In the last issue of The Last Halloween, Batman and Robin were further investigating into the kidnapping of James Gordon Jr., and these new copycat Holiday killers who have been taking out Batman’s rogues. The issue ended with Batman being potentially framed for murder. Is the FBI involved somehow? And why are the villains specifically being targeted? Mark Chiarello takes over for the artwork on issue three, so let’s see how the mystery unfolds.

I have enjoyed the previous two issues of this latest series from the legendary Jeph Loeb. I love being back in this world that he co-created all those decades ago, and the mystery that has been building has been intriguing to me. But my feelings were really mixed on this third issue. There were certain story decisions that Loeb made that either just fell flat, didn’t make sense to me, or just disregarded from the previous issue. One of the main subplots has been the kidnapping of Commissioner Gordon’s son, and it concluded in this issue. I felt that conclusion was anticlimactic, and I didn’t have that emotional connection to the father/son reunion that Loeb may have intended for. Robin’s subplot with Calendar Man isn’t really getting me excited, but my opinion could change depending on what happens in further issues.

I also might be nitpicking on this one particular section where Batman and Robin are outside of a moving ambulance and knockout both the driver and another EMT who’s attending to an injured Riddler. Batman uses this odorless gas to incapacitate them, but the ambulance should be still moving. But on the next couple of pages, the ambulance is suddenly stopped and parked while the driver remains unconscious. It just didn’t make sense to me. It does lead to a pretty cool panel where The Riddler is performing Morse code with just his eye movements, while Robin is deciphering it. Even though I thought the story took a dip in quality, there were things that I really admired about this issue.

The artwork by Mark Chiarello might be tied with the first issue as my favorite in the series so far. His colors were what stood out most for me. The color palette was so simple as certain colors like green or red were really vibrant while the colors in the background and the rest of the panel were muted. This was especially apparent toward the end of the issue when Batman confronts Mario Falcone. The use of black and shadows that he used also provided that atmosphere that gave the illustrations that classic noir feel. And I might not have enjoyed the story that much in this issue, I did find the banter between Catwoman and Robin hilarious. I also appreciated the foreshadowing of eventual appearance of The Joker in the next issue or two.

Recommended if…

• You have been enjoying the series so far.
• You want to admire the beautiful artwork by Mark Chiarello.
• You want to see a pretty cool panel involving Riddler doing Morse code with just his eyes.

Overall

The artwork by Mark Chiarello was the clear standout of The Last Halloween #3. It elevated a kind of so-so story by Loeb, but I’m still happy to be in the Gotham of The Long Halloween and still want to see how the mystery plays out. But I do recognize that my interest is waning just a little bit. On to issue four!

Score: 7/10