Brief Mentions: The Fantastic and The Long Awaited

Detective Comics #853

Written By: Neil Gaiman

Art By: Andy Kubert

After the “death” of Batman at the end of Final Crisis, Detective Comics and Batman have taken an interesting turn. After a fantastic run by Paul Dini on Detective Comics the reins were handed over to Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert. This week we got the conclusion to “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?” Gaiman gives a very fantastic approach to this classic character. Such detail goes into this story from the alternating death scenes to Mad Hatter’s buttons. It was great to see the different ways that Batman died all symbolizing the man behind the mask. Instead of rehashing the same origin story that we have all read hundreds of times, Gaiman puts a new spin on this old tale at gives it a whole new look. This story is a great read for any diehard Batman fans. Not only do we get to see a slew of minor characters but also past events in Batman’s life are explored and the book really does and excellent job explaining the importance of Batman in the DC universe. Also the prose throughout the comic is a lot more poetic that most Batman comics that have been produced. Also Andy Kubert refashions Gotham adding hints of fantasy and dark romanticism, very reminiscent of Tim Burton’s Gotham. Neil Gaiman does a fantastic job and provides a new, refreshing story that has been seen in a Batman issue for quite some time.

Star Wars: Dark Times

Written By: Mick Harrison

Art By: Douglas Wheatley

A long time ago, in a comic book store a couple miles away, Dark Times #12 came out. Many months later, Dark Horse Comics proudly presents Dark Times # 13 part one of the “Blue Harvest” story arc. When I was a kid, I always thought that the time that Darth Vader was hunting Jedi would have excellent story capabilities. That time has come. The story picks up after some events that occurred in Rebellion and Dass Jennir finds himself on the planet, Telerath. With Jennir being one of the last of a dying order, the story is very rich and exciting as compared to other titles where Jedi are numerous. Harrison explores the faulty view of the sith and their complex political practices…o… and it also has fighting, gangs and Jedis. This team really offers a great experience and does a great job of keeping the Star Wars universe and colorful and diverse as it really is. The Jedi order is quickly ending and Darth Vader is rising to power, read more to see what happens next.