Detective Comics #989 Review
Writer: James Robinson
Artist: Stephen Segovia
Colourist: Ivan Plascencia
Letterer: Rob Leigh
James Robinson is a baffling writer, and this was a baffling issue.
Firstly, the issue is building to a twist of who the main villain of this whole story really is. Any luck? He's right on the cover of the issue. I won't fault James Robinson for this; as far as I can tell, this was an editorial thing and he had nothing to do with the commissioning of the covers or the solicitations.
What I should fault Robinson for is the clearly deliberate filler dialogue and scenes. Every scene always goes on for a little bit longer than it should, and it's likely Robinson pacing himself so he can get to the big reveal at the end with Two-Face. It's not like the issue is boring, don't get me wrong. There's an early scene with Batman and Alfred that was just delightful. I love Robinson's take on Alfred. I just wish this entire package was tighter so he could get me to care about this mystery in the first place. I don't care about it just because Batman does. I need something more.
Stephen Segovia's work here is fantastic. There are a couple double page spreads that I think are really great, and his figure work, particularly on Batman, is really top-notch. He's hasn't been doing much work for DC lately and I think that's criminal; he's fantastic. Ivan Plascencia's colours add a bright layer, and we have an extraordinarily gorgeous issue.
Aside from the oddly paced scenes, this was enjoyable enough. The dialogue is fun and the art is pretty stunning. I just wish I cared about what was going on.
Artist: Stephen Segovia
Colourist: Ivan Plascencia
Letterer: Rob Leigh
James Robinson is a baffling writer, and this was a baffling issue.
Firstly, the issue is building to a twist of who the main villain of this whole story really is. Any luck? He's right on the cover of the issue. I won't fault James Robinson for this; as far as I can tell, this was an editorial thing and he had nothing to do with the commissioning of the covers or the solicitations.
What I should fault Robinson for is the clearly deliberate filler dialogue and scenes. Every scene always goes on for a little bit longer than it should, and it's likely Robinson pacing himself so he can get to the big reveal at the end with Two-Face. It's not like the issue is boring, don't get me wrong. There's an early scene with Batman and Alfred that was just delightful. I love Robinson's take on Alfred. I just wish this entire package was tighter so he could get me to care about this mystery in the first place. I don't care about it just because Batman does. I need something more.
Stephen Segovia's work here is fantastic. There are a couple double page spreads that I think are really great, and his figure work, particularly on Batman, is really top-notch. He's hasn't been doing much work for DC lately and I think that's criminal; he's fantastic. Ivan Plascencia's colours add a bright layer, and we have an extraordinarily gorgeous issue.
Aside from the oddly paced scenes, this was enjoyable enough. The dialogue is fun and the art is pretty stunning. I just wish I cared about what was going on.
A Look Inside
