Detective Comics #967

Writer: James Tynion IV

Artist: Alvaro Martinez

Inker: Raul Fernandez

Colourists: Tomeu Morey and Jean Francois Beaulieu

Letterer: Sal Cipriano

This might have been the best issue of the series. And that's saying a lot.

The last issue upset me as I was under the impression that we would learn more about Mr. Oz's prison and its inhabitants, but the only other prisoner we met was Doomsday and those who have been reading ACTION COMICS since Rebirth started already knew that.

James Tynion IV, as I've constantly mentioned before, clearly loves Tim Drake more than any character he's ever written and this issue demonstrates exactly why Tim is such an important figure to the team, not just symbolically, but practically as well. The concept of this future Tim Drake has grown on me since his first appearance and I've accepted the idea of him being the villain of this storyline, which extends to at least January. The tragedy of the character is more apparent in this issue than it was in the last issue, mostly because it hurts seeing him interact with characters that he hasn't seen in a very long time. This is of course reflected in Young Tim also interacting with people he hasn't seen for a long time; at this point, it's been about a year since he was taken by Mr. Oz and contained in that prison.

The story was charming and, at times, genuinely funny. Every member of the team gets a moment to shine, be it a moment of dialogue or just a solid quip. That hasn't been the case for a while now, so the fact that Tim's arrival is able to make everybody seem brighter is another argument for his importance to the team.

Alvaro Martinez is the best ongoing Batman artist out there right now. Martinez's work is usually coloured by Brad Anderson but Anderson is strangely absent, perhaps too busy working on DOOMSDAY CLOCK, but we get some solid colouring by Tomeu Morey and Jean Francois Beaulieu. Martinez's art also has a little bit of a different vibe to it. Some scenes are heavier on the inks while others are relatively light on them. It's a bit inconsistent and I would have loved more consistent work, but Martinez's inconsistent work is better than some artist's best. This book truly looks magnificent. Marvel at that last page, chums.

In a claim I'm not afraid to make, this is the best issue of the series. When Tynion is good, he's really good, and everything shines here, from the dialogue, to the humour, to the art, despite some inking and colouring inconsistencies I found troublesome. Tynion is building up to something special, so get on board.