Batman: Dark Victory by Jeph Loeb

Collecting BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #0-13, this epic continues the story of THE LONG HALLOWEEN. It is early in Batman's crimefighting career, when James Gordon, Harvey Dent, and the vigilante himself were all just beginning their roles as Gotham's protectors. Once a town controlled by organized crime, Gotham City suddenly finds itself being run by lawless freaks, such as Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, and the Joker. Witnessing his city's dark evolution, the Dark Knight completes his transformation into the city's greatest defender. He faces multiple threats, including the seeming return of a serial killer called Holiday. Batman's previous investigation of Holiday's killings revealed that more than one person was responsible for the murders. So the question remains: who is committing Holiday's crimes this time? And how many will die before Batman learns the truth?

Another lovely read from this creative team, though probably less intriguing of a mystery after weeks of watching The Hangman in The Penguinon HBO. Not entirely sure how I feel about Sofia’s portrayal as a female villain who looks overtly butch/trans just to signal that she’s physically strong enough to string people up. Still curious about the hint about twins, as I fully expected there to be another “Sofia” who’d returned from Italy in her place. Maybe something connected to Selina’s lineage; When in Rome is up next.

Dark Victory is a direct sequel to The Long Halloween. To be honest, I didn't feel as it was very necessary. The story is practically the same as The Long Halloween but instead of leaving totems to represent the holidays, the killer leaves hangman notes.

The execution is practically the same as in its predecessor. There are several suspects and Batman and the police go from suspect to suspect, never being sure who the real culprit is. One by one, the most known villains in the Batman universe appear to create a distraction in the investigation and there is no significant development or backstory to any of them.

When it comes to the characters, Dent continues to be very interesting. We see the changes in his personality after becoming Two-Face and how he stills struggles with the idea of right and wrong. In this comic, Robin is introduced but I wasn't happy with it. His introduction seemed rushed, with not much time used to develop his story arc. I liked how they tried to draw a parallel to young Bruce, though. Gordon becomes more of a minor character. He doesn't do much to push the investigation forward, which bothered me a lot. He fades into the background and is forgettable.

I was a bit disappointed with this comic. I wished there was more time devoted to Robin's story, since it was his introduction. But it made me want to learn more about him as well as Catwoman.