Sturgeon’s Law tells us that, in any given medium, 90% of what you come across is crap.
And when you read a half-dozen stories per month which all take place in the same fictional city and revolve around the same cast of characters, that speculative statistic can really start to take its toll.
But we stick around for that 10%. We stick around because the gems are worth it. They can remind us why we come back to these heroes over and over.
Dan Waters’ and Hayden Sherman’s first chapter of “Dark Patterns” fell, beyond a shadow of a doubt, within that glorious 10%. After Scott Snyder’s blockbuster mega hit “Absolute Batman”, it was the second-best Bat-book to hit the shelves in 2024.
Now of course what remains to be seen is how the next chapter is going to hold up.
And, to be honest, I don’t think we’re off to the best start.
Part one of “The Voice of the Tower” begins in much the same meat-and-potatoes mystery/procedural vein we’ve come to expect from this title with a hostage situation in a Gotham high-rise. The perp is unknown, they’ve already killed a cop (they seem to have a marionette-fixation based on the reappearing Dr. Sereika’s possibly drug-addled examination of the body), and they promise to kill again should more cops intervene. Batman of course enters the building but is quickly disoriented by the building’s interior, finding mind-boggling architecture like something out of an MC Escher drawing and dizzying auditory illusions that quickly leave Bats second guessing where any given noise is coming from. After conferring with a terrified neighbor who warns Bats that he’s gotten himself into more than he maybe bargained for, the true nature of the wicked apartment building is revealed, and Batman realizes that this hostage situation is about to get more complicated.
Let’s talk about what this book does well. Hayden Sherman’s art continues to shine. In the previous chapter, they never let the “back to basics” tenor of the title prevent him from taking risks of structure and invention, and this burgeoning new chapter sees that delightful impulse dialed up. When Batman finds himself on unsure footing, Sherman threads the needle perfectly, employing near-psychedelic color explosions, warped object structure, and loopy panel shaping, without ever verging into unnecessarily expressionist territory to keep the reader’s feet on the ground. It’s outstanding stuff.
It’s going to be tough for me to discuss exactly how I think Dan Watters’ script has taken a step backwards in “Voice of the Tower” while avoiding the spoiler, which I will of course get to next month after this issue has had some time on the shelf. Suffice it to say that, while the rightfully-lauded “We Are The Wounded” reached the narrative heights it was able to reach with its ample establishment of verisimilitude (while of course providing just enough of a comic-bookish touch to keep things fun), Watters is here at risk of verging too much into that contrivance and ridiculousness that was previously so refreshingly mixing. In other words, things might be getting silly here on this second go-round of “Dark Patterns”.
There are things in the script that work, of course. This issue is by no means a failure. Batman’s dialogue is measured, methodical, and sparing, and he stalks the shadows like the apex predator he is in this third year as Gotham’s protector. His POV narration is also perfectly measured, providing just that bit more to keep the reader up to speed without getting in the way of Sherman’s remarkable action sequences. This is still a book with excellent pacing, and the reader is still propelled along by a sure-handled, trustworthy creative team.
I’m certainly not ready to remove this title’s Sturgeon Seal of Approval. One middling issue is of course not enough to knock “Dark Patterns” down a tier. But let’s hope Watters and Sherman can stick the landing better than the cop who was thrown from the building on the first page.
Recommend if…
- Your favorite Bat graphic novel is Grant Morrisson’s “Arkham Asylum”
- You want a Batman who seems outnumbered
- You wish Oracle was a sleazy mortician
Overall:
Despite continually strong artwork from Hayden Sherman and colorist Tríona Farrell, the opening of “The Voice of the Tower” leaves the reader feeling like they’re starting to listen to a great band’s difficult second album. There are, of course, plenty of tracks left for the group to turn things around.
Score: 6.5/10
