“Batman: The Detective” – Part Six
Artists: Andy Kubert and Sandra Hope
Color Artist: Brad Anderson
Letterer: Clem Robins
Review by Steve J. Ray
I recently had a conversation online with someone who wants to get more into comics. The trouble they have is how to get into Batman 100 plus issues in (of the current volume) or Detective Comics which has over 1,000 issues behind it. Obvious answers include whenever a new creative team takes over, or when a new storyline starts, but this still leaves the problem of being dropped in the middle. The great part of being a fan of the Dark Knight is that there’s always a great mini-series going on, a three, six, or twelve-issue piece of treasure that tells one, complete, standalone story. This leads me to Batman: The Detective #6, which ends a wonderful series the only way it could, and in the way that it absolutely should.
Master Storytellers
The more I read by Tom Taylor, the more I’m convinced that he’s a master storyteller. He writes perfect, human dialogue makes every character relatable, and he puts together action set-pieces perfectly. The whole series, and this finale in particular, have delivered a white knuckle ride, but never at the cost of characterization, or believability. His Batman is 100% B@d@$$, but also fallible, human, and real. Amina and Knight have firmly carved their names on my heart as a wonderful new dynamic duo, and even old Henri Ducard has proven to be the same wonderful, complex, incorrigible yet likable slime-ball he’s always been.
Andy Kubert, Sandra Hope, and Brad Anderson are a dream art team. Just like Mr. Taylor they’ve imbued two-dimensional art with life, passion, heart, and soul. This is one of the biggest, meanest-looking versions of the Dark Knight we’ve ever seen, but it’s still clear that within that iron chest beats a heart of gold.
Clem Robins letters and sound effects are, as always, the ribbon on a comics parcel that’s arrived just in time for the holidays.
Conclusion
Batman: The Detective #6 delivers in every sense. Equilibrium has proven to be a brand new nemesis for the Dark Knight that lives up to the thrill levels we’ve come to expect from a member of one of the greatest rogues’ galleries in all of fiction. Any story that can give us a villain worthy of the World’s Greatest Detective will automatically plant itself very highly on my “Must read” list. When you also get incredible art, perfectly delineated characters, and enough action to make Holly wood jealous, the final result is a series I’d give to any new reader and say, “Here… check this out!”
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment