Batman: The Black Mirror, Scott Snyder

"In "The Black Mirror," a series of brutal murders pushes Batman's detective skills to the limit and forces him to confront one of Gotham City's oldest evils. Helpless and trapped in the deadly Mirror House, Batman must fight for his life against one of Gotham City's oldest and most powerful evils!Then, in a second story called "Hungry City," the corpse of a killer whale shows up on the floor of one of Gotham City's foremost banks. The event begins a strange and deadly mystery that will bring Batman face-to-face with the new, terrifying faces of organized crime in Gotham.This volume collects Detective Comics #871-881."








There is so much to talk about with this one, so it's difficult to limit myself to making this just a bullet review.

First of all though -  Scott Snyder is currently knocking the ball out of the park with his Batman run. Court and Night of Owls was fantastic, Death of the Family managed to deliver some truly excellent moments despite it's general uneveness, and Zero Year has been surprisingly good. But Black Mirror is where he first established his credentials as a writer in the Gotham universe, serving up a deliciously twisted story focussing on Dick Grayson's Batman and Commissioner Gordon.

Even before that Snyder has been a writer I've tried to follow, since his excellent American Vampires debuted. He has a knack for picking artists that complement his creepy, horror-lite, style, and that look like nothing else around. Rafael Albuquerque on American Vampire and Francisco Francavilla and Jock here are more indie and creator owned icons than typical DC artists (in fact this was Francavilla's first DC role) - they certainly don't match the house style of DC and it works fantastically in creating a tale that undermines the preconceptions of the reader, presenting a fractured take that ties in to the psyche of the main antagonist, James Gordon Jr as the book hurtles towards its inevitable conclusion.

Like Geoff Johns and Grant Morrison, Snyder loves to use details and ephemera from stories past to add narrative weight to the tale he is telling, but the inclusion of James, a character rarely (if ever) seen since Year One, and who was pushed out by Sarah Essen and his more heroically inclined sister, is a lovely touch, especially contrasted to Grayson, the heroic 'son' of Batman, and the man who at one point was intimately connected to the Gordon family through Barbara.

Of course, there's more than just storytelling technique at hand here, and the collection tells an excellent tale, balanced with the wonderful artwork. If you're looking for a book for someone who loves Batman, this is perfect.

Scott Snyder, Court of Owls
Scott Snyder, American Vampire
Grant Morrison, Batman and Robin
Gail Simone, Batgirl