I have been thoroughly enjoying myself reading the various New 52 comics. I have been a fan of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and the rest since I was a kid. With that being said, I have been hoping for more than just re-imaginings of established heroes and villains. I have been hoping for new heroes and villains.
Along comes the Talon spin-off title from the pages of Batman. Two pohrases pop to mind - "be careful what you wish for" and "beggars can't be choosers". If I were in charge of DC Comics, I wouldn't have picked this storyline to be my new addition to the DC universe. I do think the Court of Owls storyline was good and that it should still be part of the larger Gotham story, but it should keep popping up in the various titles that take place in Gotham. This would give a nice excuse for a Bat-family-wide crossover event, too.
This boopk is okay, a solid three stars as it consistent, does have character development and a story that thus for is progressing in a reasonable manner.
I will read the second book, but a large part of that is due to tie-ins with Batgirl and Birds of Prey.


It seemed fairly obvious from quite early on that our main character, Calvin Rose, was being manipulated. Waiting for him to discover that took a bit of time, but has lead up to some good story tension.
I know I said I wanted to see new characters, but I was very glad to see Batman become entwined in the Court of Owls once again, even if it is not carrying over into any of Batman's titles.
Bane would normally not have been my choice to see as the big bad come to thwart Calvin, but unlike his appearance in the Dark Knight series where he is just a big thug, his great intelligence is also used and I think he really is going to make the story better, because now we also have someone who can go up against Felix Harmon (The Butcher of Gotham).

They kind of destroyed everything that was cool about the Talons with this comic. And I guess I reached the point where I've seen too much of the Court of Owls (if you show the alien/predator in every shot, he's not scary or mysterious anymore). Calvin Rose has got to be the most boring main character, he makes even Hal Jordan look interesting and multilayered. I was kind of hoping to see Dick Graysons grandad as the main character in this one, but a completely human unremarkable dude as the Talon beating all those unhuman "monsters" (yes, with every issue they push the Talon-monster thing further. It started with zombies and it'll end with the Hulk). I loved Scott Snyder's writing with Batman but this just feels phoned in. BUT I have to say, the art is absolutely fantastic. ( )