Batman #232

Batman #232 (1971)
by Danny O’Neil & Neal Adams

The O’Neil-Adams run basically redefined Batman, but for such a pivotal era it’s surprisingly enough there’s a distinct lack of new villains… with one MAJOR exception.

We begin with Robin (who is going to university at this point) getting shot on the first page.
Great job, Robin!

He has NOT been killed, though, just taken hostage… as Bruce Wayne discovers in the mail.

In this period Batman wasn’t living at the old mansion, but he goes back to the Batcave to look for clues.

As soon as he gets there he’s greeted by Ra’s al Ghul, who shows off he’s deduced Batman’s secret identity IN HIS FIRST PANEL!!!

On one hand that’s AWESOME, but I don’t really like how Batman points out that it’s such an easy deduction to make. It’s like with Superman’s glasses: just don’t point it out, we all accept it anyway.

Ra’s is here because his daughter Talia has been kidnapped.

Talia actually debuted BEFORE her father, one month prior in Detective Comics #411.
She was ALSO kidnapped in that one, by a criminal with a grudge against her father.

Don’t think she was a damsel in distress, though, because that story ended with her shooting the mob boss into an incoming train.

The reason why Ra’s has gone to Batman is that Talia has been kidnapped by the same people who have Robin, and she spoke highly of the Dark Knight.

Batman doesn’t waste any time before finding a clue: the pictures of Robin and Talia have traces of dust that create a trail.

This is also the first appearance of Ra’s henchman Ubu.

I’m not entirely sold on Batman accepting a ride on Ra’s private jet instead of using his own. I guess he wants to keep tabs on Ra’s, but still.

Little known fact: Batman is contractually obligated to retell his origin every other issue.

And so the story moves to Calcutta (today the official English name is Kolkata), which according to O’Neil only has Muslims despite being in India.

Or according to Batman, since the beggar is actually him in disguise in order to get some information from the locals.

Batman’s plan seems to be to randomly beat up some random guys and hope they can give him useful information, WHICH WORKS.

I would say Ubu has a one-track mind, but that would be a bit insulting to tracks.

And then SUDDEN LEOPARD!!!

Batman takes care of the leopard without any problem, but obviously it’s not like there are random felines lurking in every corner of Calcutta.

I always like it when Batman shows he DOES have a sense of humor.

This story moves VERY fast, because we’re ALREADY in the Himalayas to look for the next clue.

We haven’t learned anything about Ra’s up to this point, but he does take a moment to show he has a little more depth than he lets on.

Someone tries to shoot the trio as they are climbing the mountain, with Ra’s taking a few bullets.

The next scene is a nice show of why this is such a great run. First O’Neil gives us a little demonstration of Batman’s ingenuity…

…and Adams gets to demonstrate his storytelling skills with a silent takedown.

It’s important to note Batman has already solved the case here (!!!!) but we won’t be told the solution until the end.

For example, he’s already figured out that whoever is in the cave that the trail leads to… doesn’t REALLY want Batman dead.

Batman just calmly strolls into the cave, freeing Robin who is surprisingly okay with wearing shorts on the Himalayas.

Snarky Batman is the best Batman.

The man responsible for the kidnapping show up, but Batman is just DONE with his crap.

Batman breaking down the inconsistencies in Ra’s story is just fantastic.

But the cherry on top is that Batman didn’t REALLY figure out exactly where Robin was being kept: he was just tricking Ra’s.

Still, it’s a Batman story, you can’t expect him to set foot in a villain’s base and NOT beat up some goons.

That’s just par for the course, but you know taking down Ubu is the most satisfying part for Batman.

It goes without saying, but Talia was never in any danger whatsoever.

There is ONE piece of the puzzle that Batman couldn’t quite figure out: what was the point of all these shenanigans?

Turns out all Ra’s wanted was some little Ghuls.

And that’s how it ends!!! I was sure this was going to be a two-parter with that ending, but… as soon as Talia started to talk about marriage, I imagine this was Batman’s reaction:

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Interestingly, this story was adapted into the two-parter episode “The Demon’s Quest” of Batman: The Animated Series.
It’s a rather faithful adaptation, and no wonder: it was written by Danny O’Neil himself!

However, being a two-parter, the animated series has the advantage of immediately following up with the other Ra’s al Ghul stuff that will be introduced later in the comics.
For Part 2, O’Neil had the additional writing help of Len Wein (who has a few Batman credits, among MANY other comic books for both DC and Marvel).

Part 2 was mostly an adaptation of Batman #244 (the follow-up Ra’s story), down to ending on the same exact scene.

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Historical significance: 10/10
Ra’s al Ghul becomes extremely important to Batman’s universe, to the point that in some runs he almost comes across as Batman’s nemesis.

Silver Age-ness: 0/10
Not really. 

Does it stand the test of time? 10/10
A classic. The fact that the Animated Series managed to retell the story virtually unchanged in 1993 is a testament to it.

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How close is this to the modern character? 7/10
In terms of personality and demeanor, he’s pretty much already the definitive Ra’s. What’s still missing, however, are his immortality (there’s no sense that he’s any older than he looks) and his Lazarus Pit that can resurrect him.

Ra’s al Ghul is a great villain, especially when he’s not overused: the fact that he feels like a larger-than-life presence in Batman’s more down-to-earth adventures is his best selling point.
He should DEFINITELY have been used more sparingly: when Ra’s shows up it should be an event where Batman’s skills are put to the test. But he’s been so overused, and he’s been linked so much other stuff in Batman’s role (he’s the grandfather of a Robin!!!), that I feel it really diluted his impact.

An obligatory shout-out to his surprise appearance against the Legion in the latter days of the Reboot continuity. I will get to reviewing those sometime before the 30th century; he’s a bit controversial among Legion fans, but I found him to be one of the best villains in ages.