From the publisher: Still reeling from the events of "I AM GOTHAM," the epic first arc in Tom King's brand new BATMAN series, the Dark Knight finds himself up against some of the biggest (literally) threats he's ever faced within the city limits of Gotham. To save the city he loves, Batman enlists the help of the toughest members of the Bat-family including Nightwing, Batwoman and more!

Also in this volume, Batman must take on some familiar foes who have stolen something from Gotham--and the Caped Crusader's limits will be tested as he fights to get it back.

Breakout writer and former CIA analyst, Tom King (GRAYSON, THE SHERIFF OF BABYLON) is paired with superstar artists Riley Rossmo and Mikel Janin in this knock-down, drag-out superhero story! Collects BATMAN #9-15.

Batman Vol. 2: I Am Suicide, by Tom King, took the promise of the I Am Gotham storyline and ramped it up. This was a great book with many twists and turns as the story progressed. In the wake of her breakdown, Batman decides Psycho Pirate is the only one who can help Gotham Girl. However, the Pirate is being held captive by Bane on the prison island of Santa Prisca. Bane relies on the Pirate to help in the absence of the Venom Bane used. To get the Pirate from Bane, Batman puts together a team that includes the following: Catwoman, Bronze Tiger, Punch, Jewelee, and the Ventriloquist. How they get in to the prison, and how they go about trying to take Psycho Pirate, make up the bulk of the book. The final two chapters act as an epilogue, with a focus on Catwoman and Batman.

I thought this was a fantastic story. King told a Batman story like none I have read before. I'm not sure that I can put my finger on a specific thing, but it just felt different and right. For one, the team Batman was using very unusual and atypical, with more of a villain feel. Also, Batman's attitude was different, more desperate than he's been in a long while, maybe ever. He is also more brutal and devious. This almost felt like a Dirty Dozen type story. It was very cinematic in scope, and the art added to the feel. It was big and bold, full of action and emotion. Additionally, King did a great job exploring the relationship between Batman and Catwoman. He was able to add depth to this very complicated relationship.

I highly recommend Batman Vol. 2: I Am Suicide. Tom King just keeps getting better. I'm anxiously awaiting the next volume in this opening "I Am" arc, I Am Bane.

I received a preview copy of this book from DC Comics and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is volume two of the new Batman series in the DC rebirth series. It picks up where volume one left off in which Gotham Girl is need of help; specifically in order for Batman to help her he needs to find Psycho-Pirate to restore her mental state. But for Batman to get Psycho-Pirate this requires Batman to go on an adventure outside of Gotham.
Similar to volume one Batman in this work assembles a team of reformed villains or villains that Batman has to keep on a leash. As the comics in the beginning makes clear, Batman is taking quite a risks but he needs the various members of the team. For some reason it did not dawn on me until a quarter into this work that this is Batman’s “suicide squad” if you will, which is a play on the suicide squad series that is also part of DC comics in which captured dangerous supervillains are tapped to be part of a team to fight other supervillains.
This graphic novel was truly a thriller. I like how even as we various action scenes we see someone talking and writing in a contemplative mood and you don’t know fully who it is until it is revealed as you get into each issue. At first that threw me off but then I appreciated what the author was trying to accomplish as a literary device. You really get the sense that some of these characters have much in common in their childhood but of course they took separate journey as a result of deliberate choices when they grew up. I thought that was interesting to show a compare and contrasts of the childhood three characters in particular: Batman, Bane and Catwoman. What makes it more interesting is how you see inner dialogues in which they were addressing another character but it really is them reflecting back about who they are in light of their respective past history. Again as I said earlier there is a sense of a thriller, perhaps a psychological thriller in which you wonder about the psyche of the various characters. Reading this especially in the middle of the book you also aren’t sure what Batman’s plans are and also whether or not these characters are going according to Batman’s plans or whether they have taken advantage of being in Batman’s team in order to carry out their own agenda. That really builds some suspense! You also see echoes in this book of previous incarnation of famous works on Batman but I don’t’ want to give too much of this graphic novel away. I do recommend this story.
NOTE: This book was provided to me free by DC Comics and Net Galley without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

Batman needs Psycho Pirate to undo the mental damage he inflicted on Gotham Girl – except he’s holed up on the island prison of Santa Prisca, Bane’s domain! For his daring kidnap mission, Batman must assemble his own Suicide Squad, an unlikely assortment of characters including the Ventriloquist, Bronze Tiger, Jewelee and Punchee, and Catwoman. Will he succeed or will Bane once more break the Bat?

Rebirth has been a stream of disappointments except for Tom King’s Batman so I’m pleased to say that the second volume continues the title’s high quality, going from strength to strength.

I’m impressed with how King is taking really obscure DC characters and bringing them to the forefront of their flagship title. The continuing focus on Psycho Pirate? That dude’s never had this much attention or respect before! But also deep cuts like Silver Age characters Jewelee and Punchee (sorta like Joker and Harley decades before they were a thing) and Bronze Tiger – whaaat?? But they fit perfectly with Batman’s heist plan. I also like how Bane’s different in this one: no mask, no tights, no Venom, and he’s still super-menacing and deadly.

Like his first Batman book, King knows how to grab the reader’s attention right from the start and deliver on their expectations for what a Batman book should be with lots of big-screen action from the aerial dogfighting going into Santa Prisca to Batman taking on scores of Bane’s armed guards. The heist itself was a pleasant surprise in that King seemed to be going down a fairly standard route and then turned it around unexpectedly at the end – I love when my guesses turn out to be wrong! Each team member has a part to play and everything clicks superbly. Batman’s plans should be this complex and unpredictable – full marks to Tom King for his excellent plotting!

I have some minor critiques. Jewelee and Punchee’s inane chatterbox dialogue was quite annoying – I can see why they never remained a permanent fixture! The inner reflective, at times ponderous, nature of the narration between Batman and Catwoman felt a bit sludgy, a bit slow, particularly in contrast to the often fast-paced action. And the script is a little repetitive at times, one character echoing another in the same conversation, which feels mindless rather than suave. They’re definitely minor criticisms though and all the important things like characters and story hit the spot.

I didn’t expect King to focus so much on Batman and Catwoman’s complicated relationship either (and I was a little wary too, not being a huge fan of romance in Batman which is almost always corny as fuuuck) but it turned out to be one of the best parts of the book. I liked how King played on the dark side of Catwoman - she’s on Death Row for allegedly killing 237 people! – which seemed possible because she’s always walked the line between good and evil and might go full-villain under the right circumstances. Like the heist, King keeps the reader guessing with what really happened.

While most readers can guess the answer to whether or not Catwoman’s going to Blackgate forever, King still manages to make the story seem strangely poignant, almost convincing you that this is the final chapter in Batman and Catwoman’s story, selling the tragic lovers angle completely. Even the stuff about the sky and diamonds shining sounds silly and sentimental on paper but really works in the moment. This is one of the few times I can remember where romance in a Batman comic felt believable.

This book also has the best art I’ve seen yet from both Mikel Janin and Mitch Gerads. Janin’s art on the Bane story was very dramatic, gothic even, possibly because it reminded me a lot of Jae Lee’s spooky art, while Gerads’ twilit pages and focus on Bruce and Selina’s faces during their “last” chase across the rooftops was beautiful.

Tom King’s Batman remains THE Rebirth title to be reading and Volume 2: I Am Suicide is a great continuation of his increasingly epic storyline. It easily captured and held my attention for the entire book and I found it to be a really entertaining read – and I say that as a picky reader in general but especially when it comes to Batman! Highly recommended to any and all Batman fans. I Am Satisfied – more!

A very entertaining Batman book with a strong heist element that was a lot of fun. Tom King has a good feel for the character and keeps you guessing as a reader. Batman is definitely one of the titles that Rebirth has been kindest to.

Cool to see the mind behind the mystery and what makes him tick. Plus the relationship with Catwoman.

This was pretty lame. I'm not sure what the point of the plot was, other than a pretty weak tie back to the previous volume. And how many readers didn't guess what would happen at the end? So obvious. So tedious. So lame.

This title is brutal and beautiful. Batman picks a team of the out unlikely Arkham inmates to get close to Psycho-Pirate. Catwoman faces the threat of losing Batman after he discovers her secret. This whole storyline is incredible. I particularly enjoyed seeing the relationship between Batman and Catwoman.

This is a big step up from I Am Gotham, King's first arc on the book, but he's still got a ways to go to make Batman a compelling comic. It can't be easy following Scott Snyder's run, but I'm not sure that taking a step back and re-focusing on the realistic, team aspects of Batman is the way to go. I quite liked the pseudo-Suicide Squad that Batman puts together in an effort to rescue the Psycho Pirate from Bane's prison island. The story was interesting and had some nice twists and turns. I wasn't quite so happy with the two-issue story about Batman and Catwoman having a night on the rooftops together--what the heck happened to Mitch Gerads normally painstaking art? But, heck, it's Batman. Of course I'll be back to see what's next. I just hope King can get his act together and start turning out a better ongoing story.