In this review of Detective Comics #1098, Batman’s overseas mission to save Harvey Bullock gets complicated after he is forced to rescue The Penguin.
Detective Comics #1098 main cover by Mikel Janín (DC Comics)
DETECTIVE COMICS #1098
Written by TOM TAYLOR
Art by LEE GARBETT
Main Cover: MIKEL JANÍN
Variant Covers: BRUNO REDONDO, CHRIS STEVENS, ASHLEY WOOD, STEPHEN BYRNE
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: 6/18/25
This review contains spoilers
Detective Comics #1098 picks up with Batman in the country of Pokolistan (see: Creature Commandos animated series) looking to rescue Harvey Bullock from the mysterious group called Elixir, but comes face-to-face with Oswald Cobblepot instead. Batman grudgingly allows Oswald to accompany him (rather than possibly being eaten by wolves), but demands that there be no killing. The pair steal one of Elixir’s military-style vehicles and hit the road.
During the long drive, Oracle remotely briefs Batman about Elixir’s top operatives (who appear to be over a century old), and their apparent connection to the Dark Knight’s long-lived nemesis Ras Al Ghul. Batman and Oswald discover Harvey’s location after tracking a second Elixir vehicle to a remote gated compound with Oracle’s help of course, (doesn’t she ever sleep?)
At the compound, Elixir tortures Harvey, demanding that he tell them who else knows their secret. Harvey won’t spill, but he does warn them that he’s going to enjoy their eventual comeuppance. As if in reply, the Elixir vehicle Batman stole suddenly breaches the gates, and is taken out by Elixir’s guards. The distraction gives Batman and Oswald time to infiltrate the compound unnoticed. The pair pummel their way through a series of guards, and spot Harvey on a security monitor.
Harvey tricks a guard into getting too close and head butts him, which gives Harvey a measure of satisfaction (but he’s still tied up). Batman and Oswald arrive moments later, and the Dark Knight frees Harvey. The former detective arms himself, and Oswald does the same, but Batman switches it out for an umbrella.
From outside, Elixir orders their surrender, but Harvey has other ideas. He picks up the injured guard, using him as a human shield, figuring the guards won’t take out one of their own, (bad move, you don’t become that long lived without a willingness to sacrifice some pawns along the way).
Detective Comics #1098 ends with Harvey and his prisoner being caught in a hail of gunfire.
Analysis
Detective Comics #1098 is a breezy, well-paced issue. Writer Tom Taylor and guest artist Lee Garbett unfold the secret history of Elixir within a few well-crafted panels, (including the not at all surprising reveal that Ras Al Ghul was a past acquaintance). Batman and Oswald’s “Hope and Crosby” road trip banter adds some welcome humor, as the familiar adversaries spend some quality time trying to get under each other’s skin.
Harvey Bullock’s torture sequence, (and his eventual escape) is filled with violence (including that final page), but the blood and gore are thankfully kept to a minimum, leaving the reader to fill in the blanks (I blame Scott McCloud). No question that Harvey using the guard as a human shield was a bluff (that Elixir called). How Taylor has worked out what happens next is unknown, but very little likelihood that Harvey will bite it.
On a lighter note, it’s nice to see Barbara Gordon as Oracle sharing her workstation with rescue dog Haley from Taylor’s Nightwing run.
Artist Lee Garbett fills Batman’s sequences with an impressive use of heavy shadow, mixing in some tight action sequences across Detective Comics #1098. Harvey Bullock’s scenes with Elixir are brighter, but bathed in a sickly yellow. Even when Batman joins Harvey, he is still cloaked in heavy shadow. Garbett’s style is more minimalist than series artist Mikal Janin, but it still gets the job done.
Final Thoughts
Detective Comics #1098 is a breezy, mostly predictable issue with solid art and some clever one-liners, moving the story along while adding in a dash of tension and a “surprise” cliffhanger.
