Reviews for Batman: The Rules Of Engagement

The average rating for Batman: The Rules Of Engagement based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-03-30 00:00:00 Dan Wales Prepare to step into the Batman way back time machine, because this is a story that takes place early on in Batman's crime fighting career. Before we venture back I warn you the flashback process might cause you to feel nausea, dizziness, a sense of ennui and maybe exasperation. Grab a retro-buddy's hand. Ready! Set! Go! The room spins. Fellow travelers appear as if their faces are melting. Music and sound slows down. Everything goes black. Then, a thump. Wow! That was unexpected and different! *goes to change underwear* In this volume Batman goes up against his arch-villain, Lex Luthor. Wait. What? Too late! -suckers- Wayne Enterprises and LexCorp ("The friendly face of tyranny!") are vying for a Defense Department contract. Guess who's not going to play by the rules and use subterfuge to get what they want? Guess who's going to dress up like a flying rodent to cope? If you answered, Long John Silver and The Hulk, to those questions, you can click the "Home" button now. This is a fairly solid, if unspectacular tale from Andy Diggle. The art, however, is just ugly. Whilce Portacio has a real issue with drawing faces. Sunken, shadowy eyes are the norm even if the character is, say, looking directly into the sun. Is that a grin or a sneer, a leer or a grimace? Does that character have some hidden agenda or is he just happy to be here? "That will be all, Pennyworth."

Review # 2 was written on 2014-02-05 00:00:00 Michael Garcia Here's my opinion: every fan of the Bat should at least read one Batman story where he goes up against giant robots. It isn't something that comes along often, to be sure. And even if this kind of thing isn't your idea of what a Batman story should be, you can always enjoy it for its novelty value. Now, Rules of Engagement tosses a lot off the "rules" regarding the Dark Knight out of the window. You'd be forgiven if, at some point, you think you're reading a Superman story. Heck, you'd be forgiven if, at some point, you think you're reading the script for an Ironman movie. Lex Luthor has come to Gotham. As we know, he has to make life miserable for The Man of Steel in Metropolis, so his particular brand of villainy may seem out of place in a Batman story, but it somehow works to a degree. Both Lex and Bruce Wayne are gadzillionaires, so they have that much in common. Rules of Engagement sees Lexcorp and Waynetech at odds in a defense contract tender. Lex, obviously, is willing to play dirty. This sets up a good old romp that is reminiscent of some of the more indulgent DC plots. In short: creative and crazy. Despite being a rather dark story (it opens with a brutal murder), there are quite a few amusing moments. The time-line here is early Batman, and the idea behind this was to demonstrate how Batman got a lot of his more high-tech toys and how he learnt to come to a fight equipped for any eventuality. Also in Rules of Engagement: how Batman got the Batplane.