Batman: Dark Patterns #11 – Dan Watters, Writer; Hayden Sherman, Artist; Triona Farrell, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: Over the last ten issues, we’ve been immersed in one of the eeriest versions of Gotham yet, a twisted city where evil lurks deep under the surface. And as a young Batman tries to unravel the puzzles of this strange city, he’s made some new allies – Dr. Sereika, an eccentric pathologist fascinated with the study of Gotham’s most twisted crime victims; and Nicky Harris, a driven journalist who suspects the good doctor isn’t what he appears to be. Now, a mysterious arsonist is posing one final challenge to Batman, targeting key sites around the city while dressed as some sort of twisted vintage doll – and Batman, still recovering from a bullet wound from the last arc, is pushing himself to his limit to figure out the case. This allows Alfred to put on his best Dad Voice and try to rein in Bruce’s obsession before he gets himself killed – but out there, the killer is hard at work as well.
This is obviously a mystery with only two suspects, and we did find out who the main villain of this entire run is last issue. Without spoiling it, this issue goes into the character’s motivation a good deal, and it’s a clever twist. This is the kind of mindset that too long in Gotham could create out of a person, and it does feel earned after the material set up in the previous issues. The plot here relating to the fires actually dates back well over a century, delving into Gotham’s history and recreating it in a terrifying way. That sets up a packed final issue, as Batman faces a Gotham in flames in the biggest crucible of his early career as a hero so far. The pacing of this series – four cases of three issues each – has been a really unique way to tell a story, and I’m hoping that the final issue brings this home in a big way because I think this could be a great evergreen Gotham story for years to come.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
