With Detective Comics reaching issue #1000 DC has marked the occasion by assembling an impressive group of talent to produce the landmark issue. Over the years there have been many anniversary issues marking certain milestones of the long-running book but my personal favorite is 1987’s Detective Comics #572 “The Doomsday Book”. Written by Mike W. Barr with a group of artists headlined by Alan Davis and Carmine Infantino the story celebrated 50 years of the long-running title by featuring the great detectives who had starred in the book over the years such as Slam Bradly, Batman, and the Elongated Man. It also paid tribute to mystery fiction at large by having the story revolve around an unpublished Sherlock Holmes tale and even featured the famous sleuth himself.
The story has Slam Bradley, Batman, and The Elongated Man wrapped up in a mystery involving an unpublished Sherlock Holmes manuscript. The clues discovered in the story help them uncover a plot against the Royal Family to be carried out by the great-grandson of Professor Moriarty. The three detectives work together to foil the plan with a little help from the master sleuth himself Sherlock Holmes.
I like that this issue was not just a tribute to Batman as many of the other anniversary issues were but that Barr really made this a tribute to the title as a whole. It was a great idea to bring in the detective characters who had been featured in the book throughout the years and really made it what it was. One of the nice touches is that Barr has the characters get introduced in the order that they were published. The story starts with Slam Bradley the tough private eye who appeared all the way back in 1937’s Detective Comics #1. Next in chapter two is the Cape Crusader himself who of course first appeared in Detective Comics #27 and eventually took over the book. In the third chapter we’re introduced to The Elongated Man who actually first appeared in Flash but in the 1960s was given a back-up feature in Detective Comics which followed him and his wife Sue Dibny as they traveled the world and solved mysteries ala Dashiell Hammett’s Nick and Nora Charles. The choice in characters and the clever way they were used showed that Mike Barr had a deep love for the history of the title.
Another aspect of the issue I enjoyed was the story structure. The overall issue is broken down into five chapters and each is done by different artists and written in Different styles. The first two chapters are told from Slam Bradley’s perspective and also feature Batman and Robin. These are written in a hard-boiled narrative associated with the characters. The third chapter has The Elongated Man and is done in a way that captures the spirit of the old back up stories that the character was known for, it even has Carmine Infantino, who created the character and illustrated many of his adventures doing the art. The fourth part sees Barr writing an original Sherlock Holmes story in the style of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Overall the different styles make for a fun read and Barr does an excellent job of paying homage while also telling an engaging story.
I think what really makes this issue a success as that it’s both a great tribute and a fun story. A lot of times anniversary issues can fall into the trap of telling stories that are great tributes but that don’t really stand on their own outside of that. Here there was a compelling mystery that takes some of the greatest detective characters in comics and in fiction and has them on a globe-trotting mystery that spans centuries. If there is a weak spot for the comic it’s that the villain Edgar Moriarty, the great-grandson of Professor Moriarty is pretty forgettable. Some pretty convenient plot points feel a little contrived but with everything else going on in this story it’s easy to overlook. Honestly, the moment where Sherlock Holmes shows up and Batman is in complete awe of his presence puts this story over the top.
Overall this issue is great and there is a reason it’s my favorite milestone issue. I like that it celebrates the entire history of Detective Comics and also pays tribute to the first and most well-known recurring detective Sherlock Holmes. This is a great story not only for fans of Batman or DC but of mystery fiction in general. The different narrative styles, a talented group of artists and a great collection of characters make for one of the best issues in the long-running title and also the Caped Crusader’s history. With the amount of talent working on the Detective Comics #1000, I’m sure it will be a great issue and I look forward to reading it but it’s going to very hard to top this story
Detective Comics #572 (1987) “The Doomsday Book”
Writer: Mike W. Barr
Artists: Alan Davis, Terry Beatty, Carmine Infantino, E.R Cruz
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