REVIEW: ‘Detective Comics,’ Issue #1059

Detective Comics #1059 introduces two new great stories in two completely divergent ends of Gotham City. This DC Comics title keeps its two-story setup, with the first part, ‘The Seven’ written by Mariko Tamaki and Nadia Shammas, and the second, ‘Gotham Girl, Interrupted’ by Sina Grace. Ivan Reis returns for first story pencils, with inks by Danny Miki, colors by Brad Anderson, and letters by Ariana Maher. Story two sees artwork by David Lapham, colors by Trish Mulvihill, and letters by Rob Leigh. The weekly run of this series came to an end, so it’s time for new mysteries, and for good or ill, a return to readers just getting Batman as the main protagonist.

‘The Seven’ brings us into a new day in Gotham, one alive with the enigmatic words coming from Riddler radio. The classic Bat-villain is back to his old tricks, but this time with a spin that has Batman behind the curve. Riddler pushes Gotham with his eerie riddles about crime, which drop in step with an actual murder, and the killer wanting to be arrested and prosecuted. This ties into a court case surrounding one of the criminals and chaos in the courtroom of Judge Donovan, daughter of reporter Deb Donovan. Great to see one of the ‘Shadows of the Bat’ characters stick around, especially since so many of Batman’s supporting cast are gone. Batman is hot on the trail, but more crimes and more criminals seeking to be caught make the cases all the more strange. 

Tamaki is already one of my favorite comic book writers, and now Shammas has joined up to dual craft a top-notch murder mystery with a head-scratching premise and expert delivery. While I bemoan the loss of Batwoman, Robin, and the Bat family, I know we’re in the hands of master wordsmiths. Batman’s popularity is a blessing and a curse in terms of exposure, but this case has him looking back in complete detective form, scary and potent. Speaking of potency, Reis pens a level of sophisticated detail in every figure and panel that never reveals a stray line. Just when you think nothing could amplify such beauty, Miki drenches the Batman in vampiric nightshade of the lushest black ink, and this issue makes Gotham and its hero an extremity of hope-tinged brightness and vengeful darkness. Anderson’s colorations complement those lines and inks with as many variations in hues. Maher lays down balloons and SFX-like footprints at a crime scene, around the body but never stepping over it. Once again, the Detective Comics #1059 team in 2022 is pure fire.

‘Gotham Girl, Interrupted’ begins a new secondary tale starring the superhuman heroine from back during the reign of Tom King. I’m not familiar with her story, but from the opening fight scene to her clear mental health issues, it’s apparent she is trying to make a new life for herself in the city. This includes being a hero again, and it’s a frighteningly good tale of a Superman-like hero with mental illness navigating the real world and her own psyche. I found this story to be trippy, and the character examination stark in the out-of-touch manner Gotham Girl is written. It hit home in some ways and made me love this character.

Lapham has returned to the book, and his art style takes me back to indie comics of old, but it sells the humanity in Gotham Girl. The first page alone pulled me right in. He has a way of making this heroine and Gotham appear normal, shaving them of all the comic book flair to normalize the larger-than-life hero and her setting. Mulvihill moderates the colors, save for a plethora of fun neon pastels early on, while Leigh manages a bevy of thought boxes in colorful formats and lots of good use of that stylized ‘G.’ 

I am even more a fan of this book now and can’t wait for the next issue. I know Batman is overrated these days, but don’t let it stop you from reading this.

Detective Comics #1059 is available now wherever comic books are sold.