honest about my feelings. Black Mirror was incredible, Court Of Owls was really good (and a great addition to the mythos), and then after that Zero Year... I think he has interesting ideas, but I'm not sold on his actual abilities as an actual writer anymore.

[Rakesh Unnithan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although not as impactful as the first Volume, Part 2 had me feeling a mixed emotion towards some scenarios and logic. Yes there were moments where the Action figure collector in me was awed at many of the figures on my shelf popped up in the pages, and also pages where some of Mcfarlane's action figures made sense and had me thinking "Oh.. so this is that character"!

Nevertheless, Art is amazing, the flow of the story is really good and captivating, some cameos and some old moments revisited and retold was a fun take on things!.
This is probably the best Batman run in the several decades, and yes its a must read if you have gone through Vol 1 and if you love batman!...

Spoiler alert : Bruce Wayne is Batman :D

[TheMadReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the Volume 1
Omnibus. Scott and James had some interesting ideas in Endgame and Superheavy but Mr. Bloom was a terrible villain. Boring at best.

The Last knight on earth lost me, some parts were interesting but carrying jokers head in a jar and then him becoming Robin to assist him in a fight against Oasis or whatever, super trash. As a first time reader of the new 52, I was all in after Court of Owls, Death of a family and Year One. Loved it. Endgame was cool at best, Jim becoming a temporary Batman was a new and different approach in Super Heavy, I liked it but that last story (Last Knight on Earth) ??? Na man, it ain’t it. I wish I could erase it from my memory.

[Luke Borthistle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prior to reading Volume 2 of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's run of Batman, this was considered by many fans to be the point where the comic run loses its momentum. However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover myself this volume to be purely cathartic from beginning to end. Beginning strong with the Endgame Saga and following up with the criminally underrated Superheavy/Bloom Saga. Ending with Batman: Last Knight on Earth provides a solid conclusion to Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's run on Batman.

[Sean Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit I wasn’t hot on the Endgame saga to begin with and found it rushed and wanting but against all odds it was Superheavy that won me back around. Exciting and clever and well paced and stunning I absolutely loved it and maybe even more than court of the owls. I think as Snyder has proved with his Metal saga et al he works best when he’s let loose. The standalone stories towards the end of the omnibus were also really engaging and The Last Knight was a terrific pulp sci-fi fantasy romp with some wonderful ideas, telling a big crossover event in one brisk arc.

[Zachary Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as strong as the first half of Snyder’s run but still a solid run overall. The horror themes of the first half of the run continue here . There is a new villain introduced in this omnibus which was one of the stories that was a bit of a slog for me. I enjoyed the endgame story and the last knight on earth story which wraps up snyder’s run on Batman. Overall I enjoyed Scott Snyder’s time on Batman.

[Pruett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This half of the Snyder/Capullo/New 52 Batman run isn't definitive reading like the first part is, but it's still cool as hell. That's mostly because of the vision. This creative team had all of their ideas sketched out from the start, and they execute 'em!

It doesn't all WORK, but that's okay! It's like watching a movie that a writer-director had full creative control over but isn't that successful. Even if the end product isn't a revelation, you've gotta respect the hustle.

[Michelle M Victora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not all of the arcs were total bangers and I was a little confused about some things possibly 'cause I haven't read all the related arcs in the New 52 or whatever... but I loved what they did with their take on THE CHOICE to be Batman. Wonderful birth, a better death (did that count as a Batman death?) Artwork's great. Nice exploration of modern social issues.

[Robert Pulvermacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can't quite keep the momentum of his first stories. Gordon as Batman was an extremely bad idea done extraordinarily well, but by this point the 'someone takes over gotham while batman is somehow indisposed' well was already running dry, and has been drained completely in the years since. Can't say a single bad thing about the art, however.

[Yusuf Shafi · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

Not as strong as the first volume but still very enjoyable. I personally think the last knight on earth might have been my favorite story that Synder has written for Batman (collected between these two omnis). I understand why Superheavy is so controversial, but personally, I enjoyed it.

[JR · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first omnibus so I was excited to read part two. Some great stories here with new characters I was unfamiliar with but still lived. I would have given this 5 stars but I did not like “the last knight” at all. Kind of killed the end for me. Still loved this though

[Sunny Das · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume 1 was much better although the first half of Volume 2 was alright till about the beginning of Super Heavy after that it became a slog to read and the Last Knight on Earth storyline is terrible.

Art was amazing throughout the book though.

[Rachael O'Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this, not as much as the first one but I never got bored of it. The artwork was great throughout. I'm excited to continue onto Dark Nights Metal after this. Though these two volumes have set a high standard

[Rayne Oakley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first volume was so good! I’m not really sure what happened here but I felt confused a lot of the time because of stuff happening off the page with no explanation given and the story arcs were not that good apart from Endgame.

[Yazan Al-Jurf · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5, which rounds to 4, I guess LOL. It was entertaining but not mind-blowing, not one I would re-read; it is not a masterpiece, but it was entertaining. Passable if you want masterpieces but if you want something good but not perfect, this is it for you.

[O LCB · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★

The final arc, Last Knight on Earth, felt like one of the best parts of the whole saga, aside from the beginning. I think it’s a great run that wraps things up perfectly, and Capullo’s art adds an extra layer of depth to the story.