Batman – The Dark Knight: Golden Dawn

Batman: The Dark Knight

by David Finch (Writer/Illustrator), Jason Fabok (Illustrator), Scott Williams (Illustrator)

Delving into the more supernatural and esoteric areas of Gotham City, the 6-part storyline explores the horrific murder of one of Bruce Wayne's childhood friends... and the terrible ramifications the brutal crime has on Batman's life.

Collecting: Batman: The Dark Knight 1-5, material from Superman/Batman 75, & Batman: The Return

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Batman, Dc Comics, Comic Book, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 10, 2012

About the author

Artist discovered by Topcow comics. Worked on various comics including Cyberforce, Witchblade, Tales of the Witchblade, Darkness and his creator own title Ascension. He also co-created Aphrodite 9. The artist then moved on to working for Marvel comics including the titles New Avengers, Ultimate X-men, Wolverine covers, and various others.

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Reviews

[Jayson · Rating 2 out of 5]

(B-) 70% | Satisfactory
Notes: Great art, but what story there is feels unfinished, ungainly, unpolished, unsubstantial, unresolved, and unsatisfying.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

SPOILERS

A girl from Bruce’s childhood – Dawn Golden – has grown up to become a socialite who is now missing, presumed dead. Bruce turns away from Batman Inc. to focus on finding Dawn but becomes embroiled in a supernatural battle between demons involving Lady Blaze and Etrigan (who has temporarily lost his powers).

First off, I’m a big fan of David Finch’s art – he’s done amazing work for X-Men, Moon Knight (one of the demons in the book – Ragman - looks like a green Moon Knight), Batman, Superman, Captain America, the list goes on. Every strip I’ve seen him draw has been high quality. Unfortunately like another great artist turned writer, Tony Daniel, David Finch’s writing leaves a lot to be desired.

The plot holes make this a very poor Batman book. Never mind that Dawn Golden (tritely named too as the subtitle is “Golden Dawn” – groan) has never been mentioned before, why is Gotham suddenly teeming with demons? First Dawn’s dad turns out to be an evil sorcerer (no further background, he just is), then Jason Blood becomes Etrigan to get his powers back (when did he lose them?), and then Penguin is apparently involved with some demon leader for something (it’s never explained). There’s also a subplot about a daughter of a Wayne Enterprises employee who manages to break into the Batmobile for some reason but this storyline doesn’t go anywhere either.

There’s one very sloppy plot hole at the end where Etrigan (who doesn’t have his powers) is losing a fight to Lady Blaze (who has his powers) only for him and Batman to show up in another scene 2 pages later with his powers, battling a new set of demons, with no further mention of how he got those powers back, how they escaped Lady Blaze, and how they made it to this new location – it’s just a mess.

Also included is a one shot written by Grant Morrison that sets up Batman Inc. and a 2 page story written/drawn by David Finch involving an old Damien and Connor, both in Batman and Superman outfits, talking about their dead parents.

The book looks great and David Finch remains an outstanding artist but he’s got a long way to go before he becomes a writer of equal ability.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I'm not usually a fan of Batman and the supernatural, but this story was entertaining. For some reason Batman/Etrigan team-ups don't bother me.
It's not a great story, and Bruce's obsession with his childhood friend seemed just a teeny bit melodramatic.
There were other problems with the story, but overall it was ok. Brain candy with nice art.

There are three shorts at the end of this volume, but I didn't like any of them very much. They were all pretty dorky.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's kind of dismaying to see Aliester Crowley and the Golden Dawn reduced to the status of an inside joke. Yes, some of the mood comes from that tradition, but the names are basically there so Finch can wink at the reader and say, "See? I've done my homework. " Just how many women from Bruce's past are there, anyway? I've lost count, and I rather suspect he has as well. This is basically a pretty decent story. A rich socialite has gone missing and James Gordon's job is on the line as he and Batman scour the city for clues. And there's a demon stalking her as well, which brings Etrigan into the mix ... Some story points are unclear. There's a point where Batman is fighting Killer Croc, and his utility belt gets torn off, but it's not really clear from the artwork. I had to go back and reread it before I figured out what happened. And the ending ... so I reread it three or four times and I'm still not sure how they beat the bad guy. It's implied that Etrigan may have done ... something? Or perhaps it was just spontaneous combustion? It smacks way too much of deus ex machina for my liking. There are two shorter stories rounding out the volume. The one by Grant Morrison begins well, giving us the story of the bat that flew in through Bruce Wayne's window, but then wanders into Dark Knight Returns territory with Batman as general leading an army. Grant writes Batman the Master Planner well, but it's always struck me as a dead end. My favorite Batman stories are from the 70's and early 80's. Give me Denny O'Neil or Steve Englehart or Mike Barr and I'm happy. The final story in this volume is a David Finch two-pager set in the future that's much better than the Golden Dawn main story.

Addendum 5/16/18:
This is another of those books that I didn't mean to read twice. It just faded from my memory to the point where I didn't recognize it on the shelf, and thought, “Hmmm … this looks interesting. “ You read as much as I do, it happens.

I don't like it any better the second time around. It's an interesting premise, but the villain is disposed of just a little too handily. Etrigan switches sides a little too easily, though, to be fair, it's not the first time in this story that that happens.

The Grant Morrison story begins promisingly enough, but goes downhill once the bit dealing with Batman’s origin is over. And the second David Finch story is so short that it's barely there.

[Frédéric · Rating 1 out of 5]

Once again it's proven that being able to draw a story doesn't mean you can tell one.

David Finch plots and draws (3 issues out of 5) of this one and the sad truth is that it sucks. Big time.

To say the plot is corny and confused is an understatement.
 
Two main cardboard cutouts pop out of nowhere: Dawn Golden, an empty poor lost girl suffering from an evil cultist (caricatural) father and Jack Forbes a so obviously corrupt cop it's laughable.

Etrigan walks by for some reason, bereft of his powers for some other reason- though I'll admit that not reading boring rhymes was somehow restful. 

The narration is totally awkward, up to a point I even wondered if Finch hadn't forgotten one subplot (the geeky girl) along the way.

As for the dialogues they sadly don't stand scrutiny for more than 2 seconds  and sound as phony as the plot. I'm not sure it was Finch's intent but Etrigan speaking of the "Demonic Duo" he forms with Batman was almost funny. Almost.

After 3 standard issues (decent but in no way amazing) Finch gives the pencil to Jason Fabook who delivers a by-the-book in-house job: bland and without any show of personality.

Barely coherent and lacking of any hint of finesse, this book is just a nail in the coffin of Finch's aspirations of being more than the renown penciller he is.

  

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll probably sound like many other reviewers, but some great artwork make Golden Dawn seem better than it actually was most of the time. (The back cover of the deluxe edition pretty much sells the book.) The main story-line, though appropriately dark at times - a damsel in distress mixed with supernatural forces active in Gotham - is sort of thin and does not have a particularly strong ending. Still, even an average Batman book is paired well with a morning coffee break.

[Sesana · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was kind of a hot mess. I'm not a big fan of stuffing Batman into mystical stories. He's not a mystical character, almost anti-mystical at times, so it's usually a poor fit. But it can be done, carefully. Finch wasn't careful. Instead, he seemed to get enamored with the idea of an evil cult. So we have that, plus a friend from Bruce's childhood we'd never heard of before, and an oddly obsessed Batman, and a smarmy new cop, and political intrigues... And it never comes together as a cohesively plotted whole, instead of something that was thrown together as Finch went along. There's an unresolved (at least, in this collection) subplot about the smarmy new cop trying to take Gordon's job, but I don't care enough about the writing to seek out the end of the subplot, nor do I believe that it would ever resolve in anything other than Gordon's vindication. And it probably didn't carry over into the New 52 anyways, so what's the point?

There's also, inexplicably, a Morrison-written one shot, set immediately after Bruce's return from the dead. It's a good enough story, though I have no idea why it's here. Better still is the very short story set in the future (the same one Morrison used in one of his stories) starring Damian as future Batman (and mentioning Terry, ha) and Connor as future Superman. Which, though brief, is actually pretty good stuff.

[James DeSantis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mostly boring title with not much worth reading. The art was good atleast. I really can't remember much from this so not even a full review for it, sorry. A 2 out of 5.

[William Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Batman has always been my favorite hero. (Well, second favorite but I can't really say Aquaman and be taken seriously). He is the embodiment of the aristotelian ideal, perfection of both body and mind. When the Nu 52 was announced, I wondered what sorts of catastrophes we could expect in the fallout. Other than this weird obsession with globalzing his efforts, I've been pleasantly surprised. Note: this book is pre-New 52 and I was getting things a bit mixed up, but my original ratng still stands.

This is what Finch was doing the year before the reboot- the world's greatest detective is on the trail of a childhood friend who's been kidnapped. We get the Penguin, Ragman, Etrigan, Killer Croc and even some time with Gotham PD politics. Its a great opening.

David Finch has some damn good ideas in this book, but I think he should hand over the writing duties to someone else and just do the scripting and artwork. Some of the finer points like dialogue seem stiff and stilted. His artwork though, well, its pretty brlliant. The man is truly the rightful heir to Jim Lee.

Wrting Grade: B
Art Grade: A

[John Yelverton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Typical Batman story that really just goes through the motions.

[J. Griff · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the art in this book, David Finch with Jim Lee’s faithful duo of Scott Williams & Alex Sinclair. Which is the main reason I’m giving this book 3 stars. Unfortunately the writing left somethings by to be desired, the whole story felt disjointed & ending felt rushed with no real resolution. Characters were introduced without any clear explanation of why.

[Max's Comic Reviews and Lists · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Edited Review)
David Finch on Batman. Not to mention the Dark Knight series. I had heard that this story was okay. I put it off for a while, but I came back to it and found it to be...okay. The art is pretty awesome, I will say that. The art explodes off the page in a similar way to Jim Lee's work. I use to hate Batman and the supernatural in a story together, but I have moved on from that now. Batman and Etrigan is actually a fun idea and I liked that element of this story. In fact, 3/4s of this story is pretty damn entertaining. Sure it goes through the motions, but I never the less enjoyed it. There is the main Batman plot with Penguin, Killer Croc, and Golden Dawn. Then the 3 other side plots are Etrigan's, Commissioner Gordon's, and this little girl who is communicating with Alfred. All of them were good until the final quarter of the book where everything just CUTS OFF!

The story ends really abruptly with almost no time for any character development or tying up loose ends. My main issue with this story is Dawn Golden. I didn't really care about her too much. Of course, she is a girl that Batman needs to protect from the villain so obviously, you are rooting for her to live. But she is bllaaaanddd. She gets a quick backstory at the beginning of the book, but there is such a lack of her and Batman together building character that there was nothing interesting I found about her. She was literally your run of the mill damsel in distress. With her comes an at first cool and interesting villain. The twist I saw coming a mile away and near the end, this character is corny and clichéd as hell, with you guessed it. Nothing interesting about him. He was also extremely undeveloped. Etrigan, as I said before, is a cool addition to the story. It isn't ever really clear why he is in the story but y'know I'll go with it. Lady Blaze also makes an appearance but after doing her evil stuff just gets cut off. It is never shown how she is defeated AT ALL! The story just skips what happens to her! Why?!

Jim Gordon's sub-plot is actually pretty good. Kinda generic but I liked reading it. Until it gets cut off. Look, this is a TRADE. A hardcover deluxe edition TRADE. Every plot point should be cleared up goddamnit! In the end, I was having fun with this story until I realized the main point of the story isn't all that riveting. In fact, it was bland as hell. The book ends to quickly for sure, the art is top notch, and Batman is how he should be, but a little more short with his temper.
Letter Grade: (C+)

[Viktoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've never given a Batman book lower than a 3, but this one is an exception. The story was really thin and boring, and is full of holes and overused plot devices. These are some of the things I didn't like about it (besides Damien and the whole Batman Inc thing which is not the fault of this author):

1) There's a standard brainless "hot-looking" girl that needs rescuing and Batman is obsessed with this case to an unhealthy degree, more than he has been with any other! Yeah, another one. So Alfred tries to talk some sense into him but he just doesn't listen, as usual.

2) How does a teenage girl steal the deepest secrets of Wayne Enterprises (and how does no one notice with all Bruce's security measures) on the orders of the mafia, who are apparently less capable than her? It also seems like if they knew that Wayne Enterprises was making things for Batman it would be easy to figure out that Wayne is Batman. And these mobsters act as if they learned to be bad guys from a cartoon.

3) The Penguin has cornered Batman and his men are pointing huge machine guns at him but he quickly leaps behind a desk and is safe. He pulls some magic gadget from his belt that is some twisty electric wire trap, and all the goons are caught except the Penguin for some reason. But with the help of Killer Croc the Penguin gets Batman back and, in a stroke of evil original brilliance, hooks him up to a bomb that will go off if his heartbeat gets too fast. Batman escapes easily and figures the girl must be nearby because Croc is not smart enough to have more than one place. But wasn't Croc working for Penguin, in which case she could be anywhere?

4) My biggest problem with this book is the portrayal of Batman's personality. It just doesn't seem to be him. The "voice" of Batman is not believably his at all. For example, Batman would never say "Game on". It just seemed like someone else had taken over Bruce's body and was trying to be as cool as Batman.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like it when Batman stories have an element of horror, and this series definitely had that. A childhood girlfriend of Bruce Wayne's goes missing, and as he tracks her down he runs into Killer Croc, The Penguin, The Demon Etrigan, and a bunch of demons and devil worshippers. Ragman shows up too...sort of.

The story did get a little murky at times, and there's a strange subplot involving the theft of the Batmobile that I don't think was ever followed up on. I've always liked Dave Finch's art, and I can tell he has an affinity for Batman and really enjoys working on the character.

Not the best Batman story ever, but good.

[Michael Padilla · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought I would like this one. The setup sounded interesting but it’s becoming more clearer to me that most of the Batman stories involving the occult or anything supernatural doesn’t really seem to work. That’s a bummer because I always wish they do.

This one in particular was just silly. It started off mildly interesting but got boring pretty fast. It was all very predictable and I feel the writers knew this and ended everything really abruptly, making the read feel like an absolute waste of time. Terrible writing and at times so bad it was kind of funny, “Demonic Duo”? Lol ! The art was decent but that’s about it.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's amazing how much art can add to a comic. I've read a lot of comics with great writing and mediocre art, and I'll just fly right past the panels, just getting enough info to move on. But fantastic art, like David Finch's, can hold up an otherwise bland storyline solely by making you want to take it all in and admire every tiny detail.

I guess I had this thought reading this book, because David Finch stops drawing it a little over halfway through and, even though they got a "lookalike" artist to fill in, the quality of the story plummeted for me. It really wasn't that the storytelling was worse, it was just that I didn't take the time to care about the art anymore.

The story is very run-of-the-mill "spooky" Batman stuff. We've got fights with demons, some particularly grotesque-ified Penguin and Killer Croc character models, human sacrifice. It's interesting, if not compelling. Also, this volume is called "Golden Dawn" for no reason other than that the damsel in distress is named Dawn Golden, one of the dumbest names I've heard in quite a while. It took me out of the story every time. It's like if a high school kid thought it'd be meaningful to name his main character "Angst Puberty."

Anyway, this volume doesn't really end or wrap anything up. Just feels like a beginning. It has some surprising stuff in it, but largely it doesn't live in the plot elements it sets up, so there's little to latch onto or care about.

Oh, and David Finch - please draw Batman all the time.

[Dustin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dark Knight (Golden Dawn) is well timed to an audience which has been experiencing a darker, grittier version of Gotham and Batman himself through movies and video games. The story tells more of the trauma and daily pain that is life in Gotham as a citizen, a villian or a superhero. It is well told in a realistic, particularly for a superhero/supernatural setting where Batman's walking the line between good and evil definitely blurs. The book includes the beginning of another storyline as a bit of a teaser and finishes with a short story written from the point of view of those who inherited the mantle of the two most famous superheros, Batman and Superman, as they approach the memorial statue to their mentors and discuss their place in this ever changing less idealistic world. An excellent well executed read.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art is damned good, I especially liked the David Finch cover reproductions.

As far as the story is concerned... well I'm still left here wondering wether there was an actual story told. The story is so intersperced and told in chunky "chapters", that I was often going back a page or two to see if I had skipped anything... nope, no skipping involved, just big chunks of the story the reader has to sort of "make up" for himself.

Very nice art, very sloppy story. That's OK though, it just means I won't have to strain my wallet buying the sequels.

[C.J. Edmunds · Rating 3 out of 5]

The drawing from Finch is a stunning, brilliant & allows the Bat to be a winner in every panel that he is in. For the artwork alone, this deserves a 5.

But for writing it didn't have the ending I was hoping for. It kinda left me with more questions than answers.

Still kudos to Finch on undertaking both drawing and writing duties. And hopefully his next Dark Knight outing will be the perfect combination of awesome drawing and well and depth-crafted writing.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A grim, mystical Batman story. The artwork is wonderful; Finch gives us one of the best interpretations of The Penguin in years. The storytelling is clear and coherent with smooth dialogue and straightforward plot. Unfortunately the conflict feels small and the urgency in the storytelling is stuck in first gear. Also, Dawn Golden is irrational and annoying.... Just blurt out your whole past to a stranger in one breath, Dawn. I'm sure Batman won't mind.

3.5/5

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy a supernatural aspect to Batman's stories once in awhile. And I thought this one was well-done - plus it's fun to see Batman to team up with The Demon Etrigan. Bonus: A couple of back-up stories, one of which is a possible future with Connor and Damian as an aging Superman and Batman talking about their forebears.

[Annice22 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite only having a five issue run, the story was great. Batman was trying to find out the whereabout of his old childhood friend who was abducted. This was a great run and the story was very strong. I really enjoyed this.

[Kerry · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only reason I gave it 2 stars was because I love David Finch's art. Other than that I didn't really see the purpose of this story at all.

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 2 out of 5]

Primer capítulo: interesante. Segundo capítulo: legible. Tercer capítulo: esto ya se está poniendo medio berreta. Cuarto capítulo: ¿Falta mucho? Quinto capítulo: ¿Ya está? Gracias, ¿me puedo ir?

[Hande · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ihan jees. Ei mikään mestariteos, mutta kyllähän tämän luki.

[Ashe Catlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I was reading Batman: The Dark Knight Unwrapped by David Finch, but it didn't collect the whole series. Which was just 2 issues, shame DC couldn't of just added them. Anyway, thankfully I had this trade so I was able to finish it.

The story is about Batman searching for his childhood friend Dawn, she has mysteriously disappeared. It's fairly good, nothing too meaty. I think the best part of the story, was the Batman Incorporated set up which is right at the back. It's a bit of an odd place for it because at the beginning of the story he references coming back, Batman: The Return is actually when he returns. So chronology that happened first, so why is that story after?

Anyway, the last two issues turned the story supernatural. Which works but doesn't make a whole lot of sense. One moment it's gangs and venom on the street, next moment it's demons. I did like how Dawn's story came to a close, the bit with the Batmobile thief was just kind of thrown in there towards the end. No real resolution, same came be said with the Forbes and Gordan situation, that could be because of the new 52. But being that Forbes shows up in Batman: The Dark Knight, Vol. 1: Knight Terrors, deaged and not in the same position of power, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

As I said it's fairly decent story, with amazing art. Just don't pick at the story too much, otherwise it won't make much sense.

[Chris Orme · Rating 4 out of 5]

43/100 (2018 Reading Challenge)

Reading as part of the legend of Batman series, no9. Did not think as bad as some of the reviewers below have said. It was still enjoyable. I thought the dialogue was alright, no Miller or Snyder. But still decent enough. Yeah the story kind of feels like there are unfinished parts but of course this is only issues 1-5, so although it’s an arc of course there are going to be unfinished leads. Because you know that’s how you set things up. Yes, it could be all self contained, but I would say that can quite often be comics in general not a specific criticism to be levied at this particular one. Yeah, introducing a new character does feel out of the blue sometimes when a character has such a history like Batman & you go, okay if she is so important why have we not heard about her in the last over a half a decade of stories? 😋 But once again, when you’re dealing with characters such as Batman any introduction can feel that way.
My only real solid criticism with it, is the fact that it dashed back and forth between characters & plot points so quickly. I imagine to illustrate that it’s all happening at same time. But personally for most part would have rather had them tied together, it does not get bewildering but..personally still did not like effect it had in stopping me getting too absorbed. It may be my least favourite of 9 so far but far from a 1star

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, so much happened in this story, it was a quick one, smaller than usual but it was jam-packed with layers of story and sneaky peaks of what's going to happen in the future.
Firstly there was the childhood friend of Bruce, a connection to his past before the tragic event that turned him into the infamous Batman and how she (or specifically her father) was connected to the mystical.
Next, we have a very reflective, not moody, Batman. David Finch really captured how I feel Batman would be feeling after what he had recently gone through during his time away from Gotham.
Absolutely stunning illustrations, from the character design, (realistic yet lusciously buff) to how the comic title pages were designed, to the little details that added texture and depth to the background and the colouring; I was a huge fan of this work. As soon as I opened the book I was like, 'yep, going to love looking at this one, hope the story meets up to it.'
And it really did 'cause thirdly we had cameos from Killer Croc and Penguin; just fab. Not only that but at least four times throughout the story I literally laughed out loud; Alfred is always a card, very much looking forward to Pennyworth coming to Netflix.
I loved it, as always I just live for this collection of Batman stories.

[Vicenç Sanz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Estamos de nuevo ante una obra irrelevante dentro de las grandes historias del personaje, un comic puente sin demasiada chicha y con el reclamo evidente de su dibujante (que, repito, no es siempre el mismo).

Es de esas obras que entretiene mientras lees, pero que como pasen unas pocas semanas desde su lectura acabas por olvidar totalmente (y eso en mi es raro) del poco impacto que causa.

Lo que intenta ser algo emocional que desgarre a Batman por dentro acaba por ser una excusa para verlo moverse de un lugar a otro, recuperando sensaciones y recordándonos algún que otro trauma de su pasado (otra vez).

Así pues, no puedo recomendarlo, quedando en una obra menor, bastante del montón. Que sí, que no molesta, pero a estas alturas espero ya un poquito más cuando me acerco a un comic.

[Chris Richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the majority of Batman books still following Grayson in the cape and cowl, and Morrison’s new Batman Inc book taking Bruce on a globe trotting epic, The Dark Knight was launched as a new book to give readers some more traditional Gotham-based action for Bruce as Batman. The timing wasn’t great for Finch as writer and artist though, since Flashpoint struck and rebooted the universe after only 5 issues and it’s clear Finch had to scramble to try and resolve his story in time.

The one arc of the series, Golden Dawn, sees Batman investigate the disappearance of Bruce’s childhood crush Dawn Golden and end up facing various demonic forces on the streets of Gotham.

Finch introduced Bruce’s new costume in The Return (also collected here. I reviewed it as part of Batman and Robin Must Die). You can tell this is Finch’s costume because he makes it look stunning - the glowing yellow emblem popping in every panel.

Dawn Golden is a fascinating enigma of a character. Known for philanthropy but also for public outbursts. Remembered by Bruce fondly but the actions he remembers are cold and cruel. Played a cruel trick on The Penguin but he is The Penguin.

Her father is a demonic cultist raising her only to sacrifice her for his own eternal life, so her troubled life makes sense. Dawn Golden isn’t meant to be another generic perfect love interest, she’s a deliberately problematic and potentially unlikeable character. But we also never get to know her. The contradictions are never resolved before her abrupt death.

What we do see though is her impact on Bruce. He’s obsessed with finding her, enough to abandon his Batman Inc efforts and return to Gotham even while Dick is still active here. And there’s a nice moment where Batman is unusually brutal and rage-filled in his treatment of Penguin, bit its left ambiguous how much that is Dawn’s demon necklace affecting him and how much is his own emotions.

Finch sets up a nice metaphor with the kite at the beginning. Bruce realises when Dawn dies and he has to let her go that she mattered so much to him because she was one of the last links he had to his life before his parents died. She’s filling in for the kite they gave him when they left him before she can still feel close to them. It’s a beautifully tragic realisation that reminds us Bruce is still the little boy who misses his parents at heart.

Finch also writes well a Bruce who is fresh back on the job and taking bigger risks than he should to prove he’s still got it, such as taking on venom-enhanced Killer Croc directly.

The main plot is revealed to revolve around demons as Etrigan and Blaze get involved, and Dawn’s father is revealed to be alive, wearing Ragman, and hunting her. Finch has a great eye for drawing the demonic beings and it works well.

I’m not a big Etrigan fan and was pleased to be spared the annoying rhyming for the majority of the story. I was impressed there was an actual narrative reason for it too. There’s a nice moral ambiguity to his character as he is released to hunt the villains, gives into Blaze’s control to get his powers back, but is then persuaded to return to the side of justice with Batman.

There is also a fun sequence where a young girl steals the Batmobile and is then persuaded by Alfred to return it. The plot of her father’s kidnapping is resolved in the final pages as Batman keeps Alfred’s promise to sort that out. It’s only a small part of the book but it’s a nice reminder of the different scale of things Bruce deals with.

The other subplot revolves around Commissioner Gordon and is sadly unresolved. Dawn Golden’s disappearance opens him and the GCPD up to criticism, leading to upstart newcomer Lieutenant Forbes planting drugs in Gordon’s office and stealing his job. I never quite bought Forbes could get away with talking to Gordon, his boss, the way he does, and it’s a shame there is no closure for that subplot or Gordon in the final issue. It feels sadly forgotten. The rebooted Dark Knight series after Flashpoint does give it some acknowledgement but has jumped to Gordon reinstated, with mandated therapy sessions, and Forbes now trying to catch Batman out instead.

The final issue does sadly have to rush and leave other things in an unsatisfactory way too. Blaze has stolen Etrigan’s power but Batman is ready to help him… then we cut to Batman and Etrigan, power restored, arriving to save Dawn from her father, having presumably defeated Blaze off-panel.

Dawn’s death is, I think, where the character was headed, and the suddenness of it kind of works. But I think it was sooner and more sudden than the story had originally intended and there was more to be done with her. Likewise I imagine Mira and the stolen Batmobile plot was going to get more attention if there was time.

Also, Dawn’s father having successfully sacrificed Dawn, just sort of explodes and dies. The dialogue hints at Etrigan being responsible, but is weird and anticlimactic.

The other unresolved plot thread is from much earlier in the book, when Penguin is visited in hospital by a different Joker-esque devil who wants him to help open the gates of Hell. This was presumably set up for a subsequent arc we never reached.

Had The Dark Knight continued, Finch’s interest was clearly in Bruce as a tragic figure, and I think there would have continued a focus on Batman vs demons, both literal and inner. I suspect there was more of Dawn and her father to be seen one way or another as well.

As it is, we have a promising but ultimately unfinished story of Bruce’s return to Gotham. It’s a shame. This was much better than what the New 52 Dark Knight series chose to open with.