This is the best issue of Detective Comics there’s been since Greg Rucka left. And looking back on it, that’s not really been very long. In fact, the last time Rucka was on this book beyond the brilliant Question back-up, Jock was drawing it.

Putting Scott Snyder, the genius behind American Vampire, on this book was a brilliant move on the part of DC; Snyder gets character and depth, and his tone is dark enough to accommodate someone like me who likes his Detective Comics to be gritty and internal – a look at the more intricate side of crime fighting and investigation, rather than a series of splash page brawls.

The main story here revolves around an investigation into someone dealing a mysterious drug that has turned a boy into a Killer Croc-like monster; there are some other allusions to Batman’s rogues gallery throughout the main story, and that, in part, is the reason why this issue was so striking. It’s a great move by Snyder to incorporate classic villains in a unique way, without resorting to dragging them out of prison for a quick story arc – this is a methodical piece of storytelling.

The art by Jock is fantastic throughout, too; it’s not quite as crisp as his work on The Losers and Green Arrow: Year One, but it looks gorgeous nonetheless. His Batman is wondrous to behold, and his sense of choreography is unlike anyone else working in comics right now, except, perhaps, J H Williams III.

The back-up by Snyder and Francesco Francavilla was also a pleasant surprise; Snyder’s doing something with Commissioner Gordon that it’s only appalling to think nobody’s done before, incorporating elements of the character that haven’t been seen since Year One, but which make numerous appearances in the Christopher Nolan movies. It’s absolute genius.

The art by Francavilla is gorgeous, too; it’s on the same level of brilliance as Jock, and tempts me to buy the first issue of his Black Panther run, just to gawk at his artwork.

This is a truly special time to be a Batman fan, and this and Batman Incorporated are the two essential books right now. In fact, this one might even be better.