After all, so many comic book readers call for "something different" or "a strong female lead" or "something I can share with my kids." Well, folks, this is it. A buddy book. A mystery. A story about a blossoming corner of the DC Universe's most prevalent city. A story with a secret passage and a surprise character appearance. Bits of "Scooby-Doo," "Harry Potter," "Goonies," "Runaways" and Claremont "X-Men." In short, this is the comic you didn't know you needed to read. Trust me, I was right there too. Read Full Review

It cant be denied that there is something special happening between these pages. Personally, I dont know if it's nostalgia for being a teenager obsessed with all things paranormal and Buffy the Vampire Slayer or something else entirely but this book brings me such joy. It is an absolute delight and I cant help but read with a big grin on my face. Its a huge step away from DCs usual offerings and it really does have something for everyone. Read Full Review

I could go on about how much I love this book, as I really don't think I've captured just how excited each new release makes me, but we'd be here all day and I'd like to wrap up for the week. Just let it be known that that is an incredible book that feels fresh, unique to most books out there, and something that DC sorely needed to publish. It's lovely to see something like this given how much DC seems focused on grim and gritty versions of their character that book bursting with charm, energy and loveable characters is their best and most consistent book. Make sure to check this out and spread the world to all your friends to check out Gotham Academy. Read Full Review

Gotham Academy #4 is a great issue in a series of great issues. This is a book that strips away the muck thrown over the franchise left festering by a consumer base that demands Gotham remain a shallow horror show. This series brings together all that makes Batman great without relying on tired angst. This is a series I could recommend to everyone, because everyone in it matters. Read Full Review

This book continues being great and exciting, fun.  Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher and Karl Kerschl continue giving fans a developing mystery and while we get some answers this month, we also get some intriguing new developments.  I love this book and recommend it to anyone and everyone. Read Full Review

The mysteries deepen but we are also closer to finding out the truths! Read Full Review

Gotham Academy #4 has Olive dealing with the consequences of the previous issue before pushing her into more danger. The dynamic between her and Maps is further define and the issue looks beautiful. Read Full Review

The creative team proves here that they have a lot left in this series. Far from being a drop off in quality this issue might be the best so far, especially as the shock value has worn off from the first few issues for those that thought that such a series could never be good or entertaining. Indeed this is one of the best issues that DC has on offer from its wide selection of titles. It is still tied to superheroes and belongs in the DC Universe, but at the same time it mostly doesn't and stands on its own by itself as well. Read Full Review

Gotham Academy might seem like an all-ages teen-drama comic at first glance, and it is, but it's so good at what it does and embraces so much beyond simple genre tropes that this truly is a comic for everyone. Which is why everyone should be buying it. Read Full Review

Gotham Academy #4 is an issue that closes a lot of doors but opens one huge one. With a great mystery, amazing characters, and the world of Gotham opening up in new and unique ways, this book is one that everybody should be reading and one that hopefully goes on for a long time. Read Full Review

Not enough credit can go to Msassyk and Serge LaPointe who color this issue. They absolutely knock this issue out of the park.Maps enthusiasm to interrogate Eric is pretty hilarious.Bruce Waynes interest in Olive is one of the more compelling mysteries is this series and I have absolutely no idea where its going.Gotham Academy #4 continues adding cameos for the die hard Bat-fans. This issue? Simon Trent a.k.a. The Gray freaking Ghost.  Read Full Review

Matthew can be found on Twitter as @mahargen. During this review he came to the realization that this year the children born after he turned 20 will become teenagers themselves. Read Full Review

It's still a minor miracle that a book like this was published by a major comics company, and while it might have been a gamble for DC sales-wise (and possibly still is, as much as it hurts one's brain to think a book this well-executed could be hurting for readers), the quality of Gotham Academy itself is a testament to the riskslike this that ought tobe taken in the comics industry, and more often. This is the Bat-book we deserve, and most certainly it's the one we need right now. Read Full Review

Honestly, this series only gets better with each issue. While the first issue was charming in its writing and art and promised a lot of things to come, what we're seeing here, four issues in, is that “Gotham Academy” is delivering on it's promises. The art style is something unlike anything you're going to see in a DC comic book right now, built on charm and style, but backed up with an intricate eye for storytelling and use of panel structure to emphasise small, character building moments. The writing uses a blend of genres to build dense mysteries that flesh out the history and intrigue surrounding the setting while populating that setting with interesting, engaging characters the likes of which are rarely seen in Batman comics. This is genuinely DC's best, most underrated comic and there is no reason for anyone to not be reading “Gotham Academy”. Read Full Review

If you're looking for an entertaining book that is fun, good for all ages, and contains quite a bit of heart, then this is a book you should be reading. If you haven't given this title a shot, then you should. Each issue gets better, and if given the time, Gotham Academy could grow to be one of the best books in DC's lineup. Read Full Review

I admit that I wish we had a few more answers or just a little more clarity about things, but I'm also loving the way we're seeing so many aspects of the academy here and its student body as they go through their days. This installment focuses more on Olive and Maps to some degree as they go on a hunt for information, and that leads to some neat little reveals and fun. I really liked the small Bruce Wayne cameo, but I was also glad that the headmaster really overshadowed it after that since he's such a fun imposing figure to work with. The mysteries continue to grow here and I'm really curious to see what the end game for this opening arc will be about just to see if there's enough payoff to make it feel worthwhile in the sense of the story. The series is wholly worthwhile in general though simply for the artwork, but the combination of it all makes this thoroughly engaging throughout. Very, very recommended as a whole. Read Full Review

Count me in with this series for the foreseeable future. Read Full Review

It's hard to believe there have only been four issues of Gotham Academy so far. Each one is packed with interesting characters and fascinating story. This comic has been a real off-kilter treat. Read Full Review

I really like this series. Please go support Gotham Academy, it's great for younger teens and is such a refreshing departure from the regular superhero slog. Read Full Review

There's a mystery afoot in Gotham Academy, but up to this point, it's still not even clear what the nature of the mystery is. Are Olive and Co. on a supernatural hunt for the ghost of Millie Jane Cobblepot or some other spirit-ghoulie? Is there a conspiracy in the heart of the Academy itself, perpetuated by the students and faculty? Or maybe after all is said and done, the strangeness revolves around Olive herself, and the key to solving the mystery is buried within herself and her forgotten memories. Read Full Review

Gotham Academy continues to be a visually impressive title with fun characters in Maps and Olive. I wish the story would show more of their interactions and less of the many supporting characters.Cloonan and Fletcher have created an intricate world for Maps and Olive to explore, and it's fun to watch them unravel mysteries together. Read Full Review

Don't feel bad if the ending leaves you feeling a bit confused. Though it looks like the next few issues of Gotham Academy are going to be exciting, it'll take tremendous effort on Cloonan and Fletcher's part to adequately explain everything that's going on and how it's possible. A boarding school for teenagers is probably one of the most "realistic" and grounded settings in any of the DC books right now. That hasn't stopped the writers from introducing more and more out there stuff, with this ending the most recent and biggest to date " after all, the possibility of a haunting at an academy isn't that impossible in the confines of the DC Universe. All in all, Gotham Academy continues to chug along as the engine that could and there are high hopes for it to get even bigger and better than it already is. Read Full Review

For many, I can understand why Gotham Academy is a tough pill to swallow " the tie-in to Gotham is tentative at best, and without that, the hidden passages and old legends may seem old hat to people who have grown up with the wizardry of Hogwarts. But with this issue, I feel that Olive Silverlock is beginning to embrace her role as a member, however distant, of the Batman family. Combining that with some fun characterization and some sublime art, and this may be one of the best issues of this series yet. Read Full Review

If you're one of the people who have been on the fence about this series, and you've been waiting for something to just happen already, jeez, this isn't the issue to drop. Pick it up, this one's a game-changer. Read Full Review