Detective Comics #861 - DC

I love this book right now. I miss JH Williams on this particular issue, but . . Jock does a more than adequate job of filling in. His style is nothing like Williams', but . . it looks great, none-the-less. Jock has a more 'basic', instinctual style . . it's simpler than Williams'. But . . it's effective. He has fantastic panel flow, and he tells a lot of story in his art. And then there's Greg Rucka. Greg has done an exemplary job of developing this character in the short time he's been on this book. I mean, just a year or so ago she was just this enigmatic figure that showed up in Countdown a couple of times . . every few issue or so. We knew absolutely nothing about her. But now . . now we feel like we know her, and can root for her. My guess is, eventually she's going to have to spin off into her own title. Especially if Batman does indeed come back. But, then again . . back in the 60's and 70's, Batman wasn't always the star of this book. So . . who knows? By the way, if you read Cry for Justice, James Robinson writes a nice little piece about Batwoman, and this title, in the back of the latest issue. Anyways, with this Cutter character running loose around Gotham, it seems like Batman and Batwoman are on the same case . . although investigating independently. That's part of the theme, I think, this issue . . seeing the different paths each of their investigations has taken. They objective is the same goal, but . . they're both pursuing that in their own way. But equally as effective . . and brutal. Kate Spencer is also involved, but only because she's the new DA. Batwoman actually catches up to him once, but he slips away. Which is what I think is fueling her now because she knows that anything else that happens is also on her hands. So now she's inserted herself into the college life where his victims are coming from. It's only a matter of time before they cross paths again. In the back-up story, we find that Renee and Helena have led the mob-bought killer straight to Tot's lighthouse. They want to make him a deal he can't refuse. They let him take the credit for killing them, and the payment . . in return they get information on who hired him, and for $2million access to his computer which they used to contact him. Although Tot doesn't appear to be very happy with their methods. 'You have purchased that with blood money. You've let a killer go free in exchange. You should both be ashamed of yourselves. And if he were here right now . . Charlie would be too.' I think this is developing into a very nice story, and team-up between the Question and the Huntress. Greg also writes this one with Cully Hamner on art.