How many times do we need to see some version of the Wayne Murder? “Detective Comics” #994 says at least one more time.
Written by Peter J. Tomasi
Penciled by Doug Mahnke
Inked by Jaime Mendoza
Colored by David Baron
Lettered by Rob Leigh
Batman’s strangest case begins as the new creative team of writer Peter J. Tomasi and artist Doug Mahnke take over DETECTIVE COMICS!Commissioner Gordon calls in the Dark Knight Detective when there’s a murder at the Gotham City Aquarium—staged to look exactly like Thomas and Martha Wayne’s crime scene, right down to the Playbill and pearls. How does this bizarre homicide tie into the shadowy monster that attacks Dr. Leslie Thompkins? This creature looks to wage a war on Batman—and it’s using Joker Gas to do it!
If there is one thing I no longer need to see again it is the death of the Wayne family. An event that is shown on the very first page of “Detective Comics” #994. The issues marks the start of Peter Tomasi’s time on the book as the long term writer since James Tynion IV left the title with #981. Beginning there, however, is indicative of the aspects of this issue that were frustrating. As the title approaches issue #1000, the urge towards homage is an understandable one. However, the start to this arc reads like a disconnected amalgam of Batman’s multi-media history as Tomasi presents the readers and Batman with a mystery that lacks context or emotional anchors, and bungles the procedural element.
The first thing that came to mind after reading “Detective” #994 is Jeph Leob and Jim Lee’s “Hush.” The fourth panel of “Detective” #994 is an homage to sixth panel from the “Hush” collections, which technically was a two page insert from Wizard #0, as Bruce Wayne cries tears or tears of blood depending on the artist. Tomasi’s narration reads in the same mythic tone Leob wrote the “Legend of the Dark Knight” in, although his is more fragmentary and poetic. Penciler Doug Mahnke and inker Jamie Mendoza approach a similar aesthetic to that of Jim Lee and Scott Williams with plenty of minute cross hatches and little lines of texture. David Baron’s color palette is more vibrant compared to Alex Sinclair’s but that seems more due to changes in production, both stick to a fairly traditional idea of the role. These links to “Hush” feel appropriate as Tomasi appears to be building a long term mystery that will take him on a journey through his rogues gallery as Batman tries to figure out who attacked Dr. Leslie Thompkins and recreated his parents murder.
To his credit, Tomasi is at least leaning into the “Detective” part of “Detective Comics” by starting things in a more procedural space as Batman and Gordon investigate a grizzly double murder meant to mimic the death of the Wayne family. The creative team get points for effort, but still bungle aspects of the investigation. No, I don’t mean Batman impatiently blowing the aquarium glass and totally contaminating the scene. It’s more to do with the paneling as they inspect the body of the man looking like Thomas Wayne, it muddles the mechanics of what Batman is trying to do. Batman turns the body over, facedown, and reverse chest compressions the body expelling a faint bit of water. Overall that’s a four panel sequence, shown in vertical panels taking up half the page. The small width of the panels obscures what Batman is doing in one of them and the dialog is written in such away that it is the same basic moment from two separate perspectives causing a mixture of visual and oral confusion. The procedural is a tried and true genre, inherent to that type of story is a clear understanding of the process. Process is the engine of story, so when you have a murky display of process it begins everything begins to sputter and backfire.
Meanwhile across town, Tomasi gestures towards another side of Batman as a property: mad science. An unknown monstrous creature attacks Dr. Leslie Thompkins clinic wreaking havoc and forming the action sequence of the issue. The monster looks like an homage to the various henchmen who have been treated with Titan serum from the original Arkham Asylum. Overall the sequence is fine, the art team use perspective in a couple of spots to emphasize the size of the creature or create a greater sense of speed as Batman races to the rescue.
Continued belowCutting the issue into these two distinct halves is on some level formally interesting. The first half of this book is a subdued crime scene investigation the other a frantic cross cut phone call as a monster attacks. David Baron turns the color palette on its head, making red the dominant color as opposed to the blue found in the earlier sequence. Yet, they don’t feel connected in a meaningful way, beyond as a reader forcing a connection because this must be part of some longer serialized plan. This lack of a connection, be it plot or emotion, makes the issue read as disconnected.
Is it possible for something to be overwritten yet underwritten at the same time? That is a contradictory question but it is the one that arose from reading this issue. The issue feels underwritten in terms of its plotting and lacking a unifying theme between the two sequences, or a theme overall. Conversely it feels overwritten in the way Tomasi’s dialog reads. Writing comic dialog is a tough balance between writing dense sentences without being curt and not verbally narrating the art work. Thompkins dialog reads as overally explanatory at times, such as when talking to Batman on the comm link she says “Batman – I need you – this is Leslie on the comm-link you gave me –.” The first half of the word balloon is fine, the second half is redundant. The same sort of thing occurs as she flees the monster and describes something we see in the panel directly next to it. Batman waxes poetic as he investigates the bodies and banters about when taking on the anonymous creature. Bat dialog can be tough due to the strong silent mystique of the character. His stumbling in sentences in order to not give away that his parents were Thomas and Martha Wayne was effective, him bantering with the monster was not.
“Detective Comics” #994 did not make a good first impression despite having an all-around good creative team. It doesn’t read like a fulfilling episode of serialized content or make the case for some long to medium term plan for the book. It reads like a hodgepodge of Bat iconography and style without an overriding formal scheme to restrain and force order onto the disparate styles Batman has been shown in over these many years.
Final Verdict: 6.0 – Peter Tomasi’s start on “Detective Comics” was not a very effective or enticing one.
