When I first heard that the new creative team on Gotham Knights was bringing back "Hush," the villain from the Jeph Loeb/Jim Lee on Batman, two words came to mind: "too soon." Upon further reflection, two others came to mind: "who cares." At its best, the "Hush" storyline was a slick-looking one with a forced villain premise and mystery that celebrated the world of the Dark Knight. At its worst, it was a story that went through its formulaic paces and hinged on minutae. From the start, Lieberman was starting off with a handicap, and his handling of the characters did little to catch my interest. Furthermore, the art here fails to capture the same intensity, detail or even fun that Jim Lee's did, as the artists here offer up little but the standard super-hero visuals.
The man known simply as Hush has retreated from the rest of the world, rebuilding his physical and psychological self to complete a mission of the greatest urgency to him: the eradication of the colorful cast of characters in Gotham's underworld. The Riddler learns he's the first one on the list, and he reaches out to a... colleague for assistance. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne catches a glimpse of a woman he once knew... a woman who is supposed to be quite dead.
Barrionuevo tells the story here clearly, and his work at times reminds me of the styles of such artists as Tom Lyle and Pete Woods. But there's little in this comic book that really grabs the eye. Backgrounds are sorely lacking throughout the comic, and even key visuals are rather sparse when it comes to any sense of detail. For example, a significant reveal shows Hush's hideout, with what seems like a bunch of blank pieces of paper pinned to the wall. It's not until the next page do we see that they're photos and maps. It seems as though the artists take a number of shortcuts here... shortcuts that detract from the story.
There's another unfortunate aspect to this book that has nothing to do with the creative team's efforts. I'm disappointed to see that the "Batman: Black & White" backup feature is abandoned with this issue. It's consistently proven itself to be this title's greatest asset, and I hope it hasn't been cast off permanently.
The biggest problem with the storytelling here is that the plot relies heavily on two other Batman storylines. "Hush" isn't the only big Batman story arc to play prominently here; the catalyst event from "Bruce Wayne" Murderer?" returns to haunt the title character here as well. Unfortunately, Lieberman's script offers little in the way of exposition. Not only will new readers be lost, but those readers who lost interest in the all-too-convenient and not at all logical wrap-up revelations of Batman #619 will be at something of a loss as well.
