COMIC DETAILS
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Comic Description:
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Batman 94 Modern
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Grade:
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9.8
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Page Quality:
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WHITE
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Certification #:
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3698175005
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Owner:
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ParadoxTremors
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SET DETAILS
Owner's Description
Bought from "InfinityFlux" on eBay 11-21-2020.
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Synopsis (spoilers ahead): Years ago, Bruce Wayne sits outside of a cafe sketching Gotham City. Through narration, we learn that while Alfred thinks these sketches are designs for a better Gotham, they’re actually nightmares Bruce has been drawing. With each incarnation, the skyscrapers grow larger and more frightening. These “dark designs” are a reflection of the monster Bruce needs to become in order to fight the evils in Gotham City.
An old man in a coat and hat trudges down the street, and Bruce gives chase. Bruce follows the man into his home, citing that he followed the man’s clues. The old man, Cassander Wycliffe Baker, brushes Mr. Wayne off. Cassander wants nothing to do with Bruce, citing that though he was once the world’s greatest detective, he disappeared because he was humiliated and outmatched by an arch-enemy. That arch-enemy was the Designer.
Bruce pleads with Cassander to train him. Cassander leads Bruce to a room of his own with walls covered in “dark design” drawings of Gotham City. He then informs Bruce that he’ll teach Bruce the most important lesson of all — how to lose.
In the present, Lucius Fox arrives to help a badly injured Batman. Lucius puts a compression band on Batman’s leg and tells him that he must go to a hospital. Batman stands up and says that the Joker stole the Wayne fortune. Lucius then points to a television broadcast, where lawyers have already begun seizing Wayne assets.
Lucius then tells Bruce that in order to protect Bruce’s company, Lucius needs to step down from helping Batman and focus completely on being a CEO. Once again, Lucius presses Batman to go to a hospital, citing that he would be cared for under a pseudonym. Lucius’ daughter would make certain that both Batman and Catwoman would get the treatment that they needed.
Batman demands to speak with Catwoman. At first, Lucius pushes against the idea but ultimately relents. Batman apologizes to a barely conscious Selina Kyle over the phone, telling her that this is all his fault. He tried to be someone he’s not, and in the process, he pushed everyone away. Batman confesses that Joker saw the cracks in this “design” and exploited them. Bruce tells Selina that he understands if she needs to leave, but he wishes she would stay.
Batman ends the call and tells Lucius to contact Dr. Leslie Thompkins. Against Lucius’ pleas, Batman sets off to collect Catwoman.
At a private airfield away from Gotham City, the assassins load up onto their own private jet. Cheshire walks over to Deathstroke. He’s standing a few yards away, watching Gotham in the distance. She asks him what he’s doing, and he tells her that he’s taking one last look. “I don’t think any of us will be seeing this city again,” Deathstroke says.
At the hospital, Batman finds an empty, bloodied bed where Catwoman was moments before. Just then, Joker’s goons enter, noting that it was smart of Batman to get Catwoman away from them before they could collect her. One of the goons video chats Joker, who taunts Batman with everything the Clown Prince of Crime has taken away. Joker reveals that Punchline kidnapped Lucius Fox and that he has even more in store than just taking all of Batman’s stuff.
“I have a design for Gotham City. My own rebuild,” Joker says. “It starts right now. And you get to pay for it.” As Joker’s goons open fire on Batman, he leaps out of the hospital window.
Somewhere secret, Catwoman awakens in a luxurious bed. She’s been stripped down to her undergarments and covered with a silk blanket. Catwoman cries out for Batman, but Penguin informs her that he’s the wrong winged creature.
Oswald Cobblepot tells Selina that she was lifted from the hospital when the Joker’s goons started sweeping the floors. He then asks her about the Designer, and Selina tells Oswald that the Designer is dead and this is all Joker’s doing.
With that bit of information, Oswald grants Selina entry into his private lounge — The Cool Room. It’s a private lounge where villains can hide when things get too heated in Gotham. The Cool Room has its own doctor, so Selina’s wounds will be tended to. For now, The Cool Room is on lockdown, so no one is allowed out.
Somewhere in Gotham, Batman climbs atop a skyscraper. He’s deep in thought, reflecting on the dark designs he often sketched and how Alfred always envisioned him building a better Gotham. As he climbs, he asks Alfred for a signal. A giant red bat symbol lights up behind him as Batman promises to become a better Bat....
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