Gotham By Midnight, Volume 2: Rest in Peace

Gotham by Midnight

by Ray Fawkes, Juan Ferreyra (Illustrator)

The Midnight Shift of Gotham PD takes center stage as the supernatural and unexplainable wreak havoc in the city streets.

As the Midnight Shift is dragged in for interrogation by Internal Affairs, Dr. Tarr makes a startling discovery that might change everything for Corrigan and The Spectre. But will it be too late? The Spectre has so far been held in check since the Midnight Shift was formed, but there may be nothing that can stop the rage of God. Collects Gotham By Midnight #7-12.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Horror, Superheroes, Batman, Thriller

208 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 2016

About the author

Ray Fawkes is the critically-acclaimed author of the comics and graphic novels Underwinter, Intersect, One Soul, The People Inside, The Spectral Engine, Possessions, and Junction True, as well as Batman: Eternal, Constantine, Justice League Dark, and Gotham by Midnight (DC), Wolverines (Marvel), Black Hammer '45 (Dark Horse), Jackpot! (AfterShock) and more. He is an Eisner, Harvey, and Shuster award nominee and a YALSA award winner.

Ray has been making comics for over 20 years, starting with and continuing the tradition of DIY fiction as well as working for many major comics publishers in the U.S. and Canada.

Reviews

[Lost Planet Airman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this has been something of a flawed series from the start. I'm not sure where the Spectre started it's career, but here, Jim Corrigan, "host" to God's spirit of vengeance, is/was a dead Gotham detective.And when another vengeful spirit comes to avenge ALL the unjust deaths in Gotham, the Spectre might just have trouble choosing sides... as will Jim Corrigan, whose death was never just either. Can the cops of Precinct Thirteen, living and dead, save the city?

Art was good, with a spooky/mysterious flavor and lots of muted colors. Generally good storytelling with occasional hiccups. Theology, though... let's just say that DC shold leavetheology to organizatios with at least a few hundred years more experience.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a unique series with beautiful art, great characters, and an interesting story. Too bad it was so short and few people read it. There was lots of potential here.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sadly this series was a bit of a disappointment to me.

Precinct 13 was the Gotham Task Force assigned to the supernatural crimes, sort of like X-Files meet Batman. However, really this was just a Spectre comic. Not that I have anything against the Spectre, as he's a cool character and there's been some cool comics featuring him. But that wasn't what I thought I was reading.

The first volume featured Ben Templesmith art which gave the book a great horror vibe. The art on this one isn't bad, but it didn't portray the creepy atmosphere as well as the first volume.

Overall not bad, but I think this concept could be revisited and be much better. If you are looking for a new Spectre read, pick this one up. Otherwise, it may not be what you're looking for.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

When it's supernatural in nature this this the team to call. Mostly The Spectre....this was much better than I had expected.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gotham By Midnight's second volume collects the remaining seven issues of the series, as well as the annual and the online eight page sneak peek, which brings the story of the Midnight Shift to a close for now.

Still reeling from the death of Sister Justine, Jim Corrigan isn't doing well. His is the main story in this volume to be honest, and it seems that once writer Ray Fawkes realised he wasn't going to get much in the way of time after these 12 issues, he kind of sidelines the other characters in favour of Corrigan. It's a shame, since I was intrigued by Dr. Tarr's skepticism/mysticism argument, and Lisa Drake's banshee-ness, but never mind. It did amuse me that Sergeant Rook and Lieutenant Weaver was basically interchangeable as well, and Kate Spencer popping up was a nice surprise.

What follows is a collection of stories which see the Shift battling different demons (including the Gentleman Ghost in the annual) whilst Internal Affairs slowly realise that their brand of police work isn't quite kosher, which results in an explosive fourway confrontation between the Spectre, the Midnight Shift, Ikkondred from the first volume, and a surprise fourth party too. It feels both prolonged and rushed, in that the battle builds and builds before exploding, but ends quite abruptly so there's no room for epilogues, which would have been nice since most of these characters are now likely to fade away. The moral of the story is quite nice though, and very apt for a city like Gotham.

The artwork is handled by Juan Ferreyra, who I thought was just a cover artist, but his work is both ethereal and dangerously solid, a dichotomy which works very well in this dingy supernatural corner of Gotham. He draws and colours all seven of the main issues, with Christian Duce stepping in to draw the annual, whose style is different to Ferreyra's, much more grounded, which works with the less-spooky subject matter.

Gotham By Midnight is an intriguing experiment, part Gotham Central and part Ostrander's Spectre; it's a shame that it only got these two volumes to explore its characters and Gotham's darker side - hopefully the concept is revived somewhere down the line.

[Elias Rosner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure what to say about Gotham by Midnight really. I absolutely loved it but to give it five stars it would have to have been much more coherent. For what it was (a horror series that took place in Gotham) it attempted to build its own lore, have a distinct and creepy but still colorful art style and be something closer to Gotham Central than Batman (which I believe it did well). Unfortunately, the story was not paced well at all. There is a huge disconnect between this volume and volume one, something that was probably due to the impending cancellation of the title. As much as I loved the story, there is something that was missing from it. The characters just weren't developed well enough and everything had a rushed feel to it. Instead of doing smaller stories of varying length, this was written for the trade and that didn't work. The best part of this volume was the annual issue (it was interesting, creepy, paced well and had a satisfying narrative) and I wish this had taken more out of the pages of Gotham central than it did.

All in all though, a great attempt at bringing back some of the horror and supernatural aspects of the DCU and showcasing some really funky artwork. I hope more risks like this are taken, even if this wasn't the best that could have been offered.

[The_J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Odd mystical/Spiritual type squad in the Gotham PD, interesting grouping of individuals, but really a bastardization of the Specter, and then equivalating it to some dead Nun and an agglomeration of unhappy dead. Some quality but in the end any goodwill squandered.

[Krzysztof Grabowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jedna z tych serii w New 52, gdzie autentycznie mi szkoda, że obejmuje tylko dwa tomy i kończy swoją rację. Jakbym miał nadawać jakieś wyróżnienia to Gotham by Midnight otrzymało by podium w kategorii: najbardziej niedocenione. Bo to tak jakby Archiwum X spotkało Batmana. Jak można się tym nie zainteresować?

Corrigan to persona, której nienawidzę od czasu przeczytania Gotham Central. Cokolwiek się przytrafiło tej postaci jest w pełni zasłużone. Ale to zamierzchłe czasy. Teraz ten brudny gliniarz dowodzi oddziałem 13 czy też "Północną Zmianą" jak tych ludzi nazywają inni policjanci. To do nich należą te sprawy, które wymykają się normalnej klasyfikacji.

Duchy, zombie, wszelkie inne istoty wykraczające poza rozumowanie ludzkie. Świetnym przykładem może być spotkanie z "Duchem Dżentelmena", który to nawet po śmierci potrafi ukraść cenny fant. Albo zwłoki do których pleców wszczepia się pewna roślina (tyle, że to ona powoduje zgon...). Albo istoty, które żywią się chyba gniewem, a znajdują idealną formę do żerowania. Kablówkę. Sprawy są mocno zróżnicowane.

Są jednak rzeczy, którym nawet jednostka Corrigana może nie sprostać. Szkopuł w tym, że do "naszego" wydziału przyczepia się wydział spraw wewnętrznych, który szuka na jednostkę haków. A o te w rzeczywistości nie trudno, bo Jim i spółka często balansują moralnie w masie spraw. Sporo tu zaskakujących momentów.

Jeżeli miałbym wskazywać wady to jest to nieco wtórne zakończenie, jak i cały finał. Znów mamy starcie "tytanów", bo jak ktoś ma w sobie Spectre, to prędzej czy później dojdzie do jatki, ale końcowy przeciwnik to naprawdę leniwe rozwiązanie względem poprzedniego tomu.

Świetna niepokojąca kreska. Dobrze nakreślone postacie. Mrok i niepokój. Ten tytuł może się podobać, choć Fawkes nie uniknął pewnych błędów. Mimo to jednego dnia czytałem około 7 komiksów i ten wciągnął mnie chyba najbardziej.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

This closes out the Gotham by Midnight Series by basically putting the Spectre on trial; more of the collection deals with the Midnight crew and the IA hounds than it does with supernatural influences. It loses a lot of its personality at the same time, as everything that makes the characters unique becomes bullet points for IA prosecution (although there is an interesting take on the Gentleman Ghost and people who sold their souls, but they seem almost like background details, and neither is given a particularly rousing resolution). But when the Spectre lets loose, the stakes raise up pretty high, albeit in an echo of the first volume's climactic scene. The resolution has a couple strong moments and paints some of the characters in a new light, but ultimately this series feels like it got rushed to its conclusion before it could find its legs. The artwork is very different from the first volume (the loss of Ben Templesmith's art makes things a little more straightforward to discern, but a whole lot less atmospheric), and the whole thing is brighter in color even as it goes darker in content. The ending doesn't quite connect, but it has a couple of glimpses of greatness. All told, not quite the return on the concept I hoped for, but not bad overall.

[Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was waffling over three stars or four, but I remembered I stayed up until 2 a.m. finishing it, and looked at it and thought that even if Constantine appears to have completely dropped the plot at least someone is still writing a horror comic that involves people being angry about things not being fair. So four stars.

Ahem.

That aside; everyone's started being upfront about their various supernatural aspects, and Drake's figured out been told that she's a banshee. The individual stories were neat, the overarching story was... rather blatant for the creeping horror I was hoping for, and rather sweet for a Spectre story, but something I can run with. I'm hoping to see more of Tarr and Weaver.

[Melissa Snow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like more resolution re: what happened in the interrogation room with Corrigan, and his amount of control re: the Spectre, but this still might be one of my favorite comic series I've read. The subject matter gets into meaningful, deeper territory, and the art is excellent.

"We don't have to believe we deserve it. We don't have to believe in ourselves.

But we can't go on denying the pain we've caused or the pain we're holding on to. We can't keep burying our guilt or lashing out or killing each other...

...forgive us."

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second, and final, volume ends abruptly as the series never gets a chance to breathe. I thoroughly enjoyed the art more in this volume but there was way too much of a focus on The Spectre. While Jim Corrigan is the only name character coming into the series, the rest of The Midnight Shift were treated as after thoughts. This book could have had a different outcome if the series didn't get cancelled but we'll never know. Overall, the book was decent but not enough to remember in a couple years.

[Marisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an end for such a creative, original series. I'm still heartbroken that this book didn't continue as it truly was one of the most interesting titles DC had released in a while. Not only was the story fascinating, it was also a good way of incorporating lesser known characters with lesser celebrated powers. If the TV show Sleepy Hollow met the show Supernatural met the Batman universe, it would be this book right here, and I mean that in the best way possible.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

Sad that Internal Affairs is threatening to shut down the Midnight Shift. RIP everyone that died. The cases are pretty creepy though. Hope Internal Affairs will see that they need the Midst Shift. Sad that this series got cancelled.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gotham By Midnight: Rest in Peace picks up where the previous trade paperback left off, collecting the last seven issues (6–12) of the 2014 on-going series, Gotham By Midnight Annual #1, and DC Sneak Peek: Gotham By Midnight from the DCYou phase of the New 52 incarnation.

Gotham By Midnight: Rest in Peace opens up with the DC Sneak Peek: Gotham By Midnight short is written by Ray Fawkes and penciled by Juan Ferreyra. It features the Midnight Shift of the Gotham City Police Department (G.C.P.D.) led by Jim Corrigan and his team, Sam Weaver, Lisa Drake, and Szandor Tarr with a cameo appearance of Jim Gordon as Batman.

The on-going series opens with Sister Justine's funeral service, but their memorial service was interrupted by a case that needed their attention at the Powers Corporation. Precinct Thirteen or the Midnight Shift continues their investigation into the supernatural, which seems like isolated cases that are linked by the same black plant.

At first they theorized that it was from Ikkondrid, because that's when the first saw the plant, but it later Szandor Tarr discovered that they are being left because of Jim Corrigan. Szandor Tarr deduces that these plants weren't malevolent in nature, but in fact, they were benevolent and helping them. However, his research was stopped because Precinct Thirteen has been shut-down by Internal Affairs and Detectives Jim Corrigan and Lisa Drake were arrested.

The interrogation didn't go as planned or all that well – it seemed that the Spectre within Jim Corrigan didn't like the questions being asked and exact judgement on the police officers questioning him in a bloody manner. It was here that Jim Corrigan learned that it was divine choice in how retribution was being delivered, but it was subconsciously done by the behest of him as well. In the confusion of the massacre, Lisa Drake managed to escape with Jim Corrigan – only to have them drive into Gotham Bay with an exploding car.

It is at this exact moment that Ikkondrid returns, but he isn't alone. Everyone who has died unjustly in Gotham City also joins it. Fortunately, Jim Corrigan and Lisa Drake survive the car explosion. Unfortunately, Jim Corrigan is a person that has unjustly died in Gotham City. While investigating the murder of his fiancée – he too was murdered, but became the host of the Spectre – the Hand of Judgement for God. So not only is Jim Corrigan affected by Ikkondrid, so is the Spectre.

It is then that the ghost of Sister Justine, the Nun of the Narrows and the Redeemer, appears. After taking the sins of Gotham City and taking their punishment she became a very powerful entity for Good. She managed to snap Jim Corrigan and the Spectre from Ikkondrid's grip and lure and manage to do something that he doesn't deserve to ask the Spectre to forgive them – Gotham City. For those that committed wrongs and those that cannot rest because of those wrongs and keep the anger buried deep within. The Spectre does so and Ikkondrid is satisfied and leaves Gotham City alone – for good.

Intermixed between the trade paperback is Gotham By Midnight Annual #1 which was written by Ray Fawkes and penciled by Christian Duce. The story is centered on James Craddock as the Gentleman Ghost and his origin story. Detectives Jim Corrigan and Lisa Drake managed to track him down, but keeping him arrested without him disappearing into the either. In the end, the Spectre through Jim Corrigan managed to put the Gentleman Ghost to rest.

Ray Fawkes penned the entire trade paperback and for the most part it was written rather well. I liked how the character development, but felt a tad sad that we would probably wouldn't see them anymore since the series has concluded. However, I felt that the Internal Affairs storyline seems a tad rushed and ended rather poorly. It had potential to be really interesting finding out the shadow behind the investigation, but it seemed to be concluded severely anticlimactically.

With the exception of Gotham By Midnight Annual #1 who was penciled by Christian Duce, the entire trade paperback was penciled by Juan Ferreyra. For the most part, I really like their penciling styles far better than Ben Templesmith. However, it lost the spooky horror atmosphere that Templesmith did rather well. Artistically, it flowed really well as their penciling styles are similar and complement each other rather seamlessly.

I really like the concept of the series. It seems many dark and undesirable things happens in Gotham City, so it make sense to have a Precinct Thirteen to deal with the spooky and supernatural aspects of living in Gotham City – I just wished it was executed a tad better. Also, I wished it would have continue a tad further – it's just that I finally gotten to known and care for these characters and I am forced to bid them farewell – perhaps never seeing them again, sans Jim Corrigan.

All in all, Gotham By Midnight: Rest in Peace is a somewhat wonderful conclusion for the series. It is a lovely series that I quite enjoyed reading and I'm slightly saddened to see it go. Hopefully, we'll see them again in some form or another, but I it is rather unlikely.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much improved over the first volume, so of course it got cancelled. But it does at least have a satisfying ending, and while not a surprise, the artwork from the always awesome Juan Ferreyra is fantastic.

[Max Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, heavy on the ghosts and Christian themes.

+1 star for Ferreyra art.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t realize it was a Spectre book- otherwise I would have picked it up a long time ago! Great story. LOVED the art for the car chase.

[Chris Richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gotham by Midnight really finds its feet in the second volume. It’s clear in this one that this is really a Spectre series and I found I was here for that.

Corrigan is a compelling lead and the rest of his team actually really grew on me here.

Juan Ferreyra’s art is great and much easier to follow than the first volume.

Most of the issues have an episodic feel, with the I.A. Investigation subplot slowly building in the background. There’s a fun reimagining of Gentleman Ghost in here too. It’s a cool series with great vibes. I really enjoyed it.

This volume at least is set when Jim Gordon is Batman so be prepared for the giant robot bunny to pop up very briefly but I thought Gordon being gone from the GCPD worked really well for the story this was telling.

I did feel it could have done with one last issue as we never found out who set Rook and Internal Affairs on Corrigan, and presumably Corrigan’s still facing charges for the deaths he’s caused at the end. But otherwise it’s a pretty complete story.

I hope this series gets revisited one day because it was an unexpected treat

[RubiGiráldez RubiGiráldez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tomo que cierra este spin-off que se presentaba tan interesante, pero que creo que no ha logrado funcionar de verdad ni encontrar su voz propia. Es cierto que se ve desde el primer tomo cómo podría finalizar toda la gran trama que han ido creando. Pero el camino para llegar a ello ha sido del todo difuso y tortuoso. Puede que gran parte de la culpa sea que uno no termina por implicarse del todo con el plantel protagónico. Incluso Corrigan no logra acaparar la suficiente atención.

El apartado gráfico podríamos decir que es más "competente" que el tan especial y curioso de Templesmith. Y aunque nos regale aún unos cuantos momentos aterradores, se pierde bastante del aura siniestra del anterior tomo.

Al final, Gotham by Midnight es un quiero y no puedo en este experimento por tratar de dar un poco más de rienda suelta al lado más oculto y sobrenatural de DC.

[Anchorpete · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like Ray Fawkes work, in particular his Constantine run.

This was very hard to get through.

It was certainly the most horrific New 52 book I have read, and that is saying a lot. Do you remember Lemire's animal man or Snyder's Swamp Thing? this is more disturbing than that.

I really do not like the idea of the Spectre being like the Incredible Hulk and his human host being Like Bruce Banner, gritting his teeth, struggling to keep him in. Even within one trade, the pattern was very obvious- Jim Corrigan goes into a building where there are corrupt people, and he spends the rest of the issue trying to keep the Spectre inside.

There is a good twist at the end dealing with this very issue. If you like the Spectre and or/Fawkes, then I won't spoil it for you.

[Mohan Vemulapalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Gotham By Midnight: Rest in Peace" is a little rough in places but is over all a well written fast paced second and final volume for this unfortunately short lived series. Anyone who enjoyed the first book should definitely take a chance on this one. The major plot elements are resolved in this book although there are definitely a few loose ends that indicate a longer run was planned.

Hopefully, this will not be the last appearance of the Precinct 13 crew. It is actually, surprising that there do not seem to have been any attempts to revive this story line in the roughly eight years since the end of the series. The series' take on Corrigan is refreshing and the newly introduced characters, especially Detective Lisa Drake, have a lot of potential.

Expect, lots of Drake and Corrigan action, a well done interlude with the Gentleman Ghost, less coverage of Tarr and Weaver than desirable, Bat Mech Armor, the return of a sinister presence from the first volume and an end-of-days style conflagration.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super underrated series about the BPRD of Gotham, with all the insanity that happens the police still doubt the supernatural so they go in and solve it. Really enjoyed this one- felt like a new Constantine

[John Wright · Rating 2 out of 5]

Failed potential and some dubious morals in this run (not in an interesting way, in a flawed writing way). “Both sides!”

[Chris Stephens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love to be surprised,
Had no expectations on this,
Mixed feelings about the art,
Wonderful storyline,
Paranormal Gotham,
If you like message's that are hopeful.
Wish there was more.....

[Guillermo · Rating 2 out of 5]

So that's how it ends, hu? This series had potential, I guess. Wasted though it was. I feel like I should have loved it, but... I didn't.

[María Amparo · Rating 3 out of 5]

los episodios incluidos en este tomo no tienen una calidad tan regular como los del primero, que estaban más trabajados en su trama, en mi opinión, y guardaban una coherencia entre sí de una forma que no se ha conseguido en éste. No se hasta qué punto puede haber influido en ésto la espada de Damocles de la amenaza de cancelación de la cabecera, cosa que finalmente ocurrió... La naturaleza de la relación del Espectro con Jim Corrigan toma mayor protagonismo pero finalmente no queda bien resuelta, como tampoco las historias de fondo de personajes tan interesantes como la inspectora Drake o el profesor Tarr. Destaco sin embargo el episodio dedicado a la Apatia/Acedia por ejemplo y algún otro momento sobre la noche en Gotham, la ira contagiosa que emana de la criatura doble aterradora y .... en fin. Seguiré fiel a Ray Fawkes como guionista.

[Fernando Gálvez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cambiamos de dibujante pero la historia lo ameritaba. Juan Ferreyra realiza un trabajo excepcional, expresivo y dinámico, muy adecuado para este título. Aquí se desencadena todo. Lo que se suponía que estaba cerrado en el tomo anterior comienza precipitar la historia del equipo (y que Asuntos Internos no los dejen tranquilos) a que había mucho más que escarbar todavía. Nuevas revelaciones y sorpresas para la despedida de este equipo.

Este tomo incluye el Anual #1, "El Caballero Fantasma", dibujado por Christian Duce, que también podría haber sido un artista adecuado para el tono de esta serie.

Todo lo que le hizo falta a la Justice League Dark, en su momento, se encuentra en Gotham by Midnight.

[Ryan Viergutz]

I'm sad this series is already cancelled because it's a perfect example of DC's horror side being its best side. So twisted, grotesque and sometimes disturbing. Lots of monsters, a kickass banshee detective lady, a bonkers mad scientist, the tormented Jim Corrigan, and ultimately, a big old gigantic Kaiju Occult battle at the end. So good.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Things are going badly for the Gotham PD night shift and it seems that every case is dovetailing into one big problem.
I would preferred more focus on small, unrelated cases, as I liked the early cop show meets Lovecraft vibe.

Also thought they should have done more of a slow burn before the Spectre reveal.

But, all in all a fun series that deserved more attention and stories.