Batman: Cacophony #2

Kevin Smith dials it back a bit this issue, and it reads better than issue 1. Maxie Zeus has gone WAY over the deep end, and there is a nice little scene with him dealing with his flunkies, followed by Batman bringing him back to the world of mortals. I do like the villain, so it was fun seeing him get this much character development time in a series where I didn't expect it. Joker is crazy, of course, but I love how dismissive Batman is as he takes him out. Throughout the issue, it is like Batman is two steps ahead of the Joker and he certainly seems to enjoy beating the snot out of the clown. Again, interesting stuff. The whole villain team up aspect is one of the more enjoyable aspects of the book. I also dug Bats' explanation to Alfred of how he tracked down exactly who had busted the Joker out of Arkham. Smith's story isn't ground-breaking, but it is entertaining enough.

Unfortunately, Walter Flanaghan's pencils are much more cartoony and looser than they were in issue 1. I wasn't as impressed with him here as I had been. He still tells the story, and his Maxie Zeus in particular looks good. But he has some anatomy problems and the fight scenes can be hard to follow.

Fair