In this review of Gotham Academy: First Year #3, Olive’s life seems to be going perfectly! Which of course means everything’s about to explode!
Gotham Academy: First Year #3 main cover by Karl Kerschl (DC Comics)
GOTHAM ACADEMY: FIRST YEAR #3
Written by BRENDEN FLETCHER, KARL KERSCHL, BECKY CLOONAN
Art by MARCO FERRARI
Main Cover: KARL KERSCHL
Variant Cover: MAYO “SEN” NAITO
Page Count: | 40 pages
Release Date: 12/3/25
This review contains spoilers
As Olive finishes out her run in the Spring school play as Juliet, Batman foils the bullies who planned to disrupt the play with fireworks. Kyle reassures Olive that it’s not her fault, and Maps is thrilled to see a batarang. Back at Kyle’s family house, Olive bonds with his parents and sister, as well as continuing her romance with Kyle himself. They invite her to Norway for vacation in the summer, and Kyle asks her to prom. In class, Olive reflects on staying away from her mother after the darkness of her last visit, months ago. While Pomeline warns Olive away from the Prom Princess competition, Olive is focused on Kyle and making her life work without her mother. At Prom, Colton tracks down fireworks the expelled bullies have planted to humiliate Kyle and Olive again. However, though he risks life and limb to defuse the situation, Olive still has an intense flashback to her mother’s cell when she is announced Prom Princess, and Colton can’t get the last firework, which goes off and ends Prom in chaos. Unbeknownst to everyone, Arkham Asylum has ALSO exploded, leading to Olive panicking and believing that if she had freed Scarecrow he wouldn’t have blown up Arkham.
Olive decides she can’t go with the Mizoguchis to Norway, disappointing Kyle, but she is determined to stay close to Gotham for her mother. We see a Man-Bat flying above Gotham Academy, then meeting with Batman, saying they thought the Academy would be empty over the summer…
Analysis
As anyone who’s read the original Gotham Academy run knows, when Olive’s life is going well, everything must be about to explode! We see her really coming out of her shell in the play, in class, and especially with Kyle and his family. But her connection to her mother and the darkness of their family past and powers continues to haunt her. It’s nice seeing Olive be less self destructive, but that allows the audience to connect more with her, only to plunge into the darkness of the explosion. Kyle and his family are just so likeable, and Colton demonstrates his determination and heroism quite well – though not as competent as he would like. Pomeline and Heathcliff are a nice pair, balancing out the sweetness of Kyle and Olive, and it’s nice to know there’s a long road of development for them both coming. Bruce and Batman hanging around the edges of Olive’s awareness is so nice, but also so tragic, since Olive hates Batman so much. On a continuity note, I wonder if the Arkham explosion is supposed to be from Batman Eternal’s huge Arkham collapse?
I have to admit I’m quite surprised that we’re halfway through the series and already to the summer before our second year at Gotham Academy (the start of the original series). What secrets will the summer hold? We’ve gotten our final solicitation for issue #6 coming out in March, and the cover and text promise that it will cover events from Maps’s perspective – but there’s three whole issues and only a few months to cover. Quite intriguing for us Gotham Academy fans!
Artist Marco Ferrari continues to provide simply top notch art. Creative panelling – the long horizontal panels showing the proscenium stage of the theater opening the story, to the two page spreads showing Olive’s life going well – it’s all incredibly appealing and fitting in well with the original series’s visual splendor. The colors by Eva de la Cruz complement the warmth and coldness of the various events with a brilliantly judged hand. All in all, from writing to art, Gotham Academy: First Year continues to be a full package of craftsmanship and enjoyment.
Co-creator Karl Kerschl’s main cover features our cast decked out in Prom finery, but with a pink and purple “punk” attitude, Colton front and center. Japanese artist and long time Gotham Academy fan Mayo “Sen” Naito’s variant is pastel pink, white, and cream dominated, with Olive and Kyle dancing together in the center, the rest of the cast in chibi form lounging on sparkly balloons – a delightful addition!
Final Thoughts
Fletcher, Cloonan, Kerschl, and Ferrari craft a whirlwind spring semester for Olive as her world explodes – literally!
