I grew up reading comics in the latter half of the 90's/early 00's and most of what I read was older stuff or stuff like Bongo Comics' Radioactive Man, which was paying homage/aping the older stuff

I didn't really get back into reading comics full time until 2009/2010, and even then it was hard keeping because with DC at least, there was a ten year gap of continuity that I was completely left out of

It got to the point where I just became completely disinterested in American comics, largely in part due to the misconception that all that was published was inherently "cape" in nature, and just stuck with 2000 AD. But after the Dredd Trifecta arc ended, I became fairly weary of 2000 AD as well

I'm not slamming modern comics at all, there's quite a number of new ones that I follow, it's just that I have very particular tastes that aren't often catered to in today's "more causal oriented" climate

I thought it was an interesting read until Steve and the Uncanny Avengers got involved in their antics, same with Black Knight

I know that they're trying to build up suspense/interest for Stand-Off, but why can't they just let some books speak for themselves and stand on their own?

It's not bad if you don't mind a Squadron Supreme series which features none of the actual Squadron Supreme.

I got Mockingbird #1 as well, it throws you in the middle of things, so I'm interested to see where it's going. I liked it a lot, though it's borrowing heavily the way Fraction's Hawkeye was told.

For those that feel the Big Two have changed and they might feel abandoned or lost, I highly suggest some of the alternative superhero titles from the likes of Valiant, Dark Horse and Dark Circle (previously Archie's Red Circle).

If you ever read Valiant in the 90's and liked it, I would strongly suggest the current Valiant titles. I haven't read them all, yet, but have deeply loved what I have read. Superheroes at their best IMHO.

Comixology.com has some free issues you can download for a sample of what you'd potentially get. Also, Valiant has offered Valiant Firsts which are great jumping on points as reprinted issues for $1 each.



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So when I decided to go back to the comic-book store and check out what was going on with Batman after I was out of it for three years, here's what happened.

I got Detective Comics #44, #45 and #47, and each one is a single chapter of a different multi-part story. #45 is the first part of a two-part story featuring the JLA! Cool! (I just read the conclusion a few days ago.) #47 is Chapter Three of a cross-over called Robin War. (I have read Chapters Three through Six and one of the tie-ins. I ordered Robin War #1 and the other two tie-ins and should have them in a day or two. I'll still be missing Chapter Two (Grayson #15) but I'll have enough of the story to talk about it with a little more authority.)



And Detective Comics #44 was the conclusion of a four-part story. I was a bit confused. I knew that Gordon had become Batman. But I didn't know that he had a GCPD support team. I figured it out in a general way. Harvey Bullock and Rene Montoya are both part of the team. So, COOL! And Gordon spends a lot of time in an armored battle-suit with giant ears (for the antenna) that makes him look more like a bunny. But he's not always in the battle-suit. (I found out later that he's not always in the battle-suit. In other issues, he swings around Gotham in a costume much more like what we've grown accustomed to over the last 80 years.)

And some of the Bat-Bunny support team operates from a GCPD Bat-Bunny Blimp. It's hilarious! I love it.

This issue seems to tie up a bunch of threads from the previous three chapters. Bullock's partner Nancy Yip has been giving info to the bad guys. Somebody is planning a major hit at the tent where the Cirque de Volant is performing. Evidence of major GCPD corruption has everybody on edge.

Also, the city is being menaced by a 100-foot-tall Jokerbot!



Eventually, Bat-Bunny Gordon defeats the Jokerbot with microwaves and, just before it explodes, the Joker's Daughter jumps out of the Jokerbot's head and confronts Bat-Bunny Gordon. I don't think she's supposed to be the Joker's biological daughter. Just some snotty teen who stole the Joker's face and started wearing it like a mask who then decided to get a Jokerbot somehow and terrorize the city.

In Gotham City, they call this Thursday.

I was hooked. Some awesome Gotham craziness, a Jokerbot, familiar faces, nice art.

Bruce Wayne will be back in the bat-saddle soon enough. I don't have a problem with Gordon taking on the mantle as part of a GCPD project. It basically makes a sort of sense if somebody in Gotham City government thinks Gotham really needs Batman. And the writers gave them a GCPD Bat-Bunny Blimp to remind us that comic books are silly!

I finally got all four parts of the story a few days ago. Last night, I read them in order, and this is a pretty good storyline to introduce Bat-Bunny Gordon to readers of Detective Comics. I also have Detective #39 and #40 and Bruce Wayne is still Batman in those issues. By the time #41 starts, Batman is gone and nobody knows where he is. Did Bruce Wayne give it up or get killed or go missing? I don't know. It must have happened in another comic book. (Bruce Wayne appears in Detective #45 and appears to have amnesia. He could be faking. I don't know ...)



Detective Comics #41 starts off with Bat-Bunny fighting some skull-headed Mexican wrestlers. The flashbacks show us that Gordon (still wearing his moustache) is reluctant to be part of the GCPD Bat-Bunny Project. Bullock doesn't want to be on the team either. He's still trying to find the Batman, long after everyone else has given him up for dead. But Montoya shows up and talks him into it.

I enjoyed the whole four-part story immensely. It's not making me re-arrange my Top Ten Favorite Batman Stories list, but there is a lot to like here. I like the art a lot. The dialogue scenes between Bullock and Montoya remind me of how much I loved these characters in the 1990s. The interweaving plotlines are pretty cool.

The Jokerbot is the icing on the cake.

A couple things I didn't like, just for a little balance.

TMI on Bullock's sex life.

Also, I had no idea that variant covers had gotten so far out of control. I got this cover for #43:


The Huntress is not in #43, with or without a guitar, Capri pants and ankle bracelets. I guess this is a thing now, and I know better than to get my hopes up over stuff like this. (I bought Detective Comics #39 at the same time, and I was a little disappointed that Harley Quinn was nowhere to be found.)

I'm glad I didn't see this variant for #42 until just now on the Web:



I might have just walked away and never read Detective Comics again.

I still get a handful of new books (6-7) each month. This is way down from the 40-50 titles/month I would buy back in the 80's.