Detective Comics was published July 1939, was written by Gardner Fox and illustrated by Bob Kane. In his third appearance we see some characteristics that define Batman into the modern age. This is also the first issue that is not written as a generic crime story, and instead we are presented with a somewhat super villain, Dr. Death.

The story:
Dr. Death has developed a deadly pollen that he presumably will use to threaten the world. However, he recognizes the growing threat against crime, Batman,  and puts a classified ad in the local paper (something like SWM evil scientist plans to kill, let’s see if you can stop me) to entice Batman into a trap. Batman accepts the challenge and is caught in a trap by two of Dr. Death’s henchmen. Batman escapes with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and eventually follows Dr. Death’s servant, Jabah, to his lab. During his confrontation Dr. Death is presumed dead after a fire breaks out in his lab.

Batman Firsts:
During his confrontation with Dr. Death’s henchmen, Batman picks up a fallen gun and threatens to kill them if they don’t reveal their bosses identity. This is somewhat of a mystery to modern Batman fans since it is well known that he doesn’t use guns.  This is also the first time we see Batman use gadgets, giant suction cups that allow him to scale the outside of a building and a mace like glass capsule used to fend off Jabah. Dr. Death is considered by most to be Batman’s first “super villain” and is also the first to refer to him as Batman.

Overall, this story flows much better than the first two appearances of Batman partly due to an extended number of pages for the story and it’s departure from a simple criminal story. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s review because we may not have seen the last of Dr. Death.