Batman #100 Review

Writer: James Tynion IV/Artists: Jorge Jiminez, Guillem March, Carlo Pagulayan/DC Comics WAY. TO. STICK. THE. LANDING! From now on when you write comics, THAT’S HOW YOU WRITE COMICS! *Mike Lowry voice* Batman #100 is the culmination of a journey that I started years ago with Tom King’s run on the series, and I’ve got to say it’s been a truly enjoyable experience watching it develop into what it’s become. Issue #100 comes jam-packed with action, plot and character development, closure and even a couple of epilogues. The last thing we saw was Batman facing of with the corpse of our beloved Alfred Pennyworth that the Joker reanimated to torture Batman. Fortunately, the Caped Crusader is mostly unphased as he takes on his greatest foe. Throughout Gotham City, the “Bat Orphans,” as the Joker hilariously called them, are taking back the city block-by-block as Barbara Gordon has returned to her role as Oracle and is pulling all of the strings. Oh! And Dick Grayson is fully back into the fold. Duke even get some shine! As Batman and Joker fight to their bitter end with a Joker-ized Batsuit and all, it’s obvious going in that Joker is going to survive for a variety of reasons. But as the fight continues, for a brief moment, I actually asked myself “…. are they really going to do it?” That’s how good the writing is here.

Of course, the Joker isn’t dead, and the issue doesn’t ever try to imply it. But he is dealt some permanent/long-term damage, which is a bold move and well-de…