Comics! Detective Comics #0

Detective Comics #0

Written by Greg Hurwitz
Pencilled by Tony S. Daniel
Inks by Richard Friend
Additional Art by Pere Perez

Backup:
James Tynion IV: writer
Henrick Jonsson: pencils
Sandu Florea: inks

The Solicitation
Discover how young Bruce Wayne learned to wield the martial arts, and how a major villain was introduced into his life.

Preview

Why I Bought It
So part of the idea behind the zero issue, or at least what I am reading into it, is to give an origin tale of the title character, as well as make it accessible to new readers. At least, that is what I would do with an issue #0, and that is probably what some readers are hoping to find when they pick it up. Knowing that this is Batman and he has a much more public profile than most superheroes, what kind of origin story do you tell? His parents can only be shot so many times.

What I Liked
So I've been missing the past couple of Detective issues, so I am really lost with what Tony Daniel is doing. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the writing of this book. It wasn't until I saw the credits at the end that I realized Daniel did not write this book. That was surprising to me, but hey, a good story is still a good story.

This book does re-affirm an opinion of mine that I've had for a while, Tony Daniel can draw, and needs someone with a good script behind him. When it is just him, he can have a couple of good ideas, but the execution, at least in writing terms, is something to be desired.

The backup in this issue was nice. It was a tale focused on Alfred and where his place is in the New 52. WE also get a shot at bearded Bruce, which sounds like a wrestler's name form the 80s.

All in all, a surprisingly good issue of Detective, the first in a while for me, and one that is well worth the price of admission.

What I Didn't Like
The one thing I was down about Green Lantern's zero issue, that they didn't explain what the hell the green ring meant and if it was your first issue of Green Lantern ever than you would be lost, kinda holds the same thing here. While the Alfred back up does portray Alfred nicely, if you don't know that Bruce is Batman, then this book doesn't quite make sense. However, given that Batman is more in the public eye than Green Lantern, I would assume that more people know about Batman's origin.

That aside, I hate DC trying to put a timeline on everything with their books. I've been on the message boards and the back and forth with the fans debating things and trying to fit everything that has been presented in the New 52 into a timeline just begins to fall apart here and there. Especially when you start taking in all the books, you really get a feel that a lot wasn't taken into consideration when they made the New 52. They should have just started fresh in some regards, but saying that a lot of the Batman and Green Lantern stories still happened kinda puts a dent into things. Either have a definite timeline that makes sense, or don't be specific when you say 7 years ago, or five years ago, just use a generic date like "Before the dawn of Heroes."

Panel to Remember
I'm going with the obvious death page. Nice reflection to the idea that Bruce Wayne is best when he doesn't have parents, which is key to him being Batman.

Quotable
"She is not your mother. And I am not your father." A very important lesson that Bruce needs to learn, and essentially what I thought this issue was all about. Bruce Wayne simply isn't Bruce Wayne when he believes he has parents around. He loses his guard and thus sleeps when an attacker enters the home. Another lesson learned.

Grades
Words: 8/10
Pictures: 9/10
Buy Next Issue: Next issue begins Layman's writing take on Batman, and being a big fan of Layman since I first picked up Chew, I am looking forward to what he does with Batman. It will be very interesting indeed.

Compare this to issue #1!