REVIEW: ‘Detective Comics,’ Issue #1060

Detective Comics #1060 by DC Comics comes out swinging for the fences once again with not one but two amazing stories. This issue is written by Mariko Tamaki, Nadia Shammas, and Sina Grace. Artwork is provided by Ivan Reis and David Lapham, with inks by Danny Miki in the first story. Colors are painted by Brad Anderson and Trish Mulvihill, with letters by Ariana Maher and Rob Leigh. In the last issue of our first tale, ‘The Seven,’ Riddler Radio predicted the bizarre crime wave sweeping Gotham (the city that can’t catch a break). Batman was on the case, but the resulting perps, people with no real motive to commit bombings and murders, threw him off course.

Part Two gives readers an extensive sampling of Bruce Wayne, on a date with Caroline Donovan, judge and daughter to Deb Donovan, the nonstop reporter Tamaki has made great use of in the book. Sure, he’s looking for evidence of how these insane crimes keep involving her office. But it’s great to see that since he’s lost the money and Alfred and more, Bruce/Batman has become more human. At least, in this book, he has. In the other ones, the character is still portrayed as a world-class ingrate. This is but one reason I love this book. Batman is a person again! Seeing more Bruce is a great start. Fleshing out Caroline, Deb, and the others as the story moves on just makes Gotham feel like the most detailed spot in the DC Multiverse. It’s been a long time coming. Let’s see this in the other Bat titles.

Tamaki and Shammas have found an interesting crime, made Riddler a viable threat, and keep Batman a likable hero. All the while, they stack a formidable supporting cast to boot, and the story flows like good wine. Add to this Reis’s immaculate pencils of rendering people, buildings, cars, faces, and superheroes with equal depth and richness, highlighted by Miki’s sinister inks, Anderson’s smooth colors, and Maher’s sublime lettering, and once again, this title is pure platinum.

Detective Comics #1060 doesn’t slow down when that tale hits you with the credits. Part Two of ‘Gotham Girl, Interrupted’ by Grace continues its mystery of suicide…or murder involving our superpowered mentally ill heroine. There are some wonderful notes in how Gotham Girl is portrayed, the randomness of mental illness, sometimes played for laughs, other times with due seriousness. But as she tries to uncover her friend’s sudden death, plus his relationship to her abused website, things become much more entangled. There are some great scenes in this issue inside old Wayne Manor and in how Gotham Girl interacts with her supporting cast. This is pure fun, sadness, and tragedy all rolled into one.

Lapham already had a nice, laid-back indie comics appeal I loved but he is amping up the action sequences. This issue was more potent, with lots of moving parts, well accented by Mulvihill’s mauve and blue phosphorescence lighting up the panels, while Leigh streamlines each one with measured balloons organized like building blocks. There is a lot to like, and the ending will make Gotham Girl’s life a lot more complex.

There’s too much to love about this issue, and I can’t say enough about it. I’m a committed Gotham Girl fan now, thanks to Grace, and have been reunited in my old love for Gotham, Batman, and Bruce Wayne, thanks to Tamaki and Shammas. Good gosh, buy this. Buy several, pass them out, and spread the word.

Detective Comics #1060 is available now wherever comic books are sold.