Batman #34 Review

By John McCubbin on Friday, August 15th, 2014

What will Batman get up to now that Zero Year is over? Read on to find out.

The official description from DC Comics:

ZERO YEAR is over, and the events of BATMAN: ETERNAL have put Gotham City in a tailspin, but Batman is focused on finding a killer who has haunted his hometown in secret for years. This special issue features art by Matteo Scalera (DEADPOOL, Black Science) and sets the stage for the next major Batman story in the fall.

Zero Year has finally finished, and in usual Batman fashion we get a nice one-shot filler between storylines. In this tale which is titled The Meek, we see Batman investigate a string of murders, with all of the victims being patients of Dr. Leslie Thompkins. Taking a more detective route this enthralling tale sees the Dark Knight scour the streets of Gotham, using all his skills to track down the murderer.

Scott Snyder takes somewhat of a back seat for this issue, only helping with the story. Joining him, and also scripting the issue is Gerry Duggan who’s been doing a fabulous job on the likes of Deadpool and Nova. Giving a thoroughly enjoyable detective tale, Duggan brings a dark and gripping approach to the Dark Knight, with his skulking skills being put to the test. Despite this I did find the case to be wrapped up rather quickly, showing the problem that one-shot tales tend to have.

Matteo Scalera stands in to handle the artwork in this issue, producing some of his best work yet. Having loved his work on the likes of Black Science and Dead Body Road, whilst finding his work on Indestructible Hulk to be a little underwhelming I was curious as to what the result would be here. And it turned out to be fabulous. The way he portrays the Caped Crusader is simply amazing, with the dark and emotionless vibe being perfectly suited for him. He also does the environment and the side characters justice as well, with the layouts also being breathtaking. Rounding things off Lee Loughridge gives dark and gritty colours that suit Scalera’s art wonderfully.

Batman produces yet another interesting filler, as though I still find most one-shot tales hard to enjoy wholeheartedly, the detective work really did appeal. Recommended.