The Batman Handbook: The Ultimate Training Manual by Scott Beatty

The official manual to becoming the Batman! True, nobody can be Batman. But, if you ever wanted to follow in his footsteps, then Scott Beatty has crafted a handbook for you. Taking instruction from experts in law enforcement, criminology, first aid, self defense, psychology and weaponry, Beatty utilizes the Dark Knight's casebook to advise up-and-coming vigilantes and superheroes on how to defend and protect themselves from nearly any situation one might face in Gotham City. There's even some tips from magicians and escape artists on how to free yourself from the various traps employed by Batman's rogues gallery.

Need to know how to build up your superhero arsenal of vehicles and gadgets? Clueless on how to conduct your own investigations? Don't worry! Scott Beatty's got you covered! In my opinion, those sections are Scott Beatty's most well researched and written articles. When Beatty tries to explain situations such as how to safely fall off a building or how to repel up that same building, he gets caught up in the technical aspects and I find myself getting lost. Let's face it: no matter how many illustrations one might add as figure examples, trying to get your bearings through instructions on how to be perpendicular with the ground while keeping your arms in a diagonal bend is just too complicated to follow. A series of supplemental YouTube videos would have been greatly appreciated.

The artwork for the handbook is very clean. It has that classic style of Batman: The Animated Series. I like almost all of it. Except for the ears. I don't know why. But David Hahn's ability to draw ears just seems so odd looking. Big cases in point are the auricles of techno villain Gearhead as well as those of Commissioner Jim Gordon. One might think that I'm being petty or nitpicky about this. But the insides of human ears just don't look like that!

A neat concept by Quirk Books. Great use of actual Batman comics and other media. Though I would have liked if this book had stayed either all comics or all movies. Both really muddies the lines of what is canon and what is not. A must for fans of the Batman family. Only just because there is some actual life saving information comprised inside this book, by no means use this to become an actual superhero!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Batman '66 Meets The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

  

When a new operative of the criminal organization THRUSH frees all of the inmates from Arkham, Batman and Robin must join forces with the Man from U.N.C.L.E.!

Jeff Parker returns to the Batman '66 universe in this 2016 crossover! All of your classic television favorites are here including Batgirl, Egghead, Napoleon Solo, and Soviet agent Illya Kuryakin. (Man, did my mom have a crush on him!) There's even a few 'modern' villains such as Poison Ivy and a mystery player involved. Sorry- I can't spoil it! (But I can tell you- I saw the plot twist from a mile away!)

Other than what my mother has told me about the Man From U.N.C.L.E., I have never seen the show. But my mom was what you would call a super-fan of the show. So, I think I have a decent idea of what sort of flow to expect from the U.N.C.L.E. characters. Considering that the Batman '66 segments fit very well with that show's personality, I would say that Jeff Parker did an admirable job combining the two franchises.
 
 My favorite part of this book was the art. David Hahn (Suicide Girls) does a fine job at capturing the Batman '66 look of both the show and comic book series. But of course, more than anything, I dug Madman's Mike Allred's groovy covers. I really want to see him take on a 4-issue crossover between Batman '66 and Star Trek '66- and not just the covers. I think it would be wild!

Great fun for those nostalgic fans of classic TV and classic comic books!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.