Batman’s final push against the Magistrate is here and the Dark Detective is going to take the organization down, no matter the cost. Spoilers for Future State: Dark Detective #4 follow.
Well, the final week of Future State is here, which also means that this is the final issue of Dark Detective. Throughout the first three issues of the series so far, Dark Detective has been a great noir thriller that harkens back to films like Blade Runner in the best ways, especially with the aesthetic of the series. So, does the ending of the series hold up compared to the rest of the series so far? Well, yes and no. This is a really good issue that feels much too rushed.
The great part about this issue is that we get to see Bruce at his best throughout this issue. He’s no longer the man that was seemingly killed by the Magistrate. No, he’s once again Bruce Wayne and, more importantly, he’s once again Batman. His resolve is as great as it’s always been and he’s no longer wallowing in the self-pity that he’s been carrying around for the last three issues. It’s some great character progression in such a short series.
There’s also some great stuff between Bruce and Hannah spread throughout the issue, which is something that has needed to happen for a while now. Arguably, Hannah needed to be in the series more than she was in order to build her character and importance to the story. When she shows up, she’s great, but she’s not in the series enough, which leads to the biggest problem of the series.
This felt common for so many Future State titles, but even with four issues instead of two, it simply felt like there wasn’t enough page space for the story to play out the way it should. There simply wasn’t enough space to flesh out everything that needed to be fleshed out, both character and story, in the most effective manner. That obviously doesn’t mean that the series isn’t good, but it could’ve been even better (cue the Maxwell Lord meme).
Even if the story and characters don’t shine to their fullest potential, the same can’t be said for the art by Dan Mora and Jordie Bellaire. Their art throughout the series so far has been superb issue after issue and yet, this might be their best issue.
Everything that they do hits on all cylinders. Mora’s layouts, pencils, and inks convey exactly the right things that each page needs to convey. He hits all the right emotional beats and never misses a single one. His fight scenes are intense and fraught with danger. It’s hard to make every hit in a comic feel impactful and yet, Mora absolutely does so here.
As for Bellaire’s colors, she brings out the fullest potential of Mora’s art and truly makes everything feel alive. The issue feels vibrant against the serious backdrop of the story and that’s all due to Bellaire.
As for the Red Hood back-up story, like the Grifter story before it, it’s fine. It’s an enjoyable enough read that helps flesh out the world of Gotham in an interesting way and is probably the smartest choice to have continue in the future, which is exactly what DC is doing with Future State: Gotham.
