Following the near hallucinogenic iteration in Batman: City Of Madness, Christian Ward continues the fun in Two-Face's first solo series! Two-Face follows the former D.A building a brand new reputation as the lead prosecutor in an underground kangaroo court. In this issue, Harvey Dent must argue the defense of Victor Zsasz in a murder trial. Yet, this isn't an ordinary court, and Harvey Two-Face is no ordinary lawyer! Let's make our case below.

Due Process

One of the biggest standouts in City Of Madness, was Christian Ward's interpretation of Two-Face. Now, Christian Ward's second reimagining is no less impressive than the first. Firstly, the writing of Harvey's voice is distinct and menacing, but uniquely sober. Still, Harvey's often biting streetwise vocabulary is both eloquent and fittingly sardonic. At the same time, Two-Face consistently wrestles with who he should be. In the past, Harvey has been a lawyer, a mobster, a thief obsessed with the number two, a blackmailer in Scott Snyder's All-Star Batman, a power broker for Task Force Z, and whatever he was doing in Ram V's Detective Comics. At the start of the series, Two-Face fully forms a brand new method of self-governing the criminal underworld in "The White Church."

The White Church is a tentative force in the underworld for resolving issues among criminals in the city. Naturally, it partially functions as neutral ground, ceding final judgement to Harvey, Mr. Gavel, and Judge Reaper. Consequently, as a former lawyer, Harvey utilizes his extensive experience arguing the law long enough to become judge, jury, and executioner anyway. Regardless, the panels showcasing Harvey's coin and how he deals judgment are pretty interesting, if not wholly believable. Strangely enough, the White Church closely resembles the courtroom stage in Batman: Arkham City and Judge Reaper seems like a new version of the Reaper or a cross between Reaper and The Judge from Batman: TAS. Although the church boasts  mature solutions, it is hard to believe criminals would be willing to entertain Harvey's madness for long.

Guilt Free

The primary conflict in the first issue surrounds the simple alleged murder of a Falcone enforcer. Humorously, Harvey chooses to establish Zsasz's typical modus operandi as a precedent for his defense. This leads to Zsasz being all too happy to explain that his kind of crazy doesn't match. Additionally, the B-plot in Two-Face surrounds the duplicitous truth of Two-Face/Harvey's new lifestyle and current dilemma. On one hand, Harvey's plan is a crazy way of playing both sides. On the other hand, Harvey telling his alternate personality that he isn't crazy anymore is explicit confirmation of insanity, in and of itself. Beneath the surface, the series sets up a new character named Lake Cantwell as an aspiring fan of Two-Face looking for work. Moreover, Ward manages to foreshadow the girl's potential betrayal and her conflict with Zsasz.

The artwork is definitely a thrilling highlight of the book. Fabio Veras injects the book with a noir tone not unlike Edward Risso's work on 100 Bullets. Here, Veras depicts Gotham as a land of square jawed do-gooders and husky thugs in heavy shadow. Often, Ivan Plascencia's colors take on the look of acrylics, enhancing the strong ink work into colorful vignettes. Not to mention, the book effectively uses hue to control emotion, washing characters in murderous reds, and melancholic blues. Even the paneling of some of the frameless sequences feel like a trippy tableau of memories spilling out from the page. Notably, the reimagining of Two-Face's "baptism by fire and pain" and Zsasz's recent kills look amazing.

Recommended If...

• The novelty of Two-Face's first solo book attracts you.
• You've ever wanted Harvey to try something with nuance.
• You want to collect solo books starring Batman rogues.

Overall

Christian Ward's take on Two-Face was impressive before, and it is impressive again. Honestly, Ward had me from "BLAH, BLAH, BLAH." Despite the logic of how the White Church isn't all the way solid, this was an entertaining first issue. Ward seems to understand the power of Harvey's voice and adeptly leans into the characters strengths. Fabio Veras is doing the lord's work, or rather just the kind of art I like, and successfully delivers on the tone. So far, the Lake and the plausibility of Harvey's double dealing are among the narrative flaws, but the promise of delving deeper into his psyche is too big to pass up. Overall, I'm just glad this isn't another Joker series.

Score: 9/10