Greetings and salutations fellow Gothamites, it that time of the week when we, the faithful followers of The Bat gather to discuss the Dark Knight Detective in deepest detail. This week the Bat Signal is focused on two books; Detective Comics #24 and Batman: Black and White #2. With Villains Month behind us now we return to regular numbering and to the story arcs that were interrupted by the month of special issues so now we can look forward to the continuation of Zero Year by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo in Batman proper and the tie in books that were listed here last week. Now without further delay let us delve into the daring do of the Dark Knight Detective beginning with a look at Detective Comics #24 written by John Layman with art by Jason Fabok.
This issue continues the Wrath arc further developing the character as a formidable addition to Batman’s rogue’s gallery. He is what Batman could have been had his desire for vengeance not been tempered with his higher ideals and unquenchable thirst for justice. E.D. Caldwell is the Wrath’s alter-ego and son of Mallory Caldwell, a jewel thief who was unjustly murdered by corrupt members of the G.C.P.D. many years ago thus fueling the younger Caldwell’s fury and insatiable need for revenge against every cop in Gotham. Layman does an excellent job of crafting the narrative here as he draws parallels between Caldwell and Bruce Wayne. This issue drives the point home and builds to an action packed confrontation that includes a dog fight over Gotham City. The similarities between these two men are the motivating force behind the narrative; both men have lost loved ones but have chosen vastly divergent roads in dealing with the resulting pain. The Wrath acts as an advisory to Batman allowing him to see the end if he ever allows his rage to consume him.
The dynamic visuals and kinetic action scenes are what Jason Fabok excels at and there are plenty of them in this issue. The non-stop conflict and rapid-fire pace provide the perfect vehicle for his meticulously orchestrated action sequences. Blond’s vivid palette adds a vivacity and electricity that bring these pages to life. This is a satisfying conclusion to an impressive arc that gives us a villain we will hopefully be seeing more of in the pages of the Bat books.
Next up we have another really superb issue of Batman: Black and White brought to us by some truly legendary creators including a cover by Jim Steranko which features Batman in a somewhat Christ-like pose but surrounded by some other confusing elements, however it is a Jim Steranko Batman cover, nuff said.
The first story, Man-Bat out of Hell is written by Dan Didio with art by J.G. Jones and deals with the very disturbing topic of child pornography and what makes it more disturbing is that the children being victimized are those of Kirk Langstrom. When Batman realizes what is going on here the story quickly turns to a team-up in which he and Man-Bat take down the horrid sex criminal. The writing is fine but the true star of this story is J.G. Jones’ photorealistic artwork particularly his Man-Bat design. Overall this is a good story but conceptually I feel it is one of the weaker offerings in this issue.
The next story is written and drawn by Brazilian artist Rafael Grampa and in my opinion is the highlight of this issue. Grampa’s artwork is stunningly detailed and full of eccentric subtleties that make this story bristle with energy. His character designs from the main players to the incidental are fully thought out and realized participants in the narrative. However Grampa’s contribution to this issue is not just great artwork his story is pretty darn interesting as well. All the elements of a classic Batman tale are present in this short story including some first rate detective work leading to an intelligent well planned twist. This is an incredibly enjoyable read.
“A Place in Between” is also brought to us by a single creator, written and drawn by Rafael Albuquerque. This one is a bit more ethereal as we find Batman on the river Styx in a skiff navigated by Deadman in the role of Charon. Albuquerque asks us to accept a lot for the plot to work in this short narrative however it is probably the most poignant of all the short works in this issue even if it doesn’t present the most plausible story. The artwork is gorgeous and really works wonderfully in the black and white format. He does an exceptional job portraying Batman’s eyes in a way we don’t usually see them and it works to a dazzling result.
The next story is called “Winter’s End” and it is written by Jeff Lemire with artwork by Alex Nino. This is fairly pedestrian in that we get Batman fighting ninjas in the snow. He is trying out a new arctic suit and reporting the progress as he goes. There is passing mention made of Mr. Freeze and the Riddler but neither makes an appearance. This was the most disappointing story for me as I would have loved to see Lemire illustrate and write a Batman story much like he did for Superman in the digital first Superman Adventures. Nino has an off-putting angular style that worked well enough here but this is definitely not indicative of why I love Jeff Lemire.
Finally we have “Silent Knight… Unholy Knight” written by Batman aficionado Michael Uslan and illustrated by Dave Bullock, this story is presented as a silent movie complete with opening credits. The plot introduces us to a new villain with an old name who shares many similarities with Batman as far as origin and mode of operation but went in an opposite direction. The art is detailed and sophisticated adding a touch of the modern age to the silent movie motif, depicting Batman as he appeared in Detective #27 works very well in this particular story. All things considered this is a solid addition to this issue.
Overall I would have to say the first issue of Batman: Black and White was a superior comic book but there are still plenty of reasons to pick this issue up and judging by the lineup for the next issue, I would recommend sticking around. There are stories by Lee Bermejo, Marv Wolfman and Paul Dini to name just a few.
Well that’s going to do it for another week here in good ole Gotham City, I hope you enjoyed reading this report as much as I did doing the research and I hope to see you here next week, same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.
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Follow Shawn Warner of Twitter: @shawnwarner629
BAG & BORED 