Batman: Detective Comics #1106 – Tom Taylor, Writer; Mikel Janin, Artist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: This has been one of the fastest-paced, most intense arcs of Tom Taylor’s run so far, with a ticking clock of a mysterious anti-fear virus infecting Gotham – and Batman himself. The Lion, our villain, was a child when Batman took his father away for a crime he had committed. The boy turned his fear of Batman into a weapon that he used for experiments – ones accidentally funded by Bruce Wayne, who sponsored the boy out of regret that he had to break up a family. Now, the Lion has become convinced that ridding humanity of fear is the way to evolve it, and the opening of the issue actually hints that he may have a point – some people use the lifting of the veil of fear to take chances they always meant to. But others find the freedom to be destructive – such as a mob of people marching on Gotham’s Police headquarters, and Commissioner Savage having zero fear of unleashing the forces on them.
This is a packed final issue of the arc, with a ton of great moments, such as Gordon – now a beat cop – standing up to Savage, for all the good it’ll do. I really liked the way Batman eventually beats the Lion’s influence – with fear gas, essentially overdosing his new resistance to fear and giving himself something he recognizes to ground himself in the battle. The concept of fear being something not to avoid, but to learn how to fight makes a lot of sense from a psychological perspective. But at the end of the day, this arc works so well because it’s rooted in something very genuine – a look at the ripple effects of Batman’s war on crime. This showdown has been in the works for twenty years, and despite the horrible crimes the Lion has committed, Batman can’t help but look at him and see the same broken kid he saw in the house all those years ago. Very excited to see where Taylor takes this next.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
