Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Colorist: Tríona Farrell
Letterer: Frank Cvetkovic
Editors: Arianna Turturro & Rob Levin
Cover Artists: Hayden Sherman & Stevan Subic
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $4.99
Release Date: December 11, 2024
Gotham is a dangerous place. It always has been. While Batman can protect people from others, he cannot rescue them from their destructive inclinations. So, he watches and listens for someone preying on the citizens of his beloved city. What evil will he discover when the bat-signal shines in the sky? Let’s leap into Batman: Dark Patterns #1 and see!
Story
When Batman rushes to Gordon’s aid, he finds the young police detective consulting with a gray-haired man. Dr Sereika is a forensic pathologist who has started advising the GCPD. He is fascinated by what a corpse's injuries say about the victim's life. Batman distrusts the newcomer. But lacking another police coroner, Dr Sereika will have to do. In Dan Watters' story, Batman studies the patterns of city life to understand the dangers that threaten Gotham's citizens. Mr Choi is the third victim in a recent string of brutal slayings. But aside from the manner of his death, Gordon sees nothing to connect him with the other two.
In Batman: Dark Patterns #1, Bruce Wayne is in the early days of his career. He has yet to take on a partner. When he faces danger, he must consider his options, rather than reacting in tune with his crime-fighting aids and inventions. He takes time to muse before deciding his next course of action. And he suffers wounds his more experienced self will avoid.
In that, Batman shares commonality with the victims. It also links him with Gotham's latest serial killer. The perpetrator is a meticulous practitioner in the art of pain. He delivers a maximum of suffering to his victims before releasing them to death. Unlike Batman, he feeds upon the pain. It seems to strengthen him.
Art
Hayden Sherman superimposes a bust with concealed controls over scenes of danger. Batman dons his suit and ascends to a rooftop to see flames devouring a building. He climbs into a Batmobile parked atop a high-rise. When the bat-signal hovers above the glowing towers, Batman races down a road bordered by trees that aspire to ascend higher than the distant buildings.
An inset panel of gray and brown dogs overtakes a billboard as Batman roars past. Hayden Sherman tilts the panel to show Batman racing upward. Despite his elegant design, the Batmobile’s straight lines signal the owner’s adherence to law and order. Tríona Farrell imbues the night with yellow, orange, and green as Batman ascends to investigate a crime. The yellow symbol on the hero’s dark chest evokes the signal Gordon shines into the sky in Batman: Dark Patterns #1.
Frank Cvetkovic shares Batman’s thoughts with lowercase black letters in pale blue paper scraps. Balloons with uppercase black letters grow spiky when Batman overhears a potential victim speak with his tormentors. Thinner spikes push through balloons composed of straight lines with lightning bolt arrows when Batman discovers the culprit for a recent series of crimes in Batman: Dark Patterns #1. Thanks to DC Comics for providing a review copy.
Now, to honor of Batman Day 2025, let's take a look inside:
Final Thoughts
This series, composed of three-issue story arcs, reveals the historic crimes that spur the corruption afflicting Gothamites today. Gotham becomes the primary character, simultaneously the hero, villain, and victim, as Batman investigates a serial torturer in Batman: Dark Patterns #1.
Rating 9.6/10
For another reviewer's thoughts, see his review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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