Detective Comics #986 Review

Writer: Bryan Hill / Artist: Philippe Briones / DC Comics At the Mercy of Karma Karma, the central villain of Hill’s On the Outside arc, fits into the Batfamily rogues fairly easily. You got your deep personal connection with the Dark Knight that over time has manifested into obsession and superhuman attribute that tests the mettle of our heroes. In this case, Karma is the combination of Batman’s current crop of students with technical expertise that rivals Batgirl, a physicality in combat that gives Orphan a run for their money, and a prescient that’s functionally similar enough to Signal that I’ll count it here. Karma is a good character for the central conflict. But man does Black Lightning steal the show. I’m secretly hoping that this entire arc is a backdoor pilot that leads into Hill getting his own Outsiders series because his Jefferson Pierce is exactly what you’d hope when you hear “superhero teacher to other superheroes.” He is selfless and powerful and his incongruent interactions with the rest of the Batfamily resonate deeply.

Plus, this issue shines a spotlight on Cassandra Cain and while she is a brawler of little words, Hill does wonders with her dialog and Briones matches pace with amazingly expressive facial expressions. Although, Briones’ artwork throughout the entire issue is incredibly strong, whether it’s depicting martial arts, Batman’s gadgets, or Black Lightning’s electricity. The prolong action sequence that takes up the bulk of the issue is a visual…