GOTHAM ACADEMY Vol 1
DC Comics
Written by Becky Cloonan and Brendan Fletcher Gotham Academy adds a new dimension to the Bat-Family of comics. While not as closely tied to the dark knight as Robin or Batgirl, Gotham Academy does have ties and appearances of Bruce Wayne and of course it takes place in Gotham. The book seems to be targeted at a bit of a younger audience but as an older American I really enjoyed it so I would call this a book for anyone who enjoys good suspense and adventure.
In this first story arc we meet the players. Olive Silverlock, Maps Mizoguchi, Kyle Mizoguchi, Colton Rivera and Pomeline Fritch make up the main crew. We follow Olive into her second and the story is told from her perspective. Something happened to Olive over the summer and it’s left her a bit different. She doesn’t remember most of it but we learn she now has a fear of bats and mention of the Batman freaks her out. The school has a policy of hooking up first year students with older so Olive is mentoring Maps, who also happens to be the sister of Olive’s boyfriend Kyle.
We quickly learn that Olie is having trouble adjusting post summer and hanging out with Maps who is very enthusiastic seems to give something to help take her mind of her problems. A few days into the semester the school warns to stay away from a part of the school which is now closed off. There are also reports of a ghost. Olove and Maps start to look into this and this is when the book gets really fun. Little by little Olive and Maps start to form a group with the other characters and they investigate the strange goings on. The obvious points of reference here would be Scooby Doo meets Harry Potter but for me it feels like more than that. It has a vibe of classic Agatha Christie and the suspense of Hitchcock.
I loved every page of this and can’t wait for more.
Jon Jordan
