Every Batman story should be this good. Period. Read Full Review

Overall, this is another solid entry into the Future State line of books. Read Full Review

Future State: Dark Detective #3 (#DCComics @marikotamaki @ashcanpress @Danmora_c #CarmineDiGiandomenico #JordieBellaire @Andworlddesign @adityab) continues to set the high water mark for the exciting Future State project! Read Full Review

Writer Mariko Tamaki, artist Dan Mora, and colorist Jordie Bellaire are perfectly in sync on what kind of story they want to tell and what visual language they need to express it. Read Full Review

Also, featured in Future State: Dark Detective #3 is Future Past part 2 by Matthew Rosenberg (writer), Carmine Di Giandmenico (illustrated by), Antonio Fabela (colors), Andworld Design (letters). This continues the story of Grifter, Huntress and Luke Fox. Future Past has been one of the better smaller stories featured within the Future State titles. Future Past part 2 is the end of this sub-story " and it closed with a few nice twists and some decent action.   Read Full Review

Dan Mora's art is always vibrant and beautifully detailed and this story was no different. Carmine Di Giandomenico delivers some beautiful, gritty and action packed imagery as well. Read Full Review

This is another good Dark Detective issue. The art is excellent throughout the whole book, and both stories are well worth a read. The main feature still has some issues with regards to how the story is being told, but Grifter's tale is solid and offers a very satisfying read. All things considered, I definitely recommend this issue! Read Full Review

With this issue being a wrap for this storyline, it's a case that two issues just isn't enough for many of these stories. Read Full Review

These two stories are the latest in an amazing set up for the DC Universe. My main question is how. How did we get here? What is the full story that leads us down this path? Maybe this is taking place in one of the numerous multiverses, but either way, I am ready for the ride. I would 100% recommend you pick up this issue, sit back, and enjoy it. Read Full Review

This is the sort of alternate take I like to see in an event like Future State. New ideas, new status quo, but same classic, awesome character at the heart of it. Read Full Review

Future State: Dark Detective #3 is a winner, from cover to cover. I will be grabbing this from my local comic-book store the day it comes out, and adding it to all the other Future State books I've picked up. I'm sad that we're already three quarters of the way through this event, but the doors it's opening, and breadcrumbs it's dropping, are enticing, indeed. Read Full Review

This reviewer is turning around on Tamaki's Dark Detective. Bruce Wayne as an isolated tech guy, collecting intel while working out of a dingy room with only a conspiracy theorist as company, comes together this issue as a strong new vision for the character. Let's see if the finale sticks the landing. Read Full Review

DC Comics' Future State: Dark Detective #3 is another thrilling issue of a great new series. It has a brilliant and terrifying new chapter of Bruce Wayne's days in a new Gotham and features the explosive conclusion to Grifter's partnership with Luke Fox. Read Full Review

Both stories in Future State: Dark Detective #3 drive home how what happened to Gotham City under the Magistrate regime has been the most fascinating story in the entire Future State direction. The developments involving Grifter and Huntress continued the trend of back-up stories in Dark Detective and The Next Batman stealing the show. In stealing the show the back-up story for Future State: Dark Detective #3 helps strengthen what we see Bruce Wayne do to combat the Magistrate. So at the end of the day, it all creates a much better reading experience that makes you looking forward to what happens next. Read Full Review

Grifters fails to meet the high expectations set from its first installment but Dark Detective advances Bruce Wayne's story enough to make this worth grabbing for Batman fans. It just feels like this issue could have been so much stronger leading to the Dark Detective finale later this month. Read Full Review

Future State: Dark Detective #3 rushes towards a final showdown just as Bruce Wayne begins making headway into unraveling the Magistrate. The noir atmosphere is top-notch, but the story comes across as sparse and trite, as if we're missing a middle section somewhere. Read Full Review

We end with Grifter in cuffs, on his knees, and smiling all the way.Bits and Pieces:Future State: Dark Detective #3 gives us a Bruce Wayne that thinks a lot, does little, and learns almost nothing. On the other hand, Grifter fights, wins, gets double-crossed, and gets captured. And he looks like he's loving every minute of it. Read Full Review

Cool.

" Always a new hero to replace the old one. Because it's about a symbol, not a person. Batman is dead. Long live Batman."
- BATMAN (BRUCE WAYNE)

I thought the Dark Detective story was pretty good. I'm worried about the pacing at this point. What could issue 4 do to make this story worthwhile? I like how Tamaki writes Bruce, but that only goes so far. The art is great still. The Grifters story was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed how Rosenberg wrote the characters. If you liked the Grifters backup, I suggest you check out the Hawkeye: Freefall miniseries from last year that Matthew Rosenberg did.

8,3!

The grifter story wasnt too great but I really have been enjoying the main story throughout these 3 issues. Great art and the story is pretty solid.

Still really enjoying this one, even if it was a bit weaker than the previous issues. The backup story bumps the score down a bit, but even it was pretty good.

The meeting between the Batmen was an uneventful let down, but the Grifter backup story had some nice twists.

A satisfying conclusion to the Grifter jawn, accompanied with the latest inclusion of the chronicles of modern- L.A. - living Bruce Wayne. I want the person to set him up be the daughter of his landlord so bad ! That storyline aside, the big Bruce meets Fox was flat as a pepsi left out for too long. The first couple of issues were explosive but this one was the definitive bridge to what is building up to be a glorious finale.
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Audiomack.com/cvrthebard

Well, that was... nothing. This issue of Dark Detective advertised the meeting of the original Batman and the Next Batman, and their face-to-face meeting turned out to be a whole lot of nothing much at all. In all, they stared at each other, exchanged a few words, then turned away and walked off. That was it. Mariko Tamaki should be ashamed.

The terrible inner monologue Tamaki seems to think Bruce Wayne would be speaking to himself takes on a new voice this time. This issue, Bruce is no longer the moody teenager he was in previous issues, but he has somehow become the voice of the “eat the rich” proletariat who hates the rich because they do whatever they want and play by their own rules and never pay their taxes. What...?! Has Tamaki never read a Batman comic before writing this series? Has she never seen a Batman TV show or movie or cartoon? Why am I paying $5.99 for this?

Assuming you can look past the problems with Tamaki’s inability to understand who Bruce Wayne is and read the story anyway, you still won’t find much here to digest. Three issues in and we still have about 10 pages of real plot surrounded by useless filler and bad dialog. Apparently, The Magistrate has invented invisible micro-drones that record everyone in Gotham City using technology taken from some of the tech companies in the city, and that’s why Bruce Wayne was originally targeted for murder – to cover up the use of WayneTech robotics.

Again, the art from Dan Mora and Jordie Bellaire is a joy. If only DC could find a competent writer to handle the story, this book, wouldn’t be so bad.

The back-up story from Matthew Rosenberg is the real reason to buy this issue. In fact, as much I still don’t care much for Grifter, Rosenberg’s story is so well done that I’d buy a Grifter series if he wrote it. The artwork from Carmine Di Giandomenico and Antonio Fabela is so jaw-droppingly gorgeous that I’m almost willing to pay the $5.99 cover price for just that story and I wish it wasn’t hidden behind this awful Batman story that will keep most people from ever discovering it.

I don’t want to give away any part of the story in the back-up because I truly believe it’s worth reading and experiencing by every comic fan. Even if you must suffer the indignity of buying Future State: Dark Detective #1 and #3 just to get the Matthew Rosenberg back-up story, I suggest you do it. Even nothing else, you can at least in enjoy the artwork in the Batman feature.

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Bruce's story is not bad. The art is nice and the writing solid so it's worth the read. But I don't see myself ever coming back to read it. I have no problems with it, but I don't care enough about it to read it ever again.

And that is my problem with Future State. These stories can be good at best, but not so good I want to read them again.

As for the Grifters -story, I just don't care. About anything in it really. So pass for me.

I'm getting really tired with this comic, I swear. Three issues in, and the plot is being unraveled so sluggishly and uneventfully, I begin to think it may not lead anywhere... oh, wait, I take it back, because of course it doesn't. Future State is just a short event, so the least I could expect from it is a bunch of self contained straight-to-the-point mini stories. This one isn't one of them. It's a drag that feels like it intentionally wants to avoid making a point.

Unlike the supplementary story with Grifter, which ends on a strong note and easily overshadows the titular Dark Detective tale. It's good. So much so, I actually care what happens to Cole now. I want to know what happens to him in this timeline, seriously. Where Mariko Tamaki continuously's been failing, Matthew Rosenberg managed to craft a compelling, dynamic narrative which certainly has to be one of Future State's stronger entries. Makes me even sadder to see it being merely an addon to something simply inferior.

Grifter gets my strong recommendation, Dark Detective not at all. It's a waste of time. more

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• myconius

Bats44121 - Feb 9, 2021

Yes now we know why TIm Fox became the Batman, but it is the Grifter story that tells us this.

Psycamorean - Feb 10, 2021

If you want to read more Matthew Rosenberg, check out his Hawkeye: Freefall miniseries. I'd say it's pretty similar in tone to his Grifters backup.

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In the first issue, I said that they wrote Bruce Wayne like he was an idiot, if anything this comic is consistent. The beginning wasn't all bad, the mention of how more 'good' could be done if the rich paid taxes is accurate, but the irony of Wayne being the one saying it is not lost on me. I have no idea why the new Batman was in this comic, he served no purpose and drove the story nowhere, which begs the question, where is this story even meant to go? Bruce has devolved into a rogue shell of a man who lives with a mentally disturbed man. He comes across as jealous of the Magistrate for doing a better job than him, and I'm honestly just bored of it all at this point.

That said, Grifter was the saving Grace. He's like Constantine, but only if guns were magic. more

Grifter/Huntress Issue #2. That's what the title SHOULD be, because the Dark Detective story tells us that Bruce knows that there are Magistrate nanodrones everywhere, which we pretty much already KNEW. The Dark Detective plot of the story is about one page of plot. Some handwringing. A currently pointless crossover of Tim Fox as The New Batman having a cameo meeting; hopefully in issue DD Issue 4 there is some point to this, other than to sucker readers to pay $6 for this issue.

But SURPRISE, Grifter/Huntress Issue #2 does have a story, a plot, action, and actually moves the story forward. After lots of boredom about Tim Fox as The New Batman (why, exactly?), we now can clearly surmise WHY Tim Fox became The New Batman. That is the value to buying this issue. They don't actually "tell" you, but you can now "figure it out." Tim Fox's motivation is about betrayal and disgrace by family (at least I sure hope so). That plot has mostly been in Marvel comics, but you see it here and there (not very successfully) in DC Comics: Batgirl Stephanie Brown/brother Cluemaster (Arthur Brown), Batgirl Cassandra Cain and her assassin parents, and the always (boring to me) ex-Robin Damian Wayne and his assassin mother Talia al Ghul/lunatic grandfather Ra's al Ghul. I have always thought Marvel did that type of plot better. But lack of other moral / social motivation (not good) has repeatedly gotten more of the Bat family "motivated" or at least "entangled" on these lines.

So Grifter/Huntress Issue #2 does explain things - and fills in missing motivation for the other Future State The New Batman, regarding Tim Fox's motivation. However, it certainly is outside of "canon" (whatever that means anymore), as Luke Fox (aka the former BatWing) was always described as someone with different level of intelligence, skills, values. Aside from the "aha" moment, there is a sense of disappointment that "is this all they have for the future of The New Batman?" You may wonder why this matters in a DD review, when "The New Batman" literally just makes a cameo. Well, it is the only meaningful part of the comic book. The DD plot line is basically 1-2 pages stretched out over 15.

Always glad to see the Huntress, and Bruce Wayne will of course, always be the only Batman; it is good to see Bruce not dead, not a zombie wearing a Black Lantern ring, and not wandering around with an arm cut off, so it is worth it online, if you can get a discount from 6 to 5 dollars on Comixology. Nothing here you really want to hold on to on paper for future investment.

Grifter/Huntress Issue #2 (Rating 8); DD Issue #3 (why you bought this) (Rating 4)

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Mingthemerciless - Feb 10, 2021

There's more energy and dynamism in the back up story in a Batman book than the Batman story in the same book. Doesn't bode well does it?

Bats44121 - Feb 10, 2021

Ming - no it doesn't.

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Honestly this fell like a block of concrete from a tenth floor. The encounter between the Batmen was completely bland, with a Covid pandemic-like stay-at-home tip that made me laugh at the ridiculous comment between the two. It all felt so stagnant and a Bruce not being Bruce.
Then we have Lucius' situation where he decides in a very macabre game to betray Grifter and Huntress is the only thing that raises this number even though it is leaving the Fox family very badly off, possible breach of trust, perhaps theft (resources, technology together with a cloak that has not shown to have actually earned it, the only thing that leaves good is that he is trying to help people but putting aside the Batclan does not look good or maybe they will fix it in Nightwing in some way) and now justified betrayal or no.
The gaps in the story are not good because they allow us to say a lot about the true reasons. more

Aaand eventually the story goes into classic Tamaki territory with cringy dialogue, super boring exposition and huge plotholes. It was a matter of time, as always when it comes to her. Rosenberg's story is not good either.

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Mingthemerciless - Feb 10, 2021

Yeah I was hoping Tamaki would lift Batman when she takes over Detective but the standard dropped with each issue. My bet is editorial demanded Tim Fauxbatman brought into proximity to Bruce Wayne for the inevitable "you have my blessing" from him. Again that's not good story telling its forced and inorganic.

Merlyn - Feb 10, 2021

Yeah, that interaction was clearly forced and the way Bruce accepted that there has to be another Batman without his approval it was completely out of character. A control freak like Bruce would not be like "yeah cool, this dude that I know nothing about will follow in my footsteps, sure, why not".

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