Detective Comics #1012 was a study in pacing and tone.  Each scene was deliberate, permeating a sense of dread that was intensified by the relatively slow pace.  The action that punctuated the story was made all the more shocking and visceral by this, which in turn made Freeze's plan all the more sinister and despicable.…

If you’ll forgive me, this story about Mister Freeze is a slow burn, and all the better for it.  After weeks of buildup, with brief epilogues at the end of the most recent issues of Detective Comics, we finally get to see what Freeze has been plotting.  Leave it to a master storyteller like Peter…

For the past few issues, Detective Comics has felt like The Brave and the Bold.  I’ve kind of mentioned this a lot, so it shouldn’t be news, but it totally fits: take Batman, pair him up with another character (Deadshot, in this case), and throw them into some sort of crazy adventure.  A botched kidnapping…

So right off the bat (ha HAAAA), let me tell you: this is a super weird issue of Detective Comics.  That's not inherently a bad thing, as it's plenty entertaining, but it feels a lot different than any other Batcentric issue of any title in the DC stable. If you want to get an idea…

This may sound weird, given that this is a Batman site and all, but I think my favorite thing about Detective Comics #1009 is how little Batman there actually is.  Truly, other than the first few pages, Batman is not in costume much in this issue at all.  Instead, Bruce Wayne gets the focus, and…

You know what I love most about reading collections of older Batman comics?  Like, say, the old Brave and the Bold series or even material from the Grant/Moench/Davis/Breyfogle era?  It's that, even though you could see a sense of progression over the course of each story, the stories themselves were remarkably standalone.  You could flip…

Detective Comics #1006 was one of the best Batman comics I've read this year, a supernatural mystery with timeless artwork that had a stunning, moody aesthetic.  I loved the writing, I loved the mystery, and yes, I absolutely adored Kyle Hotz's pencils and David Baron's colors.  It was a comic that could have worked no…

If a cover alone made the purchase of a comic worth it, then Detective Comics #1006 would certainly apply.  Just look at the composition of that amazing cover: the Spectre, looming large against the Gotham City skyline, the Batsignal projected on his chest, and Batman himself below, on his guard against the physical embodiment of…

There’s something to be said about an issue of a comic book that’s practically non-stop forward momentum.  It knows where it needs to go and how to get there, hardly slowing down at any point to break the pace.  Such is the case with Detective Comics #1005, the conclusion of the “Medieval” arc. But just…

When introducing a new character, particularly a villain, getting their backstory and motivation down pat is tricky.  Sure, there are some characters who work better when you don't know what makes them tick, like the Joker.  If you understand the Clown Prince of Crime, he loses the element that makes him truly terrifying: unpredictability.  Is…

I should really talk about covers more, because that's a good one right there.  It has a lot going on, but everything works together without it getting cluttered.  You've got the delightfully dramatic action in the lower quadrant, with the Arkham Knight holding a sword to Robin's throat and threatening "join me... or DIE!"  Gotta…

Detective Comics #1002 is perfectly fine.  It's a textbook example of an entertaining read, with a tense action scene standing out as a particularly effective moment.  There are some good lines, the art is strong, and it moves the plot along. Which is all great, don't get me wrong.  The biggest problem, if you can…

Last year the Guinness World Records recognized Action Comics as the longest-running superhero comic book series. This year Detective Comics no. 1000 pushes the title over the millennial milestone as well. Though both comics unfortunately had a short spate of being renumbered in 2011, DC editorial came to their senses and got the titles back…

This is it, everybody!  The final issue before we hit the big one-triple-aught. The bad news is, we have to wait until March 27th (a whole month!) before it gets here, and then you’re going to have to pick between literally dozens of variant covers from artists all across the spectrum. But first, let’s wrap…

This week’s “Hell and Back” installment of the “Mythology” arc continues the trend of Peter J. Tomasi using rather cliché titles for what’s so far been a fairly stellar arc. But maybe this time the title is rather apropos as the story stumbles a bit now that Batman is closing in on his prey. We…