/6.webp "The Riddler: Year One #6")
The time has come. Edward Nashton’s long, painful psychological journey and downward spiral have finally brought him to the point where he is ready to take direct action against the corrupt of Gotham. Embittered and abandoned and believing the world is aligned against him, he’s reached the time to lash out. His extensive research and clandestine operations have left him with a deeper knowledge of the city’s web of criminality than anyone in Gotham. And now he knows exactly which targets to strike and when. As Edward finally dons the mask of the Riddler, the series ends right before the start of his first murderous attack, shown in the opening scene of Matt Reeves’s film The Batman. Actor Paul Dano brought this character to life onscreen, and now he completes Edward’s arc with this groundbreaking prequel. Together with renowned European artist Stevan Subic, Dano has crafted a disturbing and emotional tale, filling out the backstory of one of the most unique and terrifying villains faced by any version of the Dark Knight.
Each issue has been strong on its own merits, with Dano’s sad and disturbing look into Edward Nashton’s mind matched perfectly with Subic’s art. This was an excellent examination of fanaticism and loneliness in a sick individual, but Dano presents it from a wholly neutral perspective. For his first foray into comics, he’s done a fantastic job.
The tone of each issue is so heavy I wonder how these will read as a collection, though. Reading these every other month, readers have been able to absorb each issue as its own entity, but the overarching story has been extremely decompressed. When all six issues are read together, I imagine it will feel rather meandering and something of a drag. But I’m not reviewing the series as a whole, I’m just reviewing this one issue.
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