DETECTIVE COMICS #1048

The Tower

Part 2 of 12

    This issue, like Part 1, is written by Mariko Tamaki and drawn by Ivan Reiss. I wonder how many issues Reiss is going to draw, because he's obviously not doing all 12 since this is a weekly series. Reiss is one of DC's best artists. I'm not sure I can even think of another good one. In this issue, we do get a brief backstory of Arkham Tower's boss, Dr. Wear, but for the most part the book is set in the present. The big mystery behind Arkham Tower is what's the secret behind Dr. Wear's new patient remedy? The Dr. has all the crazies, like Dr. Freeze, walking around Arkham free as birds with unlocked cells. We do get a hint at the end of this issue that Dr. Wear is villanious. As a kid, Dr. Wear's mother was crazy and got sent to a psychiatric ward. The end of this issue has Dr. Wear as a boy saying, "Fuck her. Fuck them all." Meaning...fuck crazy people. Also in this issue, Batwoman goes incognito to get a job at Arkham Tower and Dr. Wear shows her around. So this issue has zero action in it, if that's your thing. In the backup, we get Bruce Wayne taking the boy, whose parents were murdered by The Joker, to Gotham Academy. Remember that short lived Gotham Academy book? I actually really enjoyed that. I also am really enjoying this book. The last time they tried doing a weekly Batman book it was kind of forgettable. It was called Batman: Eternal. It was so great I forget what happened and who the villain was and who wrote and drew any of it. Will I remember The Tower in the future? Even though this particular issue isn't fantastic or anything, the book is great so far so I'm going to say yes. **1/2