Li’l Gotham #4 is definitely different from the other issues we’ve seen so far. Not only is the artwork more detailed, but it’s also wordier and, oh yeah, it’s all girls! If you’re a fan of Dini’s Gotham City Sirens or maybe you just loved the Harley and Ivy episodes of Batman: The Animated Series then I think this installment is totally going to be worth it for you. I opened it up expecting a sort of cutesy Times Square ball-drop parody, but Nguyen and Fridolfs went in a completely different direction for this New Year’s Eve special.
The story opens with Batman swinging through the Gotham streets alongside Catwoman who is snapping her whip from gargoyle to gargoyle right behind him. As usual they are having a discussion about how Catwoman needs to give up her criminal tendencies and side with good once and for all. Batman leaves Catwoman to ponder her actions and swings out of frame and we never see him again. It’s New Year’s Eve and Selina is taking Batman’s advice to heart this time and ultimately decides to make a the transition to good her New Year’s resolution. Nice premise, eh? Well, things get even better when old pals Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn show up and drag Selina out of the house to spend the holiday partying with them.
From then on it’s one amusing situation after another as Selina tries to convince herself that what she and the girls are doing isn’t SO bad. It gets a bit repetitive toward the end and ultimately it’s just one fun book full of gags but I really enjoyed this and thought it was one of the funniest issues yet. The art by Dustin Nguyen was also especially good. There’s a lot more variety in the colors he used, he worked with shadows and lighting a lot more and there were quite a few tiny details that must’ve been pretty tough to do with a brush .
One thing that’s definitely going to catch people off guard however is a character at the end that isn’t anywhere close to being as iconic as the other heroes and villains seen in Li’l Gotham.
Overall, it’s another solid issue. I’d have to say it’s my third favorite of the series so far and a definite must-buy for fans of the Gotham City Sirens. Go pick it up at Comixology.com for a buck!
SCORE: 8.5/10
