Published: September 20th, 2017
Written by: Stuart Moore
Art by: Dan Panosian, Valentine De Landro
Based on: Noir Alley by Turner Classic Movies
TCM, DC Comics, 22 Pages
Review:
There was a cool little comic book that was given away at the DC Comics booth at this year’s New York Comic Con. This was that comic, a collaboration between DC and Turner Classic Movies.
Batman In Noir Alley is an Elseworlds tale. It sees Batman team up with the host of TCM’s Noir Alley program, Eddie Muller. Their story is pretty short and brief, even a bit one-dimensional, but it was amusing seeing Batman side-by-side with one of my favorite television personalities.
In the main story, Batman is in San Francisco trying to track down the Moroccan Raptor, which was stolen from the Gotham Museum. It starts with Bruce Wayne watching the film The Moroccan Raptor in a dark San Fran movie theater. Something pops off, Bruce becomes Batman and finds himself in the lair of Eddie Muller, his set for Noir Alley. The two then try to solve the mystery but there really isn’t any suspense and the story is over about as quickly as it started.
Part of the problem with this rushed narrative, is that the story only takes up the first half of the comic book, about ten to twelve pages. The second half of the comic is the story Gotham Noir, which is another Elseworlds tale, this one following Jim Gordon, a private eye in this, and Selina Kyle a.k.a. Catwoman. It seems to be a better story overall but it ends on a cliffhanger, unresolved. The only way to get the story’s conclusion is to download the digital Gotham Noir comic on the DC Comics website. It isn’t free though, it costs $4.99. I felt cheated but this physical comic book was free at the New York Comic Con, so I shouldn’t be that upset about it. I had to buy it on eBay though, as I didn’t go to NYCC and I didn’t have a comic shop near me that got some of the free copies to hand out.
Still, this was a cool and unique concept. I’m a fan of Noir Alley and I’ve been a lifelong fan of Batman. I just wish the Muller story was something better and that this wasn’t just a ploy to get me to buy some other comic book. If DC wants my money, I can show them my collection that’s full of their comics going back to the 1960s. My Batman collection alone, is pretty astounding. You’ve got my money, DC.
Rating: 5.25/10
Pairs well with: The Noir Alley television show.
Talking Pulp 