Detective Comics #946 Review

Who's to Blame

Written by: James Tynion IV
Art by: Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, Julio Ferreira, Adriano Lucas and Marilyn Patrizio
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: December 13, 2016

It seems that the Bat Family runs through Detective Comics.  While Batman is off fighting Bane in Clayface, Batwoman, Spoiler, Cassandra Cain and more.  Pretty awesome, huh?  Of course, Batman in also in the house and that's not a great thing according to this arcs villains...the Victim Syndicate.  While Batman struggles to figure out who the First Victim is, he has declared war on Batman and everyone who has helped the Dark Knight in the past.  It's a good story, but I hope we get more of the Victim Syndicate this week as the last issue was so focused on Team Batman and Spoiler in particular.  Did I get what I wanted?  Let's find out...
his solo book, the gang's all here and it's awesome to get them every two weeks.  If you haven't been reading (shame on you, by the way), the gang includes


Well, that's not how it starts out, but that's not exactly a bad thing.  We get to see Batman discuss the idea of this Team with Tim Drake and it's so good to see Tim again even if it is in a flashback.  We find out that Tim thought big when it came to the Team and also get a bit of a background of the Belfry.  Sure, the idea of the "Justice Bell" was a bit heavy handed, but I liked it.  It does end with Tim being a liar which is more heartbreaking than I am letting on.

In the present, we head off to Leslie Thompkin's Free Clinic and it's a real mess.  Batman helps an injured Azrael before confronting the First Victim.  We also get the most ridiculous text from Harper before going back to Steph in the Belfry.

Okay, I read and heard a lot of people talking about Tim Drake "returning" for last issue's cliffhanger and I have to give Eric Shea credit for knowing immediately that it was a mudroom AI.  Their might be a brain under that bandana after all!

It seems that Tynion wants to use this AI to give Steph someone to talk to and talk she does.  She tells Tim she doesn't like what's going on and really doesn't know why she is fighting in the first place. While this is all going on, we also see Batman and the First Victim fighting it out.  It's all about Stephanie though and in a weird way, the scene ends with a bit of hope.

We then go off to see my man, Clayface who is dealing with Glory.  While she wants to be called Mudface, Basil truly feels sorry for her...right before tricking her into submission!

The issue continues the scene jumping as we switch to Batwoman and Madame Crow.  We learn a bit more about the villain before Mister Noxious and Batwing join the party.  It's a nice bonding moment for the two heroes as they take care of business.

The issue ends with more heartbreak and Batman and the First Victim still fighting it out.  It actually looks like it's all over...right before a crazy cliffhanger throws that out the door as a potentially new member of the Victim Syndicate makes a surprise entrance!

This issue was pretty middle of the road for me.  While I really wanted to know more about the Victim Syndicate, the way the issue ended made it all seem like nothing but setup for this crazy cliffhanger.  Yes, I am interested in what happens next, but it did sour my overall feelings for this arc.

I like Eddy Barrow's art even if things got a little confusing at points.  His character work is really good, though, and he made the best out of an issue with pretty uninteresting set pieces.

Bits and Pieces:

This issue just cruises along, giving us more of the same until the crazy cliffhanger.  The way it ended, though, made this whole arc feel like nothing but a disguised setup.  I hope I'm wrong because I thought the Victim Syndicate made for an interesting villain.

6.0/10