Written by Tom King
llustrated by Mikel Janin
and Jorge Fornes
Published by DC Comics
The storyline “The Fall and the Fallen” continues here and man, it’s great. After the last issue, I was so incredibly excited to dive back into this title. And Tom King and Mikel Janin do not disappoint. This book just hits all of the right notes month in and month out!
This issue begins with a beautifully rendered page of Bruce in the Batcave with the word “Intruder” on every monitor. It’s a strong image to begin the book on. Then, we cut to a scene of Commissioner James Gordon yelling at Batman on the roof of police headquarters . Gordon tells him that he doesn’t belong there anymore. It’s a brutal scene that King uses to maximum effect. Batman puts a red bulb into the Bat Signal and lights it up. It’s a very curious action that we find out more about later in the issue.
We then cut back to the Batcave with the alarm still continually going off. The word “intruder” is repeated. Batman is going up the stairs from the cave into the mansion. It’s painful to read for some reason but I couldn’t look away.
Commissioner Gordon talks with Barbara. He tells her what happened with Batman on the roof. Barbara looks concerned. That’s when she dresses up as Batgirl to figure out just what the heck is going on around here.
Eventually, Bruce climbs the stairs and meets with Bane at his dinner table. The other scene has Batgirl get together with the Batman squad on a rooftop. These two storylines meet up at the end and man, is it exhilarating.
Tom King sets everything up perfectly. It’s as fantastic as can be. The art compliments the writing perfectly as Fornes and Janin are at the top of their game. I can’t wait to read to next issue. This is the top book on my list to read every time it comes out. It’s great stuff.
RATING: A
