Detective Comics #27

Writers: Brad Meltzer, Gregg Hurwitz, Peter J. Tomasi, Mike Barr, John Layman, and Scott Snyder

 

Artists: Bryan Hitch, Neal Adams, Ian Bertram, Francesco Francavilla, Guillem March, Jason Fabok, and Sean Murphy

 

Introduction

 

Detective Comics #27 would normally be hailed as a special occurrence in the old DCU. It should make less sense to readers that DC is congratulating Detective Comics in the space of the New 52 since they have not had that history. Instead of rolling my eyes any further, I will appreciate any excuse to have an anniversary issue of Batman featuring some stellar creators.

 

The Case Of The Chemical Syndicate

 

Bryan Hitch and Brad Meltzer go back to the very beginning with a retelling of the first Batman tale ever told. The effect works well here, as the writer plays with a loose narrative technique that gets the story started extremely well. It is also masterfully drawn by the artist, as he delivers some of the strongest pencilling work in years. The short comic contains none of his usual curvy lines that we have been seeing from the penciller as of late.

 

Old School

 

Old school entices readers with an interesting visual hook right away, by delivering different decades of Batman across one small page. Then it launches into a sequence that looks like a page from every decade since the character has been published. This aesthetic choice is absolutely brilliant, and had me scurrying back to the credits page to make sure Neal Adams actually drew this whole nine images. The writing in this tale by Hurwitz is intriguing, the work is definitely meant to be silly, but hits a strange first note upon introduction. The story sets up a premise that it does not quite solve or provide any answers too.

 

Better Days

 

Ian Bertram delivers pencils on an insane future Batman story that really intrigues the audience. It is great to see a withered Alfred still living, and a Bruce Wayne that will never truly dye. The pencils are also wonderfully stylized that readers will believe they are in the Bat Cave with the old farts. This future is one of the most interesting that Batman has ever had, hopefully this fairy tale will come true and Bruce will give up the mantel one day in the future.

 

Rain (Hero)

This quiet narrative serves as a dark prelude to the Black Mirror arc that Snyder and Francavilla wrote together. It has all the style and glitz of a usual comic book that the artist would normally produce. Unfortunately, it was slightly too short to really turn into something truly special.

The Sacrifice

 

Guillem March goes all out in this story in a manner that should delight fans of the artist looking for more subversive work from him. The penciller goes all out here in rare form that would likely not have been seen by a regular artist. Unfortunately, Mike W. Barr’s script is slightly too cliched for it’s own good. Hitting on the note that made the Bat again and again is really aggravating. The script was well intentioned, but did not quite differentiate itself from previous work.

 

Gothtopia

 

The Gothtopia storyline was a really exciting plot that had some definitive pacing issues. The account moved along way to quickly and had little substance to mesh with some of the other facets of the story. There are some really clever ideas here, and Jason Fabok has some great art. Looking back on some of the other work by John Layman, pacing is always something that he has battled with in Image and DC stories. Hopefully, the other issues can flesh out some of the different ideas a little bit better.

 

Twenty-Seven

 

Scott Snyder sets up his interesting premise very well. Sean Murphy does a great job visually lending his sensibilities to the new world that is being created by the writer. Thanks to a previously established work relationship, it seems obvious that the two creators are meshing really well together. The mythology aspects line up nicely with old continuity, and plays off the issue quite well. It is also nice to have such a forward thinking collection bookend this very fun anthology.

 

Showcase Images

 

The pin-up pages are extremely nice, and do a good job in terms of justifying the steep $7.99 price tag that readers are forced to endure. Gleason radically departs from his normal style and delivers some excellent pencilling in the first of many. the Jock artwork is incredible and evokes memories of great stories like The Long Halloween this image will be burned into readers minds after seeing it just once. Kelley Jones has some bizarre artwork that does not fit with some of the of the other pieces in the different pictures of the characters. The proportions of each person are really off, and do not quite mesh together. Graham Nolan has a nice pin-up page featuring a spooky look at the Dark Knight. Seeing all of the different villains drawn in such a strange style works well on the printed page. Mike Allred’s Batman 66’ drawing shows off some of his impressive style.

 

Conclusion

This is a very strong Batman anthology that has an interesting main story, and something interesting from all of your favorite creators. It reads like a really good Batman: Black and White issue.