Detective Comics #946 - preview and issue discussion!

[millernumber1]

No, no official preview yet, but we do have what JT4 posted on his twitter two days ago:

Tec 946 preview 1.jpg

Looks like some nice flashbacks from Batman's perspective, which hopefully will start the counterargument the book should be making against the Victim Syndicate's argument that Batman causes more harm than good.

Questions for discussion: where do people think Steph will go in this arc? What will Luke do in reaction to Kate's tirade last issue?

I think that Steph is leaving the team for a bit, so I think Batman will be unable to articulate his position to her, which is a shame, since I think he does care about her (especially in this continuity). Hopefully Steph won't leave with betrayal. Oh, also, I'm almost positive that the whole Tim thing at the end of last issue was the Mud Room, probably programmed by Steph herself, since in this continuity she seems to be pretty technically proficient.

Luke, I'm hoping, will have a heart to heart with Kate - I'd much prefer this to flashy heroics (and I don't think flashy heroics would really contradict Kate's argument, anyway).

[Caivu]

Dammit, you did it again! Got me all excited that the official preview was out.

I'm pretty much in agreement with you about Steph. I think she may end up starting a betrayal, but switch once she actually sees people getting hurt. Don't know how that will work.

As for Kate and Luke, that really needs to get resolved fast, because the resolution is so simple. I can see them still being rocky with each other for a while, but this core conflict between them needs to wrap up. I was wanting an awkward conversation between Kate and Steph, and it looks like that won't happen, but I'll take one of Kate and Luke.

[millernumber1]

Dammit, you did it again! Got me all excited that the official preview was out.

I'm pretty much in agreement with you about Steph. I think she may end up starting a betrayal, but switch once she actually sees people getting hurt. Don't know how that will work.

As for Kate and Luke, that really needs to get resolved fast, because the resolution is so simple. I can see them still being rocky with each other for a while, but this core conflict between them needs to wrap up. I was wanting an awkward conversation between Kate and Steph, and it looks like that won't happen, but I'll take one of Kate and Luke.

Sorry! I did open with the disclaimer, though!

I really, really don't want Steph to be villainous - but I'm very curious to know how I'll feel about a Steph who's basically back to Spoiler continuity - on the outside, not trusted or being trained. I just desperately hope that Tynion knows what he's doing, and has the staying power and sales to see her story through.

Kate and Luke need to talk stat, agreed. I hope that Kate does at least say something to Steph before the arc concludes - she's certainly shown enough concern.

[Frontier]

I'm still wondering what Justice League stories Bruce has told Tim that would make him think he hates teams. They must all be Green Lantern related .

I don't see Steph actually betraying the team. Calling out Bruce is one thing, but actually helping the Victim Syndicate is another and a stretch to far for her, but she probably will be taking a sabbatical or quitting the team, leaving a slot for Azrael to come in.

Kate and Luke's deal could probably be resolved by a one page, honest, discussion between them

[Caivu]

Well, you weren't too far off, miller! I guess you're forgiven.

Here's a textless preview and an interview.

[millernumber1]

Well, you weren't too far off, miller! I guess you're forgiven.

Here's a textless preview and an interview.

Ahaha, awesome! I'm very excited to hear about Steph, natch. I thought these quotes were really good:

"It's the turning point. This arc is very much a Stephanie Brown arc. And this issue is Stephane Brown's "turn." This is the moment that she's going to come to some important realizations. What she thinks is right and what she thinks is wrong is going to coalesce and guide her story forward.

And it's starting to set up the pieces toward the Stephanie Brown stories that I've been excited to tell since I first conceived of the entire Detective team.

I don't want to spoil it, but there's some really, really good stuff coming up.

One of the important things for me was to make sure every character in this story has a real place in Gotham City and what they do, and how they interact with the others. And Stephanie's role in Gotham was often based on her relationships with other people. And I leaned into that in the first arc, building her up as Tim's girlfriend. But it was all in service of leading her to this moment, where I think we're going to see her step into the spotlight as Spoiler.

I'm very excited about that."

I loved the Tim/Steph shipping in the first arc, but I'm very excited to see that Tynion was aware he was developing her in her connections rather than primarily in her own right, and that he has plans for her in the future. And right now, it looks like those plans will take her apart from the team - but hopefully not apart from the book.

"But one of the goals of the book is grounding each of these characters so that, frankly, they could all solo books. We're doing this Batwoman series, and what Marguerite and I have been building for Batwoman is something I'm really excited about.

The idea is that any of these characters have so many stories you could tell about them. And I'll keep telling their stories in Detective if they don't get their own books. But I want a robust version of Spoiler in Gotham that could have her own series. I want a robust version of Azrael that could have his own series. Batwing. Even Clayface."

I'm totally on board for solos of all these characters - though the Direct Currents magazine teased Clayface's betrayal of the team, indicating to me that he's going to go back to being a villain sometime in the next year, sadly. I think Tynion's idea is the right one - have a core Batfamily book, introduce characters, and spin off the characters that fans and writers love - it's the sense I have with the 90s.