Written by Bruce Jones.
Art by Ariel Olivetti & Phil Balsman.
Cover Art by Ariel Olivetti & Mauro Cascioli.
SUMMARY:
Entitled “Darker Than Death,” DC Comics released this issue for October 2006. It serves as the midpoint of a five-part whodunnit. Upon rescuing an abducted Lilith Rutledge (and risking his secret identity), Batman finds another grisly clue. Tauntingly, a second human finger has been left by the kidnappers of Lilith’s younger sister, Janie, being held for ransom. In emotional shock, Lilith swears off anything to do with either Bruce Wayne or Batman, if only to spare Janie’s life.
Alfred advises Batman of another missing woman who vanished the same night as Janie Rutledge: a pregnant maid for tycoon Charles Billingsworth. The two women are ominously linked having been present at the same Billingsworth party the night that Janie disappeared.
Already frustrated over his failure to find Janie, an injured Batman confronts the dangerous exotic dancer, Tiki Rivera, at the underground nightclub known as ‘The Fount,’ hoping her mob-affiliated employer has some necessary answers. Disturbing clues obtained from The Fount send the Dark Knight after Billingsworth himself.
REVIEW:
Typical of DC Comics, it does not bother with a parental advisory label considering this issue’s macabre themes. Co-mingling hard-boiled detective noir with contemporary sleaze, writer Bruce Jones exploits a welcome advantage of unexpected plot twists. Still, the Fount sequence where Batman throws (or merely allows) a potential witness to break her legs falling through one floor to the next is brutal — even for an irritated and emotionally compromised Dark Knight.
Matching Jones’ gritty storytelling is the art squad’s high-caliber visuals. Given such assets, Issue # 209 makes tracking down the other four issues or hoping to find it compiled in trade paperback form a tantalizing prospect. For mature Bat-fans, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 209 is like reading Raymond Chandler’s or Mickey Spillane’s take on Gotham City.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Dan DiDio’s “DC Nation” column includes thumbnail cover reveals for Nightwing # 123; Superman # 655; Martian Manhunter # 1; and Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 210.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 8 Stars
