Story: Made of Wood, Part Two (22 pages)
(previous part in Detective Comics #784, next part in Detective Comics #786)
Writer(s): Ed Brubaker
Pencils: Patrick Zircher
Inks: Aaron Sowd
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, James Gordon, Alan Wellington Scott / Green Lantern I
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Alfred Pennyworth, Barbara Gordon / Oracle (off-screen), Clovers gang member, Jackie O'Rourdan (leader of the Clovers gang, murdered), Assistant District Attorney Calvin Jaffe, Francis Sullivan (grandson of Seamus Sullivan), James Sime (off-screen, murder victim), Carolyn Sime (off-screen, James' wife), Commissioner Michael Akins (off-screen), Doiby Dickles (in flashback), Solomon Grundy (in flashback), Isaac Bowin / Fiddler (in flashback), Sportsmaster I (in flashback), Mayor Thorndike (off-screen, in flashback)
Synopsis:
Batman is tearing apart an Irish bar, asking for the location of Jackie O'Rourdan. In the background we see a news anchor on tv saying that James Sime, the murder victim, was involved with the Irish gang "Four Corners Clovers." While Batman questions one customer, the bartender takes out a shotgun and another customer (with a green top hat), who was hidden in the bathroom, also comes out with a weapon. Both shoot at Batman, who disarms them in a fight, and then throws the guy with the top hat through the window. Outside Green Lantern picks him up in a net made from energy with his ring. A flashback to the morning: Bruce and Alan are playing golf, Alfred is there as a caddy. Bruce asks Alan about the original killings. Five men were killed from July '48 to December, all had the words "Made of Wood" carved into their chests. Alan doesn't know any specific motive, beyond that the message seemed to be aimed at him, as wood is his only weakness. Back in 1948 Green Lantern felt bad about not sharing all his knowledge with the police, but nevertheless kept silent to protect himself, and Gotham, so that none of his adversaries would learn his weakness. He investigated the murders on his own, but didn't solve them. Bruce asks Alan to let him handle this crime. Back in the present Green Lantern says he listened but didn't make any promises to keep out of the investigation. Batman questions the man they captured, who is a member of O'Rourdan's gang, but nobody in their gang has seen O'Rourdan for the last three days. Batman lets the him go, and tells him he doesn't want to see him in Gotham again. He promises to leave town. Green Lantern expects him to join a gang in the next town, but Batman doesn't think so. Batman and Green Lantern work together for the rest of the night. They take care of many crimes, but don't find any trace of O'Rourdan. Meanwhile Jim Gordon uses his connection to the Assistant DA Calvin Jaffe to get information on the original "Made of Wood" case. He suspects the killing might have stopped so abruptly because the killer was committed to Arkham for something else in December 1948. He gets the records for Arkham commitments and deaths for that month. Oracle informs Batman that O'Rourdan's body has been found, he was dumped on the sidewalk. Batman and Green Lantern watch the police and talk about the frustrations of being a crimefighter in Gotham. Though they couldn't help O'Rourdan, they continue to work the rest of the night. Gordon's research the night before yielded three possible names, one died in prison, two were committed to Arkham. In the morning James Gordon decides to question them, respectively their surviving relatives. The first is an old man, a former cellmate of a homicidal maniac, who doesn't know anything, the second is Francis Sullivan, the grandson of Seamus Sullivan, a paranoid delusional who was committed in December 1948 and died two months ago at the Williams Medical Clinic. Francis Sullivan doesn't answer the bell so Gordon buzzes the super, and tells him he needs Francis to sign some documents because his grandfather left him money. He doesn't realize that Francis is the super, and Francis knocks out Gordon with a heavy blow to the head with a wrench, and drags the unconscious Gordon away.
Continuity References:
- Grundy and the Fiddler are seen together fighting Green Lantern [p. 7]. Later there's a flashback to Green Lantern's fight with the Sportsmaster [p. 18]. Both the Fiddler and Sportsmaster were members of the second Injustice Society, which was formed in 1948. Its formation is mentioned in ??
- Harvey Dent was Assistant District Attorney in Gotham [p. 12], and a friend of both Batman and James Gordon when they worked together to rid Gotham of crime, seen for example during Year One, in Batman #405, or in Batman: The Long Halloween, later he became the mentally unstable Two-Face, after a criminal threw acid at him during a trial, disfiguring half of his face, an event that has been told for example in Batman Annual #14 as well as in Batman: The Long Halloween.
- Batman says he never fought with Green Lantern I in Gotham before [p. 14], however this somewhat contradicts the backup story Guardian in Batman: Gotham Knights #10, which tells the first meeting between the original Green Lantern and Batman, takes place in Gotham, and leads to them working together briefly.
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Bruce says he feels that handling a crime like these murders is beneath Green Lantern. [p. 9]
- Bruce understands Alan's feeling of mistakes that come back to haunt you. [p. 9]
- Batman puts a lot of faith in his ability to intimidate criminals, as he expects it to work to scare the gang member away from crime for more than short term. [p. 11]
- According to Batman this is the first time Batman works with Green Lantern I in Gotham. [p. 14] (see above for references contradicting that claim)
- Batman thinks Green Lantern enjoys crime fighting more than he does, because Alan doesn't have his motive. He admires Green Lantern as a hero. [p. 15]
- Batman does his job hiding in the shadow because he is "just a man" [p. 17]
- Hearing about all the places he couldn't be while fighting other crime always rips away the moment of satisfaction that comes with fighting crime too soon. Still Batman feels that there are good people in Gotham who are worth fighting for. [p. 18]
James Gordon Character Details:
- He feels like he can't just sit on his hands all day. [p.19]
- He still has access to classified documents through Assistant DA Calvin Jaffe, who doesn't hesitate to help him out. Possibly because they both were close to Harvey Dent once. [p. 12]
Alan Wellington Scott Character Details:
- Alan considered Mayor Thorndike to be a friend. [p. 6]
- Alan feels bad that he kept his secret from the Police Chief, even though the fact that wood is his weakness, and that the killings were addressed to him, were an important part of a murder investigation. But he had to protect himself and his family, as well as his city. [p. 6/7]
- Alan doesn't consider himself to be a detective. [p. 9]
- He feels like his mistakes come back to haunt him. [p. 9]
- It seems Green Lantern doesn't know Oracle, despite knowing Bruce's identity. [p. 15]
- Green Lantern feels they should should help the police openly, not in the shadows. [p. 16]
- Gotham makes Green Lantern feel like "hopelessness just tries to beat down anything good." [p 17]
- Back in the 40's and 50's Green Lantern felt like he accomplished something after fighting the bad guys night after night. [p. 18]
Gotham City Details:
- The "Four Corners Clovers" aka "Clover Boys" are a local Irish gang, implicated in protection and smuggling operations in Gotham. James Sime had links to them. The Clovers gang member is shown to wear a distinctive green top hat, it might be a sign for gang membership. [p. 1]
- Arkham Asylum existed in 1948. [p. 13]
- The courthouse basement contains old records. The courthouse is across the street from the building with the DA's office. [p. 13]
- There's a "C Line" in Gotham. The station Gordon gets off is above ground. [p. 19]
- There's a Williams Medical Clinic. [p. 20]
Trivia:
- Assistant DA Calvin Jaffe was Harvey Dent's protégé once. [p. 12]
Story: Made of Wood, Part One (22 pages)
(next part in Detective Comics #785)
Writer(s): Ed Brubaker
Pencils: Patrick Zircher
Inks: Aaron Sowd
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, James Gordon, Alan Wellington Scott / Green Lantern I
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Barbara Gordon / Oracle, Edward Nigma / The Riddler, Mickey, Heathcliff, James Sime, Sgt. Davies (he's just called "Sarge" here, but the character looks like Sgt. Davies from Gotham Central, also written by Brubaker), Detective Crowe, Ted (off-screen, maybe Ted Grant / Wildcat I), Mayor Thorndike (in flashback), Doiby Dickles (in flashback), Solomon Grundy (in flashback, off-screen)
Synopsis:
It's 6:12 a.m. and Batman is about to head home after a full night's work (among other things a break in at a jeweler, the Riddler, and a murder) when Oracle calls him to inform him of a 911 call he's going to want to check out. An hour earlier Jim Gordon started his morning routine with Tai Chi, followed by his regular walk that takes him to the park with Green Lantern's statue. There he finds two men rolling a drunk. Gordon drives them away, but it turns out that the man is dead. The two men get away with the man's wallet and shoes, since Gordon can't chase them because of his limp. The corpse has the words "Made of Wood" carved into its chest. Sgt. Davies and Detective Crowe handle the case, neither they nor Jim Gordon have an idea what the words mean. Batman watches the scene from a nearby rooftop, and intercepts Gordon as he is about to walk back. Batman asks him to get into the Batmobile and they talk about the case. Gordon thinks he has seen the words before. Batman has an idea about their meaning, that they are connected to the original Green Lantern, but he doesn't share the details. Batman intends to get the dead man's personal effects back from the two homeless men. Meanwhile Alan Scott hears about the murder on the news in New York. Ted calls him, telling him what the words say. Alan thinks back to the day the statue was unveiled, and Green Lantern was honored by Gotham's mayor Thorndike. Still in the flashback, a while later, he remembers the aftermath of a fight with Grundy, which left him weak and hurt, while Grundy escaped. Doiby picked him up, and brought him to the statue to remind him of the hope Gotham's citizen have in him, and at the foot of the statue they find mayor Thorndike's body. Back in the Batcave Batman has researched the case, it turns out Thorndike was the first in a series of murders from 1948; all victims, five in total, had the words "Made of Wood" carved into their chests. The murders remained unsolved. Wood is the one weakness of Alan Scott's power, but while Batman knows this, it isn't common knowledge. Batman, in disguise, gets back the stolen wallet and shoes from the homeless man, Heathcliff. Heathcliff tries to attack Batman with a knife but stands no chance. The I.D. gives the name "James Sime" for the victim. Batman also finds a sewing machine needle imbedded into the sole of one of Sime's shoes. That leads Batman to an abandoned Sewing Factory, that has been empty since the depression. With the help of Oracle, who accessed its blueprints, he finds a maintenance tunnel with a small closet. It has a new lock. The walls of that room are covered with newspaper articles on the first murder series, and the words "Made of Wood" written again and again over everything. There is a lightbulb casting a red glow on the scene, a chair with scratch marks on its armrests and jars with the bones of fingers and hands floating in them. Batman is looking at a drain in the floor when Oracle contacts him, and tells him he should get topside to see this. From a rooftop Batman watches Green Lantern float down in a green glow casted by his ring, but is unsurprised. Batman was expecting Green Lantern.
Continuity References:
- The wedding between James Gordon and Sarah Essen (shown in the photo) happened in Legends of the Dark Knight Annual #2, she was killed by the Joker during NML, in Detective Comics #741. [p. 4]
- Jim Gordon needs a cane because he was shot by Jordan Reynolds during Officer Down, in Detective Comics #587. [p. 4]
- Jim Gordon retired as Commissioner during Officer Down, in Batman: Gotham Knights #13. [p. 4]
- Jim Gordon left for Europe in ??, he's back since ??. [p. 5]
- The sergeant says that it is turning into a habit for Jim Gordon to stumble onto crimes, that could refer to the incident with Mr. Freeze when James Gordon was given an honorary degree in criminology from Gotham State University in Gotham Central #2. [p. 8]
- Green Lantern's fight with Grundy in 1948 happened in ?? [p. 13]. GL first fought Solomon Grundy in 1944 told in Green Lantern: Brightest Day, Blackest Night, and in Infinity Inc. #39.
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Batman enjoys the moment of total calm he experiences during freefall before the grapple cable goes taut, but will never tell anyone how much he enjoys that moment. [p. 2]
- On some mornings at sunrise he feels like his work and sacrifice is worthwhile, it almost feels to him "like Gotham is lifting itself out of the mire" and that helps him to carry on his mission each night. [p. 3]
- Batman knows not only the identity of the original Green Lantern, he also knows that wood is the one weakness of Alan Scott's power. [p. 15]
James Gordon Character Details:
- He still gets up early, even though he isn't a cop anymore. [p. 4]
- He does Tai Chi again each morning, after years without. It helps him more with his back than all the physical therapists. He still needs his cane though. [p. 4]
- He is beginning to think that he's going to need the cane the rest of his life, but all things considered (the panels shows a picture of his wedding to Sarah, with Barbara in a wheelchair) he can live with it. [p. 4]
- He likes to see the city early in the morning, wrapped in fog, before the people and the noise take over. He told his former wife Sarah, who didn't understand why he had to take this walk so early every day, that it was a habit left over from his time in the service. [p. 4]
- It is still hard for him not to think of himself as a cop anymore. [p. 5]
- He came back from Europe because he doesn't want to forget or run away. [p. 5]
- He still thinks of Gotham as his city. [p. 5]
- He thinks that crime was simpler in the 1940s, and that protecting Gotham must have been easier in Green Lantern's day. [p. 6]
- He has no problem to fight off a thug with a knife, using his cane as a weapon. [p. 7]
- He says of himself "I was always a trouble magnet" [p. 8]
Gotham City Details:
- There is a "Sprang's Deli" next to a tailor shop. [p. 3]
- There is a statue of the first Green Lantern in Grant (?) Park. It was erected in July 1948, when Green Lantern worked in Gotham. [p. 6]
- The park with the statue is right across the street from the court house. [p. 6]
- In 1948 Gotham's mayor Thorndike was murdered, his body was found at the foot of the Green Lantern statue, one week after its unveiling. The Gotham Gazette reported the murder on July 17th, 1948.
- The Geiger Shirtwaist Factory in Gotham has been abandoned since the depression. It the building is still abandoned and some old, derelict equipment still remains. It is half a mile from a flower shop near Grant Park. [p. 19]
Trivia:
- The Batmobile has an ejector seat. [p. 10]
Story: Retribution Part 2: Contested (22 pages)
(previous part in Gotham Knights #20)
Writer(s): Devin Grayson
Pencils: Roger Robinson
Inks: John Floyd
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, Dick Grayson / Nightwing, Yoska Graesinka
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Barbara Gordon / Oracle, Ra's al Ghul, Enrico Inzerillo (it seems to switch somewhat whether the last name is 'Inzerillo' like in this issue or 'Inzerillos' like in the last), Jack (Giacomo) Inzerillo (Enrico's son), Ubu (Ra's al Ghul's minion)
Synopsis:
Yoska thinks Dick stayed with Bruce to steal from him, that this is Dick's "secret," and says that Dick doesn't need the adoption, that he has another plan. After hearing that, Dick breaks into laughter. Jack visits Enrico in prison, he wants him to get the word out to his men to meet him in Blüdhaven to help him raise bail. Meanwhile Oracle did a background check and research on Yoska, who seems to have no reason to lie about being Dick's grandfather. Batman realizes that Yoska thinks he is telling the truth and has been deceived himself. Yoska and Dick are in Dick's apartment, they talk about Dick's life and his past. An assassin shoots at Yoska, but Dick throws Yoska down, and Batman overpowers the shooter on the rooftop. Dick asks Yoska by whom he was told about Dick, and it turns out that "the nice man" was Ra's al Ghul. Batman learns from the assassin, Ubu, one of Ra's al Ghul's minions, that the instructions were to miss Yoska, and that he won't cause further trouble. Batman lets Ubu go and, alerted by shots, catches up with Jack Inzerillo, who has led his father's men into a trap orchestrated by another crime organization and watched them be shot. Jack had hoped to get into the other organization, and thought that the plan was just to scare his father's men, but the guy from the other organization has played and manipulated Jack, who now regrets his part in the execution of three of his father's men. Batman takes in Jack and the guys from the other crime organization. Changing to his Bruce identity he then checks on Dick and Yoska, and offers Yoska to help tracking down his real family, but Yoska prefers to leave. Ubu returns to Ra's al Ghul, who has set up the whole thing with the adoption to teach Batman a lesson, of how even the deepest loyalties are vulnerable to manipulation. Ra's al Ghul acted out of revenge, because blames Batman for the rift between himself and his daughter Talia. In the end Bruce and Dick file the papers, finalizing the adoption process.
Important Continuity Events:
- Dick Grayson's adoption by Bruce Wayne becomes legal. [p. 22]
Continuity References:
- Dick tells Yoska briefly about his father's death ("He was murdered. A man wanted money, and he cut the trapeze guy wire to prove he meant business."). That event has been retold in multiple versions, for example in a flashback in Batman #436, in ?? [p.7]
- Ra's al Ghul told Yoska that Dick is a police officer, the key issues of the arc concerned with Dick's decision to join the police force are: Nightwing #25 (we first learn that Dick decided to change Blüdhaven by joining the PD), Nightwing #41 (he graduates the academy), and Nightwing #48 (he gets a job at the Blüdhaven PD). [p. 7]
- Bruce mentions the fissure between Ra's al Ghul and his daughter Talia, that happened in ?? [p. 20]
- Bruce refers to Dick's past relationships with Huntress (in ??) and Koriand'r (in ??), and also sums up parts of Koriand'r's biography, which we learn about in ?? [p. 22]
Dick Grayson Character Details:
- Dick says he doesn't know what half the Rom terms Yoska uses mean [p. 2], still he can translate the saying Yoska uses before he leaves (or is familiar enough with it to know the meaning when he hears it). [p. 18]
- Dick doesn't want Yoska call him Ryeka. [p. 2]
- Dick has known Bruce since Dick was eight. [p. 8]
- Dick says to Yoska that he has a god life and owes most of it to Bruce. [p. 8]
- Dick has a photo album that has at least one picture of his father. [p. 13]
- Dick doesn't keep his gun locked up. [p. 17]
- Dick enjoyed hearing Romany again. [p. 20]
- Dick always wondered about his father's side of the family. [p. 20]
- Dick says even if Yoska really had been a relative, it wouldn't have made any difference in his relationship with Bruce. [p. 21]
- Dick mentions being left in an orphanage was the alternative to being taken in by Bruce. [p. 21]
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Thinking that Dick had a living relative was enough to make Bruce doubt his right to Dick's loyalty. [p. 21]
- Either Bruce doesn't remember Koriand'r's name or he just prefers to describe her ("That persecuted alien warrioress who was literally chased here by extraterrestrial slavers?") to emphasize his point, that Dick is attracted to people in trouble. [p. 22]
Gotham City Details:
- One of Gotham's prisons is called "The Schreck." [p.4]
Trivia:
- Romany saying Dick knows how to translate is:
"Si khohaimo may patshivalo sar o tshatshimo." -- "There are lies more believable than truth." [p. 18]
Story: The Factor of Fear! (22 pages)
Writer(s): Chuck Dixon
Pencils: Dick Giordano
Inks: Dick Giordano
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman (appears also as his alter ego Matches Malone)
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
'Happy' Haskins, Mac MacFindley, Johnny Rasta, Tony Tank, Spinell, Leo, Titus, Dutch, Sugar, Soapy
Synopsis:
Titus, Spinell and Leo are sitting in a bar planning to rob a truck with electronic equipment. Spinell tells stories about Batman persecuting criminals, but Leo says he's not afraid of "the Bat." Batman is also in that bar, disguised as his alter ego Matches Malone. Though there's no indication that Batman actually interferes with their crime, or is even near them, all of them see Batman, i. e. mostly the distinct silhouette, in everyday shapes and shadows, and their crime is foiled by their fear (and their own incompetence) without Batman ever really doing anything (maybe not even following them). Leo ascribes their failure to Batman and flees, and again feels like he's followed by Batman, until he's such an exhausted nervous wreck that Batman can just pick him up without resistance and hand Leo over to the police. Finally Matches Malone is once again in the bar, and pays a round for the "good entertainment" of the Batman tales.
Gotham City Details:
- There's a neighborhood in Gotham called Tricorner. [p. 1]
Trivia:
- Gotham's criminals (at least the everyday kind of criminals) call Batman "The Bat" [p. 2f, 13, 16]
- The name of the bar is "My Alibi Bar & Grill". [p. 3]
Story: Matatoa, Part 2 (22 pages)
(previous part in Gotham Knights #16)
Writer(s): Devin Grayson
Pencils: Roger Robinson
Inks: John Floyd
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, Dick Grayson / Nightwing, Barbara Gordon / Oracle, Matatoa
Synopsis:
Nightwing has brought Matatoa to Arkham, but he escapes. Meanwhile Dick reveals his relationship with Barbara to Batman. As they learn of Matatoa's escape Batman and Nightwing once again face him, this time on a LexCorp construction site. Nightwing arrives there first, saying that his own record isn't too bad, but Matatoa feels he has nothing to offer to Nightwing. Batman joins the fight, Matatoa offers again eternal protection for Gotham. As Matatoa dangles from a high crane he refuses to be pulled up by Batman, taking a fall that would have killed a normal human. Yet at the end he hitchhikes out of Gotham, now looking for a "master of manipulations," so it's possible his own death has fulfilled the "undefeated warrior" requirement, since, as Nightwing had pointed out to Matatoa earlier, until now Matatoa was undefeated himself. Back at the Batcave Dick asks Batman if he was tempted by the offer, but Batman replies that the only definition of "forever" that has any meaning lies in one's children, and offers adoption papers to Dick, who accepts and signs them.
Important Continuity Events:
- Dick tells Batman that he and Barbara are a couple. [p. 4]
- Bruce adopts Dick [p. 20f]
Continuity References:
- Dick mentions that it was Batman who sent him to Blüdhaven, in Nightwing #1. [p. 3]
- The argument between Dick and Batman about Dick's decision to become a cop refers to the following arc: we first learn that Dick decided to change Blüdhaven by joining the PD in Nightwing #25, he graduated the academy in Nightwing #41, and gets a job at the Blüdhaven PD in Nightwing #48. [p. 3]
Dick Grayson Character Details:
- Dick is not sure what to call Barbara in front of Batman (he switches from Babs, to Barbara, then Oracle). [p. 4]
- He's fumbling for the right words as he tells Batman about his and Barbara's relationship. ("Me and Babs -- I mean, uh, Barbara -- Oracle -- and I, well...things have...progressed in our relationship to the point where -- that is, I think it's fair to say that we're...involved. Dating. A couple." then low: "...okay?") [p. 4]
- Dick is now more often in Gotham because of his relationship with Barbara. [p.4]
- Nightwing feels protective towards Batman in his fight with Matatoa [p. 12ff], partly because he wonders how much Matatoa's offer of eternal protection for Gotham really got to Batman. [p. 18]
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Batman doesn't want Dick's police-issue gun in the Batcave. [p. 3]
- Batman's reaction to Dick's halting relationship revelation is a curt "Noted." When Dick is angry about that reply, expecting Batman to be happier he counters with "Who says I'm not?" and turns back to business.
- Batman thinks the way Matatoa preserves skills and knowledge is perverted, and says to Dick as Batman hands him the adoption papers, that the only meaningful definition of "forever" and real legacy is to pass these things on to the own children. [p. 19]
- During the scene with the adoption papers Batman stays in full costume, until Dick pushes off Batman's cowl to at least reveal Bruce's face. [p. 20]
Barbara Gordon Character Details:
- Barbara calls Dick "Former Boy Wonder." [p. 18]
Romances:
- Dick and Barbara are a couple, Dick reveals their relationship to Batman. [p. 4]
Gotham City Details:
- The graffito on the "You Are Now Leaving Gotham City -- Come Back Soon!" billboard says "KEEP DRIVING" over the "Come Back Soon!"
Trivia:
- Batman ties Matatoa's crimes to news paper articles we see from behind the screen (like mirror writing). They are "The UK Mirror Online", "The Jakata Times", "The New Zealand Chronicle" ,"The Gotham Sun" and a Russian paper from Moscow with Cyrillic writing. [p. 2]
- The text of the adoption papers is:
The day of the Lord, this 16th day of May in the year 2001:
I, Bruce Wayne, being of sound mind and body, do hereby declare Richard John Grayson as my legal and lawful son and heir. This declaration is made with the full knowledge and consent of said ward, Richard John Grayson.
Bruce Wayne (Signature of adoptive parent)
Richard Grayson (Signature of consenting non-minor, or minor)
As witnessed by:
Alfred Pennyworth (Signature of primary witness)
Dr. Leslie Thompkins (Signature of secondary witness)
[Official Seal - City of Gotham]
Rachel Green, LLM (Legal Representation)
Judge Maria Vargas (Judge's signature)
Manuel Gonzalez (District Clerk)
Story: Child of Justice (22 pages)
Writer(s): Chuck Dixon
Pencils: Scott McDaniel
Inks: Karl Story
Characters:
Dick Grayson / Nightwing
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, Mortimer Gunt (works at the Gotham morgue; only mentioned), Tandy, Freddy Minh ('alleged' vice lord of the Asian mobs; off-screen), Mrs. Minh (Freddy Minh's wife), Black Mask and his "False Facers" gang, Reynard (member of Black Mask's gang), Chief Redhorn (the Blüdhaven Police Chief), Inspector Dudley Soames
Synopsis:
Due to a summer drought the estuary backs up and twenty-one dead members of the Angel Marin gang float upstream from Blüdhaven to Gotham. Their necks were broken. Batman sends Nightwing to Blüdhaven to investigate their deaths. Nightwing looks at possible suspects who would profit from taking out the Angel Marin gang and starts with Freddy Minh. As he arrives at Minh's house, Freddy Minh is attacked by Black Mask's gang, who move a fridge while Minh's wife wails "My babies!" Nightwing pursues Black Mask's men, thinking there are kids locked up in the fridge. It turns out the "kids" are frozen, fertilized eggs, and in the moment Nightwing digests his surprise one of the thugs, Reynard, knocks him unconscious, and chains him to the fridge. Black Mask's men are after the eggs to gain leverage over Minh, so that Minh would let their gang have a piece of the heroin trade in Blüdhaven. Nightwing manages to kick the transport case with the eggs out of Reynard's hand and grabs it, but is thrown into the bay, still chained to the fridge, in danger of suffocation. He barely manages to burn through the fridge handle with a magnesium flare in time, but the masked gang members are gone. Black Mask is not happy with Reynard's work, he wants Blüdhaven. Chief Redhorn wants Dudley Soames to get rid of Nightwing, so that there won't be a costumed vigilante interfering with his corrupt PD. As Nightwing shows up to give the Minh eggs to Redhorn, he is cuffed but not for arrest and held at gunpoint by Soames.
Important Continuity Events:
- Batman sends Nightwing to Blüdhaven to investigate the death of twenty-one members of the Angel Marin gang, whose bodies have been floated into Gotham with broken necks. [p. 3]
- Nightwing decides to stay in Blüdhaven. [p. 20]
- The corruption in the Blüdhaven PD from its top officials downward is established. [p. 21]
Dick Grayson Character Details:
- Dick's initial motivation to go to Blüdhaven is to prevent the new new gang that's taking out the Angel Marin gang, to Gotham, because Batman is busy, and Tim not yet fit to handle a town like Blüdhaven on his own. [p. 5, 7]
Blüdhaven Details:
- Blüdhaven is only a short ride South down the coast from Gotham, both cities lie on the same stream. [p. 4, 5]
- Blüdhaven started as a whaling town, then became "Asbestos Town, USA", but now it declined and is worse than Gotham. [p. 4, 7]
- Freddy Minh lives on Avalon Hill in Blüdhaven. [p. 8]
Gotham City Details:
- Gotham has an annual summer drought. [p. 5]
Trivia:
- Nightwing's braid is cut-off. [p. 14]
- Nightwing has magnesium flares stashed in his costume's gauntlet. [p. 19]
- The thug in Black Mask's gang wearing a Fox mask is called "Reynard" (for the name of the fox in French fables) [p. 20]. Nightwing dubs him "Foxy". [p. 17]
[Note: This entry is based on the TPB edition of the issue.]
Story: Decoys (10 pages)
Writer(s): Howard Chaykin, Tommy Lee Edwards
Pencils: Tommy Lee Edwards
Inks: John Paul Leon
Characters:
Lieutenant James Gordon
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Paul Pendergast, Sergio D'Gioa, Officer Neiland, Officer Rice, Officer Kling
Synopsis:
James Gordon has been in Gotham for a few weeks. He recently has been promoted to lieutenant and assigned to homicide. He is partnered with Lieutenant Paul Pendergast, who's the D.A.'s nephew and got his promotion because of that, even though he's incompetent. Together with several other officers they are assigned to transfer a mob witness, Sergio D'Gioa, from a safe house to the courthouse across town. They use three separate vans with escorts to make following the witness harder, but despite that Gordon and Pendergast, who are with D'Gioa, are shot at and trapped in crossfire from several sources. During the firefight Gordon drags a woman, who seems to be an innocent bystander, with them to the safety of a tobacco store, but it turns out that she is really a professional and also acquainted to D'Gioa, and they planned the escape with a helicopter all along. D'Gioa and the woman both get away, while a dozen cops die in that firefight and yet more a wounded. Gordon also got shot in his right shoulder.
Continuity References:
- Gordon refers to a "snafu in Chicago", details of that are revealed in ??. [p. 1]
- The whole story premise is contradictory to the version of Gordon's early time in Gotham as it is told in Year One, Batman #404 - #407 (e.g. there Gordon already is a lieutenant when he arrives in Gotham, and he's partnered with Detective Flass). [p. 1]
James Gordon Character Details:
- Gordon recently got transfered to Gotham from Chicago because of a not closer described "snafu" [p. 1], but he thinks Gotham is more forgiving than Chicago. [p. 10]
- Gordon gets his promotion to lieutenant soon after arriving in Gotham, that promotion helped him to put the Chicago incident out of his mind. [p. 1]
- Gordon's Chicago background seems to be well known, Pendergast makes cracks about it, and Gordon had to develop a thick skin. [p. 1]
Gotham City Details:
- Arcadian Grove, aka "The Grove", is Gotham's little bohemia. A neighborhood with crowded, narrow streets and lots of nonconformists living there. [p. 3] The intersection of Gilbert and Shelton is there. [p. 4]
Trivia:
- The GCPD then had still a budget for a real motor pool. [p. 5]
- The tobacco store is "L. I. Peretti. Tobacconist. Since 1870." [p. 7]
Story: Oracle -- Year One: Born of Hope (18 pages)
Writer(s): John Ostrander and Kim Yale
Artist(s): Brian Stelfreeze and Karl Story
Characters:
Barbara Gordon / Oracle (in flashback also as Batgirl), James Gordon, Ashley Mavis Powell / Interface
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Bruce Wayne / Batman (also as his alter ego Matches), Joker, Riddler, Sylvia Kandry, Richard Dragon
Synopsis:
This story begins ten weeks and three days after the Joker shot Barbara in The Killing Joke. Barbara is still in the hospital, thinking that she was an idiot to be so careless to open the door without even looking through the peephole or putting the chain on, that she should have known better. She also has nightmares about the incident. The night before she's going to be released Batman visits her, and she is angry at him. She feels humiliated because she didn't have any significance as herself to the Joker, but only as a way to get to Batman. She lashes out at Batman, asking whether the private joke was her, when Batman and the Joker stood together laughing during the Joker's capture, hoping to hurt Batman that way. When she is released there are lots of reporters, watching her struggle to get into the car, but once again she feels only as an extension of someone else, this time of her father. She thinks the reporters wouldn't have bothered if not for her being the commissioner's daughter and thus a symbol. Six months of physical and emotional therapy follow, during which she had to accept that she would never walk again. Then for weeks Barbara just sits in her father's apartment, afraid to go out, afraid of the next day, feeling that she means nothing, that her life is now over, but then she resolves not to be a victim any longer. With a grant of the Wayne Foundation she gets a powerful computer set-up. She discovers her affinity for computer hacking and starts to make some money. The fledgling internet community also provides her with emotional support and acceptance during that time. One day her father, James Gordon, tells her about a case, a woman who launders money with the help of computers, Ashley Mavis Powell, also known as Interface. Gordon is out of his depth because he lacks the computer knowledge. Barbara researches Interface on her own. She gets information on Interface from Sylvia Kandry, a police computer operator out of NYC. Interface uses a low-level metahuman talent to interact directly with computers, she's also a child abuser. Barbara starts to go after Interface, but she doesn't protect her identity sufficiently yet. As Barbara tries to cross a busy street Interface pushes her into the traffic, but Barbara isn't run over. Barbara decides that Interface just made the biggest mistake of her life, because she made Barbara feel like a victim again. Barbara wants to start learning self-defense from a wheelchair, but doesn't want to ask her father or Batman for options. She asks around on-line, and gets contact information from someone named "Matches" one of Batman's alter-egos (which Barbara doesn't know then). She meets with Richard Dragon, who asks her what she wants. First she says she doesn't want to be afraid anymore, to which he replies that fear is useful, then she says that she wants to walk again, he says that's not really what she's seeking, then she says she wants her life back, and to that Richard Dragon says that that is who she were, not who she is now. He asks "Who are you?" and Barbara says "I...I don't know. I don't know if I ever knew..." and he says now she's ready to begin. He teaches her escrima during the next months. The physical and mental discipline hones the questions of her identity until the answer comes to Barbara in a dream. In that dream she's dressed as Batgirl and is at Delphi, asking the Oracle "I've lost so much. I've lost everything I thought I was. Who am I now? How do I go on?" The Oracle replies "You have lost nothing that matters. You have everything you need. Everything before leads up to now and now leads to what shall be." Barbara says she doesn't understand, the Oracle replies that she will when they both remove their masks. The woman who is the Oracle removes her mask (which looks like the later Oracle logo) and it is revealed that she is also Barbara. That makes Barbara realize that the internet could function as a mask as surely as any cowl, and she assumes the identity of Oracle, ready to take on her first task, i.e. dealing with Interface. Three weeks later her preparations are finished. She lures Interface into a logic trap, exploiting that Powell is psi-linked with the computer. Eventually Oracle cuts her loose, but tells her that she planted a post-hypnotic suggestion in Interface's mind and that she could trigger it again anytime, and that she will unless Interface turns herself in. In the end Barbara feels that her life is finally her own, that she is no longer a distaff impersonation of someone else.
Important Continuity Events:
- Barbara Gordon becomes Oracle. [p. 14]
Continuity References:
- The encounter with the Riddler in the flashback took place in ??. [p. 2]
- The Joker shot Barbara Gordon in The Killing Joke. [p. 2]
- The time Joker and Batman stood together laughing, that Barbara mentions, was in The Killing Joke. [p. 3]
- Batman's connection to or knowledge of Richard Dragon refers to previous events in ?? [p. 12]
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Batman knows Richard Dragon. [p. 12]
Barbara Gordon Character Details:
- James Gordon is Barbara's adoptive father. [p. 2]
- She's lived in Gotham most of her life. [p. 2]
- She ran one of the largest libraries on the east coast. [p. 2]
- Barbara doesn't remember much after the shot and the initial pain, she's not sure what happened. That hints at the fact that she was found naked and the Joker took pictures of her to torture her father. [p.2]
- Barbara feels it is humiliating and demeaning that she didn't have any intrinsic value for the Joker, but that her life only counted in relation to Batman. She thinks that it was similar in her role as Batgirl, that she was only seen as a weaker version of Batman [p. 3], she feels similar when the reporters cover her release from the hospital, that they're not interested in her as herself, but only because she's James Gordon's daughter. [p. 6]
- Her initial physical therapy after being shot took six months, during which she accepts that she'll never walk again. [p. 6]
- The money for her first computer equipment comes from a Wayne Foundation grant, later Barbara starts to use her hacking skills to make money. [p. 7]
- Barbara doesn't know that Batman uses the alias "Matches" [p. 12]
- Barbara learns escrima from Richard Dragon for several months [p. 13], before that she feels conspicuous and clumsy in her body, no longer loving how it moves as she did before, when she was a gymnast and a dancer. [p. 10]
- Barbara conceives her identity as Oracle first in a dream, where she sees herself as the Delphi Oracle. [p. 14]
James Gordon Character Details:
- James Gordon refused to have police guarding their house like other police commissioners in big cities, because the symbol of an open administration was important to him. [p. 6]
- James Gordon hates computers. [p. 9]
Gotham City Details:
- Barbara meets with Richard Dragon in Robinson Park. Robinson Park has a Centograph. [p. 12]
Trivia:
- Barbara has her Batgirl doll with her in the hospital, although the way it looks here it could be just as well a Batman doll. [p. 1]
- The Joker used a .45 to shoot Barbara but with a doctored bullet, with only half the grains of a normal .45, because the Joker wanted her alive for his scheme. [p. 3]
- We see Barbara with a coffee mug saying "#1 DAD" propably her dad's. [p. 9]
- Both in her dream [p. 14] and in the final panel [p. 18] white birds surround her, like bats often surround Batman in these kinds of scenes.
- Unlike her later wheelchair, here Barbara's wheelchair is still a regular chair throughout, seemingly without gadgets, but with handles for other people pushing her.