Issue five was kind of a personal challenge for me: can Deathstroke battle Batman without throwing a punch? With his enhanced reflexes and strength, Deathstroke is more than a physical match for Batman, but, as I see him, Batman’s true strength is in his intellect and strategic planning. Batman would never waste his time chasing around Gotham after Deathstroke. He also knows that, having lost a son himself, DS is extremely unlikely to kill Damian unless Damian was trying to kill him, so DS’ entire threat is utter nonsense. So the battle is one of wills rather than fists, which may disappoint some who were hoping for a slugfest. We might get that eventually, but for now our first story arc is about defining Deathstroke as being as much an intellectual and strategic threat as Batman or anyone else. Expect the unexpected.
What is Deathstrokes game? He’s a cunning, sly fox, that’s for sure. Why does he want Ravenger killed? Questions, questions. You’ve got me intrigued, Priest. You got me intrigued.
Apologies for the spoilers above. I’ll be more careful about what I post next time.
I see it as two main possibilities: one, Rose is jumping to the wrong conclusion (although Slade may WANT her to do that); two, putting a hit out on her is his way of getting her to grow up already and take life seriously.
DVD, I think it’s the second idea. I believe he’s trying to make her take what she does more seriously. It’s a dangerous world out there for super-types, that’s for sure so she better grow up fast. I guess Deathstroke is looking out for her in his own twisted way.
Priest. I don’t know much about Deathstroke but I’m beginning to see him more than just an your typical super villain assassin. He’s very much cerebral and on a par with Batman’s intellect as you’ve mentioned before. I must admit, when I read issues 1 and 2 I read him as the hero, someone to root for like the bad guys in mafia films but now I’m beginning to see what a nasty piece of work he really is. I’m no longer rooting for him but more interested in finding out what kind of messed up s/@t he’ll get up to. Keep up the good work.
I have to admit a kind of reticence toward the trend I am seeing for female superheroines appearing to be… light and silly, like they’re engaging in cosplay or something. I very much dislike the Ravager’s mask on those grounds because the huge Spider-Man eyelets are two whimsical for this book. A lot of the super girls I am seeing are smiling and posing for the camera and don’t seem to be taking what they do very seriously.
I arrived at Deathstroke with an agenda for Rose, which is being played out in this first year as she evolves into a more focused concept, rather than just being another super girl running around in a cute outfit. I dunno, to me, it feels a little sexist. I mean, I’m happy women are reading comics, don’t get me wrong. But I want the gravity of Miller-era Elektra in Daredevil, and what I am seeing more or less echoes the CW version of Supergirl in different costumes and voices.
Not saying Rose will become Elektra. Not saying she won’t. Hope you’ll stick around for the ride to find out.
Amazing Read, i Loved Rose basicaly starring in it and Riding tje Batmobile ???? btw Is it true that Deathstroke is Physically Superior in every way compared to Batman? And would Rose also be superior due to having Slade’s enhancements as well?
Also The Plasma Staff, is this considered both Slades and Roses Standard Equipment, and is it as powerful as it was before the New 52?
*The Batmobile (Then a Smiley face) sorry I got in a Rush.
Yes, Deathstroke is on Captain America’s power level, which is superior to that of a normal human being, while Batman is essentially on Daredevil power level: top athlete, etc., but not superhuman. The theory being, once Deathstroke got his hands on Batman, it would be over.
With all due respect to other writers, I haven’t seen a Batman v Deathstroke fight that made any sense to me. If Deathstroke connected a haymaker punch to Batman it would split Bats’ skull. I actually went out of my way to avoid physical confrontation between the two because that wasn’t the story I wanted to tell; I wanted them to swap partners as a way of further defining the post-Rebirth version of Deathstroke.
I believe Rose has some level of rapid healing and superior if not super-strength, but I haven’t gotten around to examining that theory in a story. Expect some focus on Rose’s abilities in Year 2.
The Titanium Staff is standard Deathstroke equipment. I presume he has more than one. The one Rose uses is a telescoping version that can compact to roughly the size of Daredevil’s billy club, but the (likely) language barrier between my bud Joe Bennett (from Brazil) and myself may have gotten that info lost in translation. There is a sound effect on one of the pages where Ravager produces this device, and the image is supposed to be one of this staff expanding from 18 inches to 36 inches, but that image is not there (and the SFX makes no sense). I’m sure we’ll get all of this ironed out as we go.
There’s a “KA-CHAKK” which makes sense for a staff lengthening. However, it starts the scene at full length, and what happens is that the ends light up with energy effects, making the SFX a “furnace kicking on” sound, I suppose.
Loved this issue so much. Batman and Deathstroke are both way too smart to get into a punch-up. The idea of them swapping partners was inspired. And Batman “trusting” (not sure if this is the right word) Deathstroke with Damian based on Deathstroke’s history was so cool.