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> > this was a major event that they promoted and marketed as such, and which promised a) the end of Bruce Wayne as Batman, and b) the shocking revelation of the identity of the Black Glove/Dr. Hurt. It delivered neither.
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> Actually we were never promised "the schocking revelation of the identity of the Black Glove". We were promised a shocking revelation at the end of the story. Whether or not we got that can be argued but as far as I recall from all the interviews weren't told that the identity of the Black Glove would be revealed.
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Mmmmm... they may not have used those exact words, but the identity of Dr. Hurt/Black Glove (for the distinction was unclear for a long time) was played up both in the story and in interviews as a big part of the mystery. Now the story is over, and it's still a mystery.
From the IGN interview:
"IGN Comics: The last issue suggested that Thomas Wayne is really Doctor Hurt. Should fans expect more twists to this mystery?
Morrison: Well I'm not going to tell you yet. [laughs] We won't know the answer to that one until the very last issue of RIP. But we will find something out that's going to change everything. "
Now, you can parse that so that the last sentence has nothing to do with what came before if you want, but I see no reason to do that. Even if you do, he plainly said we would know the answer at least to whether it was Thomas Wayne in the last issue of RIP, and the fact is we do not. They could release an issue this week that confirms that it is in fact Thomas Wayne (or Mangrove Pierce, or the Devil, or Vandal Savage, or Count Dracula, etc., etc.) and it wouldn't contradict anything in the story except certain characters' claims or denials.
And, as I have said, if you don't know who Hurt is, you can't begin to understand his motives, which leaves the entire story arc shrouded under a giant question mark. A very unsatisfying ending, for me anyway.
