About_Faces!

75 Years of Harvey Dent:

My Top 22 Two-Face Stories of All Time Countdown!

#19.) “The Big Burn,” from Batman and Robin Two-Face #24-28 (2013-2014), written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray.

In this all-new take on Two-Face’s origin (and possibly also his final fate), Batman finds himself caught in the middle between Two-Face and the vengeful Irish mob boss who murdered Gilda and inadvertently created Two-Face. As Bruce struggles to keep his old friends from killing each other, flashbacks reveal the new backstory for Harvey Dent, whom Erin McKillen blames for her sister’s death, and who may not have been entirely innocent. It all ramps up to major revelations and a shocking cliffhanger which remains unresolved nearly two years later!

I’ll be honest: I expected to hate this story. Gilda fridged? Harvey possibly being corrupt as D.A.? The classic origin wiped out? There was not enough DO NOT WANT in the world. So color me surprised when I ended up really, really liking this new origin. It’s not my preferred take, but on its own merits, it’s a damn good story, one which makes a couple profound impacts on Two-Face as a character, especially in regards to his relationship with Bruce. And while Gilda’s fridging is still bad, it at least gives Harvey a “Mr. Freeze” layer of extra romantic tragedy, which seems to have resonated with some fans.

That said, this story is something of a mess. It was obviously supposed to be a very different story, one which involved with origins of Carrie Kelly, until these plans were scapped at the last minute. Frankly, it’s amazing that this story is as coherent as it is, and I would still love to know what the hell happened behind the scenes that changed the original version of this story, whatever the hell that was.

Regardless, “The Big Burn” was a very strong story with some revelations and twists that really should have led to greater attention and reaction from the apathetic comics press. It’s honestly bizarre to me that no one seems to care about that ending, much less that Two-Face hasn’t made any appearances since Spring 2014. Whether it’s Scott Snyder or someone else who finally brings Harvey back (because of course he’s coming back.. right?), hopefully that writer won’t just sweep “The Big Burn” under the rug. This story is a rare care of a New 52 origin actually being pretty damn good, and it deserves recognition.

Also, bring back Erin McKillen, preferably written by Tomasi. She’s a fascinatingly loathsome antagonist, a rare case of a villain I actually love to hate.

The first panel of Batman and Robin Aquaman #29, indicating that there's still no word on the fate of Two-Face after the finale of The Big Burn.

I've finally completed my extensive four-part (!) review of The Big Burn, all-new Two-Face origin for the New 52 continuity which appeared in Batman and Robin Two-Face #24-28, by Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, and Mick Gray.

I honestly didn't intend for this to go on for multiple posts, much less a quartet, but there's just SO MUCH going on in this story--good, bad, ugly, and everything in between--that I ended up having a lot to say. The four reviews are as follows:

Part 1: The prologue, in which I examine the original abandoned plans for TBB which centered around Carrie Kelley, whose still-unexplained disappearance from DC Comics led to the story being drastically rewritten at the last minute.

Part 2: The new origin of Two-Face, which I've taken the liberty of editing into sequential order rather than the Memento-esque way that the scenes originally appeared.

Part 3: The main plotline, centering on the return of Erin McKillen, an all-new villain who often seems to be the real star of TBB.

Part 4: The conclusion, featuring a stunning twist followed by a shocking cliffhanger finale which may or may not be resolved anytime soon AND IT'S KILLING ME.

TL;DR, it's a very, very interesting new take on Harvey Dent, one which certainly has its flaws (possibly due to the fact that an entire subplot was erased at the last minute and the whole story had to be rewritten), but which is amazing enough in parts to be well worth buying. Definitely give this story a read, and if you're so inclined, feel free to read my thoughts and share your own!

--Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

Hello and goodbye, my love...

Harvey and Gilda by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

When Harvey met Gilda.

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #28, by Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, and Mick Gray

"Eh, just replace her with a Harvey, no one will notice."

Whatever happened to the Girl Wonder of tomorrow, and what were the original plans for The Big Burn? I examine the bizarre history of DC's latest bit of fuckery in my new article, which also serves as a prologue to my upcoming review of TBB.

So from the looks of this, it seems like everyone close to Harvey Dent--Gilda, Bruce Wayne, and Jim Gordon alike--were all complicit in pushing him to violate attorney/client privilege. Harvey himself is the only one who seems to have any qualms about this, whereas everyone else acts like it's no big deal, something that couldn't possibly lead to disbarment at best (which Harvey himself says later is what would happen) or violent reprisals at worst (which is of course what happens).

Anyone else think that this is all super sketchy of our heroes? Or should this sort of legal hand-waving be expected from anyone willingly working with a vigilante? Maybe the real lesson to take away here is that real-life legal issues have little place in the realm of Batman, at least not in the modern era where they haven't even finagled an excuse like having Batman be a fully deputized member of the police force.

All in all, it certainly looks like the good guys and the bad guys alike all used Harvey to their own ends and he and Gilda ended up paying for the consequences. Which would be an interesting motivation for Two-Face to have for hating Batman, Bruce, and Gordon, except that there's absolutely no indication anywhere that Harvey hates them at all for any particular reason. Chalk this up to a major wasted opportunity on Tomasi's part.

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

This is the closest I've ever seen the comics come to depicting Harvey and Gilda's relationship the way I've always wanted to see it, as I've striven to do through my own fic.

I love that Gilda is being depicted as Harvey's moral compass, though I'm not particularly fond of how this scene is basically her giving Harvey permission to break attorney/client privilege, violate one of his profession's most sacred rules, and risk disbarment at best (not to mention violent retribution at worst which, y'know, happens).

Thing is, does attorney/client privilege even hold in this case considering that the McKillen twins outright admitted to Harvey that they plotted to murder Jim Gordon and his whole family? I was under the impression that attorney/client privilege isn't applied when lawyers learn about hard evidence of their client's criminal activities?

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

In addition to being Gotham's most ruthless mob bosses, the McKillen sisters apparently moonlight as go-go dancers from the 60's.

But seriously, I find Erin's appraisal of Jim Gordon rather telling about her own character. Throughout this story, she's accused Harvey of selfishly acting solely to advance his own ambitions, and the story itself has been trying to make us suspect that she's right about that. And yet, here she is, accusing Jim Gordon of the same thing, even though he's pretty much the most moral and upstanding guy in the whole city.

I'm not sure how intentional this was on Tomasi's part, but it's like she cannot conceive of a reason why someone would be trying to take her down that doesn't involve selfish motives. All of her enemies, even in law enforcement, are greedy and jealous people who want to gain power at her expense. Again, I'm not sure how intentional this was, but it's a very interesting trait, and one which truly makes her all the more loathsome. It'll be interesting to see if she'll actually face justice at the end, especially since her rampant badassery throughout indicates that Tomasi is quite fond of his original creation here.

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

So in the New 52, Jim Gordon--the most down-to-earth, realistic, average everyman of Batman's world--is now an asskicking marine action hero like something out of a Jason Statham movie. You can almost see the slow-mo kick in with that fourth panel there.

Also, I knew this is a stupid question, but how the hell is continuity supposed to work now? Before Harvey Dent even became a D.A., Gordon was already a commissioner, and James Jr. is already, what, eight years old? I wonder if "The Zero Year" addresses any of this, because if not, then this is just another case of writers and editors not even trying to come up with a half-assed continuity.

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

Further details on Harvey Dent's early days in the New 52 continuity, showing that he once had a lucrative career as a defense attorney who exploited Batman's vigilantism for how own benefit. Oh, and he's also on retainer for two of the most ruthless mob bosses in town. Well, at least he's shown to be in a happy, healthy relationship with Gilda, so that's something nice, I guess.

Also, the crime lords having their lawyer use a phone they gave him? Anybody else getting a Saul Goodman vibe from this scenario? I can't blame Tomasi too hard for potentially being inspired by Breaking Bad, as lord knows I'd be tempted to go back to that well repeatedly if ever I wrote Batman comics.

From Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, written by Peter J. Tomasi, art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

Erin McKillen's new look, from Batman and Robin Two-Face #27, by Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, and Mick Gray.