Detective 565 – Batman vs the Love Killer, and Steelclaw goes too far
Moench and Colan put some strain on Batman and Catwoman’s relationship in Detective 565 (Aug. 86), as the horrific murders of the Love Killer grab their attention.
Colan’s art is used to terrifying effect with this maniac who beheads women.
As the hunt for him drags on, Batman finds Catwoman getting colder and more distant. When he raises the subject with her, she finds a lot of excuses, but suggests that the two of them are basically loners anyway.
Some of the dialogue seems to imply that Catwoman is about to go back to an old boyfriend, but all is made clear when she returns to her pet jaguar as the story ends.
The fight with the Love Killer concludes in the next issue of Batman.
There’s action aplenty in this Green Arrow installment, by Cavalieri and Stan Woch.
Steelclaw has pushed everything a bit too far. His manipulations as the mayor have made the mob distrust Steelclaw, and his arrogance and demands in that position have won him no friends either. The mob wind up turning on him and killing him.
Green Arrow and Black Canary are left to take down the rest of the mob’s men, but all that they do with Steelclaw’s body is unmask it.
And that boy that Onyx has been using in Star City for food, shelter and support finally starts showing some backbone and demanding some answers from her.