Gotham Academy Vol 2: Calamity by Becky Cloonan and Brenden Fletcher

Gotham Academy Vol 2: Calamity written by Becky Cloonan and illustrated by Brenden Fletcher is the second collected volume of these YA comics set in a boarding school in DC's main comic universe (the one with Batman and Arkham Asylum in it). I have previously reviewed Vol 1: Welcome to Gotham Academy.

Olive has received information that her mother might be alive—and now, she and her friends must investigate! Of course werewolves, ghosts, and new student Damian Wayne won’t make it easy!

I did not enjoy this volume as much as the first. I spent a lot of the first couple of issues being confused about what was going on. And then, when things became clearer, it wasn't satisfying because I could see no reason for things to have been confusing in the first place. Also the existence of werewolves in a superhero universe seemed odd to me, but that's probably just my unfamiliarity with the DC universe (compared with Marvel) talking.

The larger, more overarching story in this volume is about Olive's mother and whether/how/why she was a supervillain. This is more interesting than the werewolf story and makes a bit more sense too... but I still think it could have been more coherently written. I am not sure if this is because we were supposed to pick up references to other DC comics (Google tells me Olive's mum has appeared in a few other comics that I haven't read), or what. It all made sense in the end — just — but I'm not sure it was worth the several pages of "wait, what's happening?" that I experienced near the start.

All that aside, I would still definitely pick up the next volume. I still like the characters and I think the series overall is still worth reading. The ending of this volume hints at how the story and characters (especially Olive) might develop in the future. I look forward to finding out how it goes.

On a side note, having a boarding school linked by secret tunnels to Arkham Asylum is pretty irresponsible. Furthermore, the existence of the latter is super ableist, wow. Even if it has been shut down/abandoned by the time Gotham Academy takes place.

I recommend this volume if you liked the first, but don't expect it to surpass the first in enjoyment. Although this is a bit of a step down, I'm not ready to give up on this series yet and will be picking up the next volume when I can.

3.5 / 5 stars

First published: March 2016, DC Comics
Series: Gotham Academy Vol 2 of ongoing series, containing issues #7–12
Format read: eARC
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss

Gotham Academy Vol 1: Welcome to Gotham Academy by Becky Cloonan and Brenden Fletcher

Gotham Academy Vol 1: Welcome to Gotham Academy written by Becky Cloonan and Brenden Fletcher and illustrated by Karl Kerschl is the first volume in a completely new series. I haven't read very much DC stuff before, so going into this I wasn't sure if I would be missing some background knowledge (I wasn't). I also thought it was going to be an academy for little superheroes, but as far as I can tell they were all relatively normal teenagers (which didn't make it a bad book).

Gotham City’s most prestigious prep school is a very strange place. It’s got a spooky campus, oddball teachers, and rich benefactors always dropping by...like that weirdo Bruce Wayne. But nothing is as strange as the students! Like, what’s up with Olive Silverlock? Is she crazy or what? Where did she go last summer? And what’s the deal with her creepy mom? And how come that freshman Maps is always following her around? And is she still going out with Kyle? P.S. Did you hear the rumor about the ghost in the North Hall?!

This was a fun read. The story starts off with Olive, a second year student, being told to show new student Maps around the campus. They're sort of friends, but Olive has some boyfriendish history with Maps's brother and is generally not happy to be back at school with everyone wondering what she did over the summer. At this point I found myself wondering if I had missed something by not reading some other earlier comic. I have to admit, if it had been an ordinary book or not part of a larger comics universe I probably wouldn't have questioned the slow reveal of her past, but as it was I wasn't sure if there was something else I should know until later. As it happens, we do end up finding out everything we need to know within this volume. The mystery is supposed to be mysterious and it's resolved by the time we get to the end. I really enjoyed this complete experience. It was refreshing to realise that no, I hadn't missed anything, and that I was holding a complete story in my hand.

So, if it's not a school for superheroes, what is it? Well an almost-ordinary boarding school, funded by Bruce Wayne, housed in a creepy old set of buildings (of course), that may or may not be haunted. Olive and friends find themselves on the trail of a ghost. Is it real? Is it a practical joke? How many school mysteries will they unearth in the process? What really happened over the summer and how does Arkham Asylum fit in with anything? You'll just have to read Gotham Academy to find out.

I really liked this YA, girl-centred book. I highly recommend it to fans of comics and YA stories. You do not need to know anything about the DC universe to enjoy it (not even the secret identity of Batman) because it's a new series with new characters. A great read.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: June 2015, DC Comics
Series: Gotham Academy Vol 1 of ongoing series, containing issues #1–6
Format read: eARC of rather disappointing quality
Source: Publisher via NetGalley