Batman (yawn) Returns

I picked up Batman: The Return this week.  It was a $4.99 rip-off.  Er, one-shot.  Fortunately, I expected nothing less (or better) than I received.

I imagined the return of Bruce Wayne/Batman to be this dramatic event in the DC Universe.  However, it was a discombobulated mess and, as I've mentioned in previous postings, anti-climatic.  The Time Masters: Vanishing Point mini-series, in which a small group of DC heroes were searching for Batman throughout time, hadn't yet ended.  Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne mini-series hadn't ended yet either.  Both mini-series still had Bruce Wayne floating through time toward the present.  Even the Batman and Robin monthly series written by Grant Morrison himself couldn't keep up with the schedule of Batman's return.  Suddenly, DC Comics releases Bruce Wayne: The Road Home one-shots and he's back, everyone knows he's back, and there isn't much said or seen reunion-wise.  Scheduled weeks later?  Batman: The Return.  So now he's back and we're supposed to be...what?  Surprised?  Excited?  Emotional?  No.  More like confused.  And disappointed.  I feel like I, too, traveled back and forth in time reading these mismatched stories and series out of sequence, to no fault of my own. 

Batman: The Return contained a regular-sized comic story written by Grant Morrison which was pretty uninteresting, and didn't really contribute to much of the Batman universe other than being a marketing piece toward the end for the upcoming Batman, Inc. series wherein Batman loses the "loner" status he's always held near and dear, opting for commercialization instead (here, I'm reminded of the classic Charlie Brown Christmas animated special).  The rest of the Batman: The Return issue featured artwork and various logos considered for Batman, Inc.  It was then bound by harder stock matte finish cover.  All for the "bargain" price of $4.99.  Seriously, it was a waste of time and money, but I'm the fool in this game, because I knew it would be awful going in.  I keep hoping for the best for Batman and I see nothing but commercialization and overexposure.  

Because of the many new Bat-titles forthcoming, I'll probably reduce the amount of Bat-books I buy.  Not just for quality purposes but because trying to keep up and keep things in order will just get too complicated.