- Title: Detective Comics #485
- Comic Vine: link
- Writer: Dennis O’Neil, Paul Kupperberg, Len Wein, Jack C. Harris, Bob Rozakis
- Artist: Don Newton, Kurt Schaffenberger, Steve Ditko, Don Heck
Throwback Thursday takes us back to Detective Comics #485 when you could get five new Batman Family adventures for a dollar, including stories written by Denny O’Neil and Len Wein. The main story, “The Vengeance Vow,” takes Batman to Kathy Kane‘s circus which has been targeted by the League of Assassins (which the Sensei has wrestled control of from Ra’s al Ghul).
Ra’s knowingly puts Kathy in danger knowing it will push Batman into a fight with Sensei and the League which offers the Demon’s Head the best chance at regaining control. The issue is notable for a brainwashed Bronze Tiger doing Sensei’s bidding, including killing Kathy (at this point long retired from her role as Batwoman), and providing all Batman can handle and more, getting the best of the Dark Knight Detective in hand-to-hand combat early in the tale as well as fighting him to a draw later in the issue as well.
The four back-up stories fall into two categories, the first being just plain wacky. The Robin back-up story, “The Case of the Cavorting Corpse!,” is an odd tale of diamond smugglers stealing a dead body and driving it around in a remote-controlled car in order to make an exchange. “The Fatale Finale” features Etrigan, notably drawn by Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko, fighting Baron Tyme who attempts to use the hero’s duality to solve the curse of his own. There’s a Composite Superman aspect to both characters here. For such an odd setup, the conclusion is rather simple as the Demon defeats the villain through the use of a mirror.
The other category features characters in careers I’d long forgot they had. The Batgirl back-up story, “The Case Of The Untouchable Crook!,” focuses on Barbara’s role as a Congresswoman and a thief with diplomatic immunity. This won’t be the last time diplomatic immunity plays into a Batman comic. And in the finale back-up story, we get a retelling of Man-Bat‘s origin while he, as a private investigator rather than a scientist, investigates a would-be super-hero with an armored suit the he loses control of.
[DC, $1.00]