One of the first titles for DC's 'New 52' relaunch was Detective Comics, the line which brought Batman into the world about 70 years ago. I was hooked by the first issue, and while it wasn't perfect, it felt like an instant classic to me. The excellent artwork, the compelling storyline, and believable characters all showed me that this was a title to follow. The second issue wasn't quite as good, but was still great. Now, the much anticipated third issue has hit stores. In this issue, Batman learns about how the Dollmaker uses various pieces of flesh from people he murders to....well, make dolls. As usual, there's some major spoilers in the following, so skip to the final paragraphs if you don't want to be spoiled before reading the issue.
Detective Comics #3 (2011)
Rating:
Written By:
Tony S. Daniel
Art/Cover By:
Tony S. Daniel
Ryan Winn
Synopsis:
He makes dolls out of his victims – and he’s tired of being referred to in the media as the Gotham Strangler. His moniker is the Dollmaker, and he and his insane family are going to hunt down Gotham City’s public figures and turn them into the ultimate collectables. As the Dollmaker ups the stakes, Batman finds himself in a race against time – because one of his allies is the Dollmaker’s next target!
As I said before, I fell instantly in love with the relaunched
Detective Comics line when it began a couple months ago. One of my biggest questions about the line, however, was who on earth was this 'Dollmaker' villain who has been set up since the ending of the first issue. I'm usually not a fan of creating new villains for a character like Batman, who has more of a rogue gallery than any other hero (rivaled only by Spider-Man), but at the same time, I was intrigued with the ending of
Detective Comics #1 (in which Joker's face is practically ripped off), so I was looking forward to seeing what else Dollmaker would do. This issue answers a lot of questions about the character, showing just how vicious he really is.
The artwork for this issue is arguably the best of the series, maybe because it shows more action than the others (at least more than the second issue). It's almost no Bruce Wayne at all here, only one shot of him in his Batcave discovering what the Dollmaker does to his victims. Everything else from the man is just Batman. In that regard, it makes lines such as
Batman: The Dark Knight (which also predominantly features Batman over Bruce Wayne) seem very unnecessary. It's also perhaps the most intense/violent issue to date, as it deals with Batman going head on with Dollmaker's dolls and trying to stop Jim Gordon from becoming a doll. (The ending of issue #2, which saw Batman look at a doll version of Gordon, wasn't Gordon at all.) The art really makes you feel what the victims are going through, and shows just how twisted Dollmaker is.
One of the best parts about
Detective Comics #3 is that it really shows one of Batman's most commendable traits - he keeps going in a fight even when it doesn't seem likely that he'll win. With his side completely numb, he still went head on with Dollmaker's goons, even if he meant that he couldn't make it. I also liked how this comic line explore Batman's detective work (which is something that's been ignored in recent Batman media) - then again, it's called
Detective Comics for a reason. As said before, I'm not a fan of creating a new villain for a character who already has a lot of adversaries, but I'd rather see Dollmaker in a future
Batman film than some signature villains such as Mad Hatter, Clayface, and even Deadshot.
The storyline is a brilliant one, diving deep into what Dollmaker's all about. He holds Jim Gordon captive, planning on using him for a future doll. Meanwhile, Batman's researching the Dollmaker's motives, and soon finds out that Gordon has been kidnapped (with various reports in Gotham claiming that the Commissioner was dead). Meanwhile, Batman himself is trapped in the room where the procedures are made, and what happens next won't be found out until the next issue (out next month).
As for flaws for this issue...it's hard to think of any. While it may seem a tad short at times,
Detective Comics #3 tells its story perfectly. The dialogue isn't cheesy at all (even
Justice League has a mediocre line of dialogue every now and then), and the mood is spot-on for a dark character like Batman (and the supporting cast, of course). As stated, the artwork is brilliant and the characters are really fleshed out to where they're very believable. I'm hesitant in giving this issue a 5* rating, mainly because I find
Detective Comics #1 to be more of a classic than #3, but the most recent issue seems to be more satisfying in terms of character believability.
In the end,
Detective Comics #3 really surprised me. An already great comic line in DC's New 52, the third issue only confirms that this line is a force to be reckoned with. Only Geoff Johns'(so far) excellent run on
Justice League can rival
Detective Comics right now, and
DC is certainly the best Batman comic line right now. Definitely check out Tony Daniel's
Detective Comics if you're interested in darker comic story arcs, especially if they involve Batman.