Those of you familiar with Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka’s incredible series “Gotham Central” should know that Rucka has an affinity for Rene Montoya, so when “Convergence: The Question” was announced, there were murmurs that perhaps this “event” would be a good thing, and it’s true, this is a very very good thing.
WRITTEN BY: Greg Rucka
ART BY: Cully Hammer
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: 8 April 2015
So this whole Convergence thing, Brainiac has taken all the possible worlds of the DC Multiverse and contained them within certain domes. The entire world isn’t contained but rather just cities. Each week during the event different realties play out in battle against one another. The characters within the dome are very aware of the converging realties.
This setup allows Greg Rucka to channel many threads from “Gotham Central” to further complicate the relationship shared between Rene Montoya and Harvey Dent. He wastes no time jumping into the thick of the story. The result is a complicated interplay between one of Batman’s most complicated villains and tragic reality of being The Question.
Harvey being obsessed with duality is convinced that life has no meaning in the dome. He tries to kill himself every night, but thanks to chance he never succeeds. Now, with the revelation that there is another Dent somewhere inside the dome, he makes it his mission to track himself down for an assisted suicide.
The concept is fantastic and feels well motivated by the relationship between the two main characters. It’s also incredibly refreshing to see these characters acting in new ways, disillusioned with this new contained reality. It calls into question not just the motivations of the heroes, but the villains as well. What’s the purpose when life has no consequences.
Cully Hammer’s depiction of this new trapped reality is fantastic and well realized. Seeing his version of Two-Face with a beard was an awesome little treat I never knew I wanted. But his physical language in the characters is really the reason to pick this issue up. Everything has a beautifully fluid sense of motion that only lets up when the angles get tighter. His ability to create a somber expression on the disfigured face of Harvey Dent is something to be celebrated. His work brings more nuance to the character than previously thought possible.
Overall, you don’t need to be acquainted with Rucka’s past writing in the Dc universe to enjoy this story, but if you are you’ll be pleasantly rewarded. All the same this pocketed story in previous continuity is an incredibly enjoyable ride that might make you long for the days before the New 52.