Batman has had his origin story told many different times over the years. His Year One comic is one of the most famous retellings, but who can forget the original one that came out decades ago? Earth One gives the origin another shot, but it fails to capture the heart that we saw in the original or in the DCAU.

The comic starts with Thomas Wayne preparing to become mayor. It isn’t official yet, but the stats indicate that he will definitely win. Naturally, he decides to party, but he knows that there could be some danger. He’d been receiving threats and he’s not sure who they’re from. He quickly hires Alfred to come and save the day once more. Unfortunately, Wayne decides not to put him on duty until he goes to watch a film….

Years later, Bruce Wayne is now grown up and he wants to strike fear into the hearts of many. He wants to change the world and avenge his parents. Along the way he’ll also make the city a better place and end (Lower) the vast amounts of crime once and for all. The side plot involves Harvey Bullock who has just joined the police force. Commissioner Gordon has lost the will to fight, so it’s all up to Bullock now. Bullock quickly learns that Gotham can be a tricky place, but he can hold his own and decides that he will stop all of the corrupt villains.

Batman was a solid protagonist, even if he did make some rookie mistakes. He can definitely take a shot and he won’t go down easily. I didn’t like him before the time skip, but as an adult, he’s a good character. Alfred is a pretty good character as well. He reminded me of his incarnation in Beware The Batman. He can actually fight, which is always a good thing.

Harvey Bullock is a pretty brave cop and this is one of the few comics that explores that. Usually he isn’t portrayed in a very positive light, but that changed here. He’s one of the only people in Gotham who is willing to fight the corrupt villains of Gotham. He’s also a pretty good street brawler and he had a pretty successful show. Commissioner Gordon isn’t the greatest character as he falls for the hostage situation. He should have just called in Superman..but I’ll go into that a bit more in a second.

The Penguin is a pretty laughable villain for the most part. He’s a villain who masquerades as a noble business owner so it’s hard to take him seriously. He actually gets some shots in against Batman, but that wasn’t his skill, but Batman’s error. Penguin hired “The Birthday Boy” to wreck havok on the people of Gotham and kidnap/destroy as many as he could. The Birthday Boy isn’t very tough, but he does give Batman a decent fight. He’s essentially a weaker Bane. The Birthday Boy is one of those characters that is virtually impossible to like and you just wait for him to be defeated so that you can move on.

One thing that I always have against stories in Gotham is that Gotham doesn’t make sense. Gotham is feared because crime runs rampant and the place is so corrupt. Why doesn’t Superman come to save the day? It’s only about a 5 second commute from Metropolis to Gotham and Superman should want to help. There are also many other heroes who should go to Gotham and help out as well. Now, ignoring that (Or being in an alternate world where Batman is the only hero) then it’s more acceptable.

Batman Earth One was a modern take of Batman’s origin, but it was only all right. Batman had to share a lot of his screen time with Bullock and there were no notable villains. The art was pretty off the whole time and reminded me of the Adam West show. The art usually wouldn’t be bad, but it’s a little nerve wrecking to see Adam West in the old suit again. There is a lot of set up for future comics, but since this is essentially a one-shot graphic novel, you’ll just need to look for the next closest thing in the main universe. If you’re a huge Batman fan then I’d recommend this title. Otherwise, while it is an acceptable DC comic, you’d be better off checking out the Batman/Superman series.

Overall 6/10