As the name suggests, Detective Comics started in 1937 as a crime anthology starring various detective solving crimes. Although, the focus would begin to shift from issue #27 when Batman introduced to the world. Batman would soon take over the title completely and Detective Comics would become a Batman or Batman-adjacent title to this day.
Fast forward to this week as we prepare to celebrate the 1000th issue of Detective Comics. And boy, it’s a big one!
Similar to last year’s Action Comics #1000, this issue will be a massive 96-page issue, jam-packed full of stories from some of DC Comics’ best writers and artists. Each story is a celebration of Batman, look to the past, present, or future of the character in their own unique way.
Find out more about each story, who’s involved, and even read one of the stories in its entirety below.
Medieval
Written by Peter J. Tomasi. Art by Doug Mahnke.
Peter K. Tomasi and Doug Mahnke are part of the regular creative team for Detective Comics and they will be using their tale to kick off a new story which will continue into Detective Comics #1001 and beyond.
It’ll be a big one too, with Medieval introducing the Arkham Knight – from the video game of the same name – into the comic book universe for the very first time. If you loved the Arkham Knight game then you’ll want to check this story out.
Batman’s Longest Case
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo are back for another Batman story. A secret organisation has been following Batman’s life for years and Batman must follow the clues in order to find out who they are and what they’re doing.
The pair are one of the most popular Batman creative teams of all time, responsible for classics such as Court of Owls and Endgame.
Manufacture for Use
Written by Kevin Smith. Art by Jim Lee.
Kevin Smith and Jim Lee have a tale which will cut between two sequences. In the first sequence, we’ll see Batman taking on members of his famous rogues gallery. In the the other, Batman will be hunting down the gun that was used to kill his family.
The Legend of Knute Brody
Written by Paul Dini. Art by Dustin Nguyen, Derek Fridolfs and John Kalisz.
Described as documentary-style, this story will see Batman’s famous villains talking about the same henchmen that they’ve all hired over the years. It sounds like it’ll be a humourous take, as this henchmen has been hinted at being the worst they’ve ever hired.
The Batman’s Design
Written by Warren Ellis. Art by Becky Cloonan.
In this story, Batman takes on a pack of technologically enhanced mercenaries.
Ellis has a futurist approach to science fiction so it will be interesting to see his take on Batman, a hero who always has a few gadgets up his sleeve.
Return to Crime Alley
Written by Denny O’Neil. Art by Steve Epting.
Legendary Batman writer and editor Denny O’Neil returns to Batman for a story that acts as a follow up to Detective Comics #457’s “There’s No Hope In Crime Alley”.
Take a peek at three pages of the story below, courtesy of Syfy.
Heretic
Written by Christopher Priest. Art by Neal Adams.
Batman helps a young man escape from Ra’s Al Ghul’s League of Assassins only to find him later dead in Gotham. Batman travels to Tibet to give the League a message.
Neal Adams help co-create Ra’s Al Ghul and the League of Assassins back in the 1970’s so it will be great to see him revisit the character after all these years.
The Last Crime in Gotham
Written by Geoff Johns. Art by Kelley Jones.
Johns and Jones give us a story of Batman and Catwoman’s future family facing off with the family of The joker and Harley Quinn.
The Precedent
Written by James Tynion IV. Art by Alvaro Martinez.
This is the story of the night that Batman made the decision to bring Dick Grayson, the first Robin, into his dark world. Why did he do it? You’ll have to read to find out.
Batman’s Greatest Case
Written by Tom King. Art by Tony Daniel and Joëlle Jones.
The current writer on Batman, Tom King, will tell a story with parallel narratives with Tony Daniel and Joëlle Jones sharing art duties. One story will see Batman visiting his parents’ grave. The other will see Batman assemble his large cast of allies.
I Know
Written by Brian Michael Bendis. Art by Alex Maleev.
The final story is another future story and involves and exchange between an eldery Batman and The Penguin. Penguin admits to Wayne that he knew he was Batman and goes on to discuss how he made the discovery.
Read the full story, courtesy of Entertainment Weekly, to find out how the story ends.
Detective Comics #1000 will be available from all good comics book stores, digitally, and on eBay from March 27th.
How to Love Comics is celebrating Batman’s 80th anniversary all year long with a variety of articles which highlight the stories, characters, and more. Check them all out on the Batman 80 page.
Have Your Say on Detective Comics #1000
Will you be checking out Detective Comics #1000? which of the stories catch your interest? Let me know in the comments below or via Facebook or Twitter.
Leave a comment