The Arkham Knight blinds Batman and Gotham in Detective Comics No. 1005

The Arkham Knight is about the enact her plan, and Batman & Robin must fight their way through Anton Arcane and the rest of the Knight’s forces to stop her. Spoilers for Detective Comics No. 1005 follow.

The Arkham Knight is preparing her final attack on Gotham in her bid to show the citizens that Batman is not a hero, but a plight. She preps the device that is using to enact her plan while Anton Arcane prepares defenses around the facility. Batman & Robin arrive just as the defenses are enacted and are flanked by many members of the Arkham Knight’s forces.

It doesn’t take long for those forces to be bested by the dynamic duo, and it takes an even less amount of time for Batman to go straight through Arcane’s wall of Un-Men, while Robin goes to find him. To the surprise of the Arkham Knight, Batman makes it through Arcane’s first well but, regardless, he’s met by Doctor Phosphorus, who begins to burn him alive. Before Phosphorus is able to do so though, Robin is able to knock Arcane unconscious, which rids the area of his Un-Men, giving Batman an opening to take out Phosphorus.

Image by DC Comics/Art by Brad Walker

Before Batman can reach the observatory where the Arkham Knight is holed up, she detonates the device, bringing a blinding amount of light over Gotham, blinding the citizens. Batman’s cowl is able to dilute the light, but not before it’s broken by the Arkham Knight, blinding him as well. The two fight each other in a drag out brawl, Arkham Knight for revenge, Batman for Gotham, before Batman tackles her into the device, destroying it.

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Several weeks later, the Arkham Knight is being taken to Blackgate but, before she can be dropped off, one of the drivers is killed and her shackles taken off, as the other driver is a member of her cult.

Detective Comics No. 1005 ends a solid arc on a relatively predictable note, but an enjoyable one nonetheless. Peter J. Tomasi and Brad Walker do an excellent job of telling a kind of absurd story, which they’re able to bring down-to-Earth in a very personable way. Some of the things that happen in this issue don’t make a whole lot of sense, but the issue as a whole is enjoyable enough to forgive a good amount of it.

7.75/10 

Detective Comics No. 1005 provides a predictable end to a slightly unpredictable story, but it’s still an enjoyable conclusion.