Batman and the Signal #1
DC Comics
Written by: Scott Snyder and Tony Patrick
Art by: Cully Hamner
Lettered by Deron Bennett
Duke Thomas finally has his own costume and and code name – Signal. It’s his time to step out into the light to become Gotham’s daytime protector, as a surge in teenage meta-humans have started attacking the city. Can Duke figure out the truth behind the rise in meta-humans whilst also working out his new powers?
The mystery of Duke Thomas following the events of Dark Days: The Casting continues in this three issue mini-series. Signal is Gotham’s latest hero, protector of the city in the daytime, much to the resistance of the Bat-family and the citizens of Gotham! In his first outing, Duke faces a young meta-human known as Null and we get an interesting glimpse at Duke’s new powers and tactics in the field. Duke begins to investigate the source of these new abilities, leading him to Arkham juvenile detention centre. At the same time Jim Gordon brings this same dark case to a detective, one that documents young metahumans dying when their powers manifest…
Hamner’s art is fantastic in this issue; I’m loving his illustrations of Signal, the costume really is 
fantastic and the colours really stand out. The action is also done really well in the fight scene between Signal and Null. How interesting is it to see Gotham drawn in the daylight too?!
This is a solid start to the limited run exploring the latest addition to the Bat-family. Duke Thomson, first seen in Zero Year and We are Robin, is a very intriguing character and I really hope we discover more about his powers, which were first teased in the Metal event. The pacing in this issue was a little slow as all the pieces needed to be put in place, but I’m sure this will pick up in the second part.
