The Final Showdown Between Batman and Talia Al Ghul | Batman Incorporated #12 pg.20

Batman Incorporated #12 pg.20

Grant Morrison's Legendary Run Comes to a Chilling Conclusion!!

After the events of the Return of Bruce Wayne, all roads led to LEVIATHAN! Batman assembles a global network of bat-affiliates known as Batman Inc. to combat the terrorist organization Leviathan led by the "Demon's Daughter" Talia Al Ghul. Earlier during Morrison's run on Batman, Talia dropped a son (Damian) on Batman's lap, then gave him an ultimatum: combine our families or its war! Batman rejected Talia's proposal, but didn't take her seriously until he realized that Talia was Leviathan! And Talia meant war.

By this point in the story, Batman Inc. and Gotham City is on the ropes. Talia brainwashed Gotham's children to be savage killers, the Knight and Robin (Damian Wayne) were both killed at the hands of the Heretic, there's an extinction satellite orbiting the globe, now Talia is going to Wayne Manor to deliver the final death blow to Batman!

This page is the last page of the penultimate issue of Grant Morrison's run on Batman. Talia Al Ghul and Doctor Hurt (Thomas Wayne) were the main villains during Morrison's run. I love that during the final fight scenes with both villains they each wear a bat mask, similar to the costume that Batman kept as a keepsake to honor his deceased father in the bat-cave. I'm happy that I have a page from each of these final showdowns. It is also cool to see Talia in Wayne Manor at different levels, to finally entering the bat-cave with Batman waiting. I couldn't ask for a better page to bookend my Morrison Batman gallery. It's even cooler to have a Wayne Manor page now that the current Batman doesn't reside there any longer.

This is also my first piece by Chris Burnham.

Shout out to Pat for letting this go during this Spring's Comic Art Live!