Batman: Dark Patterns (2024-) #6

Batman: Dark Patterns

by Dan Watters, Hayden Sherman (Artist)

CASE 02: “The Voice of the Tower”—Part IIIThe fires of unrest burn bright and terribly! With Scarface still evadingcapture and the violent riot in the tower getting even worse with noend in sight, Batman must turn toward a most unlikely ally in his timeof need. Will the Dark Knight heal this terrible wound, or will Gothamdescend further into chaos?

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Batman

Kindle Edition

Published May 14, 2025

About the author

Dan Watters is a UK based comic book writer. His first book, LIMBO, was released through Image Comics in 2016. He has since written THE SHADOW at Dynamite Comics, and ASSASSIN’S CREED and WOLFENSTEIN for Titan Comics.

Currently he is writing the relaunch of LUCIFER for Vertigo’s Sandman Universe, as well as DEEP ROOTS for Vault Comics. Deeply rooted in London Town, and firmly of the Devil's party.

Reviews

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dark Patterns' second arc concludes with a strong issue 6. While I enjoyed Batman's detective work leading to the reveal, the final resolution didn't quite have the same "wow" factor as the first arc. Still, it was a solid arc overall, landing at a 7 out of 10 for me, and the final issue earns a 3 out of 5.

[Chris Loan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a huge fan of this series so far! Batman is so methodical and he actually feels like a brilliant detective!

[Cybernex007 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just can’t stop myself from giving this series 5/5 stars, it’s just so peak!! And the end of this story just confirms once more how good it is. As we left last issue batman found Wesker with his tongue cut out, the real ventriloquist being revealed as the wife of the ringleader of the gang working under Scarface. The time came and she killed her husband and slashed the throat of the police officer they had as a hostage because she witnessed it. When the others found her she used Scarface to blame the murders on batman and got them to move the bodies and continue the search. All the while batman is following Wesker through the service stairwell that he is all too familiar with. He can’t say much right now, which leads batman to do a lot of accurate speculating. Such as realizing that Wesker few up here and this was how he for around when he was younger as a scared child who didn’t want to be noticed, but had full access to look into the lives of others. And then once he got out of prison he came back here and someone took the Scarface persona from him, someone who thinks bigger and even cut out his tongue.

Luckily the police officer survived, but waking up in a locked bathroom with a dead guy and her throat bleeding out doesn’t bode well for her chances. Additionally Wesker was able to bring batman to where she WAS being held but batman was able to use a special solvent to reveal where the blood int he floor was scrubbed away. Batman was able to call Gordon and give him the bad news and the high likelihood that the officer is dead, which means there is no reason to hold back and they can go into the building full force. Batman notices Wesker going for something in the fridge, but as he runs over he found that Wesker is as opening a box with his tongue put on ice so it could be reattached. Whoever did this is someone that cares about him…so tell me Wesker…who is she?

We jump back over to the new ventriloquist only to find all the goons sitting around, giving up. They know with the cop dead it’s only a matter of time for the cops to barge in and they are done with all of it. She tried to call upon Scarface’s voice to get them up and going, but they are even pushing back against him…seeing him as nothing but a voice that probably isn’t real. This caused her to lash out and attack the primary goon saying all of that, only for the others to pull her off. With her realizing it was over it left her no choice but to result to her alternative plan to free them.

Meanwhile we see batman walking through and analyzing the house where she lived with her husband. This is such a top tier moment for batman that we don’t get enough of, being able to walk into a room and look at everything and figure out what made their lives tick. He can see that it was her home first and that her husband moved in and room over, more than likely he was cruel and that was something Wesker saw and thought he could help her like Scarface helped him. He taught her the skills of the ventriloquist and they hatched a plan to crack her husband and make him believe Scarface was real. It started with puppets but then moved to knocking him out, moving him around, and talking to him through the puppet. Wesker thought she would use Scarface to improve her life and stop him from pushing her around, but then she used him to take over the whole building a hatch a plan against those who’d take her home. When the first cop died Wesker begged her to run away with him, and then he became the one trying to take her home away. And now it’s out of control and if she can’t have the home then she will free it, free it only a way that fire and smoke can!

When the cops finally busted down the doors the entire building was catching flame, bolstered bhp the architecture of the building acting as a wind tunnel. This just became an evacuation, and as the new ventriloquist burned at the base of the building, everyone worked to get out. But the cop who was held hostage is still stuck in the bathroom…but she is hearing a voice call out to her, informing her that the sink is loose and she is able to use it to burst through the door. Batman dawned a really cool heat vision goggles to be able to see people through the smoke, and with the voice guiding the officer it led her right to batman! With everyone evacuated the last to go was Wesker, who stayed inside a moment longer looking up into the smoke and seeing the face of Scarface manifest in it. As the issue comes to an end and batman debriefs with Gordon and Sereika, they mention that Michelle’s (the new ventriloquist) body has not been found. Overall it doesn’t make sense as fire was never ventriloquist’s M.O. but Sereika suggests she saw no other way out. Gordon also mentions that the officer is recovering but she mentioned hearing a voice that led her through the hallways, actually said it was her dead partner’s voice. Sereika suggests that auditory hallucinations are a side effect of carbon monoxide inhalation, and batman supposed that’s what it must be. But we all know that voice started long before the fire started. Maybe the voices of the tower have finally been freed.

[Logan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe I only enjoyed this issue because it finally concluded this story arc. Giving us a plausible reason for why all these ‘paranormal’ things were happening, and Batman’s conclusion to why this was happening. As a reader you get to choose what you think what has actually happened and I enjoy that it’s open ended like that. The last story arc didn’t leave the mystery open so I enjoyed this ending.

I’m still not a fan of the overall story. Scarface ‘taking over the building,’ really? Could have just done it metaphorically instead of physically. Whatever. Ok story. Glad it’s over though.

[No_One · Rating 3 out of 5]

Biggest issue with this 3-parter: it really didn’t have a traditional mystery to it. At least to me. Sure the mystery is who is actually posing as Scarface but then that wasn’t the sort of mystery that I thought Dark Patterns was going to go for after setting a precedence with the great first 3 part story. This felt more in line with a Detective Comics adventure than a putting-the-pieces-together-mystery/who is the killer structure that I thought was going to be the consistent element throughout the series. But we’ll see. Half the series left.

[Nick LeBlanc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to complain about this series when it’s got great art and is basically all the best parts of Batman books boiled down. That arc wasn’t my favorite villain, I liked the man-in-a-room of it all, but I’m looking forward to what’s next.

Read as a single issue.

[Madison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Dark Patterns. It’s been hit after hit after hit. It’s just so good and i absolutely love diving into Batman’s early cases. AH just too good!!!

[alejandro galvez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great!

Good series. A little dip in quality here and there but overall, its still a great series. Great art as well. Can't wait for the next chapter! Check it out!

[Richard A · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an odd series and I am quite glad it ended so well. Sometimes Batman is less of a superhero and more of a failed man that is an amazing detective.

[James B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit more spooky or supernatural. I'm still not sure myself why she set the building on fire. Good finish mostly.

[Mark Cubillos · Rating 5 out of 5]

The conclusion to the second case. Scarface is a great villain in this arc.

[Annemarie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent conclusion to an arc I honestly didn't care that much about. This issue felt a bit exposition heavy too.

[Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked it less than the last story but it was fine

[luz · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 // i liked this arc but wasn't fully satisfied with the conclusion. the art remains gorgeous, though.

—
upon rereading this, im bumping up #6 to 4 stars. while i wasnt fully satisfied with the role (or lack of) batman played, i still liked how the story unfolded around the people of bledin tower.