DETECTIVE COMICS #874
What did the
iFanboy
community think?
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Art and Cover by FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA
Size: 32 pages
Price: 2.99
This was a strange issue in many ways. Strange in that we start with the conclusion of the Gordon backups that seemingly will be part of this new arc, and Strange in that we’re seeing a visual approach that is pleasantly unexpected especially from such a classic Batman title. Snyder and Francavilla pull it off extremely well creating two distinct stories that come full circle and work together as we start on the next arc of this fun Detective run.
Francavilla’s art in this issue was incredible and he brings an illustrative simplicity that you just don’t see that much in mainstream superhero comics. While the trend nowadays is towards tight and detailed art, with photoshopped colors that make superheroes look like plastic, Francavilla goes the opposite way. His draftsmanship is simple yet accurate. His line work is thick and expressive. He’s brought a bit of a humanistic touch to Batman art, creating a dark tone for the book. Even his colors look and feel old school, like maybe he busted out an old color set and indicated his color by hand.
Credit must be given to the very nice hand lettering by Jared K Fletcher who’s work adds a lot to this issue. Comic lettering has lost a lot of its soul thanks to the convenience of computers and its always refreshing to see analog techniques being used. The lettering is appropriately crude and floats through the panels in a manic style that helps the reader feel the waking nightmare that Dick is experiencing thanks to the residue of the poison that still flows in his veins.
I’m really excited to see where this next arc will take us story wise and i can’t wait to see what else Francavilla and Fletcher have in store for the visuals.
Art: 5 - Excellent
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