Itâs another busy Bat week, with a full slate of titles!
In Detective Comics #1,039, many answers about Hue Vile come to light in both the main and backup stories, with the feature written by Mariko Tamaki; penciled by Viktor Bogdanovic; inked by Daniel Henriques, Norm Rapmund and Bogdanovic; colored by Jordie Bellaire and lettered by Aditya Bidikar. The backup is written and drawn by T.Rex, colored by Sion Gough and lettered by Rob Leigh.
After the conclusion of the first arc, we get a flashback issue in The Joker #5, as we go back to Jokerâs first night in Arkham and the beginning of Jim Gordonâs obsession with him in a lead story written by Matthew Rosenberg with James Tynion IV, drawn and colored by Franceso Francavilla and lettered by Tom Napolitano.
Meanwhile, the False Face Society and its leader, Black Mask, rear their disguised heads, and Mystery Inc., Nightwing and Batgirl must work together to stop them from unleashing monsters on Gotham City in The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #4, written by Sholly Fisch, drawn by Dario Brizuela, colored by Franco Rieso and lettered by Saida Temofonte.
Matt Lazorwitz: DC sure is releasing a lot of Batman comics right now. We have a full docket of three books right here, and there were two others weâre not covering (at least this week), The Detective and Urban Legends. Thereâs a discussion of Bat fatigue we can have in the not too distant future, when we donât have so many books to cover.
Will Nevin: Itâs Detective Comics Comics for a reason, Brother Matt â the Bat is and always has been big business. And when weâre lucky, that results in some good to maybe even great comics â and thatâs exactly what we have on tap for today. Possible marketplace exhaustion be damned.
Hue Vile: Poster Child for Nominative Determinism
Matt: We have reached the end of Mariko Tamakiâs inaugural arc on Detective Comics, and now, looking at it as a whole, itâs something of a mixed bag, I think. Some good character moments, but a plot that wound up sort of going all over the place and kind of off the rails at the very end. On average, itâs good, but there was potential for great here it didnât quite hit.
Will: This certainly doesnât bode well for a legendary run or something weâre going to look back on as a distinct era with any fondness. Not saying we couldnât get there, of course, but it doesnât seem like weâre on that trajectory. Itâs a book that exists with some occasional nice moments but with storytelling that leaves a little something to be desired. Take this issue, for example â wouldnât the arc have had more consequence and more urgency if we knew what Hue Vile (and I still loathe that name) was at the beginning? This didnât feel like the satisfying reveal of some great mystery â this read like finally giving me a reason to care about the story as the arc is reaching its end. Also, did Hue really need two origin stories in one issue?
Matt: We both have said we like that the backups in this book reflect the main story, and I stand by that, but yes, the second origin was a bit of a hat on a hat. We got the same effect in the two pages that revealed his origin in the main story. That backup could have been dedicated to something with the Clown or Bane gangs that were hinted at in the main story, or something with Mr. Worth, who still has potential if he stops being just a generic rage monster.
The concept of Hue, the parasite that feeds on rage inhabiting him, that allows him to possess others? Thereâs definite potential there, and Batvillain potential at that. Heâs clever about how he uses it, too, generally infecting those whom it would be expected to snap, which puts him head and shoulders above so many Batvillains who do mind stuff, who just fuck with anyone they run into, consequences be damned.
Will: I like the concept, too, but I think it could have used a little refinement, like Hue and his victims have this need, this compulsion for violence that can allow for careful planning and treachery ⌠but also sometimes they just flip out? Seems sloppy to me. And I think I preferred the backup once again â matricide has that nice hard edge to it. Looked sharp as hell, too.
Matt: The backup is where the better aspects of what he can do came out right: the man with the history of domestic abuse and the office crank finally snapping? That makes sense. And the matricide is a nice touch.
The backup definitely had the better art in this issue. Bogdanovic has never done much for me; heâs one of those guys you get when you need someone to fill in who can do work fast and not painfully bad. My only quibble with the art in the backup is the last two panels of the first page: the red lines seeming like scars at the end of Hueâs mouth and that smile are so very Joker-y, that in a world where Joker toxin has just run wild, it took me a second to figure if he was an ex-Clown or what. Not bad, but threw me for a second.
Will: I did not catch that on my read, but looking at it, I completely agree. It also doesnât help that the design for Hue doesnât seem to be consistent between the two stories.
Matt: Still, I am very much looking forward to next issue, where Bruce Wayne has to deal with the GCPD. Dan Mora is back on art, and the backup is from Dan Watters (Home Sick PIlots, Lucifer) and Kyle Hotz. That sounds pretty sweet all around.
Will: Heck yeah. So long as we donât ask too many questions about how/why Bruce got out of jail and what heâs been up to while heâs been out.
Joker: Day One
Matt: So, youâre going to have to excuse me for a minute: Iâm still basking in the glow of a full feature story drawn by Francesco Francavilla.
Will: And I like that it was a âYear Oneâ-era story that didnât do a single goddamn fancy thing. It was real and grounded and relatable and gripping as all fuck. Joker as a whole has been a great series, but this? Give me a book of Capt. Gordon navigating a relationship with Harvey Dent and a commissioner whoâs bad or on the take or doesnât give a shit, please.
Matt: I hope we get an issue like this between each arc, like what James Robinson did on Starman. The âTimeâs Pastâ issues of that series are some of my favorite issues of one of my favorite books.
Will: And then when youâre all done, collect the one-offs into their own trade, like Marvel did with the flashback issues of Gerry Dugganâs Deadpool run.
Matt: And I have to give serious props to Matthew Rosenberg. He is credited as the main writer on this book, with Tynion as a âwith.â That tells me Tynion made sure Rosenberg worked in details to help move the plot forward, probably the fleshing out of the Sampson family plot, but this was Rosenbergâs show mainly, and he absolutely kept this issue feeling in the same line as the main plot, while not feeling like it was aping Tynion entirely. It still read like a Rosenberg comic. If Tynion has to step away for a bit, I think DC has a safe bet for a solid fill-in with Rosenberg.
Will: Why would Tynion need to ever rearrange his priorities? Heâs only writing something like 10 books at the moment. But, yes, between this and Puzzlebox, Iâd say Rosenberg has shown more than enough potential for a Batbook.
Matt: As we said with Puzzlebox, he captures Joker perfectly. Heâs menacing, but still actually funny. The Morrison and Snyder Jokers were bizarre, more court jester than comedian, and Kingâs was pretty flat, more in that force-of-nature or mystery man mold than someone to interact with. You donât need to fall out of your seat laughing when reading a Joker story, but the fact that Joker cracks wise is something I like.
Will: The best Joker is probably Hannibal Lecktor (thatâs right we spell it that way in this house because Manhunter is the shit) with a little more physical menace to him and laugh-out-loud cleverness. And, like Lecktor, the ability to turn your stomach.
Matt: Yes. I do not know what that pie Joker was eating was, and I donât think I want to. Itâs probably some ungodly concoction of blackberries and melon. You know Joker doesnât eat like a normal person.
Will: Blackberries, melon and lamb. Or bugs. Truly, something awful â like the Punchline backup.
Monsters Everywhere!
Matt: I donât want to stop covering this book, because I love it, but itâs hard to come up with new ways of saying itâs probably the most fun comic coming out from DC right now.
Will: Itâs clever as all hell and respectful of both IPs, which makes sense because theyâre both in-house properties. Sometimes Bat crossovers donât seem as smooth or as natural (Looking at you, âThis is where my parents died, Raphaelâ), but this thing just works. But Iâve really got to say â since the weekly digital-first distribution has stopped (for some reason), theyâve really got to mix up the layouts assuming this thing isnât already in the can. Once you read this thing with the eye that itâs still designed with each page to be cut in half, it gets pretty boring visually.
Matt: I think we have to give it another issue or maybe two. Iâd wager these were worked out in advance to allow for those weekly drops, and itâs gonna be a bit before the creators knew, but I agree: Iâm looking forward to seeing what they can do when freed up from those specific design requirements.
I do have to say that Black Mask worked in this story, and thatâs a big ask. With the possible exception of Zsasz, he is the most brutal of Batmanâs villains who doesnât have a shtick you can spin into a kid-friendly story. Sure, Joker is a bigger monster, no doubt, but there have been all manner of Joker stories. Black Mask just tortures people to death. But here they leaned into the mobster thing, and it works. Plus, I loved Fred trying to unmask the guy whose mask was bonded to his face. Sorry, Mr. Jones, but tug all you want, thatâs not coming off.
Will: The unsuccessful unmasking of Black Mask might have been your favorite gag, Iâm surmising, but what was your second-favorite, Brother Matt?
Matt: Batman pulling off his kraken mask to reveal his cowl. That had a very Batman â66 vibe that I can appreciate. How about you?
Will: Tying the âwill they or wonât theyâ of Babs and Dick to the same dynamic with Fred and Daphne. Again, embarrassingly clever stuff. And the little ghost Robin behind Nightwingâs shoulder as heâs reminiscing about being the Boy Wonder? Precious.
Bat-miscellany
- Hue proves you really can fake it until you make it: When the reference never checks out for your low-level clerical job, it doesnât matter â youâve already got City Hall experience on the resume to help you move up and into the mayorâs office.
- I think someday Iâm going to do a massive reread of years of Batman comics and come up with all the places in Gotham named after previous Batman creators. Joker adds Mazzucchelli Towers and a street named Finger.
- Iâve talked about it on WMQ&A, but for those who donât listen, I have a con sketchbook of Batman characters by various artists. I have been reserving the Jim Gordon slot for Francesco Francavilla for a while now, and this Joker issue cemented that was the right call. I canât wait for cons again!
Matt Lazorwitz read his first comic at the age of 5. It was Who's Who in the DC Universe #2, featuring characters whose names begin with B, which explains so much about his Batman obsession. He writes about comics he loves, and co-hosts the podcasts BatChat with Matt & Will and The ComicsXF Interview Podcast.
Will Nevin loves bourbon and AP style and gets paid to teach one of those things. He is on Twitter far too often.
