Detective Comics #983
Written by: Bryan Hill
Penciled by: Miguel Mendonca
Inked by: Diana Egea
Colored by: Adriano Lucas
Lettered by: Sal Cipriano
Published by: DC Comics
Review by Cory Webber
Detective Comics #983 kicks off the first story arc since James Tynion IV’s highly entertaining run ended last month. While Batman looks for a competent teacher to guide and mentor his young sidekicks and protégés, someone is hunting them down. And, if you’ve seen the cover, you know who he recruits. Now, whether or not DC is just trying to plug this character for support of his show, Hill does a fantastic job of justifying his presence.
Detective Comics #983 serves as a fresh, yet familiar, start for this series. Now, I won’t spoil how Tynion’s run ended, but suffice it to say that Hill picks up the loose threads and begins to weave an equally beautiful tapestry. Most importantly, he nails Batman’s voice from the onset. Moreover, the pacing moves along at a solid clip, mixing action, suspense, and new character introductions.
Speaking of which, the addition of Black Lightning appears to be the perfect choice. To be honest, outside of knowing he has his own TV show, I had never heard of him. Now, after reading this issue, I promptly added his show to my Netflix queue. He is an honorable, selfless superhero, which is clearly why Batman recruits him for such an important task.
In addition to the writing, the art was solid. It was distinct enough from Tynion’s run without distancing itself too much, maintaining some sense of cohesion. Overall, the composition was good. Lucas’ use of bright colors were complemented nicely by Egea’s deep inks. This was all perfectly on display in a particular panel which involved Batman descending towards a speeding car. Furthermore, this particular sequence was being narrated by the mysterious antagonist whose poignant pontificating regarding Batman’s legacy was some of the best analysis of Batman that I’ve ever read.
Verdict: Check it out!
Detective Comics #983 is a solid start for this new creative team. First of all, they have deftly created a seamless transition from the previous tram’s run. Then, they easily made it their own with an intriguing premise. Finally, the addition of Black Lightning is smart and intuitive, and I’m hoping he sticks around for a while. Now, here’s hoping this creative team sticks around just as long, if not longer.
