Detective Comics #21

While the backup artist, Andy Clarke, remains on art duties, Scot Eaton takes over for Jason Fabok for the issue. Combined with the coloring, I almost forgot at points that there was a different artist. Eaton has a very similar style as Jason does, so it keeps a consistent feel between issues if you read them back to back. As such, everything looks just as good as it does usually. Good character and emotion, good action (not very much action surprisingly), good flow from panel to panel, and good full page spreads. Maybe just one hiccup or two along the way though" Read Full Review

I suppose if I were going to really be picky, I could probably drop this down a little for being too predictable in the backup and leaving too many unanswered questions on the front end, but I'm just not feeling that cynical at the moment. I really enjoyed this issue, and I fully recommend it. Read Full Review

Scot Eaton's art is consistent throughout (even if Mio doesn't appear to have a spine), and it's brought to life by Jaime Mendoza's inks and Jeromy Cox's vibrant colors. The gloomy darkness of Gotham is occasionally penetrated by the neon glow of the city's lights, and the visuals work best when these contrasts are played up. All in all, it's a solid issue that situates Harper more firmly into the Batman mythos, while laying the foundation for what looks to be an intriguing arc. Read Full Review

An assassin comes to Gotham and of course Batman will soon get involved. We'll soon discover that this is no ordinary assassin as a bigger picture begins to unfold. Harper Row makes her return as well and we find out what she's been up to since her last appearance. Layman is keeping a tight ship in terms of continuity. We see lots of mentions of events happening in the other Bat-titles and the back up. We'll have to wait and see if the main story results in further repercussions, especially considering the current events in RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS. Layman is building up his corner of Gotham and you don't want to miss out on it. Read Full Review

While not groundbreaking, this was a fun and enjoyable issue, which teased a potential villain that could be really fun under Layman's pen. I was originally going to say some more stuff about Harper Row here, but I'll make a whole post about that sometime later. So, to conclude... Fun main story, with an enjoyable back up... well worth the four dollars paid. Read Full Review

I’m becoming a big fan of this book and I say that after giving up on the entire Bat line of books after the first six issues. Layman’s Batman reads like a new version that actually fits with the rebooted world, rather than a Batman that brought all his baggage with him just because the sales were good enough to support it. It was the biggest disappointment of the new 52 in my opinion, but now this series has returned the character to form. Too bad Layman isn’t writing or in charge of the other Bat titles. Read Full Review

The backup Man-bat story, also by Layman, worked for me too, and I found it as enjoyable as the main feature. Andy Clarke's art really drew me in, though. I loved the grittiness to it, and felt that it really fit the character and storyline to a tee. Read Full Review

DC #21 is a true winner. Even though the art is hit-or-miss, you get Man-Bat, a fun standalone story, and Harper! What more could you want? Read Full Review

This was a perfectly average issue. Those who love Harper Row will enjoy it the most, but this chapter spent the majority of its time bridging from issue #0 to now in the main tale and issue #19 to now in the Man-Bat backup. Big things are clearly on the horizon, but nothing too spectacular occurred here. Today's Batwing #21 was about as entertaining and it was a dollar cheaper. Read Full Review

"Detective Comics" is such a dependably good title that it's almost a bit of a surprise to have an installment that's just average. Nonetheless, I'll be back for more; when a dip in quality is down to average from great, that's the sort of variance that I think most readers can handle just fine. Read Full Review

. Detective Comics #21 is a functional, if unbalanced issue that brings more players into Batman's world. Not a misstep, but nothing great either. Read Full Review

While I felt the art suffered in the issue, the story was strong for a batman book i feel has been lacking. We get the return of Harper Row, who helps save the day again. I am rooting more and more for her to become the next Robin. Overall, the art was lacking making Harper appear older, but the story was interesting, with a nice call back and the return of Harper Row! Read Full Review

This was a good beginning to a new story arc. Layman connected it with issue #0 nicely, and added new layers to the story. We saw some newer characters like Harper Row and Penumbra make their first appearance in Detective Comics, while older characters like Ras al Ghul and the League of Assassins lurk in the shadows. The more I see of Harper Row the more I like her. Scot Eatons art was realistic and detailed as he showed hes got what it takes to hold down a classic title like Detective Comics. This story arc has only just begun and, with the exception of a jet-sized hole in Wayne Towers, it has started on a high note. Read Full Review

At least I can confirm that I'm not missing anything by ignoring Detective Comics. Read Full Review

Detective Comics has sort of been operating out on its own up to this point. Layman has been able to bring in a new villain to the mix, Emperor Penguin, while playing with an old one, Penguin. It's been fairly self-enclosed to this series. However, now we see a story that is bringing in a new character but building up a subplot involving a character that crosses into multiple Bat-books. This comic really is much more grounded to the greater DCU and it looks like Layman is digging in for the long haul. This is a good thing. I can't wait to see where Layman takes this comic. Read Full Review

I see potential in the Man-Bat back-up, but I felt cheated on this outing. It felt a lot like a recap on how Langstrom is coping emotionally with his condition. With no apparent defined role amongst the other Batbooks, Detective Comics fails to draw me to it, while there are plenty of other destinations for my monthly Bat fix. Read Full Review

Unfortunately, most of the qualities that made Layman's earlier offerings on this series so enjoyable are absent in this issue, which makes you once again ponder the value of having so many Bat-titles. Read Full Review

The comic also contains a forgettable back-up story involving Kurt Langstrom who believes he may be responsible for a series of grizzly murders. Pass. Read Full Review

Hatmasta

Jun 11, 2013

This series continues to be fun. This issue continues on with the story from the Tec #0 issue featuring a love from Bruce's past, which leads into a very good little yarn involving her resurrection as a bat-foe. This title holds itself again as the cohesive bat-book that pulls in threads from the various titles. Normally, a chore like that pulls down the book's quality, but Layman does a great job of integrating various bat-threads into an interesting and fun issue. Fabok takes a well-deserved break this issue, and Eaton comes into fill in for art-duties and does a great job. If you like Batman, I highly recommend this series. It began with a shaky start but has gotten continually better with every issue.