BATMAN #352

"THE KILLER SKY!"
Plot Gerry Conway | Script: Paul Kupperberg
Artist: Don Newton | Inker: John Calnan
Letterer: Ben Oda | Colorist: Carl Gafford | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: In the North Atlantic Ocean, a zeppelin emerges from the fog and uses a tractor beam to steal a military submarine. The next night, Bruce Wayne and Vicki Vale are in attendance at a party abaord a cruise ship when the same zeppelin appears and steals a nearby battleship. While Vicki takes photos of the incident, Bruce ducks away and changes to Batman. He snags the airship with a batline, but the vessel's commander, Colonel Blimp, dispatches his henchmen to deal with the Caped Crusader.

The men attack Batman and eventually knock him off their craft, but they're unaware that he has left a tracking devise lodged in the hull. Later, a battered Batman arrives at the Batcave and explains to Alfred and Dick that he fell through a canopy of trees, using the foliage to break his fall. Despite his injuries, Batman insists on following his tracker, and Robin insists on joining him. Soon, the Batmobile drives through the morning light in the New Jersey countryside, in search of Blimp's blimp. But the Dynamic Duo drive over a landmine, which detonates and totals the Batmobile. After escaping this deathtrap, Batman spots his tracking device attached to a nearby tree. Elsewhere, in a long-abandoned zeppelin hangar, Blimp addresses his men with a speech about having killed Batman and making the world pay for what it has done.

Continuity Notes: In the story's opening pages, Batman visits Jim Gordon's hospital room, where the former commissioner is recovering from the beating he received in last week's DETECTIVE COMICS #518. As Batman lurks outside the window, he sees Barbara Gordon and Jason Bard visit Gordon, followed by the arrival of Commissioner Pauling and Officer McClosky, the man who led the beating. Batman enters the room and scares off the corrupt cops, after which Gordon asks the Masked Manhunter for help in exposing Mayor Hill's corruption.

(On a side-note, I feel like Paul Kupperberg's script this issue could've used a bit more input from editor Dick Giordano. In the span of two pages and eleven panels, Batman thinks to himself, "What have they done to you, old friend?" then greets Gordon verbally with "How are you feeling, old friend?", followed two panels later by Gordon saying, "Jason and I've gone as far as we can on this, old friend..." I get it, Paul. They're old friends.)

DETECTIVE COMICS #518

"THE MILLIONIARE CONTRACT"
Writers Gerry Conway & Paul Levitz | Artists: Don Newton & Bruce Patterson
Letterer: Ben Oda | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: In the Batcave, Robin, Alfred, and Father Green watch over Batman as he recovers from his vampiric condition. Father Green soon leaves, bringing Dala and the Monk, imprisoned, with him. Alfred and Robin (after changing to Dick Grayson) head up to Wayne Manor, where Dick is startled to find Bruce Wayne enjoying a cocktail with Vicki Vale. Bruce and Vicki leave for a date at Gotham's Crystal Ballroom, and Alfred reveals to Dick that he hired the Human Target to impersonate Bruce Wayne in order to throw off Vicki's suspicion that Bruce is Batman. Elsewhere, Rupert Thorne dispatches Deadshot to kill Bruce Wayne, who he believes to be Batman thanks to photos stolen from Vicki.

In the Batcave, Batman takes a call from a prison official who informs him that Deadshot has escaped. Despite his weakened condition, Batman heads out in the Batmobile to find the villain. He interrogtates Deadshot's weapon manufacturer, Augustino Coppola, and soon catches up with Deadshot outside the Crystal Ballroom. Batman and Deadshot fight, their battle taking them into the ballroom, where "Bruce" and Vicki are dining. Vicki is shocked to see Bruce and Batman in the same place and decides she was wrong about the Caped Crusader's true identity. With some help from "Bruce", Batman defeats and apprehends Deadshot, and departs.

Continuity Notes: When Doctor Loom-- I mean, Father Green leaves with the Vampiri siblings, he drops some very cryptic comments which lead Robin and Alfred to speculate as to how he know so much about them. This is quite intruguing, but so far as I can tell, none of these characters would ever appear again.

BATMAN #351

"WHAT STALKS THE GOTHAM NIGHT?"
Writer Gerry Conway | Artists: Gene Colan & Tony DeZuniga
Letterer: Ben Oda | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: Batman, now a vampire, watches from a rooftop as Dick Grayson escorts Vicki Vale back to her apartment building. Dick makes a pass at Vicki and surreptitiously tries to bite her neck, but freezes when he spots Batman's shadow above. Vicki angrily blows off Dick and goes into the building, then Batman swings down and knocks Dick out.

At Wayne Manor, Alfred speaks with Christopher Chance, the Human Target, then goes doesn to the Batcave when he realzies someone is there. In the cave, Alfred finds Batman strapping Dick to a gurney. Alfred calls Father Green, who soon arrives at Wayne Manor and is escorted to the Batcave by Alfred. Green tells Batman that the only thing that will save him and Dick is either a full blood transfusion or a formula created using the blood of the original vampire -- the Monk. Batman and Green leave in the Batmobile, returning to Dala's home. She tells them where to find her brother, and the duo then proceeds to an abandoned church. Batman goes inside, where he finds the Monk's and Dala's two prisoners tied to crosses, then the Monk appears and attacks.

Father Green goes into the church to help Batman, but is attacked by Dala. However Batman manages to overpower the Monk and then defeats Dala as well, and Father Green prepares to make the antidote.

DETECTIVE COMICS #517

"THE MONSTER IN THE MIRROR"
Writers Gerry Conway & Paul Levitz
Artists: Gene Colan & Tony DeZuniga
Letterer: Annette Kawecki | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: Batman, now a vampire, returns to Wayne Manor, where he swats Alfred aside, apologizes, and descends into the Batcave. A moment later, Father Green arrives at the Manor's door and Alfred, confused, lets him in. Alfred places a call to Christopher Chance, the Human Target, then listens to Green's story: more than one hundred years ago, a New Orleans plantation owner named Louis Dubois abused his servants (formerly his slaves), until one night, those servants took revenge by summoning him out to the bayou at night and getting him bitten by a snake. Dubois' sister followed him out to the swamp, where the snake's bite turned him into a vampire, and Dubois then bit and turned his sister as well. Father Green reveals that Dubois is the Monk, and that Batman is now a vampire.

At the home of Dala and her brother, Vicki realizes that Bruce vanished during the party. But Dick Grayson arrives to escort her home, while Dala and the Monk observe from hiding. Elswehere, in Gotham City, Batman comes upon a hood named Marley about to rob a jewelry store. The Caped Crusader stops Marley by biting his neck and draining his blood, then he retreats to a rooftop as dawn breaks.

Continuity Notes: At Gotham City's WGBS News affiliate station, former Commissioner Gordon and his new partner, Jason Bard, visit reporter Olivia Ortega and procure from her the faked Batman photos that Arthur Reeves revealed during his campaign. Meanwhile, Rupert Thorne receives Vicki Vale's Batman photos from Vicki's editor, Morton. Agreeing with Vicki's assessment that Bruce Wayne must be Batman, Thorne prepares to take action.

BATMAN #350

"NIGHTMARE IN CRIMSON"
Writers: Gerry Conway & Paul Levitz | Artists: Gene Colan & Tony Dezuniga
Letterer: Ben Oda | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: Robin awakens from a nightmare in a room at St. Jude's Hospital, where the preist, Father Green, has been watching over him. Elsewhere, Batman returns to Wayne Manor via the Batplane. After landing, he is greeted by Alfred and then Robin arrives. The Teen Wonder invites Bruce to join him for a party at Dala's house the next night, and Bruce agrees. Bruce brings Vicki Vale as his date, and he, Vicki, and Dick arrive at Dala's home that night for the outdoor gala. Dala immediately takes Dick into the house, and Bruce suspects something is amiss. He enters the house as well and finds traces of the couple Dala and her brother were holding prisoner. Bruce spots Dala and Dick outside, walking away from the party. He changes to Batman and follows, unaware that Father Green is nearby and spots him swooping throught the trees.

Batman makes his way deeper into the woods, where he is attacked by the Monk. The Monk overtakes him and bites his neck, then Batman fends off his assailant. But Dick and Dala sneak up on the Caped Crusader, and Dick knocks him out.

Continuity Notes: Surprisingly few this issue, as nearly the entire installment is dedicated to the Dala tales! But we do get a reference to DETECTIVE COMICS 516 and the Adacemy of Crime as Batman returns to Wayne Manor, followed by a scene where Vicki's editor, Morton Monroe, breaks into her desk and steals her Batman file. A page later, Vicik ruminates on her belief that Batman and Bruce Wayne are one and the same. Then later, when Bruce sneaks off to search for Dick, Vicki goes looking for him.

DETECTIVE COMICS #516

"PART TWO: 'ACADEMY OF CRIME': FINAL EXAMS!"
Writers Gerry Conway & Paul Kupperberg
Artists: Don Newton & Frank Chiaramonte
Letterer: Ben Oda | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: At the Adacemy of Crime, the Headmaster's class practice gunning down Batman. After class is dismissed, "Matches" Malone heads into downtown Hollywood with two of his fellow students. When he spots a fight on a rooftop across the street, Matches ditches the men and changes into Batman. He intervenes in the fight, but when the victim of the attack departs while Batman is distracted, the Caped Crusader leaves since there is no one to press charges against the attacker.

The next morning on a Hollywood backlot, the Headmaster asks Matches to assume the identity of Batman for the day's lesson. Suddenly realizing that the previous night's action was staged and the Headmaster is on to him, Matches enters the designated changing trailer and slips out just before the Academy class opens fire and destroys the trailer. Finding the trailer empty, the Headmaster sends his pupils out into the backlot to find Batman. But the Dark Knight takes the criminals out one-by-one until only the Headmaster and one student, Miles, are left. Batman dispatches Miles and the Headmaster grabs his defeated student's flamethrower. But he fails to kill Batman, and the Caped Crusader captures him.

Continuity Notes: While Batman is in California, a lot transpires back in Gotham City! First up, Rupert Thorne meets with Picture News editor Morton Monroe and demands Vicki Vale's Batman photos. Monroe returns to his office and requests same from Vicki, who blows him off and goes to visit Alfred, giving him two weeks (down from the prior issue's three weeks) to concretely refute her theory.

BATMAN #349

"TITLE"
Writer Gerry Conway | Artists: Gene Colan & Alfredo Alcala
Letterer: Janice Chiang | Colorist: Adrienne Roy | Editor: Dick Giordano

The Plot: In Hollywood, awaiting his appointment with the Headmaster, Batman returns from patrol and calls Wayne Manor -- but no one answers. And on the outskirts of Gotham, Robin is tied to a chair, gagged, as Dala speaks to him, then leaves the room. Robin knocks over a candle lamp to start a fire, and uses the flame to burn free of his bonds. But before he can escape, two monstrous beings -- Dala and a man called the Monk -- burst into the room. Robin flings the Monk out the window and smacks Dala aside, then retreats downstairs, where he finds a man and a woman bound, with fang-marks in their throats.

The Monk returns and attacks again, but Robin escapes when the monster catches fire. Robin flees out into the rainy night and is nearly hit by a car driven by a priest named Father Green. Green loads Robin into his car as Dala and Monk observe from their home. Later, at the hospital, Green asks the doctors to keep Robin's presence secret as he observes fang marks on the Teen Wonder's neck.

Continuity Notes: First off, I must discuss the weird placement DC gave this issue in TALES OF THE BATMAN: GERRY CONWAY vol. 3. In that book, this chapter comes after both installments of the "Academy of Crime" story -- something which, on a very cursory glance, might seem correct. "Academy of Crime" is a 2-parter, so one might think the two parts should run together, followed by this issue, which was published in between but probably didn't actually occur in between the two parts.

The only thing is, that's a totally wrong assumption! Part one of "Academy of Crime" doesn't end on a cliffhanger, per se -- it concludes mid-scene as Matches Malone meeting the Headmaster for the first time -- but the second part picks up a day or three later, with Matches reporting for his first class at the Academy. And, per this issue as described above, in between those chapters, Batman was cooling his heels, waiting to hear from the Headmaster, killing time by patrolling the Los Angeles area. Further, there's a sub-plot scene in this issue involving ex-Commissioner Gordon, and another scene with Gordon in part two of "Academy" which must occur after the one here.