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Batman: Detective Comics by Mariko Tamaki
Batman: Detective Comics, Vol. 4: Riddle Me This
Riddle me this...when is a criminal not a criminal?
The answer awaits you in Batman: Detective Comics Vol. 4!
The Riddler is back in Gotham City in a big way, becoming a media personality and using his newfound influence to wreak havoc on the Dark Knight. As Batman chases down clues to put an end to Riddler's machinations, the clock ticks away for the citizens of Gotham whom Edward Nygma has placed in the line of fire...
Collects Detective Comics #1059-1061!
The answer awaits you in Batman: Detective Comics Vol. 4!
The Riddler is back in Gotham City in a big way, becoming a media personality and using his newfound influence to wreak havoc on the Dark Knight. As Batman chases down clues to put an end to Riddler's machinations, the clock ticks away for the citizens of Gotham whom Edward Nygma has placed in the line of fire...
Collects Detective Comics #1059-1061!
112 pages, Hardcover
First published April 11, 2023
26 people are currently reading
115 people want to read
About the author
Mariko Tamaki
381 books2,243 followersMariko Tamaki is a Toronto writer, playwright, activist and performer. She works and performs with fat activists Pretty Porky and Pissed Off and the theatre troupe TOA, whose recent play, A vs. B, was staged at the 2004 Rhubarb Festival at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Her well-received novel, Cover Me (McGilligan Books) was followed by a short fiction collection, True Lies: The Book of Bad Advice (Women's Press). Mariko's third book, FAKE ID, is due out in spring 2005.
Mariko Tamaki has performed her work across Canada and through the States, recently appearing at the Calgary Folkfest 2004, Vancouver Writer's Festival 2003, Spatial III, and the Perpetual Motion/Girls Bite Back Tour, which circled though Ottawa, Montreal, Brooklyn and Chicago. She has appeared widely on radio and television including First Person Singular on CBC radio and Imprint on TVO. Mariko Tamaki is currently attending York University working a master's degree in women's studies.
[MacMIllan Books]
Mariko Tamaki has performed her work across Canada and through the States, recently appearing at the Calgary Folkfest 2004, Vancouver Writer's Festival 2003, Spatial III, and the Perpetual Motion/Girls Bite Back Tour, which circled though Ottawa, Montreal, Brooklyn and Chicago. She has appeared widely on radio and television including First Person Singular on CBC radio and Imprint on TVO. Mariko Tamaki is currently attending York University working a master's degree in women's studies.
[MacMIllan Books]
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
April 19, 2023
Detective Comics Vol. 4 Riddle Me This collects issues 1059-1061 of the DC Comics series written by Mariko Thomas and art by Ivan Reid.
The Riddler is hosting a daily morning Pirate Radio show about Gotham’s citizen criminals. At the same time, a new crime spree has popped up. Can’t be a coincidence, can it? The back-up story is an arc about Gotham Girl trying to solve a mystery of someone who is using her name for a gossip website.
This story is way too convoluted for such a short arc. The story crammed in to three issues could have easily been a whole novel to make sense of all the random people and connections. Worst of all - it is just boring. I don’t feel like anything in this arc really added any value to Batman’s current story. The back up was also just as random. I honestly had kind of forgotten about Gotham Girl. Gotham Girl could be an interesting character and addition to the Batfamily, but unfortunately she doesn’t have much of a personality other than “being crazy.” There isn’t much here in this volume as Detective Comics transitions to a new creative team and a new crossover event. This could be easily skipped for casual Batfans.
The Riddler is hosting a daily morning Pirate Radio show about Gotham’s citizen criminals. At the same time, a new crime spree has popped up. Can’t be a coincidence, can it? The back-up story is an arc about Gotham Girl trying to solve a mystery of someone who is using her name for a gossip website.
This story is way too convoluted for such a short arc. The story crammed in to three issues could have easily been a whole novel to make sense of all the random people and connections. Worst of all - it is just boring. I don’t feel like anything in this arc really added any value to Batman’s current story. The back up was also just as random. I honestly had kind of forgotten about Gotham Girl. Gotham Girl could be an interesting character and addition to the Batfamily, but unfortunately she doesn’t have much of a personality other than “being crazy.” There isn’t much here in this volume as Detective Comics transitions to a new creative team and a new crossover event. This could be easily skipped for casual Batfans.
September 17, 2024
A solid Batman/Riddler tale with decent artwork as main feature and a really interesting Gotham Girl back-up feature that I’d love to see expanded on in the future. I really enjoyed this one.
May 1, 2023
An ok book. I loved the artwork, but the story was a letdown for me. Also, I have not been a fan of Gotham Girl, so I was not particularly happy with the second story either.
The Riddler has taken over the airways, his on pirate podcast, a very popular podcast. Could this have something to do prominent Gotham citizens committing crimes? Also, is he just furthering someone else's agenda.
Gotham Girl is trying to reintegrate back into sane society, but a website with her with her name on it is painting a target on her back.
The mystery is pretty obvious it made the story boring. Watching Batman scrambling around 3 steps behind was frustrating. Both stories were really to set up the upcoming Batman vs. Robin storyline.
The Riddler has taken over the airways, his on pirate podcast, a very popular podcast. Could this have something to do prominent Gotham citizens committing crimes? Also, is he just furthering someone else's agenda.
Gotham Girl is trying to reintegrate back into sane society, but a website with her with her name on it is painting a target on her back.
The mystery is pretty obvious it made the story boring. Watching Batman scrambling around 3 steps behind was frustrating. Both stories were really to set up the upcoming Batman vs. Robin storyline.
June 27, 2023
You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.
Collecting issues #1059-1061 of Detective Comics, writer Mariko Tamaki teams up with artist Ivan Reis for one final story with the Dark Knight before handing over the reins to a new creative team. Teased at the end of Batman: Shadows of the Bat: The Tower, she now brings into play a once-dormant Riddler who now casually targets innocent citizens of Gotham in a manipulative mind game that might have something to do with their latest criminal behaviours. While there is an amusing idea hidden somewhere in between the few issues she wrote for this story arc, her grand exit from this comic book run turns out as forgettable as the rest of this saga which, in fact, was mostly saved by fantastic artwork from start to finish.
Streamed every morning with numerous viewers, Edward Nygma, also known as the Riddler, takes to the airwaves his riddled schemes as a wave of crimes committed by what seems at-first innocent citizens sends Batman gliding through the city he protects trying to solve this mysterious coincidence before more lives are lost. Contained within this volume is also a side-story pertaining to Gotham Girl who was now released from Arkham and out in the city trying to find the imposter who took her identity on social media. Still battling with her demons, now desperately desiring solitude within this world, she then discovers a murder that sends her chasing after the killer before making new unlikely friends.
This volume was doomed to fail the moment deadlines had to be met with a maximum of three issues to tell a story before a new creative team takes over. Writer Mariko Tamaki clearly stuffed in as much as she could, trying to tie together all the loose plot threads in hopes to wrap up her story as integratively as possible, plugging in Talia Al Ghul (mostly seen in Batman: Shadow War), the Arkham Tower (a new home for the deranged and criminal), and even Deb Donovan (the newly-introduced incorruptible and skilled investigative journalist). Unfortunately, the final result is a bland, rushed, and uninspiring story that tumbles its way to the finish line, never allowing readers to connect to the characters or their fate. Not only does this volume also present another awkward romance between Bruce Wayne and a side character related to Deb Donovan, but it also poorly ties things together with the Riddler, making every single plot device coincidental and improbable. It’s mostly thanks to Ivan Reis’s penciling, Danny Miki’s inking, and Brad Anderson’s colours that this story even stands on two feet.
Even more frustrating is the ludicrous side-story featuring Gotham Girl, a character that had completely fallen off the map since writer Tom King’s Batman comic book run. Just like the main story, this is told in three-part, each becoming increasingly incoherent and dull, clearly lacking direction and purpose. It also somehow served as an opportunity to plug in the Huntress, another character that Mariko Tamaki tried to focus on throughout her comic book run. David Lapham’s artwork is decent but ends up conveying the mediocrity of the dialogue and the story more than anything else.
While writer Mariko Tamaki’s Detective Comics comic book run has only continuously failed to find its identity, it will now be in the hands of writer Ram V to revitalize this series and, hopefully, for the better.
Batman: Detective Comics (Vol. 4): Riddle Me This is a poorly-executed and short story arc marking the end of writer Mariko Tamaki’s comic book run featuring the Dark Knight as he faces the Riddler in an unexciting mystery.
December 6, 2022
Too convoluted, to disconnected, and at the same time too overconnected -- because of course the people Riddler chooses to torture also have multiple connections to BOTH Bruce Wayne and Batman, who in Gotham doesn't, really?
January 15, 2026
Confusing and far too convoluted for what it has to say... which isn't much. Long, pompous sentences filled with emptiness fill the pages of this uninteresting plot. Of course, Ivan Reiss is the artist, so it looks classy, but that's definitely not enough...
I'll draw a mourning veil over the back-up story...
I'll draw a mourning veil over the back-up story...
May 24, 2023
3.5 Stars.
Sometimes The Riddler is a jokey sad goofball who is easy to shut down. Sometimes he's so crafty and manipulative, he can pull off the crime and get off completely blameless. With a title like "Riddle Me This", bet you can guess which one.
Highlights (2 stories):
1) Bruce Wayne is dating Caroline Donovan, a Gotham City Judge. When an attack in her courtroom puts her in the hospital, Batman begins to investigate a series of murders all seemingly tied to a new podcast The Riddler has. Every time the clues start to point his direction, another murder happens and he is exonerated. It is finally revealed that a support group that met in Arkham Tower, run by Chase Meridian, was one where people finally confessed to crimes they had committed long before and were still holding onto the guilt of. All also active Riddler listeners, the manipulation was such that they were the ones who turned to crime, doing the murders. But with millions listening to the podcast, only they are ultimately responsible, and the Riddler gets to continue.
2) A new story about Gotham Girl! Having worked on herself and her mental issues for years, she decides that she is ready to get back out and work on solving crimes. When her friend gets murdered, she investigates. Tying back to the previous story, she reveals that some of the mental issues coming out were from medical testing... not done by Meridian, but one of her underlings had been running it without her knowledge.
... And Talia is going to play a role soon....
Overall, pretty good. Love a strong sinister Riddler.
Recommend.
Sometimes The Riddler is a jokey sad goofball who is easy to shut down. Sometimes he's so crafty and manipulative, he can pull off the crime and get off completely blameless. With a title like "Riddle Me This", bet you can guess which one.
Highlights (2 stories):
1) Bruce Wayne is dating Caroline Donovan, a Gotham City Judge. When an attack in her courtroom puts her in the hospital, Batman begins to investigate a series of murders all seemingly tied to a new podcast The Riddler has. Every time the clues start to point his direction, another murder happens and he is exonerated. It is finally revealed that a support group that met in Arkham Tower, run by Chase Meridian, was one where people finally confessed to crimes they had committed long before and were still holding onto the guilt of. All also active Riddler listeners, the manipulation was such that they were the ones who turned to crime, doing the murders. But with millions listening to the podcast, only they are ultimately responsible, and the Riddler gets to continue.
2) A new story about Gotham Girl! Having worked on herself and her mental issues for years, she decides that she is ready to get back out and work on solving crimes. When her friend gets murdered, she investigates. Tying back to the previous story, she reveals that some of the mental issues coming out were from medical testing... not done by Meridian, but one of her underlings had been running it without her knowledge.
... And Talia is going to play a role soon....
Overall, pretty good. Love a strong sinister Riddler.
Recommend.
September 19, 2022
This is ...3 issues. I forgot they made trade paperbacks that small. (It's also probably a filler issue before they change writing teams).
Riddler is using 'pirate radio'(?). Really, it looks like he's got a podcast going or he's broadcasting on local public access. He's doing his usual spiel about truth and liars, and SURPRISE people have secrets.
Twist again! Families keep secrets!
It's cliche, but brief. This could have been placed ANYWHERE in Batman history. Just substitute podcast for radio show or public access tv and you're done. Also, this version of Edward Nygma is like a glossed over sellout of the classic bowler hat wearing Riddler. That mustache... *shudder*
Bonus: Riddler and his Snidely Whiplash curly mustache....not a fan
Bonus Bonus: the backup story with Gotham Girl tries SO hard. They can do better.
Riddler is using 'pirate radio'(?). Really, it looks like he's got a podcast going or he's broadcasting on local public access. He's doing his usual spiel about truth and liars, and SURPRISE people have secrets.
Twist again! Families keep secrets!
It's cliche, but brief. This could have been placed ANYWHERE in Batman history. Just substitute podcast for radio show or public access tv and you're done. Also, this version of Edward Nygma is like a glossed over sellout of the classic bowler hat wearing Riddler. That mustache... *shudder*
Bonus: Riddler and his Snidely Whiplash curly mustache....not a fan
Bonus Bonus: the backup story with Gotham Girl tries SO hard. They can do better.
October 23, 2023
Mariko Tamaki ends her Batman: Detective Comics run with a surprisingly fun little arc. Riddler seems to be scheming random people into committing crimes via his video channel, but obviously there's something deeper going on. It all ties back into the Arkham Tower arc that Tamaki just concluded. There are some great, dark Batman moments and a few real surprises. It's not top-shelf Batman, but it's more than acceptable as an actual story rather than just an excuse to see characters punch each other.
Sina Grace adds an odd coda about Gotham Girl. Who again? The tale is fine, if a little baffling since we haven't heard from her in so long. I'm guessing she'll be relegated to the toybox once again after this.
Sina Grace adds an odd coda about Gotham Girl. Who again? The tale is fine, if a little baffling since we haven't heard from her in so long. I'm guessing she'll be relegated to the toybox once again after this.
December 29, 2023
Mariko Tamaki’s last arc of Detective Comics is thankfully one of her better ones but still far from brilliant.
Riddler’s back with his own pirate radio station which frankly is a perfect fit for him. I enjoyed his new hipster beard too as he starts to catch up to the 21st century. I imagine at some point, Eddie will give up crime to start a podcast and be very happy.
There’s a line that sums up Riddler here nicely: “this isn’t personal. Edward just wants to play.” Riddler isn’t a huge world-ending threat here or a terrifying super-genius. He’s just having fun with a new game and I loved that.
Sadly the big mystery of what Riddler is doing is fairly predictable. It’s pretty obviously blackmail. And the actual mystery of how he’s got dirt on these people gets a bit confused. He got some information from Talia in return for vague favours and he might have been working with Chase Meridian or he might not have.
A flashback to Chase’s bizarre group confession session is presumably a vital clue but then Chase is dangled from the statue of liberty with Caroline for covering up her crimes. We see Batgirl save her in the background but then that’s it. Chase doesn’t appear again. No confrontation, no explanation. Presumably that means Bruce’s guess was wrong and Eddie somehow got that information by himself?
The whole last issue is bizarrely rushed. As well as the Chase connection made then entirely forgotten, Eddie has a new motivation introduced for exactly once panel. His when is a murderer not a murderer chorus gets an extra addendum: when is a hero not a hero, when he unmasks. Not sure that’s true, Eddie. And there’s this odd beat where Eddie tells Batman he wants him to unmask himself. Then that’s never mentioned again.
Maybe that was his demands for this game to stop? But then why does the story end? Batman loses. In every way. He doesn’t save Caroline or the other victims. There’s no evidence to arrest Riddler so he gets away. And the book does not make anything of the fact Riddler has beaten Batman. There should be a reaction from Eddie, finally getting the victory he wanted. Or Eddie’s game should continue. It’s bizarre.
The cover of the third issue showing passionate embrace between Bruce and Talia is a sign of another odd aspect of the story. It seems determined to link back to Talia but it struggles to manage that. One of Eddie’s victims was requested by Talia -a random woman who’s fall would apparently ‘destabilise Gotham’s upper crust’ somehow and let Talia in. She also gave Eddie the whole idea during Shadow War for some reason, though why she had time to brainstorm ideas for The Riddler while she was fighting a war with Deathstroke to avenge her father is… unclear.
The book’s only real aim with Talia is to vaguely build up some menace around her in the aftermath of Shadow War. Forget that Williamson gave her relationship with Bruce some closure in the very next issue of Robin and set up she’s working as a ‘Lazarus agent’ for the DEO. Clearly Tamaki wants her in Gotham as a potential villainous force for the future. It’s nice to see Talia but she needed much more explanation.
As has been the case with Tamaki’s whole run, reporter Deb Donovan gets the spotlight too. The problem with this character is that all the other characters can’t stop telling us how bloody amazing she is while she actually contributes nothing. She’s a very annoying character and I hope the end of this run is the last we see of her.
Her daughter Caroline is a much more interesting character. Introduced here as a judge targeted in a courthouse bombing, I enjoyed seeing Bruce getting to turn on his charm and seduce Caroline. She’s not just a generic love interest though, she’s actually the main piece in Riddler’s game.
It turns out this high profile judge has made some dodgy rulings for her friends and Riddler has the dirt on her so turns her into a murderer. There’s some interesting commentary on guilt as Caroline feels relief and can sleep again with the world knowing she’s a murderer, having been plagued by insomnia while she was getting away with her crimes. The message the story has, brought about by Riddler, is that getting away with a crime is worse punishment than getting caught and held responsible.
There’s a potentially interesting dilemma set up for Deb too as her daughter is exposed. She’s left in her grief to choose between her fanaticism for truth and justice or love for her dead daughter with all her flaws. Its probably telling how Caroline ended up how she did that her daughter barely gets a look in (though I suspect Tamaki wanted this to be a heroic moment.) it also of course only gets one rushed scene to explore given the final issue needs to fit about 4 issues into 1.
If I’ve been overly critical it’s because I actually liked this. There is a really good Riddler story here that loses itself before the end and that makes the holes in the narrative all the more frustrating. Its a shame Tamaki couldn’t have another issue or two just to flesh out the ending and finish it properly.
Hipster pirate Riddler is still out there though so maybe we’ll see some of these plot threads picked up when he makes his next inevitable return.
The back up story, Gotham Girl Interrupted, is an even more confused murder mystery but with a proper ending at least. There's some interesting commentary on mental health and an important point that 'getting better' isn't always an option. But there's not much else to it and it didn't leave me suddenly a fan of Gotham Girl.
Riddler’s back with his own pirate radio station which frankly is a perfect fit for him. I enjoyed his new hipster beard too as he starts to catch up to the 21st century. I imagine at some point, Eddie will give up crime to start a podcast and be very happy.
There’s a line that sums up Riddler here nicely: “this isn’t personal. Edward just wants to play.” Riddler isn’t a huge world-ending threat here or a terrifying super-genius. He’s just having fun with a new game and I loved that.
Sadly the big mystery of what Riddler is doing is fairly predictable. It’s pretty obviously blackmail. And the actual mystery of how he’s got dirt on these people gets a bit confused. He got some information from Talia in return for vague favours and he might have been working with Chase Meridian or he might not have.
A flashback to Chase’s bizarre group confession session is presumably a vital clue but then Chase is dangled from the statue of liberty with Caroline for covering up her crimes. We see Batgirl save her in the background but then that’s it. Chase doesn’t appear again. No confrontation, no explanation. Presumably that means Bruce’s guess was wrong and Eddie somehow got that information by himself?
The whole last issue is bizarrely rushed. As well as the Chase connection made then entirely forgotten, Eddie has a new motivation introduced for exactly once panel. His when is a murderer not a murderer chorus gets an extra addendum: when is a hero not a hero, when he unmasks. Not sure that’s true, Eddie. And there’s this odd beat where Eddie tells Batman he wants him to unmask himself. Then that’s never mentioned again.
Maybe that was his demands for this game to stop? But then why does the story end? Batman loses. In every way. He doesn’t save Caroline or the other victims. There’s no evidence to arrest Riddler so he gets away. And the book does not make anything of the fact Riddler has beaten Batman. There should be a reaction from Eddie, finally getting the victory he wanted. Or Eddie’s game should continue. It’s bizarre.
The cover of the third issue showing passionate embrace between Bruce and Talia is a sign of another odd aspect of the story. It seems determined to link back to Talia but it struggles to manage that. One of Eddie’s victims was requested by Talia -a random woman who’s fall would apparently ‘destabilise Gotham’s upper crust’ somehow and let Talia in. She also gave Eddie the whole idea during Shadow War for some reason, though why she had time to brainstorm ideas for The Riddler while she was fighting a war with Deathstroke to avenge her father is… unclear.
The book’s only real aim with Talia is to vaguely build up some menace around her in the aftermath of Shadow War. Forget that Williamson gave her relationship with Bruce some closure in the very next issue of Robin and set up she’s working as a ‘Lazarus agent’ for the DEO. Clearly Tamaki wants her in Gotham as a potential villainous force for the future. It’s nice to see Talia but she needed much more explanation.
As has been the case with Tamaki’s whole run, reporter Deb Donovan gets the spotlight too. The problem with this character is that all the other characters can’t stop telling us how bloody amazing she is while she actually contributes nothing. She’s a very annoying character and I hope the end of this run is the last we see of her.
Her daughter Caroline is a much more interesting character. Introduced here as a judge targeted in a courthouse bombing, I enjoyed seeing Bruce getting to turn on his charm and seduce Caroline. She’s not just a generic love interest though, she’s actually the main piece in Riddler’s game.
It turns out this high profile judge has made some dodgy rulings for her friends and Riddler has the dirt on her so turns her into a murderer. There’s some interesting commentary on guilt as Caroline feels relief and can sleep again with the world knowing she’s a murderer, having been plagued by insomnia while she was getting away with her crimes. The message the story has, brought about by Riddler, is that getting away with a crime is worse punishment than getting caught and held responsible.
There’s a potentially interesting dilemma set up for Deb too as her daughter is exposed. She’s left in her grief to choose between her fanaticism for truth and justice or love for her dead daughter with all her flaws. Its probably telling how Caroline ended up how she did that her daughter barely gets a look in (though I suspect Tamaki wanted this to be a heroic moment.) it also of course only gets one rushed scene to explore given the final issue needs to fit about 4 issues into 1.
If I’ve been overly critical it’s because I actually liked this. There is a really good Riddler story here that loses itself before the end and that makes the holes in the narrative all the more frustrating. Its a shame Tamaki couldn’t have another issue or two just to flesh out the ending and finish it properly.
Hipster pirate Riddler is still out there though so maybe we’ll see some of these plot threads picked up when he makes his next inevitable return.
The back up story, Gotham Girl Interrupted, is an even more confused murder mystery but with a proper ending at least. There's some interesting commentary on mental health and an important point that 'getting better' isn't always an option. But there's not much else to it and it didn't leave me suddenly a fan of Gotham Girl.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 26, 2024
w sumie to już czytam to tylko z czystego przyzwyczajenia...
September 26, 2024
Not good. The riddler story is s cool mystery that goes nowhere. And the Gotham Girl story from the backups doesn't make any sense (although that one isn't from Tamaki)
January 24, 2025
Riddler stuff was good but the Gotham Girl stuff was boring.
October 5, 2024
The Riddler story was okay. Would have been a lot better if it took up the entire volume. Instead the last two issues deal with Gotham Girl and they're unbearable, a real struggle to read.
February 7, 2026
This was a decent arc even if it was on the shorter side, but it's darn interesting, with a conclusion that is sure to knock your socks off 😏👍.
Our adventure begins with a good morning radio announcement hosted by the Riddler, who poses a series of questions, but the most potent is, "When is a murder not a murder?"
We then pivot our attention to the courthouse where the honorable Judge Caroline Donovan is presiding. We witness the ruling on her final case for the day before Caroline retires to her chambers. Upon taking a moment to enjoy a cup of coffee, she notices a blinking light attached to a bomb in the trash can and swiftly alerts everyone to clear the area.
Batman arrives on the scene and begins analyzing the device which appears to be inert that is until he locates a second transmitter. Batman discards the device in his cape out the window in the nick of time and the bomb explodes. Caroline then agrees to go to the hospital after enduring some injuries and her mother Deb Donovan receives a call prompting her to immediately visit her daughter. In the hospital, Deb is concerned about the targeted attempt on her daughter's life and urges Caroline to get a bodyguard. Caroline brushes it off as nothing and tells her mom to go home and to leave the criminal investigation to the detectives. Deb believes that there is more to this case than meets the eye when she bumps into Bruce Wayne who thoughtfully decided to bring Caroline flowers. Deb frantically questions why her daughter was targeted with a bomb and why now. Bruce attempts to sympathize but Deb steers him in a different direction and asks him to try to charm her daughter to gain more information (haha wow Deb must have taken a few courses under Lois Lane on how to be a Pulitzer prize recipient 😂).
Bruce visits with Caroline and crafts a story about how he was passing by the courthouse when he heard the explosion. Caroline brushes it off as the whole incident being a blur and thanks him for the flowers. As Bruce is about to leave Caroline mentions a party that they both attended a year ago and how she thought he would be dreadfully dull but actually found him to be quite charming from a distance. Bruce offers to take Caroline out on a date once she is released from the hospital.
Meanwhile, in one of Batman's many caves, he spends his time analyzing the video footage of the courthouse on the date of the incident and finds that two more uniformed janitors were not on the posted schedule. Batman then goes to investigate further locating Sarah Pet who is a volunteer at the soup kitchen and an influencer. Sarah knowing her time has come, agrees to be arrested without resistance. Batman attempts to pry further but Sarah provides no further details as to why she did what she did and instead pleads to be arrested. The Riddler then appears with another one of his Gotham radio announcements posing the question "What is the call that can only be heard after the fat lady sings?"
We pivot to the grand opera house where a man has been stabbed to death at "Curtain Call". The cops are without any plausible leads as to who could have done this but Batman decides to speak with one of the officers to ask them if Sarah Pet has provided any further insight into her motive. The office retorts that she hasn't and even refused a lawyer. Batman then tells the officer that he wants to speak to Martian Ashen who's cas was the final one on the docket the day the courthouse was under attack. The officer then gets a call from dispatch about a lethal gas attack on the bank. Batman leaps into action to assess the scene of the crime and assist as many citizens as possible. His efforts are briefly interrupted when he catches the perpetrator leaving the scene in a mad dash. Batman corners him and advises the man to stand down when the instigator announces his name to be John Harper before taking a gun and ending his life.
In the cave, we see Batman figuratively beating his head against a brick wall as he tries to find some point of connection but instead, he has four criminal citizen cases that appear to have no common denominator. Suddenly Riddler appears with another query as he discusses the divinity of threes and how devils often disguise themselves as angels. We then pan over to Caroline's hospital bed where we see her answer a phone call from Dr. Chase. Caroline informs the doctor to never call her again that she has done everything the doctor asked and how Dr. Chase promised that no one would be hurt. We are then left with that same chilling statement from Riddler "When's a Murderer not a Murderer? The bodies are piling up, Batman."
In the next scene, we see Caroline & Bruce out at a nice lower-end restaurant engaging in a social call as they share a glass of wine together. Like all good dates the conversation begins with Caroline complaining about her mother and how she is a meddler before realizing she is being completely rude (lol Its ok Caroline, Bruce basically wrote the book on that topic completed with a traumatic childhood series from the Bat-kids 😂). The conversation then pivots to the topic of dreamers as Caroline admits that she once thought she could do a lot of good in Gotham before having her dreams crushed by the city showing its ugly colors. Bruce tries to lighten the mood by reminding her that the job must have some rewarding elements when you know you've removed the right convict from the streets. It's honestly a rather touching moment even though we receive no plausible leads. Bruce returns Caroline home for the evening before making a dash for the cave to catch Riddles' next thrilling radio announcement. Edward poses the question "If Justice is blindfolded then who tied the knots".
Batman evaluates the cases and reveals that John Harper was innocent as his gas in bank attack turned out to be nnon-lethalbut would rather die than be caught while Sarah Pet pleads guilty to all charges and refuses to seek to legal Counsel....hm, those scales certainly seem slanted to say the least. Batman keeps circling back to Caroline as he seeks to discover why she is at the center of it all. He is interrupted by Batwoman who informs him that Deb Donovan has alerted an SOS at the Gotham Gazette. Batman leaps into action to investigate and is nearly clubbed by a startled Donovan who then begins sharing what she's learned about the victims/Citizen Criminals. Deb shares that her research uncovered that John Harper was once involved in an accident that took the life of a five-year-old kid when he was 15 and that his parents obtained the best lawyers who managed to alter the sentencing to direct the attention back to the child's parents who were both recovering drug addicts. Batman offers to escort Deb Donovan out of the Gotham Gazette and into her car but she refuses and instead demands that Batman find the common connection between these cases.
Batman does a quick forensic scan of the room and finds a brown hair sample along with a banged-in door. Upon further investigate the hair sample matches a Darby Turner as Batman continues to ask the plaguing question "Why the Donovans?". We then catch a quick glimpse of Caroline who is returning from a grocery run when she finds a mysterious but familiar question mark on the door giving her quite a shock.
Meanwhile, Batman seeks answers with someone who knows more than she alludes to as he pays Talia Al Ghul a visit. He asks Talia about Darby Turner and the last time she saw her whereabouts to which Talia replies that it has been some time but the last she knew Darby was involved in a money laundering scam. Batman accuses her of being coy and that she knows far more than she is leading on to which Talia advises Batman to be careful and that this case is not personal rather Edward just wants to 'play'.
In the following scene, we see Deb meeting up with Darby about the Criminal Citizen cases claiming she has more insight before the two enter the Gazette. We then cut to see Darby holding Deb at gunpoint on the roof. Deb pleads asking Darby what she wants to which she retorts that she wants every judge, cop, & lawyer to come clean. Batman then appears on the roof and tells Darby that there is a better solution while offering his help. Darby takes aim and ask "When is a Murderer not a Murderer?" but Batman strikes her arm and the gun falls to the floor when a man named Green runs to Darby begging her to stop. Green puts himself between Darby & Batman as he yells that they will tell him everything. Darby grips her love tighter with tears in her eyes knowing what will happen if they do to which Green replies that he received another envelope today and that the blackmail will only continue if they don't seek help. Darby stands near the edge and says "It's a beautiful city" before jumping off the roof but Batman swoops in to save her and the woman falls unconscious but is unscathed. Upon confirming that Darby is alive Green then yells that the envelopes tell him what to do but he is fatally shot and the perpetrator holding the gun is none other than....Caroline.
The plot thickens as we pivot to see Riddler & Talia confront one another with confessions of deeper ties to Shadow Wars. Talia admits that she gave Riddler the perfect bait via Deb Donovan and asks what his endgame is to which Riddler retorts why does the game have to have an end before inviting her to witness his next radio announcement. Talia refuses and it is on with the show. Riddler then goes on about how we all try to keep our glass houses in order and maintain the facade but how if someone knew the inspector was near that it would change our motives and what lengths we would go to keep him out.
We return to the roof of the Gazette with Caroline poised with her gun in hand and shows Batman the envelope claiming that she is too far gone. Batman asks her what did she do and we transported to Caroline's memory in Arkham Tower.
In Arkham Tower we see Dr. Chase host her very first meeting with the monsters of Gotham. She claims that all her patients have lost faith in redemption, that they have all commited unthinkable acts of injustice, and how they have all isolated themselves. A woman breaks down crying claiming that she knew her brother Dr. Wear was damaging and evening killing his patients but that she never called them in and the rest follow suit. John Harper admits to the accidental murder, Darby Turner to her money laundering scheme to take pensions from from the seniors, Green admits to selling expired meds to a pharmacist and how two patients were brain dead, and another man admits to catfishing men by pretending to be a woman to black mail his victims.
Deb pleads to he daughter asking her why she killed Green to which she retorts that it was the right thing to do before disappearing in a sea of smoke. Batman then finds the discarded evenlope and tracks down Riddler. Batman bursts into Riddler's hideout to confront the man of the hour about what he has done to Caroline. The peices finally fall into place as Batman determines that Caroline threw out a case from the DA and that the client was Dr. Chase. Dr. Chase & the DA Martin Ashen also helped to cover Dr. Wear who's sister is Sarah Pet revealing Dr. Chase to be at the center of it all.
Riddler takes a beating from Batman when the phone suddenly rings. Riddler asks & anwsers his two loftly questions "When is a Murderer not a Murderer?" - When you look the other way. "When is a hero not a hero?"- When they unmasks.
Batman asks the Riddler if he wants to unmask him to which Riddler retorts that he wants Batman to unmask himself. Batman picks up the phone to hear Caroline. We are then transported to docks where we see two scales on Lady Justice each holding a person, Dr. Chase & Caroline. Batman invited Batgirl to assist him in this rescue mission but there preparation time is cut short as the scales become unhinged. Batgirl takes the left saving Dr. Chase while Batman takes the right. He grabs Caroline but his teather becomes weakened. Caroline confessed to taking money from the DA & Dr. Chase to clear Dr. wear's name at first and how this became a repetitive cycle. Caroline admits that at first she needed the money but after a while the lines blurred and as asked herself how could she be on side of the heroes when she doing such heinous acts by looking the other way. Caroline claims that she doesn't know how the Riddler located her but that is glad he did amd that she is finally at piece as she flings herself into the harbor.
We then reach the aftermath of this whole ordeal and Batman speaks with Commissioner Renee Montoya who claims that the Riddler has no evidentiary connection to these crimes and that all of the citizens were criminals who were never caught. A distraught Deb sits there hopping for the body of her daughter to appear but it never does. Batman goes to console her but Dab takes another hit of the bottle claiming the whole thing is a tragedy in how she misses the little girl she raised but in an ironic way, hopes to never see the monster she became.
We end our scene in the cave where Batman holds up a picture of Caroline as he contemplates how she could be become one of the villians when she wanted to incarcerated the trouble in this city. Talia then arrives in the cave claiming that she didn't do any of this for a message and rather she pointed Edward in the direction of Deb Donovan then found Caroline on his own. Batman recounts that it was her men outside of the restaurant and how she was tracking him to which Talia retorts that she was concerned for Bruce and how his type always seems to be troubled girls disguising themselves as fallen angels.
We draw our attention to our second plot which centers around Gotham Girl as she attempts to acclimate herself to sane society after doing a stint in Arkham Tower. Everything doesn't go as expected when she locates a Gotham Girls Gossip channel online that spreads false information. Things take a greater turn for the worst when she discovers that her friend and fellow rehabilitated Arkham patient Andre was the one behind the Gossip channel then commits suicide to cover it up or did he? After further investigation all signs point to hidden files on covert projects to damage the mental ill patients of Arkham and use them as lab rats with Dr. Chase once more at the center. Gotham Girl infiltrates Arkham Tower but is interrupted by Huntress who gives her a lofty dosage of a tranquilizer but it doesn't put her to rest. Dr. Chase is mortified after learning about Andre's secret files and confronts Dr. Margot who claims that she was doing them a favor and that they will both go down together. A secret recording is enough evidence to put Dr. Margot in prison and Dr. Chase makes plans to destroy the hidden files/facility. Our plot ends with Huntress sharing a heart to heart with Gotham Girl reminding her that there is good in the world and that connections are worth cherishing with others. Our story comes to a close with Talia Al Ghul who claims that the best is yet to come.
End Scene!! Wow, both of these arcs were more than satisfactory and involved many twists and turns. I will say that I was more partial to the metaphor presented in the Riddler's arc that humanity is capable of committing great atrocities if given enough resouces/power or none should remain silent when they have the moral obligation to rise above. It's kinda odd to see Edward Nigma have the Moral high ground in this arc but it is so expertly executed that it works in his favor. The second arc provided more depth to Dr. Chase, although, she remains ever elusive and her motives are yet to be revealed. I also appreciated the appearance of Talia Al Ghul and can't wait to see how this all unfolds. 9.5/10 🌟 For a solid plot and excellent mystery.
Our adventure begins with a good morning radio announcement hosted by the Riddler, who poses a series of questions, but the most potent is, "When is a murder not a murder?"
We then pivot our attention to the courthouse where the honorable Judge Caroline Donovan is presiding. We witness the ruling on her final case for the day before Caroline retires to her chambers. Upon taking a moment to enjoy a cup of coffee, she notices a blinking light attached to a bomb in the trash can and swiftly alerts everyone to clear the area.
Batman arrives on the scene and begins analyzing the device which appears to be inert that is until he locates a second transmitter. Batman discards the device in his cape out the window in the nick of time and the bomb explodes. Caroline then agrees to go to the hospital after enduring some injuries and her mother Deb Donovan receives a call prompting her to immediately visit her daughter. In the hospital, Deb is concerned about the targeted attempt on her daughter's life and urges Caroline to get a bodyguard. Caroline brushes it off as nothing and tells her mom to go home and to leave the criminal investigation to the detectives. Deb believes that there is more to this case than meets the eye when she bumps into Bruce Wayne who thoughtfully decided to bring Caroline flowers. Deb frantically questions why her daughter was targeted with a bomb and why now. Bruce attempts to sympathize but Deb steers him in a different direction and asks him to try to charm her daughter to gain more information (haha wow Deb must have taken a few courses under Lois Lane on how to be a Pulitzer prize recipient 😂).
Bruce visits with Caroline and crafts a story about how he was passing by the courthouse when he heard the explosion. Caroline brushes it off as the whole incident being a blur and thanks him for the flowers. As Bruce is about to leave Caroline mentions a party that they both attended a year ago and how she thought he would be dreadfully dull but actually found him to be quite charming from a distance. Bruce offers to take Caroline out on a date once she is released from the hospital.
Meanwhile, in one of Batman's many caves, he spends his time analyzing the video footage of the courthouse on the date of the incident and finds that two more uniformed janitors were not on the posted schedule. Batman then goes to investigate further locating Sarah Pet who is a volunteer at the soup kitchen and an influencer. Sarah knowing her time has come, agrees to be arrested without resistance. Batman attempts to pry further but Sarah provides no further details as to why she did what she did and instead pleads to be arrested. The Riddler then appears with another one of his Gotham radio announcements posing the question "What is the call that can only be heard after the fat lady sings?"
We pivot to the grand opera house where a man has been stabbed to death at "Curtain Call". The cops are without any plausible leads as to who could have done this but Batman decides to speak with one of the officers to ask them if Sarah Pet has provided any further insight into her motive. The office retorts that she hasn't and even refused a lawyer. Batman then tells the officer that he wants to speak to Martian Ashen who's cas was the final one on the docket the day the courthouse was under attack. The officer then gets a call from dispatch about a lethal gas attack on the bank. Batman leaps into action to assess the scene of the crime and assist as many citizens as possible. His efforts are briefly interrupted when he catches the perpetrator leaving the scene in a mad dash. Batman corners him and advises the man to stand down when the instigator announces his name to be John Harper before taking a gun and ending his life.
In the cave, we see Batman figuratively beating his head against a brick wall as he tries to find some point of connection but instead, he has four criminal citizen cases that appear to have no common denominator. Suddenly Riddler appears with another query as he discusses the divinity of threes and how devils often disguise themselves as angels. We then pan over to Caroline's hospital bed where we see her answer a phone call from Dr. Chase. Caroline informs the doctor to never call her again that she has done everything the doctor asked and how Dr. Chase promised that no one would be hurt. We are then left with that same chilling statement from Riddler "When's a Murderer not a Murderer? The bodies are piling up, Batman."
In the next scene, we see Caroline & Bruce out at a nice lower-end restaurant engaging in a social call as they share a glass of wine together. Like all good dates the conversation begins with Caroline complaining about her mother and how she is a meddler before realizing she is being completely rude (lol Its ok Caroline, Bruce basically wrote the book on that topic completed with a traumatic childhood series from the Bat-kids 😂). The conversation then pivots to the topic of dreamers as Caroline admits that she once thought she could do a lot of good in Gotham before having her dreams crushed by the city showing its ugly colors. Bruce tries to lighten the mood by reminding her that the job must have some rewarding elements when you know you've removed the right convict from the streets. It's honestly a rather touching moment even though we receive no plausible leads. Bruce returns Caroline home for the evening before making a dash for the cave to catch Riddles' next thrilling radio announcement. Edward poses the question "If Justice is blindfolded then who tied the knots".
Batman evaluates the cases and reveals that John Harper was innocent as his gas in bank attack turned out to be nnon-lethalbut would rather die than be caught while Sarah Pet pleads guilty to all charges and refuses to seek to legal Counsel....hm, those scales certainly seem slanted to say the least. Batman keeps circling back to Caroline as he seeks to discover why she is at the center of it all. He is interrupted by Batwoman who informs him that Deb Donovan has alerted an SOS at the Gotham Gazette. Batman leaps into action to investigate and is nearly clubbed by a startled Donovan who then begins sharing what she's learned about the victims/Citizen Criminals. Deb shares that her research uncovered that John Harper was once involved in an accident that took the life of a five-year-old kid when he was 15 and that his parents obtained the best lawyers who managed to alter the sentencing to direct the attention back to the child's parents who were both recovering drug addicts. Batman offers to escort Deb Donovan out of the Gotham Gazette and into her car but she refuses and instead demands that Batman find the common connection between these cases.
Batman does a quick forensic scan of the room and finds a brown hair sample along with a banged-in door. Upon further investigate the hair sample matches a Darby Turner as Batman continues to ask the plaguing question "Why the Donovans?". We then catch a quick glimpse of Caroline who is returning from a grocery run when she finds a mysterious but familiar question mark on the door giving her quite a shock.
Meanwhile, Batman seeks answers with someone who knows more than she alludes to as he pays Talia Al Ghul a visit. He asks Talia about Darby Turner and the last time she saw her whereabouts to which Talia replies that it has been some time but the last she knew Darby was involved in a money laundering scam. Batman accuses her of being coy and that she knows far more than she is leading on to which Talia advises Batman to be careful and that this case is not personal rather Edward just wants to 'play'.
In the following scene, we see Deb meeting up with Darby about the Criminal Citizen cases claiming she has more insight before the two enter the Gazette. We then cut to see Darby holding Deb at gunpoint on the roof. Deb pleads asking Darby what she wants to which she retorts that she wants every judge, cop, & lawyer to come clean. Batman then appears on the roof and tells Darby that there is a better solution while offering his help. Darby takes aim and ask "When is a Murderer not a Murderer?" but Batman strikes her arm and the gun falls to the floor when a man named Green runs to Darby begging her to stop. Green puts himself between Darby & Batman as he yells that they will tell him everything. Darby grips her love tighter with tears in her eyes knowing what will happen if they do to which Green replies that he received another envelope today and that the blackmail will only continue if they don't seek help. Darby stands near the edge and says "It's a beautiful city" before jumping off the roof but Batman swoops in to save her and the woman falls unconscious but is unscathed. Upon confirming that Darby is alive Green then yells that the envelopes tell him what to do but he is fatally shot and the perpetrator holding the gun is none other than....Caroline.
The plot thickens as we pivot to see Riddler & Talia confront one another with confessions of deeper ties to Shadow Wars. Talia admits that she gave Riddler the perfect bait via Deb Donovan and asks what his endgame is to which Riddler retorts why does the game have to have an end before inviting her to witness his next radio announcement. Talia refuses and it is on with the show. Riddler then goes on about how we all try to keep our glass houses in order and maintain the facade but how if someone knew the inspector was near that it would change our motives and what lengths we would go to keep him out.
We return to the roof of the Gazette with Caroline poised with her gun in hand and shows Batman the envelope claiming that she is too far gone. Batman asks her what did she do and we transported to Caroline's memory in Arkham Tower.
In Arkham Tower we see Dr. Chase host her very first meeting with the monsters of Gotham. She claims that all her patients have lost faith in redemption, that they have all commited unthinkable acts of injustice, and how they have all isolated themselves. A woman breaks down crying claiming that she knew her brother Dr. Wear was damaging and evening killing his patients but that she never called them in and the rest follow suit. John Harper admits to the accidental murder, Darby Turner to her money laundering scheme to take pensions from from the seniors, Green admits to selling expired meds to a pharmacist and how two patients were brain dead, and another man admits to catfishing men by pretending to be a woman to black mail his victims.
Deb pleads to he daughter asking her why she killed Green to which she retorts that it was the right thing to do before disappearing in a sea of smoke. Batman then finds the discarded evenlope and tracks down Riddler. Batman bursts into Riddler's hideout to confront the man of the hour about what he has done to Caroline. The peices finally fall into place as Batman determines that Caroline threw out a case from the DA and that the client was Dr. Chase. Dr. Chase & the DA Martin Ashen also helped to cover Dr. Wear who's sister is Sarah Pet revealing Dr. Chase to be at the center of it all.
Riddler takes a beating from Batman when the phone suddenly rings. Riddler asks & anwsers his two loftly questions "When is a Murderer not a Murderer?" - When you look the other way. "When is a hero not a hero?"- When they unmasks.
Batman asks the Riddler if he wants to unmask him to which Riddler retorts that he wants Batman to unmask himself. Batman picks up the phone to hear Caroline. We are then transported to docks where we see two scales on Lady Justice each holding a person, Dr. Chase & Caroline. Batman invited Batgirl to assist him in this rescue mission but there preparation time is cut short as the scales become unhinged. Batgirl takes the left saving Dr. Chase while Batman takes the right. He grabs Caroline but his teather becomes weakened. Caroline confessed to taking money from the DA & Dr. Chase to clear Dr. wear's name at first and how this became a repetitive cycle. Caroline admits that at first she needed the money but after a while the lines blurred and as asked herself how could she be on side of the heroes when she doing such heinous acts by looking the other way. Caroline claims that she doesn't know how the Riddler located her but that is glad he did amd that she is finally at piece as she flings herself into the harbor.
We then reach the aftermath of this whole ordeal and Batman speaks with Commissioner Renee Montoya who claims that the Riddler has no evidentiary connection to these crimes and that all of the citizens were criminals who were never caught. A distraught Deb sits there hopping for the body of her daughter to appear but it never does. Batman goes to console her but Dab takes another hit of the bottle claiming the whole thing is a tragedy in how she misses the little girl she raised but in an ironic way, hopes to never see the monster she became.
We end our scene in the cave where Batman holds up a picture of Caroline as he contemplates how she could be become one of the villians when she wanted to incarcerated the trouble in this city. Talia then arrives in the cave claiming that she didn't do any of this for a message and rather she pointed Edward in the direction of Deb Donovan then found Caroline on his own. Batman recounts that it was her men outside of the restaurant and how she was tracking him to which Talia retorts that she was concerned for Bruce and how his type always seems to be troubled girls disguising themselves as fallen angels.
We draw our attention to our second plot which centers around Gotham Girl as she attempts to acclimate herself to sane society after doing a stint in Arkham Tower. Everything doesn't go as expected when she locates a Gotham Girls Gossip channel online that spreads false information. Things take a greater turn for the worst when she discovers that her friend and fellow rehabilitated Arkham patient Andre was the one behind the Gossip channel then commits suicide to cover it up or did he? After further investigation all signs point to hidden files on covert projects to damage the mental ill patients of Arkham and use them as lab rats with Dr. Chase once more at the center. Gotham Girl infiltrates Arkham Tower but is interrupted by Huntress who gives her a lofty dosage of a tranquilizer but it doesn't put her to rest. Dr. Chase is mortified after learning about Andre's secret files and confronts Dr. Margot who claims that she was doing them a favor and that they will both go down together. A secret recording is enough evidence to put Dr. Margot in prison and Dr. Chase makes plans to destroy the hidden files/facility. Our plot ends with Huntress sharing a heart to heart with Gotham Girl reminding her that there is good in the world and that connections are worth cherishing with others. Our story comes to a close with Talia Al Ghul who claims that the best is yet to come.
End Scene!! Wow, both of these arcs were more than satisfactory and involved many twists and turns. I will say that I was more partial to the metaphor presented in the Riddler's arc that humanity is capable of committing great atrocities if given enough resouces/power or none should remain silent when they have the moral obligation to rise above. It's kinda odd to see Edward Nigma have the Moral high ground in this arc but it is so expertly executed that it works in his favor. The second arc provided more depth to Dr. Chase, although, she remains ever elusive and her motives are yet to be revealed. I also appreciated the appearance of Talia Al Ghul and can't wait to see how this all unfolds. 9.5/10 🌟 For a solid plot and excellent mystery.
May 12, 2024
Seemingly random, innocent individuals are suddenly committing major crimes, and either killing themselves or refusing to explain their motives. How does it tie to the Riddler's new podcast? In the backup story, Gotham Girl looks for who killed her friend, and why they may be attempting to frame her.
Boy that second sentence there feels a bit out of place, doesn't it? It kind of feels that way in the story too. I think there's promise in the ideas represented here, in both stories, but the way they come together isn't particularly satisfying. It's possible that in the wider series these issues are building towards something, but there's not really a sense of that here. And I'll put the blame for that more at the feet of DC's publisher than the creative teams here. Technically, with the backup strip, the length of this volume is around 5 20 paged issues, but the result is that we only get three chapters of each story, and that leaves both feeling somewhat incomplete.
The eventual resolution here is that all the people involved here did something immoral, or supported someone doing something immoral, and got away with it. Dr. Chase Meridian put them all in a support group (and tricked them into attending the first meeting); the Riddler found out about it somehow, and convinced them to commit greater crimes, aimed vaguely at exposing corruption. And that's the twist: they aren't blackmailed into doing it, but do it willingly, in part under this idea of exposing greater evils, but really because their guilt is eating them up, and doing something unambigously criminal makes them commit to a side, and they feel better. It's an interesting take on villainry, but ultimately a fairly unsatisfying story. The Riddler has no real goal here; as he himself admits, he's just playing around. Batman has no effect on the story, pretty much--most of the (victims? villains?) wind up killing themselves or turning themselves in, and that would have happened either way. He cuts down on some fatalities, but it's hard for that to have any meaning, since they're just randos anyway. There's something here about the concept of what makes a villain and Riddler's means of communicating all of this through a popular pirate podcast has a sliver of interesting story too, but the whole of it just doesn't mesh.
The second story works better, though it could really use a quick recap on who Gotham Girl is. Again, she's a strong concept (though admittedly, that concept was largely established elsewhere): a Superman-like character who's thrust into a Batman-like environment, complete with her own trauma-related baggage. In this particular story, the idea is that a fan has created a website for her and used it to expose villains; the villains then go after her, not realizing she's unaffiliated. She tracks down the site-maker, only to find them dead, and goes after Chase Meridian, whom she believes was the killer. Huntress tries to stop her, and they team up to take down the real perpetrator, a woman working with Chase. Gotham Girl's narrative captions drive the story, and she feels like an actual participant, which is more than I can say for the Batman portion. But the villain is so roughly sketched that it feels unsatisfying.
There are a few ties between the stories: trauma and coping with it in unhealthy ways, Dr. Chase Meridian is both, and Talia Al Ghul shows up in both. The first element is fine--good, in fact, in a Batman setting, though not given space to develop. The second part is not good--Chase Meridian comes off as irresponsible in both stories, for tricking her patients into a group meeting, and for letting their information get out, and for a colleague operating a massive operation and secret lab under her nose. And the third part is not good. Honestly, I've never really got Talia as a character; I get her as a reluctant underling of her father, and I get her as a rebelling force against her father. But outside of Ra's Al Ghul, I don't know what her interests or motivations are, and neither of these stories really offer anything. So two of the three connecting elements here are actually detracting elements for me.
Also, I really hate the Riddler's hipster beard and mustache, especially the curled mustache. I think it's entirely in character for him, but I hate them.
To sum up: this review is basically the GoodReads equivalent of the bad food joke: This tastes terrible, and the portions are too small! Promising idea, but a fairly unsatisfying execution. But it's entirely possible that Tamaki's work on the title at large is much better, and I look forward to seeing that.
Boy that second sentence there feels a bit out of place, doesn't it? It kind of feels that way in the story too. I think there's promise in the ideas represented here, in both stories, but the way they come together isn't particularly satisfying. It's possible that in the wider series these issues are building towards something, but there's not really a sense of that here. And I'll put the blame for that more at the feet of DC's publisher than the creative teams here. Technically, with the backup strip, the length of this volume is around 5 20 paged issues, but the result is that we only get three chapters of each story, and that leaves both feeling somewhat incomplete.
The eventual resolution here is that all the people involved here did something immoral, or supported someone doing something immoral, and got away with it. Dr. Chase Meridian put them all in a support group (and tricked them into attending the first meeting); the Riddler found out about it somehow, and convinced them to commit greater crimes, aimed vaguely at exposing corruption. And that's the twist: they aren't blackmailed into doing it, but do it willingly, in part under this idea of exposing greater evils, but really because their guilt is eating them up, and doing something unambigously criminal makes them commit to a side, and they feel better. It's an interesting take on villainry, but ultimately a fairly unsatisfying story. The Riddler has no real goal here; as he himself admits, he's just playing around. Batman has no effect on the story, pretty much--most of the (victims? villains?) wind up killing themselves or turning themselves in, and that would have happened either way. He cuts down on some fatalities, but it's hard for that to have any meaning, since they're just randos anyway. There's something here about the concept of what makes a villain and Riddler's means of communicating all of this through a popular pirate podcast has a sliver of interesting story too, but the whole of it just doesn't mesh.
The second story works better, though it could really use a quick recap on who Gotham Girl is. Again, she's a strong concept (though admittedly, that concept was largely established elsewhere): a Superman-like character who's thrust into a Batman-like environment, complete with her own trauma-related baggage. In this particular story, the idea is that a fan has created a website for her and used it to expose villains; the villains then go after her, not realizing she's unaffiliated. She tracks down the site-maker, only to find them dead, and goes after Chase Meridian, whom she believes was the killer. Huntress tries to stop her, and they team up to take down the real perpetrator, a woman working with Chase. Gotham Girl's narrative captions drive the story, and she feels like an actual participant, which is more than I can say for the Batman portion. But the villain is so roughly sketched that it feels unsatisfying.
There are a few ties between the stories: trauma and coping with it in unhealthy ways, Dr. Chase Meridian is both, and Talia Al Ghul shows up in both. The first element is fine--good, in fact, in a Batman setting, though not given space to develop. The second part is not good--Chase Meridian comes off as irresponsible in both stories, for tricking her patients into a group meeting, and for letting their information get out, and for a colleague operating a massive operation and secret lab under her nose. And the third part is not good. Honestly, I've never really got Talia as a character; I get her as a reluctant underling of her father, and I get her as a rebelling force against her father. But outside of Ra's Al Ghul, I don't know what her interests or motivations are, and neither of these stories really offer anything. So two of the three connecting elements here are actually detracting elements for me.
Also, I really hate the Riddler's hipster beard and mustache, especially the curled mustache. I think it's entirely in character for him, but I hate them.
To sum up: this review is basically the GoodReads equivalent of the bad food joke: This tastes terrible, and the portions are too small! Promising idea, but a fairly unsatisfying execution. But it's entirely possible that Tamaki's work on the title at large is much better, and I look forward to seeing that.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 11, 2023
Mariko Tamaki se redime en algo en este volumen, mucho más pulido que sus anteriores arcos en "Detective Comics", que si bien no ha carecido de buenas ideas (el nuevo alcalde, y, sobre todo, Donovan, la periodista), por diversos motivos estas no siempre han logrado cuajar. En tres números Tamaki (ayudada por Nadie Shammas) y el siempre infalible Ivan Reis cuentan la historia titulada "The Seven", en la que aparecen el Acertijo (con una coqueta barba), Donovan, y un cameo de Thalia Al Ghul. Es una auténtica historia de detectives, el género -y es casi ridículo recordarlo- que mejor le queda al murciélago. La premisa es la siguiente: una series de personas sin antecedentes y sin motivo aparente, llevan a cabo una serie de crímenes mientras el Acertijo (recién salido de Arkham), conduce un particular Podcast enloquecido, pero en apariencia inofensivo. Siempre es saludable ver a Batman esforzarse por resolver un caso, en lugar de tenerlo todo resulto de antemano, como algunos autores prefieren. A medida que los crímenes aumentan, vemos a un Batman desesperado, pero que, ayudado por Oráculo, y con Batgirl (Cassandra Cain) como invitada, logra llegar a buen puerto. Por supuesto, el Acertijo estaba involucrado. Lo remarcable es cómo Tamaki y Shammas manejan el ritmo, los diálogos, y mantienen el tono de un Batman humanizado que, recordemos, desde la muerte de Alfred, ya no vive en la mansión y, para peor, ya no es millonario. Ivan Reis está perfecto, como siempre, enfatizando las sombras y las expresiones faciales.
Como extra viene una historia protagonizada por Gotham Girl, aquella creación de Tom King de hace un lustro. Es una sorpresa agradable verla reaparecer. La historia la escribe Sina Grace, quien ahonda en la inestabilidad mental de Gotham Girl (creo que DC podría sacarle más partido) y se las arregla para contar una historia, también de detectives, que se cruza con el universo que ha creado Tamaki, pero sin estorbarla. El dibujo está a cargo de la leyenda David Lapham. Buen tomo.
Como extra viene una historia protagonizada por Gotham Girl, aquella creación de Tom King de hace un lustro. Es una sorpresa agradable verla reaparecer. La historia la escribe Sina Grace, quien ahonda en la inestabilidad mental de Gotham Girl (creo que DC podría sacarle más partido) y se las arregla para contar una historia, también de detectives, que se cruza con el universo que ha creado Tamaki, pero sin estorbarla. El dibujo está a cargo de la leyenda David Lapham. Buen tomo.
July 12, 2025
After two unnumbered volumes, we're back with Volume 4, collecting Detective Comics #1059-1061. It's Mariko Tamaki's final, brief arc on the title. In the lead story, we have The Riddler making obscure rants over pirate social media while a string of seemingly unrelated crimes are committed by people who have no criminal records or apparent reasons for the crimes. Batman does some actual detective work to piece things together, even though the clues are almost incomprehensibly convoluted and the solution revolves around some unimaginable coincidences. The Riddler has been everything from comic relief to brutal mastermind in past appearances, but here he is just kind of a dull MacGuffin. The artwork by Ivan Reis and Danny Miki is good, but maybe not quite up to their usual standards.
The back-up story by Sina Grace with art by David Lapham focuses on Gotham Girl, introduced in 2016 during Tom King's run on Batman. She is a metahuman with powers that rival Superman's, but is a confused teenager who just wants to fit in at her high school. When a social media site using her name starts revealing secrets of Gotham's powerful, she must make some hard decisions in her quest to find the real propagator. This story is clearly aimed at a Gen Z audience, but there is some good content relating to mental health that we can all appreciate.
The back-up story by Sina Grace with art by David Lapham focuses on Gotham Girl, introduced in 2016 during Tom King's run on Batman. She is a metahuman with powers that rival Superman's, but is a confused teenager who just wants to fit in at her high school. When a social media site using her name starts revealing secrets of Gotham's powerful, she must make some hard decisions in her quest to find the real propagator. This story is clearly aimed at a Gen Z audience, but there is some good content relating to mental health that we can all appreciate.
March 31, 2023
Mariko Tamaki brings her Detective Comics run to a close with these final three issues featuring a Batman/Riddler mystery.
This is decent, but kind of unremarkable. After the excellence of The Tower, I feel like Tamaki should have gone out on a high rather than this little limp to the finish line. The story's okay, the Riddler's plot makes about as much sense as it ever does, and the artwork's lovely because it's Ivan Reis, but...yeah. Nothing much else to say really, which is a shame.
Presumably the back-ups are also included here since Sina Grace and David Lapham's names are mentioned, so we get a reappearance of Gotham Girl, which again, is fine. I appreciate the attempt at telling a story from a mentally ill character's perspective, but it feels a bit flat, not least of which because Lapham's art really doesn't suit superheroes in my opinion.
Not bad, but eminently skippable on all fronts. A shame, given how strong the rest of Tamaki's run was.
This is decent, but kind of unremarkable. After the excellence of The Tower, I feel like Tamaki should have gone out on a high rather than this little limp to the finish line. The story's okay, the Riddler's plot makes about as much sense as it ever does, and the artwork's lovely because it's Ivan Reis, but...yeah. Nothing much else to say really, which is a shame.
Presumably the back-ups are also included here since Sina Grace and David Lapham's names are mentioned, so we get a reappearance of Gotham Girl, which again, is fine. I appreciate the attempt at telling a story from a mentally ill character's perspective, but it feels a bit flat, not least of which because Lapham's art really doesn't suit superheroes in my opinion.
Not bad, but eminently skippable on all fronts. A shame, given how strong the rest of Tamaki's run was.
October 1, 2023
Tamaki’s Detective Comics run ends with a final trio of unremarkable and lifeless issues, grasping to touch on some big social justice ideas, but ending up a rushed incoherent mess with none of the broader messaging that’s intended amounting to much either. Despite intriguing intents hinted at in the first volume, and introducing promising new characters like Dev Donovan, this whole run’s plotting has felt erratic and hard to follow, leaving me constantly feeling like I missed a set of issues along the way (though I don’t think I did?) I’m not sure if that’s Tamaki’s doing or steering mandates from DC editors, but either way the result has been pretty disappointing for an author who’s non-superhero books I’ve generally loved.
To pad out the short 3-issue page count, this also tacks on a Gotham Girl story that seems to be doing a Gossip Girl homage, though that’s just a guess from context clues. I wasn’t a fan in any case, but maybe it’s more entertaining for fans of that show.
To pad out the short 3-issue page count, this also tacks on a Gotham Girl story that seems to be doing a Gossip Girl homage, though that’s just a guess from context clues. I wasn’t a fan in any case, but maybe it’s more entertaining for fans of that show.
April 29, 2023
Unsurprisingly, Tamaki finishes her Detective run off with a whimper. Riddler is some kind of DJ now and is somehow supposed to be involved in making this group in therapy commit crimes. It's way too convoluted for a 3 issue story. I always hear buzz about Tamaki but she consistently fails to deliver on any of it.
The backup story about Gotham Girl isn't any better. Her whole thing seems to just be that she's crazy Supergirl. What is more crazy here is that the editors thought this story made any sense. I guess this is what happens when deadlines need to be met.
Hopefully Ram V.'s run will be much better and have more of a direction and less of a shattershot approach to storytelling.
The backup story about Gotham Girl isn't any better. Her whole thing seems to just be that she's crazy Supergirl. What is more crazy here is that the editors thought this story made any sense. I guess this is what happens when deadlines need to be met.
Hopefully Ram V.'s run will be much better and have more of a direction and less of a shattershot approach to storytelling.
September 23, 2023
After a strong start, largely from the winning combination of Tamaki's writing with Don Mora's art, this run of Detective Comics fizzles in the final collection. Part of this is due to the lackluster Riddler story in the main story that feels like an underthought episode of Law & Order and lacks Mora's skill in making it readable, but most of it is due to the back half of the collection, a murky story by Sina Grace about one of the duller new characters, Gotham Girl. By the end, I think I understood the plot, but I could not say that for the first two thirds, and not in "what a fun mystery, I'm here for the ride" way so much as a "that caption doesn't even make sense with that picture" way. Maybe we are better off pretending the Tamaki run ended with the fall of the Arkham Tower.
July 1, 2024
The Riddler is back with a terrible Van Dyke beard and a podcast. Seemingly typical Gotham citizens are committing terrible crimes, baffling Batman. Somehow it ties into Deborah Donvoan's daughter and Dr. Chase Meridian, and Talia al Ghul shows up as well. An interesting story at least until the reveal of what's going on, which was less interesting than the actual mystery, and Riddler's riddles are pretty lame. Following the conclusion is a two-parter bringing Gotham Girl up to date, though the story was blah and the artwork subpar. It slightly ties into parts of the Batman story, but otherwise is pretty missable.
December 10, 2024
The Riddler is written well, and that almost tricked me to add another star. But everything else is convoluted. For example.
The judge hears a case where she sentences her brother to 25 years of jail. This is supposed to be a plot twist because the reader doesn’t realize it at the time. It’s further implied that the judge has previously been lenient when sentencing her brother in the past. I don’t care how corrupt Gotham is, not a chance that case is assigned to her.
One character kills someone on the street with plenty of witnesses, to save her reputation. That’s right. She kills someone to prevent him from talking….with dozens of witnesses around.
The judge hears a case where she sentences her brother to 25 years of jail. This is supposed to be a plot twist because the reader doesn’t realize it at the time. It’s further implied that the judge has previously been lenient when sentencing her brother in the past. I don’t care how corrupt Gotham is, not a chance that case is assigned to her.
One character kills someone on the street with plenty of witnesses, to save her reputation. That’s right. She kills someone to prevent him from talking….with dozens of witnesses around.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 28, 2024
As I ride my BMX through the air.
As I pedal faster than the speed of light I feel my BMX lift further and further into air and I feel myself riding over clouds, I slow my speed and slowly drift back to the ground where I land gently and pull a wheelie for good measure, then it's the to pull out my Barman comic and read equally exciting stories as it is riding my BMX. Read this series and get a BMX too!
As I pedal faster than the speed of light I feel my BMX lift further and further into air and I feel myself riding over clouds, I slow my speed and slowly drift back to the ground where I land gently and pull a wheelie for good measure, then it's the to pull out my Barman comic and read equally exciting stories as it is riding my BMX. Read this series and get a BMX too!
June 15, 2025
Seeing the cover of a my-app-ic crowd of people sucked into their phones around the Caped Crusader, I wondered what this had to do with the Riddler. Those first three issues in this collection were excellent (story, art, pacing); the last two about Gotham Girl (who is, to be honest, a character I knew nothing about) were worthy of being sent to Arkham for treatment; 4 stars for issues 1059-61; + 2 for the GG issues somehow = 3 overall.
November 15, 2025
Rushed arc, I feel like Tamaki would’ve done something better if she had more time but at a good pace and not the weekly format of Shadows of the Bat. But it still was a decent return of The Riddler, making him kind of the puppeteer but with the well-played innocence card, a good plan at the end. The art was very good overall, just did not like Nygma’s new design.
April 26, 2023
I've been pretty disappointed with Tamaki's run but this was solid. I think Tamaki had a lot of cool ideas about taking Bruce down a few pegs, I just don't think the stories were there. Take out the few bug monster things and add in the Riddler, and you have an easy win.
May 7, 2023
It was fine. I saw what they were trying to do, but it didn't grab me. I don't know if it was the pacing or how convoluted the story became, but it didn't grab my attention very well. By the end, I was too confused and not invested. The artwork, however, was fantastic!
May 7, 2024
Usually I love the Riddler, but this seemed like him doing that Black Mirror episode where he gets randos to do INSANE things just so he won't post of video of them jacking it to porn or something. Anyway, sorry for the crude review.
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