There’s a reason that some people only buy this book when Paul Dini writes it, and this issue showcases just why that is.  What Paul Dini does with this issue, very few writers are ever really able to capture in just one issue.  There’s intrigue, romance, a few Bat villains, and some Bruce Wayne thrown in for good measure.  It’s all the ingredients from the spice rack of Batman mixed wonderfully together.

 This issue finds the caped crusader investigating a fire at a club that just so happens to be down the street from the Penguin.  What starts as an obvious story, quickly shifts into something more as Zatanna enters the picture.  When reading Bruce and Zatanna in the same panel, I imagine Paul as a small child standing over a fire with a can of gasoline in his hand, ready to stoke the fire.  It’s fun to read these characters slowly express their feelings for each other, and even if it has doom (or not going to happen) written all over it, it continues “the chase” that all readers love to talk about. And I, for one, am for it.

I’ve got to be honest.  I’m a huge fan of Dustin Nguyen’s pencils.  Well, maybe huge is really strong, but I like the way he draws Batman.  I picture it as a Mignola Batman, but with more detail and less shadow.  There’s an energy to his characters, and I’m really enjoying the tone that he adds to the book.  It’s kind of like he is a blend of Mignola and Immomen.  It’s highly pleasing.

As with any Dini written Detective, this is a great place for anyone who’s looking for a great Batman story to jump on, and fans of the series won’t be disappointed.