Absolute Batman (2024-) #5

Absolute Batman (2024) (Single Issues)

by Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta (artist)

WILL THE PARTY END HERE FOR ABSOLUTE BATMAN? With his friends lives at stake, will a broken, beaten, and ultimately defeated Bruce Wayne finally compromise and give up both himself and his morals to Black Mask? Or does he have something even BIGGER than himself to help? And what does this have to do with Mayor James Gordon and his relationship with a young Bruce Wayne? All this and more in the penultimate issue to the first arc of ABSOLUTE BATMAN!

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Batman, Superheroes, Comic Book, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics

Kindle Edition

Published February 12, 2025

About the author

Scott Snyder is the Eisner and Harvey Award winning writer on DC Comics Batman, Swamp Thing, and his original series for Vertigo, American Vampire. He is also the author of the short story collection, Voodoo Heart, published by the Dial Press in 2006. The paperback version was published in the summer of 2007.

Reviews

[hater ★ · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5) this one was good! can’t wait to read the last part of this volume :)) (the cover is kinda weird ngl but like… great legs i guess lmao)

there was a zatanna preview and i was so excited cause ill prob read that run but when i went to see the reviews of this issue i saw MEN complaining ab it. UGH.

[Stacy (Gotham City Librarian) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Mask is a horrifying, substantial threat in this run. I can actually imagine what it’s like to live in Gotham, for once, given the many parallels to our current political situation. Another thing I appreciate about this Bruce is that even though he abides by his classic and important no kill rule, he’s still very violent. These pages are bleak and bloody. I do hope that the next issue delivers a little bit of a hopeful edge, but I trust that it will.

I also appreciated the logical explanation for why the Bat symbol is so thick. Lol

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid issue, but I want to be more character driven.

[Michael Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goddamn. Now *THAT* is how you do the penultimate issue of a first arc! This thing had me on edge the whole way through, with some really great moments of pure, wonderfully executed shock. Issue 6 cannot come fast enough.

[Zoey · Rating 5 out of 5]

In every universe, Batman can never catch a break.

[Cody Lakin · Rating 2 out of 5]

All right. So, I went into the Absolute Batman line with skepticism. What I felt I needed was a real justification for this storyline even existing. I understand reimaginings are the way things work with comics, but when it’s as fundamental as Batman being poor, and a reversal on so many characters, my expectations go up on what they’ll do with it.

And so far? I’m mostly disappointed—enough I’ve knocked back my issue 5 rating to two stars. It feels like pretty much just a normal Batman story, but he happens to be poor.

I can’t escape the feeling they’re telling the wrong story. This could’ve been a new Year One, where we see his process, we see how much of a struggle it’d be for him to be Batman while also struggling to support himself and maintain his relationships. That makes the task of Batman seem like a HUGE thing. I’d love to see him build it up, but really struggle. And also be morally gray, because he’d likely have to steal and operate even further outside the law. That’d be an interesting moral thing to confront!

But… I don’t know. I didn’t get any of that. It just felt like business as usual, with some reimaginings that they’ve yet to do anything truly creative with.

And as is par for the course with other work I’ve read from Scott Snyder, it has such a strong start, with an ultimate letdown of a finale. There’s a plot point in volume 5 that I thought was so unbelievably stupid…

So, I don’t know if I’ll continue the Absolute Batman line. The art was great, it had some killer parts and ideas, but has so far disappointed me.

[Nightwing’s Thiccness · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roman and his gang using Bats’s new gadgets on him was pretty dope.

[Christian M. T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part 5 of 'The Zoo' arc.... Dragotta is back on the artwork in another action-packed issue... such a fan of his panel to panel action moments.

Batman is more brutal than ever in his fight against Black mask and his mob, showing us more of his vicious gadgets and how far he is willing to go...

A stand-out scene is seeing what Batman does with two hundred million dollars cash, with the explicit aim of sending a very loud message to every one of Gotham's enemies.... to be continued!

[Arianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why would they tear down the zoo just because there was a shooting? Everyone knows that's the right way to react to terrorism - you raze the place where the attack happened down to the ground. What does it even mean to "tear down" a zoo? It's a zoo. You can tear down... the enclosures I guess? But you're not "tearing down" a zoo. The only instance I could find of someone saying that was a British politician arguing for the secession of Biafra from Nigeria. I mean maybe Snyder is trying to allude to "the zoo" of Gotham criminals being destroyed, but why would Gordon speak allegorically to Bruce at his dad's funeral? Is he the fucking Riddler? No, I forgot, the Riddler is one of Bruce's buddies.

Cool issue tho.

[Shreyas · Rating 4 out of 5]

And that's how a penultimate book of an arc should be! Bloody, grim, bleak, and gore all over—this issue exudes it all. The current-day events run parallel to Bruce's childhood and his coping with his father's death. It was an interesting stylistic choice, but I must say, it works for the current run. We all get a logical explanation about why the Batman symbol is so thick in this iteration. Black Mask shines in this current run, proving himself to be a worthy and dangerous foe to Batman. I can't wait to read the final issue of this arc!

[Vyshakh Aravindan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolute Batman #5 is where the series starts feeling less like “Batman emerging gradually” and more like Batman has already effectively arrived, even if the label is still being withheld.

By this point in the run, Bruce Wayne is no longer experimenting with identity in any loose sense. His actions have developed rhythm, intent, and repetition. What issue 5 does differently is that it stops treating this as a transformation and starts treating it as stabilization—as if the system that was forming in earlier issues has now reached a functional operating state.

Bruce’s behavior is noticeably more controlled and less exploratory. Earlier issues showed him testing boundaries—how far he could go, how people would react, what kind of presence he could impose. In issue 5, those questions are largely gone. Instead, the focus shifts to execution: he intervenes because that is now the established pattern, not because he is still discovering whether he should. The emotional origin still exists beneath the surface, but it is heavily filtered through discipline and repetition. This is where the “Batman method” begins to feel institutional within his own actions.

Gotham’s role also evolves again. The city is no longer just reacting or adapting in a loose sense—it begins to feel predictive. Crime, authority responses, and street-level behavior start aligning around the idea that something permanent has entered the system. The earlier uncertainty in perception collapses into expectation. People are no longer just witnessing anomalies; they are anticipating a consistent force operating in the background.

This issue is particularly important thematically because it shifts Batman from being a developing presence to a structural constant. In earlier issues, Batman was something that could still plausibly not exist yet in a stable form. By issue 5, that ambiguity is mostly gone. Even without a fully formalized symbol, Batman is now functionally real in how Gotham behaves around him.

A key emotional undercurrent in this issue is detachment. Bruce is still driven by his original trauma, but it is increasingly distant in how it is expressed. Instead of raw emotional reaction, it manifests as controlled intervention. This creates a subtle tension: the more effective he becomes, the less emotionally visible the origin becomes. The story doesn’t frame this as loss, but as transformation into something less humanly expressive and more system-oriented.

Structurally, issue 5 feels more confident and less exploratory than earlier entries. Scenes are more direct, transitions are cleaner, and there is less lingering ambiguity in how events connect. The storytelling reflects the idea that Batman is no longer forming—he is operating. That operational clarity is the defining shift of this issue.

At the same time, the series continues its restraint in not delivering a final “arrival moment.” There is still no definitive point where Batman is formally declared as a complete identity in costume or mythic status. Instead, the narrative continues its consistent approach: Batman is not a reveal, but a gradual compression of behavior into inevitability.

Overall, issue 5 feels like the point where the series stops asking “what is Batman becoming?” and starts asserting “this is what Batman now does.” It is less about transition and more about permanence. The origin arc has effectively matured into a functioning system, and the story now operates in the space where Batman is already embedded in Gotham’s reality, even if the final symbolic form is still slightly deferred.

[Paulina ෂ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Qué manera de hacer tan adictivo un cómic, estoy E-NA-MO-RA-DA de la historia, de este Bruce y los personajes, así como el desarrollo que poco a poco vamos viendo. Lo que más me gustó de este número es que tenemos escenas de acción para chuparse los dedos, al igual que un Batman que sigue con la premisa de "no matar", pero que no le quita lo violento. Eso, más la situación de Black Mask explicada por un lado y los ideales de Bruce por el otro, hacen sentir que estoy viviendo en Gotham (que a ver, mi defensa incluso para con Jason Todd es que ¿cómo esperan que no me identifique con una ciudad/personaje olvidado por dios cuando yo misma soy de LATAM?) Por lo que sentirme dentro de esta ciudad de locos no fue tan difícil.

Igual ver las armas de Batman siendo utilizadas en su contra, cómo los Party Animals ahora planean una cacería de brujas, Alfred dejando solo a Bruce. Soy como niña en dulcería.

PD: ¡Regresamos con Dragotta! ¡Gracias!

[Kastie Pavlik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rounding up. Finally a decent Batman story. Aside from the costume tweaks that I think should be added to mainstream (the hooks), I've given up on Absolute Batman. I don't feel like this series has been pulled off or done as well as Absolute Superman and Wonder Woman. We've gotten very little, if anything, that addresses Martha still being in his life. Hell, still being alive now. I don't know how many issues I have left in my pulls, but I'm canceling this title as of the June order cycle.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

EASILY the best issue since the first. Black Mask comes out to play but Batman ain't backing down. Some BRUTAL fighting, great "oh shit moment" and a ending that sets up an explosive finale. Finally Absolute Batman kicks it into high gear to Join Supes and Wonder Woman.

[Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bruce confronts Black Mask for a brutal confrontation. I really like how things turned out here, kept me guessing and has me wondering where things are going to go from here. Still not in love with the series per se but it remains an entertaining read.

[Jadyn❀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what living in the real world feels like right now, too

[Frodo · Rating 4 out of 5]

mellor que o anterior

[Pranay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice! We are back in the midst of action and story telling!

[Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing that this seems to be another case of the villain actually makes incredibly good points but kills as many people as possible as a means to an end

[Haden Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 1/2

[Nikhil Math]

Oh man, this ending. It is making me wonder what the heck Batman is going to do now...

[BRAMBILLA SIMONE · Rating 4 out of 5]

"L'unico eroe di questa storia, Batman, è il denaro."

[Keegan Schueler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic to be back with absolute Batman and it sets up the finale amazingly while also being a great issue on its own. More on the backstory of the zoo with a few more hints without the big reveals and having Batman meet finally with Black Mask with the money in his hands.

[The Wintermute System · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loathe previews for books I don’t care about - like the Zantanna one that did nothing for me. Main story four stars, knocked one down for a lame preview.

[R.J. Huneke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Killer!!!!!

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

The continuing New adventures of Batman. but told differently

[Saket · Rating 5 out of 5]

Violent 😳

[Thaddeus Tuffentsamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than the last issue (which was a dragging filler issue). Bruce has nailed down who the villain is, set him up, only to have his behind handed to him!

With Alfred saving said behind, only to chew him out and write him off.

We’re left with Bruce trying to figure out how to straighten this all out.

Not bad as a story. The last few issues have really dragged in my opinion. Absolute Superman is much better. I’ll at least read this current storyline to its completion. Not sure if I’ll continue reading them afterward.

[Brett Shupe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the new approach to Batman , it's interesting to see what they do with all his rogues'gallery and side characters. How they are different from the norm is what I find most intriguing about this series. I have found this series is inconsistent, there are alot of great stuff in here but also some stuff that brings the hype down a bit

[Cybernex007 · Rating 5 out of 5]

“See Roman…I don’t need cars, or planes, or computers. I don’t need anything you have. All I need…is Batman.”

What a good issue, full of hard hitting emotional moments with some of the best drawn and written action scenes I’ve seen in a minute tacked onto the end. This issue really has everything I want from this series. This issue immediately opens with an emotional moment, Bruce getting his final shots from Leslie due to the bat incident at the zoo…immediately leading into his father’s funeral. As we left Batman last issue Roman offered him a deal. 200 million and Batman backs off…and it seems that Batman accepted the money. We now follow Batman on his way to the meeting point with Roman, the entire way taunting the animals to do something…at this moment he is untouchable. And Roman seems to have gotten what he wanted, Jim knows in his mind that he won’t be elected mayor, but what he admits to Martha and regrets the most is that due to everything being in shambles, the memorial light at the zoo won’t shine this year.

As Batman reaches the meeting point, Alfred is still watching from a distance as he sees the snipers ready, just in case he double crosses them. At the same time we see back to Thomas’s funeral. Gordon informed Bruce that they will be tearing down the zoo, probably building something practical in its place. But before Gordon could leave Bruce stopped him. “I don’t want them to knock down the zoo. Or turn it into something “practical.” I want something there that makes everyone look. Like you said, something that shines.” As Batman is finally meeting mask to mask with Roman, he reveals that he already got the money…and already spent all of it. Only moments later the zoo memorial light lights up the sky! Covered in a giant bat symbol made of money! THE DEAL IS OFF! The party animals try and rush Batman, but these action panels are too good. One of my favorites is when the animal who got his arm chopped off in the first issue tries to get payback and jump on Batman’s back…only to be impaled from the spikes that can shoot out on Batman’s back!!

But as the money can be seen burning away on the light, the fight is not completely in Batman’s favor. As at the end of the day they see right through him, and know how much he cares for human life. Roman orders the snipers to open fire…taking out his own people! As Batman rushes to save them, it leaves him open an vulnerable to being taken down by net launchers. Due to the slick fast combat we saw Roman show off before, he is even able to break Batman’s arm. As Batman reveals that the entire altercation has been filmed through a hidden camera on his head that has been sent to the news, they don’t see the point. One of Roman’s right hand people takes one of the blades out of Batman’s cowl and stab it into him. While the other one lights him on fire, and finally a third takes his own axe and knocks him off the roof. The way Roman sees it, Batman hasn’t done anything, he hasn’t inspired anyone by burning that money. The only hero in this story is money. As Batman falls to the ground, he has no time to recover, the cops are already on his tail. He is forced to slip away to the bottom of the parking garage he landed on (a car crushed under his weight and broke his fall lol), and her to the nearest sewer grate. Before he slips in he is actually hit by a squad car driven by Barbara Gordon! She almost stopped him, but he called her bluff, and she just let him go.

As this issue comes to an end, Roman is fully in the public eye now and he doesn’t care. He went to the news and have them a full, pretty impressive, villain monologue about growing up on a pig farm. And how when he would kill a pig there was the slight chance the pig would have a spasm. Not of pain, but of joy. Turns out that happened when the pig fully accepted their fate and the bolt was able to go deep enough to hit a part of their brain. A full spasm of euphoria right before death…because they accepted it. And he expects Gotham to do the same. Alfred was able to catch up to Bruce, but not to offer help and patch up his wounds, but to scold him! Things are 10x worse out there now, and Gordon and Martha are some of the first to see it. The invitation to join the party animals have just opened to the entire city, and everyone is invited. Just find your nearest street corner with a mask and gun and get to work. I also can’t help but notice the masks and guns were unloaded from vans with “JK” on the side. I know in this world joker is supposed to be rich, is this going to lead into that, or just a coincidence? I guess we will see, I know I’m excited!