Detective Comics 408

Detective Comics 408

Feb 1971

The House that Haunted Batman!

by Marv Wolfman, Len Wein, Neal Adams, Dick Giordano, John Costanza

15 pages

Batman goes looking for Robin, who disappeared 24 hours ago. His search leads him to an old mansion. He finds Robin but then he isn't sure if he really found him at all as the person he found crumbles into dust. Someone who looks just like Robin starts shooting at Batman.

Detective Comics 448

Detective Comics 448

May 1975

Bedlam Beneath the Big Top!

by Len Wein, Ernie Chan, Dick Giordano, Julius Schwartz

Batman follows some information that Jack Ryder (aka the Creeper) dug up for him and goes to see Gaston St. Lucifer’s Circus Extraordinaire. He sneaks around, finds some answers, and gets into fights with several of the circus performers. He locates Ra’s Al Ghul and Talia, both very much alive and learns how and why he was framed for murder. 

Detective Comics 447

Detective Comics 447

May 1975

Enter: The Creeper

by Len Wein, Ernie Chan, Dick Giordano, Julius Schwartz

Batman digs up the coffin of Ra’s Al Ghul but finds it empty. He is about to do the same for Talia’s coffin when a couple police officers show up. He tries to show them that the coffin is empty but when he does it is no longer empty. They try to arrest him. He runs.

Alfred performed some forensic work on the gun that killed Ra’s and Talia. It was handmade and there was a hair from a lion on it. Batman takes Alfred’s discoveries into account and heads to the Gotham Zoo. The Creeper, convinced that Batman is a murderer, tries to apprehend the Dark Knight. They both find themselves in danger when someone frees the zoo’s lions from their cage.

Detective Comics 446

Detective Comics 446

May 1975

Slaughter in Silver

by Len Wein, Jim Aparo, Julius Schwartz

Batman goes back undercover to investigate a skeleton that was found inside  one of Bruce Wayne’s statues. He sneaks into Gotham City Police HQ disguised as a janitor. His detective work is interrupted by three men who want to take the skeleton from the morgue.

He follows the thugs after his fight with them gets broken up by a couple police officers. The thugs inadvertently lead him to Sterling Silversmith, their boss. Another fight breaks out but this time Batman gets knocked unconscious. He wakes up just as Silversmith is getting ready to kill him.

Detective Comics 445

Detective Comics 445

Mar 1975

Break-In at the Big House

by Len Wein, Jim Aparo, Julius Schwartz

Commissioner Gordon asks Bruce Wayne to help him convince Batman to turn himself in. Bruce instead gets dressed up as Batman and breaks in to Gotham City's prison. He wants to have a talk with Ra’s Al Ghul. The mastermind criminal confounds Batman by shooting himself in the chest. The guards assume that Batman shot Ra's. The guards try to apprehend Batman but the Dark Knight Detective escapes through a tunnel created by the Spook. 

Detective Comics 444

Detective Comics 444

Jan 1975

Bat-Murderer!

by Len Wein, Jim Aparo, Julius Schwartz

Commissioner Gordon recounts to one of his men of how he sent Batman on a mission that resulted in the Dark Knight murdering Talia Al-Ghul. Commissioner Gordon tried to have Batman arrested but Batman insisted he was innocent. Batman fled into the night, determined to find the evidence that would clear his name. 

Thoughts

This is the first chapter of a five-part story. This installment is just 12 pages long. I am reading it in Tales of the Batman: Len Wein via Hoopla. The individual issues would probably cost me at least $15 to $25 a piece in fine condition.

Detective Comics Annual 2

Detective Comics Annual 2

1989

Blood Secrets

by Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn, Val Semeiks, Michael Bair, Todd Klein, Adrienne Roy, Dan Raspler, Dennis O’Neil

Bruce Wayne, before he began his career as Batman, traveled to Huntsville to learn about detective work from Harvey Harris. Bruce, under the assumed name of Frank Dixon, helped Harvey find the thread that connected several murders: all the victims were former members of a terrorist organization known as the Paladins of the Cross. 

Detective Comics 500.7

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

What Happens When a Batman Dies?

by Cary Bates, Carmine Infantino, Bob Smith, John Costanza, Adrienne Roy, Paul Levitz

22 pages

Deadman comes to Batman’s assistance after the Dark Knight is bit by a dog with a poisonous bite. The two heroes work together to solve the case before Batman dies from the quick acting poison.

Detective Comics 500.6

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

The Strange Death of Doctor Erdel

by Joe Kubert, Paul Levitz, Adam Kubert, Tatjana Wood, Len Wein

8 pages

Hawkman (Katar Hol) and Hawkgirl (Shayera Thal) investigate the mysterious death of Doctor Erdel. There are two suspects in the case: Fred Schneider (Erdel’s assistant) and Anna (Erdel’s niece). Their investigation leads them to the actual culprit, the computer.

Detective Comics 500.5

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

The Batman Encounters Gray Face

by Walter Gibson, Tom Yeates

8 pages

Batman rescues a man who is near death. He confers with Commissioner Gordon and then goes looking for the villain.

Detective Comics 500.4

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

The Final Mystery of Edgar Allan Poe!

by Mike W. Barr, Jose Luis Garcia Lopez, John Costanza, Tatjana Wood, Paul Levitz

8 pages

Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man, and his wife Susie investigate an assault of an Edgar Allan Poe enthusiast named Edwin Allman Pohe.

Detective Comics 500.3

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

Once Upon a Time…

by Len Wein, Walter Simonson

2 pages

Batman breaks up a crime in progress. There is no dialogue in this brief story, just captions. The captions are all lifted from Peanuts cartoons from 1969, when Snoopy was writing a novel.

I’m not sure what to make of this story. It feels like an inside joke. I had to search the internet to find an explanation of what it was. I recognize the first line now that the connection to Peanuts has been pointed out but the other captions I did not recognize.

Detective Comics 500.2

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

The “Too Many Cooks…” Caper!

by Len Wein, Jim Aparo, Tatjana Wood, Paul Levitt

13 pages

Seven private detectives are present when Archie Evergreen is murdered. Evergreen was a former police officer and private detective. He was about to retire. The murder happens at a gathering held in Evergreen’s honor. All seven detectives knew him and looked up to him.

The seven detectives team up to solve the mystery of Archie’s murder which initially looks impossible.

Detective Comics 500.1

Detective Comics (1937) 500

Mar 1981

To Kill a Legend

by Alan Brennert, Dick Giordano, Adrienne Roy, John Costanza, Paul Levitt

Batman is called upon by the Phantom Stranger to save the Thomas and Martha Wayne of another world from being killed. Robin (Dick Grayson) goes with him. Batman is convinced that saving the Wayne’s is the right thing to do. Robin questions whether they have the right to interfere in the natural course of events. Will this world be better without a Batman? Will the Bruce Wayne of this world turn out worse because his parents aren’t killed?

Batman and Robin make some assumptions based on what they know happened on their world but things don’t turn out exactly the same.

Detective comics (1937) 443

Detective comics (1937) 443

Oct/Nov 1974

Manhunter

Chapter 7: Götterdämmerung

by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Annette Kawecki

Batman arrives at the Gotham waterfront to meet a friend but instead he is greeted by Commissioner Gordon and the GCPD. Dan Kingdom, Batman’s friend, is dead. Kingdom was an ex-Green Beret and a ninth-degree black belt. Batman is stunned and angry but returns Wayne Manor and doesn’t pursue the matter further.

Detective Comics (1937) 442

Detective Comics (1937) 442
Aug/Sep 1974

Manhunter
Chapter 6: To Duel the Master
by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Alan Kupperberg

Manhunter arrives in Japan, hot on the trail of Dr. Mykros. His plan is to take the place of one of his clones. His plan gets derailed by Asano Nitobe, his former teacher. Nitobe anticipated Manhunter’s course of action and delays him long enough for Dr. Mykros and his followers to escape the area.

Detective comics (1937) 441

Detective comics (1937) 441
Jun/Jul 1974

Manhunter
Chapter 5: Cathedral Perilous
by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Alan Kupperberg

Manhunter and Agent St. Clair travel to Istanbul where they infiltrate a meeting of the supporters of the Council. The meeting takes place in the Romulus Cathedral. Some tourists, an American couple and their young son, arrive at the cathedral at the same time as the others.

Dr. Mykros and a couple Manhunter clones teleport into the meeting. Mykros is there to address the Council's supporters, who are not happy with the Council. The meeting ends abruptly when an alarm goes off signaling that someone is recording all that is being said. Manhunter tells St. Clair to make a run for it with the recording while he provides a distraction.

Detective comics (1937) 440

Detective comics (1937) 440

Apr/May 1974

Manhunter

Chapter 4: Rebellion

by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Alan Kupperberg

Kirk and St. Clair rush out into the street in search of Nostrand. He almost runs them down in a car. Manhunter punctures the fuel tank of the car with a knife as it goes past them. He finishes off Nostrand with a match that ignites the trail of gasoline that leads to Nostrand’s vehicle.

Kirk tells St. Clair about how he went to the Council to protest his orders to kill an agent of Interpol. They told him that somethings are necessary and sent him on his way. He spent some time with Asano Nitobe before he left the Council’s headquarters. They discussed his options while they sparred.

Detective Comics (1937) 439

Detective Comics (1937) 439

Feb/Mar 1974

Manhunter

Chapter 3: The Resurrection of Paul Kirk

by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Joe Letterese

Christine St. Clair finally catches up to Paul Kirk (Manhunter) and gets the story of who he is and how he came to be who he is. She finds him on a rooftop in Marrakech. He is surrounded by bodies of men who look just like him.

Manhunter is wounded. He needs time to heal. He hands her his gun. He knows that there will be more of his doppelgängers arriving before long. She keeps them at bay while he tells his story.

Detective comics (1937) 438

Detective comics (1937) 438

Dec 1973/Jan 1974

Manhunter

Chapter 2: The Manhunter File

by Archie Goodwin, Walt Simonson, Klaus Janson, Ben Oda, Joe Letterese

Christine St. Clare returns to Zurich where she reports her findings on Manhunter (aka Paul Kirk) to Damon Nostrand, her boss at Interpol. Manhunter escaped a trap set for him on board a ship traveling from Calcutta to Burma by killing a tiger with a Bundi dagger. He first caught Interpol’s attention months before that when he showed up at Banque International to withdraw money. Kirk was believed to be dead. He hadn’t been seen in over 25 years. They checked his fingerprints and found that they matched the ones that the bank had on file.