[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writers: Steve Orlando & James Tynion IV
Artist: Andy MacDonald
Summary
“Night of the Monster Men, pt. 3!” Monsters run the streets of Gotham, giant Kaiju crash through the city leaving terror in their wake. If this had been Metropolis it wouldn’t be so bad. You’d have people running scared, but this is Gotham. When good men can be turned bad, what do you think happens to the worst of them?
Hot off of the heels of their training and monumental fight against Colonel Kane, the new Bat-Family is living a literal nightmare. Nightwing and Gotham Girl head to Blackgate, where Labrador size monsters strike out. Spoiler and Orphan are down in caves with the GCPD trying to keep the citizens safe from themselves, and Batman, Batwoman, and Clayface are trying to manage a giant, horned, hydra-like monster.
Positives
The art style of Andy MacDonald is awesome and really suits monsters. His use of a dark palette, the grimy backgrounds, and then bright reds for blood really make this issue feel like a horror novel. The writing also impressed me in the issue. Usually, when a crossover story happens and it’s really different from the main story, the writing changes and feels clunky within context to the book. This issue is awesome and flows along with the continuity very well.
Negatives
With the horror context of the story, the rampant monsters, and struggle of the heroes, the gore that appears in this issue has very little impact. In a series where fatal blows are not allowed, and killing is blasphemy, when it takes place here it seems uncharacteristically tame. Not that the action take is tame, but the impact it has on the characters is very minimal, which feels off in this world.
Verdict
Detective Comics #941 is a great issue. It’s fun, exciting, and best of all, shows off the new Bat-Family. Not to mention Clayface being awesome and helping in what must be the most relatively mundane way possible.
Rating
