Written by John Ostrander.
Art by Tom Mandrake; Todd Klein; Carla Feeny; & Digital Chameleon.
Cover Art by Tom Mandrake.
SUMMARY:
Entitled “A Savage Innocence,” DC Comics released this issue for March 1997. After the Joker’s latest escape from Arkham Asylum, Batman tracks him to New York City. The NYPD simultaneously assigns homicide cop Nathaniel “Nate” Kane to find out why Batman is in town. Secretly, Kane is the reluctant host body for his recuperating partner, James Corrigan/Spectre. Upon hearing of Batman’s return, Corrigan’s alter ego seeks to encounter the Dark Knight again.
In Lower Manhattan, ‘The Killing Joke’ is an ultra-perverse nightclub worshipping the Joker, which has invited him as its dubious guest-of-honor. Separately converging on ‘The Killing Joke,’ Batman and the Spectre are caught up in a three-way showdown with the Joker and his murderous flunkies. Worse yet, with his curiosity sparked by Batman’s pleas, the Spectre absorbs the Joker’s psyche to better judge his propensity for pure evil.
A catastrophe is imminent once the Joker quickly overwhelms Corrigan’s psyche to dominate the Spectre. The Dark Knight must risk baiting the Joker’s supernatural wrath in hopes that a defiant Corrigan fights back.
Note: Batman recalls his last visit to New York City put him into contact with the Spectre in Batman # 450-451.
REVIEW:
Including its ironically suggestive ‘go figure’ last scene, John Ostrander’s scripting of The Spectre # 31 is a high-caliber Brave and the Bold team-up. Suffice to say, this issue’s climax is well-played. The issue’s art squad also supplies excellent visual support for Ostrander’s Vertigo Comics-style plotting. For Batman and/or Spectre fans, The Spectre # 31 is a welcome read for older teens and up.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
There is a two-page letters-and-answers column.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 7½ Stars
