‘Detective Comics Annual #3’ (review)

Written by Peter J. Tomasi
Art by Sumit Kumar
and Eduardo Risso
Published by DC Comics

I was very excited when I heard this was coming down the pike.

Last year’s annual was fantastic and this one looked like it was going to follow suit. That is because Peter J. Tomasi is an excellent writer and his stories are always is worth the price of admission. This one is no different and this is quite excellent.

The opening scene takes place in the past.

We get to see Alfred as a young agent in the middle of a city. A deal goes wrong. Alfred has to make a quick escape!

Why is this happening?

I don’t know but it is a pretty intriguing opening to the story. Then, we segue to the present day and we start to see how this beginning relates!

We have a scene where Batman rescues some people from a burning building. But we see that he is being watched. Batman then heads home to Wayne Manor. That is when we meet the woman who was watching Batman: Ms. Marigold Sinclair.

Ms. Sinclair tells Bruce about how she and Alfred used to work together. We get to see some flashbacks of that. After that, we get to see Batman go out into the night again. He goes up against the NKVDemon. Ms. Marigold helps out in the fight eventually and this all leads into the next story in this issue.

We get to see a story of Alfred in the past. It is a wonderfully illustrated story by Eduardo Risso. This is a real treat. It really shows the relationship between Alfred and Bruce perfectly. You don’t get much better than this. This is a truly excellent and emotionally perfect annual.

RATING: A