Scans_Daily

The assassins were the League of - in issue #1064, Talia al Ghul'd distracted Batman from their work.

The assassins' targets, representatives of the Orghams of Svatrstal, took the League in stride in Gotham's harbor.

League assassins led by a bull-masked man swarmed the Orghams' ship.

( The bull-man made for the most important of the targets. )

It opens on Bruce Wayne, troubled by disruption in crime's currents and the faltering of his own rhythm in #1062, talking with Harvey Dent in a bar.

Harvey, in a somber mood incongruent with Task Force Z, listened to Bruce's " There's a power vacuum in Gotham and someone new is stepping into it.

" But everywhere I turn, all I hear.. "

( Harvey interrupted, his voice also trailing. )

It's the first issue of " Gotham Nocturne ", an arc title underlining the use of " gothic " and " operatic " as descriptors of the story to come.

It has a narrative scope that doesn't make the reader think " Detective Comics is a satellite to Batman, the book, telling stories for the story's sake " - the wringer it's putting Bruce Wayne through is something that would be at home in that other book as well.

It opens with Batman dealing with smugglers in the Gotham docks handily - and then finding a much hardier challenge in " Bruno Maroni.. Sal's nephew.. ", turned into something inhuman and strong.

The fight was interrupted by the transformed Maroni being shot in the head by Talia al Ghul, who then turned and fled Batman's regard.

Batman pursued - but the only thing he caught was Talia's warning: " They're coming and you are not prepared. "

( The warning pushed an already-lodged barb deeper into Batman. )