GOTHAM CENTRAL HC VOL 01 IN THE LINE OF DUTY

Review by: sciencenate


Size: pages
Price: 29.99

In this summer’s blockbuster release,
Batman: The Dark Knight, fans of the Batman story were given a closer glimpse
into the lives of Gotham’s cops through the
perils faced by Jim Gordon and the officers of the Major Crimes Unit. The
release The Dark Knight, however was
the not the first time the members of the MCU were featured with major roles in
the story. Beginning in 2003, and running until 2006, writers Ed Brubaker and
Greg Rucka with artist Michael Lark took a closer look a the members of the MCU
in the forty issues of the award winning series, Gotham Central.

I never read this series when it
was originally released, but when I saw that this new hardcover edition containing
the first ten issues was to be released, I decided that this was a book that needed
to be added to my library. Overall, purchasing this book was a great decision. The
stories of Gotham Central not only examine
the cases being investigated by the MCU, but the lives of its members as well. I
thoroughly enjoyed reading how characters such as Detectives Renee Montoya and
Crispus Allen as well as other members of the MCU sought to capture some of Gotham’s most infamous villains including Mr. Freeze and
Two Face.

On a related note, I am a huge fan
of NBC’s Law and Order. I love
watching the story develop with a sudden twist, only to be resolved in the last
few moments of the episode. In my opinion, Gotham
Central
read like a good episode of Law and Order. Each page led the
detectives to some new material and a new “hunch” to follow. Furthermore, the
division between first shift and second shift allows the reader to experience
the same story from several different perspectives. As I continued reading, I
was constantly drawn into the story – waiting to see what happened next.

One interesting aspect of this book
is that it does include appearances by Batman, but only in brief segments.
Brubaker and Rucka did an excellent job of including Batman without making him
the central focus of the story. The MCU detectives are the main characters, and
Batman only appears when completely necessary. In the end, I found myself
reading what I assumed was a Bat-title, but not being disappointed by a lack involvement
by Batman in the stories.

In conclusion, I highly recommend
this book to all those who enjoy Bat-titles as well as those who might enjoy a
good mystery but are not too familiar with the Batman story. Brubaker and Rucka do an excellent job of introducing
characters in order that readers are able to almost immediately understand the
main plot without being confused by characters’ identities. Throw in some excellent
and very appropriate art by Michael Lark, and what you have is an excellent
book. In my opinion, this is one of the better books available right now, so while
you can still find this in stores, you should purchase a copy. You will
probably become as I am, anticipating the opportunity to purchase the next
book.

Story: 5 - Excellent
Art: 5 - Excellent

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