In this review of Detective Comics #1089, Batman and the Orghams fight their final battle, and it all ends in a song.
This comic book review contains spoilers.
Detective Comics #1089 main cover by Evan Cagle
Detective Comics #1089
Gotham Nocturne: Act III – Finale, Part 2
Writer: Ram V
Artist: Guillem March
Colors: Luis Guerrero
Main Cover: Evan Cagle
Variant Covers: Guillem March, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Sebastian Fiumara
Release Date: September 25, 2024
Detective Comics #1089 begins outside the Reality Engine chamber, Batman fights an army of Orgham foot soldiers as the azmer demon-possesed Orgham Queen rushes towards him. He fights her to a standstill, and then Arzen Orgham, resurrected by Talia, arrives with the mystery box which fells the Orgham soldiers and wipes the azmer demon from his mother’s body. Arzen tosses a sword to his mother and they duel, as Nightwing and Cassandra Cain Batgirl save innocents from the blaze. Jim Gordon takes the music from The Maestro, fights his way past gang members into the broadcasting building with surprise help from Renee Montoya Question, and gives Oracle access to the studio to play the Maestro’s music all over the city, freeing them from the azmer demons. Oracle also plays the footage of the Orghams killing a cop, helping destroy the people’s trust in their new rulers. We see people all over the city shining homemade batsignals into the sky as the snow falls.
Catwoman opens the reality engine from the inside, having snuck in disguised as a guard. There’s no way to stop the Orgham plan to make all of Gotham afraid using Scarecrow except by killing him, so Batman forces Crane to look at him, projecting fear of Batman into a city which has forgotten him.
Interlude for the backup, placed in the middle:
Luftpause
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Christopher Mitten
Colors: Triona Farrell
Freeze feels Gotham remembering Batman, recognizing the parallel between his own quest to save Nora and Batman’s quest to save Gotham. Two-Face feels the change in reality, and since Gotham is Batman’s city again, he decides to head to Bludhaven after flipping his coin. Ten Eyed Man runs around the blinded Shavod, dropping eyeballs everywhere, fearing the panopticon of a renewed Batman-patrolled Gotham. Azrael, nearly subdued by Orghams, hears Batman’s voice, and his sword ignites again as he fights free. All around the city, Gotham sings.
Resume the main story:
On the rooftops, Batman and Catwoman listen to the song. Batman tells Catwoman his interpretation of his journey, then leaps off into a Gotham still in flames, happy that he is Gotham’s night.
Analysis
Two years from its starting point, Gotham Nocturne is over. I am curious to see how this run is remembered. Whether it becomes a cult classic like City of Crime, little known but passionately loved by a few who reread or discover it. Or if it will be like Hush, perennially reprinted as a showcase of talent DC wants as a “face title.” Or if it will be completely forgotten, like James Robinson and Peter Tomasi’s runs on Detective Comics. Only time will tell, of course. For anyone who’s been listening to the Comic Podcast or reading these reviews, it will come as no surprise that I think it will be forgotten, collapsing under its own weight and plot incoherence. A shame, as Ram V does create “impeccable vibes” (the most common defense I see when talking about the run with other readers), and the art has been consistently excellent (even though I maintain that it should not take three artists to finish the main story on DC’s number 2 Batman book in a single issue).
Overall, aside from the vibes, Ram V manages to pay off most of the threads he set in motion over the past two years with Detective Comics #1089. The Orghams are at least defeated (though in very comic book fashion, though I am curious to see if any writer actually wants to use them again), the villains Batman has allied with find various new paths, and Batman takes his place fighting for his city once again.
However, the collapsing in incoherence does overwhelm this surface level structural conclusion. The shallow use of the Maestro as the plot device who defeats the azmer demons (who are even in this final issue displaying new and bizarre and completely inexplicable powers), the complete non-resolution of the Joker’s Daughter plotline (started by Catwoman for completely incomprehensible reasons at the last moment), and the complete handwave of how Selina got into the tiny Reality Engine to provide the big reveal of opening the door from the inside – it’s just more indications of effect over cause which plague this run from beginning to end. The strange boy accompanying Jim Gordon and the Earworm villain from Si Spurrier’s backups at the start of the run are completely forgotten and unresolved (even though Earworm could have been a more interesting solution to the azmer demons than the empty shell of The Maestro).
Ram V also fills this finale with plot points and visuals ripped straight from so many other Batman runs. The citizens of Gotham filling the sky with their own Batsignals immediately brought Batman Eternal and Batman Endgame/Superheavy to mind. Jonathan Crane being the key to a city-destroying threat by fear is more than a bit repetitive just three years after Fear State. Unlike Chip Zdarsky’s Batman #152, which beautifully referenced Tom King’s Beach arc of City of Bane, giving full weight to the previous story, Ram V’s re-used elements are either unconscious parallels (which editorial should have pointed out) or so quickly referenced that they have none of the weight they should.
A much more effective reference is having Batman scaring Crane as a vision of terror from Batman Begins. That plot point is also nicely setup – using the engine to erase Batman’s memory from Gotham, and him using it again to make Gotham fear him. Adding to this structural strength is the well done use of the repeated phrase “Look at me” – Batman’s first line in the issue, and repeated in the backup as his command to Crane is sent all over the city.
Guillem March provides beautiful work as usual, excelling in the disgusting alien contortions of the azmer demon possessed Orgham Queen, to Batman’s strength and power as he battles for his city. It’s nice to see how Ram V and Dan Watters structured the backup placement so the whole story feels complete instead of having a weird afterthought of a backup following the main story ending.
Backup Analysis
Using a two page repeating structure, Dan Watters returns for (likely) his final backup for Detective Comics (for now) to give four characters their final note in this gothic opera. Mr. Freeze, Two-Face, Ten-Eyed Man, and Azrael (the latter two featuring heavily in Watters’ Arkham City and Sword of Azrael miniseries) all react to Batman’s command being broadcast to Gotham in different ways. It’s a beautifully written little “rest” in the symphony, and like most of the backups for this run, is a strong complement for the main story.
Dan Watters sets up a plotline in his upcoming Nightwing run with Two-Face heading towards Bludhaven. I will be following Watters over to Nightwing as a regular reviewer, and I’m looking forward to it!
Our main cover artist, Evan Cagle (soon to join Ram V on his New Gods series) shows the Dark Knight Rising into a hole of light in the clouds, creating a Batsignal effect, a red rose on the right side rooftop reminding us that this was an opera. Partial interior artist Guillem March provides a two-part connecting cover showing Batman on one cover and the Orghams on the other, a nice nod to March’s fine work, but a naked cash grab expecting readers to buy two copies of the more expensive cardstock covers to get the single image.
The Hispanic Heritage month cover featuring Renee Montoya as The Question by master artist Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and prominent DC inker Joe Prado is a nice choice given Renee’s place in this run. Lastly, Sebastian Fiumara’s 1 in 25 incentive variant shows Batman stalking up a frozen hill towards a city trapped in ice, a spidery bat-shadow behind him – very striking, and matches the Mr. Freeze portion of this arc, so that’s clever.
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Editor’s Note: You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally on Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
