Detective Comics 540 (July 1984)

There’s something off about Colan’s layouts for the feature story. Moench splits it between Batman and Robin for the first half–Batman dealing with his Scarecrow-induced fears, Robin dealing with the Scarecrow himself–and it’s a busy issue. Somehow, it’s too busy for Colan, who doesn’t use panels but lets everything melt together. It gets muddled fast.

Still, lovely art. Just not great narrative art.

The story’s all action. Moench only spends a page on a subplot–the Dr. Fang one–and doesn’t even do much interaction between Batman and Robin or Batman and Scarecrow. Robin gets some decent face-off time with the Scarecrow though.

The end’s too sudden but it’s an okay enough story. Muddled or not, Colan and Smith draw creepy well.

McManus has a few excellent panels on the Green Arrow backup but the story’s pretty lame. Cavalieri’s big reveal is both predictable and confusing.

CREDITS

Something Scary; writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Gene Colan; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy; letterer, Ben Oda. Green Arrow, In Cold Type!; writer, Joey Cavalieri; penciller, Shawn McManus; inker, Sal Trapani; colorist, Shelley Eiber; letterer, Bob Lappan. Editor, Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics 539 (June 1984)

Bob Smith inking Don Newton is something to see. There’s almost an Eisner-like quality to the faces. It’s beautiful art on the feature.

But Moench’s writing is awesome too, whether it’s the main plot line with Batman teaming up with the Rocky stand-in to hunt down a killer or Jason feeling bad he was so crappy to Alfred’s daughter. Moench actually asks a bit of the reader–Vicki Vale figures in, but she hasn’t even had an appearance recently–but the scenes pay off.

The big boxing finale is only okay, however. Something about the way Batman stands down doesn’t play right. The epilogue’s very strong though. Moench’s trying hard to do something special with the comic.

Sadly, slapped on to this ambition is another odd Cavalieri’s Green Arrow backup. Half of this one is dedicated to the evils of corporate journalism. Cavalieri just can’t make Ollie likable.

CREDITS

Boxing; writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Don Newton; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy. Green Arrow, The Devil You Don’t Know; writer, Joey Cavalieri; penciller, Shawn McManus; inker, Sal Trapani; colorist, Jeanine Casey. Letterer, Ben Oda; editor, Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics 538 (May 1984)

It’s a strange issue and not just because the feature’s incredibly boring. It’s a sting operation where Batman follows the new Catman–who is the new Catman because the old one sold out his cellmate and Batman and Gordon let this new guy become Catman–to make sure he gets safely to his hidden loot. Robin and Gordon follow Batman to clean up any further messes.

It probably could be good, but Moench focuses way too much on the annoying new Catman guy. Besides his grating thought clouds, the issue is mostly just awkward banter from Robin and Gordon.

It’s a goofy story; Moench’s trying way too hard to force two parters between this series and Batman.

But the wackiest thing is Cavalieri’s Green Arrow backup. It’s an ode to John Lennon. It’s not particularly good, but Cavalieri really tries hard to make it work. The weirdness helps it along.

CREDITS

Clothes Make the Cat(man); writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Gene Colan; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy; letterer, Ben Oda. Green Arrow, Three Years Ago Today; writer, Joey Cavalieri; penciller, Shawn McManus; inker, Pablo Marcos; colorist, Jeanine Casey; letterer, Albert De Guzman. Editor, Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics 537 (April 1984)

Quick observation about the Green Arrow backup before I forget–McManus has some great panels. Not all of them, not consistently, but he has some amazing close-ups.

The feature story has Batman getting called down to the sewer by a Mexican immigrant. Moench goes for this sensitive story about a guy without a country or a present; once again, Batman is barely a character in his own book but Moench makes it work. The writing isn’t perfect, but it reads sincere and ambitious.

Of course, given the guy called Batman down because he found a body, eventually things lead to an action sequence. Colan and Smith do better on everything than they do on the action scene. Maybe the sewer setting.

The subplots–Dr. Fang, Alfred’s daughter–both get some page time too.

Moench’s doing very well. Even the Arrow backup is better than usual. It’s a good issue.

CREDITS

Down Below; writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Gene Colan; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy; letterer, Ben Oda. Green Arrow, Strike First!; writer, Joey Cavalieri; artist, Shawn McManus; colorist, Jeanine Casey; letterer, Bob Lappan. Editor, Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics 536 (March 1984)

Much of the issue consists of Alfred whining to his daughter about being the only father she has left. Yes, the poor woman is distraught, but it’s like Moench couldn’t come up with anything else for Alfred to do. Whine or be an action hero.

Similarly, Batman doesn’t have much to do. Moench doesn’t let Alfred have the whole story–because Alfred couldn’t deal with Deadshot–but he can’t insert Batman into it because he plum doesn’t belong. It should be Alfred’s story and it isn’t.

The mystery of the stolen paintings also gets ignored for Deadshot’s big escape sequence and the chase. Moench’s not exactly desperate to fill pages, but he definitely doesn’t have enough story when both Batman and Deadshot are unengaged participants.

The Green Arrow story ends with a big movie mystery reveal of the villain. Cavalieri has some goofy lines, but it’s much better than usual.

CREDITS

Facing the Dark, Blindly…; writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Gene Colan; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy; letterer, Ben Oda. Green Arrow, The Black Box IV: Short Fuse; writer, Joey Cavalieri; penciller, Shawn McManus; inker, Sal Trapani; colorist, Nansi Hoolahan; letterer, Bob Lappan. Editor, Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics 535 (February 1984)

Doug Moench has two subplots going; it’s hard to say if one’s a B and the other’s a C, or if they’re both equally weighted. There’s a new crime boss in Gotham, at least Bullock thinks so and Gordon disagrees. Moench likes playing the two off each other quite a bit.

Then there’s his Alfred and his daughter intrigue subplot. That one I assume will eventually involve Batman.

As for Batman, he’s got a beat-up Robin to deal with and that whole thing turns out to be a setup for a plot twist. Moench’s very aware he’s dealing with a limited amount of time–he immediately references how long Jason Todd has been Robin, giving the issue a sense of urgency.

It’s hard to see where it’s going in some ways, in other ways it’s obvious. But it’s sturdy stuff.

Awful Green Arrow backup though; really… just awful.

CREDITS

One Hole in a Quilt of Madness; writer, Doug Moench; penciller, Gene Colan; inker, Bob Smith; colorist, Adrienne Roy; letterer, Ben Oda. Green Arrow, The Black Box III: On the Cheap; writer, Joey Cavalieri; artist, Shawn McManus; colorist, Nansi Hoolahan; letterer, Bob Lappan. Editors, Nicola Cuti and Len Wein; publisher, DC Comics.

The Night Force 8 (March 1983)

Wolfman splits the issue–an “epilogue” to the first arc (which is really just the last chapter) and then the beginning of a new arc.

None of the regular cast appear in the second story, except Baron Winters, and it seems like Wolfman made the readers suffer through his bad characterizations for nothing. It’s additionally frustrating because second story is engaging. The writing isn’t great–Wolfman overcooks the narration–but it’s okay.

Actually, even the first story isn’t too bad. There’s still Winters and his fear of big government (it’s amazing how seriously Wolfman takes himself), but the storyline wraps up with a nice tidy bow and an amusing finish.

Colan’s art is a lot stronger on the second story than the first, maybe because there’s actual mood and action. The art’s decidedly okay.

I wonder if Wolfman split the issue to force readers to buy into the next arc.

The Night Force 7 (February 1983)

Marv Wolfman’s understanding of the American legal system is amazing. Baron Winters escapes arrest because his lawyer says they have a restraining order against the cops who are questioning him.

Not sure that tactic is possible.

It’s a really lazy issue of Night Force, both for Wolfman and Colan. Wolfman has a bunch of terrible dialogue exchanges from a demon and then his protagonist reporter guy. But the demon’s dialogue is almost all monologue, which takes up a lot of pages. And the demon is just a shadowy red figure in an otherwise yellow sky. So Colan didn’t have to do any work and the colorist did it all.

Very lazy.

The issue’s action is often incomprehensible. Wolfman writes some more James Bond action scenes and Colan’s lost illustrating them.

It’s not just the action, however. The art is often poorly paced or confusing.

The series’s dearth of quality resumes.

The Night Force 6 (January 1983)

Night Force quickly plummets from its high point last issue. Wolfman splits the story into two parts–one in Russia, which plays like Raiders of the Lost Ark again, and the other in Maryland, with Baron Winters playing hide and seek in his house.

Now, Wolfman clearly thinks he’s being subtle in his writing–though his bad English is sometimes hilarious, since he’s trying to be so writerly–but it’s pretty obvious Baron Winters can’t leave the house. Wolfman’s been hinting at it for maybe three issues (maybe six) and he’s never just explained it. It’s not an interesting detail. The idea Winters might strand all the cops in medieval France so they get the Plague? More interesting.

Colan puts some work into the art this issue. The first four pages have better art, technically, than the rest of the series so far in total.

At least it reads fast.

The Night Force 5 (December 1982)

This issue of Night Force should be the pits. I mean, it opens with a Russian science fortress. Why Wolfman–who’d been working with Colan for almost ten years at that point–would give him a boring Russian fortress to draw is beyond understanding. Colan and Smith do a competent job, but it’s excruciatingly dull.

And then there’s more stuff with Baron Winters being scared of the cops and Wolfman relies heavily on evil Soviets so he doesn’t have to write actual characters….

And there’s a lengthy bromance sequence between the white guy and the Blade stand-in as they cross the Siberian wastes.

But it’s somehow the best issue of the series. Wolfman doesn’t try to hide anything. The bad Soviet scientist just explains it all and then action plays out. There’s no work for the reader, which is good, because Night Force isn’t worth it.

It’s nearly okay.