COMIC REVIEW: Detective Comics #879

I like to think I like comics.  Sometimes, however, I forget to try new things and new writers from time to time.  As a regular Joe, I do not have an unlimited source of income that I can just buy everything and hope I like it.  I have to be picky.  I have to be deliberate.  I have to make sure, that I don’t go over my budget each week.  So, when creators move onto other titles, I tend to follow them.  I’m a BIG fan of the Greg Pak/Fred Van Lente duo.  I’m also a gigantic nerd for Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning duo.  So, I will follow them around everywhere they go.  I like them for different reasons.  I think Pak/Van Lente duo deliver on action and comedy like it’s nobody’s business.  And Abnett/Lanning delivers on Sci-Fi goodness that gives me a nerdgasm every time I read them.

With that being said, I also have a soft spot in my heart for certain characters.  Who, I will buy even if it is bad writing.  I know, one of the downfalls of being a fan of characters instead of a fan of stories.  But, I’m throwing it out there so you know my buying habits.  I’m a fan of the Flash.  I’m a fan of Green Lantern.  I will always buy those books. 

So, now you can see where my dilemma is, when it comes to writers I’ve never read before or characters/books I’ve never heard of.  The comic book industry, for the most part, does a poor job promoting itself.  I’d like to see them market comics in a different way than they are now but that is for another article some other time.  So back on topic, there are two writers I’ve only recently discovered and I’m pretty disappointed I did not discover them earlier.  One writer is Jeff Lemire.  The other one is Scott Snyder, who wrote this comic I’m going to review.

Detective Comics #879 was not what I expected.  In fact, I’m not sure what I was expecting.  What I did get was an intriguing story that had me hooked page to page without one panel of Batman in the story.   Scott does a great job breaking down and telling of a story concerning detective’s gut instinct (Jim Gordon) and following through on it even if it means destroying his own family.

Scott also writes a wonderfully sadistic Joker who displays just how easy it is to break a man even when in complete custody.  The Joker successfully breaks out of Arkham by telling the love story of the doctor caring for him.  I could continue and go on into detail about the Joker, but he takes a back seat to main plot line that seems more horrific and terrifying as a parent.  What if you finally learned that your child is capable of pure evil?  A feeling I never want to learn or feel but I am definitely willing to experience through Jim Gordon.

VERDICT: LOVED IT!