Here we are once again!
Me and you, my Batman friend!
This can only mean one thing: a Detective Comics review! Detective Comics #1086 was a decent book last month. The Legendary Dan Watters returns for a sidekick-driven backup tale. Do we think V and the crew can keep the momentum upward?
Let’s get into it!
This issue of “Gotham Nocturne Act III” is called “Crescendo”.With a title like that, you fully expect this to be a banger of an issue. Gotham City is a town that is beaten down, and new villains have taken over, hanging citizens and heroes. This must be what V has built up to. This month’s Detective is just another dud in a long run of lackluster and pretentious storytelling.
At one point in the story, Goldenface shows up, and I tell myself, this makes sense. This feels like a comic written by Michael Scott. I can’t tell you what is happening here. Two-Face and Freeze are back to being wasted cameos that feel like an unused Akiva Goldsman idea. We still have a werewolf running around like a fake Kraven the Hunter, while Joker’s Daughter thinks she is the new Reaper. The moment atop the GCPD did nothing for me; you can tell what V was going for. That “Light it up!” moment, but it falls flat. Even the Catwoman scene was a stinker, and that is a character that V has excelled at writing.
There was so much potential and so much hype, all for nothing. There is no story here; this needs to be more coherent. Did Six-Eyed Sally ever buy Arkham? What is the deal with Two-Face and the Wolf-Man? Who are these fake Banes? Is Talia still around? What is going on?
Dan Watters handles backup duties, and to be honest, if it weren’t for Lower, I never would have known. The “to be continued…” from the last tale was so small, and the credits for the backup were at the end. I thought this was part of the main story. This is a short and sweet story. It’s a fun sidekick romp handling some chaos around Gotham. I will give Watters credit here; this is better than his regular Gotham adventure. Grayson is a little too goody-two-shoes for me, but the point gets across. It is interesting to see some “competition” among the sidekicks; for that, Watters has earned some redemption. We don’t often see this from the sidekicks, especially not in this “family frenzy” era that DC is rolling out; this was refreshing. Detective
Francesco Francavilla handles the artwork for the backup tale, and it’s just a shame that it’s not an entire book. Francavilla is a tremendous artist but does wonder in this short tale. Francavilla delivers a traditional layout for this story but knows exactly the time for a splash page. There are two things I picked up for this tale: Francavilla loves orange and the word “bonk.” The real ones will know.
I appreciated the backup tale this month; it was great to have something wash the bitter taste out of my mouth after yet another disappointing main tale in .
The artistic team of Christian Duce and Stefano Raffaele do a fantastic job on every page; they are the only thing that deserves praise this month. Gotham never looked better as it was burning to the ground. Splash pages total of vibrant color provided by Luis Guerro, easy-to-follow action and panels, and detail everywhere you look. It’s not their fault someone made them put Batman in the Fight Club bloody bat suit. Ugh, can we have Batman be Batman again?
Watters earned himself some credit with his short and sweet backup tale with Francesco Francavilla, but even that can’t help me from counting down the days.
Summer is almost over, so this run is also nearing its end. Two more issues and the Tom Taylor run begins. It can’t come soon enough. Get me to #1090! – Peter Verra
GRADE: D
