[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers!]
Writer: Tom King
Pencils: Mikel Janin
Summary
The war between Riddler and Joker continues with Gotham City caught in the middle! Soon alliances are forged within the criminal underworld as every criminal soon has to take a side! Will Batman be able to end this war once and for all?
Positives
King does a great job of showing us how much Batman goes through nightly in this issue. Being Batman is more than just beating up bad guys and fighting crime. While continuing to tell his story to Selina, Bruce makes you literally feel every casualty of the war so far. He actually knows the name and face of every person he’s failed to save. He tells Selina that the rest of the world sees him as “The Dark Knight”, “The World’s Greatest Detective”, and even as a superhero, however the faces of these victims help keep Bruce centered and grounded and I love that we see this side of Bruce in this book.
Negatives
I have nothing negative to mention about this issue. King does a wonderful job of showing us how divided Gotham has become in the criminal underworld. Whether you like it or not, as a criminal you’re gonna choose a side! Prime example is when Joker calls Carmine Falcone to order a hit on Riddler within one hour! Carmine fails on the hit thanks to the intervention of Poison Ivy on Riddler’s behalf. In return for Carmine’s failure, Joker strips the teeth from the mouth of Carmine’s own mother!
Verdict
I thought Batman #26 was a great read. It seems that this war is only going to escalate before it gets better. As this series continues I can’t wait to see where the allegiances of Two-Face, Black Mask, and maybe even Bane may lie. All have at one point or another controlled Gotham, and I’m sure they may want to again.
