Review: Detective Comics Arkham Knight Trade Collection

Detective Comics has the Arkham Knight arc collected in trade paperback and available digitally. The arc is written by Peter J. Tomasi who is no stranger to the Batman Universe. The story deals with a new villain to the comic universe in the form of the Arkham Knight. Tomasi starts from the ground up, assuming the reader comes with no preconceived knowledge of the character. The story is a simple one but the simplicity of the story is balanced by strong dialogue and incredible artwork by Brad Walker.

Tomasi writes an incredibly classic Batman. He uses violence in a purposely measured way, he utilizes a gun but it fires only Bat-bomalas. He is strategic and thoughtful and uses his allies as well as detective work. This is contrasted of course by Damian Wayne as well as Arkham Knight. Damian is a character Tomasi has written extensively and he has a very specific tone. Damian in this book is confident, brash, immature and disrespectful. This is who Damian was under Grant Morrison as well, but it is stark contrast to much to the character development we have seen with Damian in books including Tomasi’s own SuperSons run.

After an initial action-packed battle with Batman, Arkham Knight takes down Damian. But while they hate Batman, Damian only has their pity. Arkham Knight reveals herself to Damian before he escapes, although by appearance alone they can’t determine her identity. The mid-point of the arc includes Dr Phosphorus joining Arkham Knight’s team as well as the revelation of her identity. Jeremiah Arkham reveals to Batman and Robin that Arkham Knight is his daughter Astrid Arkham.

What follows is a prolonged flashback showing the origins of Arkham Knight. She was born during an Asylum riot and her mom was killed with a Batarang.Â The riot sequence it’s self is glorious. Done as a flashback with a varied art style, the violence of the riot is contrasted against the kindness of the villains trying to protect Ingrid Arkham as she gives birth. Without a mother, Astrid is raised in the Asylum where she sneaks off to visit with the villains each night. Taking their perspective, she sees Batman as the antagonist ruining the lives of her imprisoned friends. Ignoring the fact that the deadly Batarang was thrown by a villain, Astrid blames Batman for her mother’s death and seeks to destroy him as Arkham Knight.

The arc finishes with a faceoff between the Dynamic Duo and Arkham Knight’s Force including Arcane and his Un-Men and Dr. Phosphorus. This is made harder by Batman and much of Gotham suffering temporary blindness due to the Arkham Knight’s Energy Wave Weapon called the Sphere of Light. The weapon is destroyed and the Knight captured, only to have her be freed at the end of the story by a Policeman loyal to her cause.

What raises this story above many other modern Batman tales is the classic characterization of Batman and the absolutely incredible art. The voices of all these characters and their actions, heroism, conversations and responses to challenges feels true and familiar. Batman stories in the modern era often feel like a chore to get through, but these issues are well done without feeling overly weighted or thematically complicated. Familiar banter between Batman and Alfred feels all the more precious given what he’s been through in the Batman comic.

The amazing by Brad Walker art cannot be overstated. Walker has always been a solid artist, but with this arc every panel, every action, every villain just pops off the page. Clearly a massive part of this is the incredible inking by Andrew Hennessy. The work of inkers has been underplayed over the last few years with more artists inking their own work. Books like this show just how much great inkers can lift a book. Similarly the colors by Nathan Fairbairn are a visual delight and the sequences with Dr Phosphorus are the best we’ve seen with this character. This art is perfect for such an action-driven story and really is key for a story which could attract many new readers drawn in by the presence of Arkham Knight. Due to it’s art, strong writing and overall story-telling it is the perfect book for anyone trying to get into reading comics. That’s exactly what one would hope for in an age where its tough for new readers to know where to start. The hope is that we can get even more arcs like this moving forward from this creative team.

Writing: 4.5 stars of 5
Pencils: 4.5 stars of 5
Inks: 5 stars of 5
Colors: 4.8 stars of 5

Overall: 4.7 stars of 5

Writing: Peter J Tomasi
Pencils: Brad Walker
Inks: Andrew Hennessy
Colors: Nathan Fairbairn
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Author Profile

M.R. Jafri

M.R. Jafri was born and raised in Niagara Falls New York and now lives with his family in Detroit Michigan. He's a talkative introvert and argumentative geek. His loves include Star Wars, Star Trek, Superheroes, Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, Transformers, GI Joe, Films, Comics, TV Shows, Action Figures and Twizzlers.