Review: Detective Comics #1071

Overview: In Detective Comics #1071, Talia tells Batman of the feud between the al Ghul and Orgham families, and Vandal Savage makes a bloody move far away from Gotham.

Editor’s Note: Due to the anthology nature of this collection, we will feature a synopsis and analysis for each story rather than breaking up the synopsis and analysis. Spoilers are sure to be revealed.

Story #1: “Gotham Nocturne: Act II: Lost Sands” by writer Ram V and artists Stefano Raffaele, Ivan Reis, and Eduardo Pansica

Synopsis: As Detective Comics #1071 begins, Batman radios Oracle as the Orgham Place Grand Opening starts, saying that what he learned from Talia has accelerated his plans. Nightwing and Cassandra Cain Batgirl flank Bruce, and he sends Dick to overwatch and Cass underground, going after the Reality Engine himself. 

Flashing back to Talia’s hidden base, we learn of her connection to the Orghams. Prince Arzen’s father was from the deserts, and his mother from the cities, and she plotted against him once Arzen was born, sending him on a fatal mission to retrieve her people’s lost city, with his bodyguard Ra’s al Ghul instructed to assassinate him.

In the present, Arzen’s mother, Dariah, meets with her mother in Svatrstal, in the Orgham Royal Palace. The Orgham grandmother has a glowing crystal stuck in her skull, giving her prophetic powers, and she hears her death coming in the shape of Vandal Savage.

We flashback to Talia’s tale, as Arzen’s father finds the city, slaughtering its guards, then learns the secret that the city was lost on purpose to prevent its great magical treasures from being used for evil.

In the present, Vandal Savage rips the prophecy crystal from the Orgham grandmother’s skull, killing her, then leaves, promising to meet the Orgham family in their final battle in Gotham.

Talia’s tale ends, and she says her father stole the creation of the Lazarus Pits from the Lost City after killing Arzen’s father and betraying Dariah, passing the al Ghul/Orgham feud to his daughter. Talia warns Bruce he will need to choose between the monster Bat and the human Man.

In Gotham, Bruce fights the Orgham soldiers in the sewers, as Prince Arzen begins the ceremony with the Reality Engine.

Analysis: Ram V finishes up the backstory of the entwined and feuding strands of the al Ghul and Orgham families begun last issue, as the Orgham plan appears to kick into their endgame – but he also sets up not one, but two dangerous challengers to that plan in Batman and Vandal Savage. While it seems a bit odd to bring in Savage near the end of the second arc, the long timeframe of these almost immortal characters does make him fit nicely. The pacing of Batman’s attack on the Orghams is jarring after the contemplative, thoughtful nature of the last issue. All in all, the writing of the main story in Detective Comics #1071 is once again rich and emotionally effective, and it’s nice that the villains are finally becoming actual characters rather than designs we see doing violence.

It’s still really frustrating that DC and/or Ram V have chosen to scatter his pages with three artists – only the extremely high quality of all three artists prevents that frustration from becoming an actual negative on the book. Eduardo Pansica provides much of the flashback story, while Ivan Reis primarily draws the present-day Orgham material, and Stefano Raffaele draws the opening and closing Batman scenes. The styles blend well with each other, but it continues to boggle my mind that DC’s highest-numbered book doesn’t make it a priority to have a single artist on a monthly title. Perhaps this allows them to give a more consistent blended flavor of art to the run, but it seems very far from ideal.

Story #2: “Absolute” Part 3 by writer Simon Spurrier and artist Caspar Wijngaard

Synopsis: The backup in Detective Comics #1071 opens with Gordon’s Lost Boy helping Dr. Mead free of Mr. Freeze’s ice, and she screams “Behind you” as Freeze attacks. As they fight, Dr. Mead gets free and yells at them to stop, holding a grenade to make Freeze stop. She lectures Freeze and kicks him in the fork, but Freeze says the machine isn’t for his wife, but for himself, to try to make himself more worthy of his wife, then freezes them out of his lab. The boy leads Dr. Mead to the surface as Mr. Freeze finds the convergence of the mystical energies he’s been tracing – Arkham.

Analysis: Si Spurrier and Caspar Wijngaard wrap up their Mr. Freeze-focused backups, developing further what Ram V set up in the main story, progressing the classic Batman villain closer to the confrontation at Arkham, which must be brewing. In that respect, it’s nicely crafted – and Wijngaard’s art is very appealing, almost candy-colored, with well-judged lines and excellent expressions, and decent action. Spurrier, however, goes from painting Dr. Mead as a sympathetic, terrified victim to an obnoxious, preachy, self-righteous author avatar. Though Mr. Freeze’s pushback does salvage part of the story, Dr. Mead is unbearably annoying and pompous in a way that contrasts with Mr. Freeze’s overblown, narcissistic poetical pomposity – but I’m pretty sure not intentionally. Her arrogance and condescension toward her rescuer paints her as a terminally ungrateful jerk and really ruins the effect of the story. Perhaps it’s realistic, but the way Spurrier’s tendencies to preach at his audience peek out from her dialogue really rubs me completely the wrong way. The near complete lack of development or explanation of Earworm, the seemingly spiritual villain revealed in the first part of the story, doesn’t help the piece feel any more complete – though since this is, of course, an ongoing part of the Ram V/Spurrier narrative, I’m sure he’ll show up again. But it’s very unbalanced.

Evan Cagle’s main cover is once again a lovely, sketchy, symbolically constructed work, with Batman, Talia, and Arzen’s father and Ra’s framed intertwined with each other, along with a Batarang silhouette. Ivan Reis’s cardstock variant shows a bloody and ragged Bruce/Batman holding a seemingly fainting Talia. Kelley Jones paints a big-eared Batman holding a candle against a red cobweb (with teeth!) backdrop (this image also serves as the foil 1 in 50 incentive variant). Sebastien Fiumara’s 1 in 25 incentive shows Catwoman stealing pearls from INSIDE of Batman through his hollow Batsymbol – a really creepy image garnished with falling roses.

Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with a copy of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally on Comixology through Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.