Know your Super Buddy

Continuing with the profiling here are the members of the Justice League International. Giffen and DeMatteis did an excellent job demonstrating the uniqueness of their personalities, still, it's always fun to review them. Tell me what you think about them.

Maxwell Lord: The true Maxwell is an opportunistic sleazeball with a great heart. He would manipulate and push so that his will is done; fortunately, he always has the greater good and the best interest of his friends in mind.  He sounds like a used car salesman, the difference is that he always delivers what he promises. He's the incarnation of the "Like a boss" meme; he works hard and he lives hard, always surounded by luxury. He's all charm, and yet, unlike the stereotypical sanguinean type, he gets the job done without disappointments. He has a thing for power and control, but his main reasons are his egocentrism and certain paternalist feelings he has towards the JLI. As the boss, he's always has his eyes on the ball and knows how to take charge without engaging (at least when it matters).

The Martian Manhunter: The leader of the oddest incarnation of the JLI also serves as its father figure; while he seems to have a peer relationship with Batman and Maxwell, he thinks of the rest as "the children".  He knows human nature better than humans so he’s very accepting and avoids engaging in nonsense and even most of the social situations of the team. His attitude and personality often places him as the straight man among the shenanigans of his team. As a leader he's calm, insightful and patient and knows exactly what to say to lead this weird wild crowd, always with his eyes on the ball.  

Blue Beetle: Ted is creative, optimistic, enthusiastic, adventurous, witty and a bit juvenile. He has a great, easy going temper, which is why he's normally in great mood. His friends would say that he's hyperactive and often too smart for his own good. He took the Blue Beetle mantle from his teacher, but the truth is that he's a superhero out of his optimism and sense of adventure. Like Ralph, he's a true example of emotional intelligence.

Fire: Bea is loud, fiery, flirty, fun loving and very hot tempered (a lot like Sofia Vergara or Eva Longoria). She's very street wise, has a quick wit, which helps her charm her way to get what she wants; however, she has no trouble calling things by their name.

In some stories, she has a Bart-Simpsonesque, devil-may-care attitude. She's a nudist who has worked in showbiz for men, yet she showed a smart taste in men (liking Oberon, hating Guy) and was quite protective of Ice's love life. Her deal in that sense seems to be that she uses her sensuality and charisma to get stuff but is very careful when it comes to feelings. Despite her hedonistic exterior she shows good, caring values when it comes to people. This is more evident with good kind people, like Ted, Ice, Mary or the Dibnys. By contrast she's tough on jerks (even if they are still her friends) and really tough on villains.

Booster Gold: He's basically a phony superhero that is perpetually redeeming himself. For some reason, his goals as a superhero are fame and fortune. He's shallow, shameless and often desperate; however, he always pulls through. He's not much of a thinker, which makes him the perfect bottom of the jokes (making him the perfect odd couple for Blue Beetle); however he has his heart in the right place and has an amazing deal of determination, which are the reasons that qualify him as a member.

Ice: She's sweet and caring; her borderline naive innocence contrasts with Bea's sharp eye. She's utterly honest, transparent and, despite certain shyness, she always shows her true emotions. However, she's not a bad judge of character as much as she prefers not to judge, often seeing the goodness behind rough exteriors like Guy's or even Bea's. Her sense of fun is very child-like and playful, which makes her able to enjoy the simple things in life.

Ralph: In JLI he became less of a Nick Charles superhero and more of a funny, paternalistic uncle; going to extremes he never went to get people to laugh. His behavior is more sanguine than ever, as if he decided to take the back seat and relax in this team. His usual wit is still there, but he starts relying on slapstick for humor. At the end of the day people always listen to him and Wally even seeks his approbation. And it figures, hiding behind a class clown surface he's indirectly mentoring and encouraging the new Flash, Power Girl, Mary Marvel and even his wife, who became a member of the team as well. Despite being acknowledged as the most experienced member of the European branch, he prefers being a good team member to being the leader, so he always respected Captain Atom's position as the leader.

Sue: She's the proof that sometimes spoiling works. Despite having everything and being able to get whatever she whims, she cares a lot about people. That's called vision of abundance. Her mood is usually great, she is very plucky, extroverted, chatty, witty and easy going; however, at times she can be high maintenance or show quite a temper, if the situation justifies it. Like Ralph, she is only able to see opportunities and she makes things happen with even less effort. She's a natural problem solver and her main weapons are charisma, charm a quick wit and tons of confidence. As much as she trusts and admires her husband as a superhero, she usually fears for him and the rest of the team when they are on the field, which is the reason she likes to get involved. Before JLI she used to me mostly a carefree, spoiled wife on an eternal honeymoon adventure, but then, a permanent duty as monitor led her to become a technology wiz dedicated to her new team and family, which she eventually lead as bureau chief.

Guy: Arrogant, overly confident, chauvinistic, short tempered, annoying, obtuse and immature: the embodiment of the American spirit gone wrong. He is only a hero because he believes in saving the day, and he's too stubborn not to get things done. He's too much of an action man to think things through. His m. o. seems to be all about bullying the bullies; the problem is that he normally a dick to the good guys, even if he's ultimately harmless and always gets losing. Ice is the only person that gets him to rethink his ways.

L-Ron: Despite being more intelligent than his bosses, he was created to be a servant, so he uses tongue-in-cheek, over-the-top flattery (and often just sarcasm) as a form release. L-Ron seems to be doomed to be an eternal witness to really bad ideas that he can’t prevent from being executed, in fact he normally has to help making them happen. However, little by little, he has moved to a position in which he can contribute to better causes. He will always be a servant, but he'll at least try to serve where it counts.  

Power Girl: Kara’s super strength is not only physical but emotional. She’s confident, emotionally independent and very outspoken; however, her temper is short and might lose sight of what’s important in order to make a stand. Even though his views are always fair, she engages easily  and she can be quite opinionated, which put her at odds with the likes of Guy. She has little tolerance for shenanigans as well, especially when it comes to men objectifying her because of her notorious sex appeal  –she doesn’t flirt or dress for men, but she also refuses to hide her beauty. She’s normally cranky, but she can be quite generous and kind. When it comes to her work, PG has a great determination that makes her diligent, quick and effective.

Rocket Red: Dmitri is a big jolly man, optimistic and enthusiastic about everything. The type of person that rarely has anything negative to say. Always with a smile on his face, he enjoys about everything, and is loudly outspoken about it. He sees enough of everything for everyone, which is why he has a very generous philosophy and nature. When it comes to serious matters he’s very insightful and truly helpful to his friends. He has a very balanced life and has a loving family waiting for him after work.

Crimson Fox: We’re talking about two women, but in general, their behavior seems the same. They like to remain a mystery to their teammates, so they are barely socialize and come across as “a” cold peer. They inform themselves about any situation and become all business right away; pretty much like Batman, only without barking orders. This is how they manage to hide the fact that they are two people sharing the same superhero identity. Like Batman, they seem too self-aware and even melancholic, but their determination and dedication to an agenda against injustice makes them overachieving perfectionist forces.

Catherine Cobert: A diligent and independent career woman capable of great achievements. She’s such a straight man, she doesn’t even engage with the nonsense of her team. Even though she is really dedicated and hardworking, with her calm attitude and big picture sight she makes it seem as if her great achievements came with little effort. Her great perception and sensibility allows her to be as persuasive as Maxwell (which is probably why she e eventually wet from being his great discovery to his boss). It’s also clear that she’s very confident, and it also shows when she flits. While it’s clear that she liked Captain Atom from day one (and that it was mutual), she rather worked on him with friendship and teases without spoiling the tension.

Batman: A consumed pro with no time for nonsense. His perfectionism feels sharper than ever and he has a heaver reliance on fear as a weapon. He's playing on a really advanced level that few in the JLI can follow and only J'Onn does. It would appear as if his respect only went to his equals (J'Onn, Ralph, Fate, Canary) but he actually believes in all of them, so he serves as an outsider who  always knows what to do and what to say (his mind seems to go at light speed), so he arrives late, barks instructions and out he goes. He barely takes a few seconds to correct Guy's attitude problem. Tough love. His field instructions have a surgeon’s precision; however, after renouncing the leadership he decided to respect the authority of the new field commanders. And yet, the team can't help but feel as if he was the one pulling the strings (and he might be).

Other notorious members

Some members didn't really stayed that long but sitll became characteristic members of the Bwahaha era anyway.

Beefeater: Is a conceited, arrogant, phony, obnoxious, rude, inconsiderate, stubborn, pretentious and absolutely sarcastic jerk. He can’t help but show a neurotic behavior whenever he interacts; normally characterized by his excessive complaining and attention to unimportant details. His constant engaging prevents him from inspiring any real authority despite his confidence; people rather please him in hopes to get him to shot up or go away. I know, I’m basically describing Basil, but it’s the same, anyway.

Coming soon within this post: Captain Atom, Oberon, Mr. Miracle, Flash, Metamorpho, G'Nort,  and Animal Man.

For more character profiles, check out the following articles:

Know your Justice Leaguer!
Understand the personality of the early
members of the World's mightiest team.

Know your Bat-Villain! Part I - 
Probably the craziest supervillains in 
American comics, so it is a longer read.

Know your Justice Leaguer

In a previous article, I made the personality profile of The Elongated Man. Knowing what makes a character tick is what makes them interesting. The bad (or the badass) seems to be the flavor of the day since the late 80s. Everybody needed to be like Rorschach, Batman or Wolverine to be cool. But that’s not good writing, just selling fool-proof hooks that can be pulled even by the lesser writers.

Good writers know how play with personality traits in order to sell any character. Take Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, as instance, Tolkien and Jackson, managed to make a pop cult icon out of Gollum, a petty worm who is the very antithesis of any type of alpha male. The most read book of all times is about a loon that sees windmills as villains. The most popular sitcom is about four neurotic misfits… The trick is to know the character and to know how to exploit his personality traits.

With that in mind, I give you a list of sketches the most notorious members of the Justice League. My focus is on temperament, which I consider the very core of a person’s attitude.

Aquaman: His personality has wildly changed in some media; however, in comics, he’s most commonly portrayed as a tough yet melancholic, no-nonsense guy with a lot of weight over his shoulders. That crown is heavy.

He has an old soul. Like Batman, his eye for detail is just as sharp as his eye for the big picture. He’s extremely loyal and noble, but he doesn’t waste time on lost causes.

Within the League he sits among the other "kings": Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and the Martian Manhunter. I just happens.

Other versions have him as a merrier guy. Batman: The Brave and the Bold even gave him a loud, bigger than life personality, very similar to the Thor of the 2011 movie. It’s not the original deal, but I kind of like this better, even if toned down a bit.

The Atom: It is ironic, but the smallest man alive, often feels like a small man inside. Despite being a genius and having one of the greatest super powers, he tends to feel guilty and undeserving, making him the most typically melancholic member of the team. He’s very creative and escapes everyday life through science and superheroics. He pulled the whole superhero thing for a woman, who doesn’t seem to appreciate him that well, which doesn’t speak well of his self-esteem. Hawkman, his best friend is also bossy and overly confident. The second he gets out of his lab, Ray Palmer tends to give a lot, expecting nothing in return.

He loves his role as the idea guy of the JLA, he's no tactician, but when it comes to tehnical matters, hes the go-to guy.
However, he is sometimes portrayed as an absent-minded genius with little interests outside science; your average Egon Spengler, Gyro Gearloose or Mr. Fantastic.

Batman: A compulsive melancholic who is obsessed with perfection. Fueled by survivor’s guilt, makes sure he’s the best at everything he does, including being the ultimate alpha. He’s very methodical and needs to control people and information alike. Years of practice have made him faster when it comes to acquiring new skills. He is able to act like a very social person as Bruce Wayne, but that’s all it is, an act. He has deep trust issues and can’t communicate affection properly to his loved ones (even though he is not that bad at hinting it). His most significant love affair is with Catwoman, who is just as distant in her own way. 

Working with the JLA, he arrives late at the Watchtower, takes charge, solve the problem and goes back to Gotham.
During the silver age, both as Batman and as Bruce, he was more civic-minded, polite and preachy. This characterization was reused with some added coolness in Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

Black Canary: She’s an overachiever, focusing all her dedication and discipline in continuing her mother’s legacy as a superhero. Mother issues and poor taste in men are perhaps the biggest aspects of her personal life. Opposed to Green Arrow, she’s also a strong, independent woman with feminist values. She works her ass off; Hal would just get the job done right with the best  tool available, and then hit the bar; by contrast, Dinah would do hours of exhaustive practice, almost as intensively as Batman. She plays hard to get, but she is no Catwoman. Ollie is her weakness; she demands a lot of herself only to fall for the resident ladies man. Her temperament is a bit melancholic, but phlegmatic enough to have great people skills, which makes her a perfect field leader.

The Elongated Man: The guy is all about doing what he loves and getting some attention while he’s there, by far, the most laid back out of the classic leaguers; a perfectly sanguine type. He’s quite diligent but wastes no extra energy to get the job done; he’s so practical that in his debut, he proved to be a faster crime-solver than Flash himself. He can solve anything Batman does – only with fewer resources and more lateral thinking. He's often the one who humbly presents a practical solution when the team seems to be up against the wall (even more often when Batman is not around). 

Out of the entire league, he’s the one that makes the most assertive life-choices and avoids drama the best. Ralph is a fun guy who managed to get the money, the girl, the fame and the status on his first day and then saves the world merely by “stretching at the right time”.

Firestorm: Ronnie is frat guy with a heart of gold. Being analytic never worked for him, so he focused on fun and what makes a male kid popular, but then, he got a challenge and was forced to change his ways. His fusion with Professor Martin Stein is like a permanent, intensive and forced mentorship that forces him to overcome that one aspect of his life he used to neglect. The way he acts, he looks self-secure, yet, he’s overcompensating for his lack of intellectuality, which he is overcoming as Firestorm. The JLA became even more reinforcement. Starting with Superman, they believe in his potential. He's the rookie of the team and when it came to fitting in, Ralph often took him under his wing.  

The Flash: One of the hardest to define for many people. He’s all about diligence and a huge sense of civic duty. His temperament is somewhere between phlegmatic and melancholic. He feels the need to complete great task and to do it step by step and by the book, often missing the forest for the tree. However, he can still be very creative. He’s very similar to Superman, only less bold, more humble and more of a side thinker. And while Clark pretends to be boring, Barry is the genuine article.

Green Arrow: This one is all about character. He’s sanguine like Hal, only with a shorter temper, savvier and more stubborn. He relies heavily on common sense and cynical observation to the point that he is perhaps the best judge of character in the League and, even though he’s about as old as the rest, he’s seen the “old devil” of the team. 

He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and yet, he’s so stubbornly liberal that he became the most socially aware JLAer; he’s the guy that often keeps the rest grounded. To him, watching out for the little guy is way more important than defeating the bad guy and his teammates appreciate him for that. That being said, he can also be patronizing, flawed and a bit chauvinistic. The fact that he’s an idealist doesn't mean that his behavior is perfect as a person, especially when it comes to women.

Green Lantern: The guy is the epitome of the charming alpha male. He likes, he takes. He shoots, he scores; very good at saving the day, getting the girl and having a great time. However, like a good sanguine (and unlike Ralph), he is not that great on the long term. Hal can’t keep the girl and doesn't really climb the job ladder, even when he has all the opportunities there. He probably feels a bit undeserving under all that cockiness.

Hawkman: He is a tough alpha male; nerves of steel, sharp, to the point; never misses a thing and he is always talking with authority. He never backs away from his frame. His views are often the toughest of the team. He and his wife might walk around bare-naked, yet he is very conservative (Republican in fact), overprotective with women (at least one time with Black Canary and often with his wife) and he takes the most aggressive stands on punishments.

As serious as Katar is, the ones that get close to him like Hawkgirl, the Atom and Elongated Man, can get him to show his lighter side.  That being said, he can’t stand Ollie.

Superman:  I always say, when your father treats you as if you were Superman, you end up flying. This is literally the case with Clark. He comes from two great sets of parents, the first gave them his genetic characteristics and the double gift of life and the second raised him as an assertive man with great values. He might feel the weight of the World when it comes to do the right thing with his powers (especially in the last decades), but classically, he does good because he truly likes and believes in kindness, Midwestern, all-American kindness.

The big difference with Barry, is that he is not as pressured by guilt, and that, as Clark, he only pretends to be a square. When it comes to Lois, he barely minds her aggressive exterior; he can only look at her great fiery heart.

In general, he’s easy going and calm. Modern interpretations have him more introspective, early ones had him self-righteous and the ones from the silver age, had him more easy going and even more chivalrous, with a slightly geeky sense of fun.

Wonder Woman: She is like Athena or King Solomon: graceful, merciful, assertive, proper, respectful, wise, kind and as self-secure as the archetypal good monarch. Generally calm and nice, she has no trouble being aggressive and taking the bull by its horns when the situation requires it. I would say that she is the best leader a team can have (keep in mind that leadership rotated in the original JLA).

With so many attributes everybody is in love with her; yet, she has something that prevents most from hitting on her. At some points she has been attracted to the idealist Superman, and at least an interpretation has had her with a thing for the more magnetic Batman; however, the guy that gets her heart (Steve Trevor)  is a suave gentleman with the right cause.

Zatanna: She is a crowd pleaser, loves the attention and manages to get that with her charming personality. Since she was created, there has always been constant drama on her life, she is always missing something, which tells me that she is a bit codependent. She’s mostly sanguine, having fun and going with the flow; however, she also has some supine and melancholic characteristics. Between the lines, I have noticed some daddy issues in her persona.

Did you like the character profiles? Here are some more:

Know your Super Buddy!
Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Fire,  Ice, Sue, 
Maxwell and the rest of the late 80s gang!

Know your Bat-Villain! Part I - 
Probably the craziest supervillains in 
American comics, so it is a longer read.

The Elongated Man rocks MAD!!

Ralph's back, baby! 

The 20th episode of the 2nd season of MAD, first aired February 27, 2012 (sorry for being late, I somehow missed it) features a short titled "That's What Super Friends Are For", in which the most notorious all-time members of the Justice League (and then some) sing complaining about -- well, just check it out:

 

The creators went with the most classic members and their most classic look as well - which I guess lead them to include the Elongated Man, who was a member for 20 years and in 3 incarnations. All I can say is "kudos DC, Mad and WB! Way to celebrate what made you what you are!". 

I like that Ralph was recognizable even in the part in which his body is not shown. All the song is full of fun references to DC history, so there's a lot to enjoy, specially for those who, like me, really enjoy DC and parodies.

Some oddities include some JSA members and Teen Titans that have never been part of the team, like Bart Allen and Dr. Mid-nite. However, their bits were pretty cool. Firestorm and the Atom are mysteriously missing. Oh, well, we can't have it all. It was great seing Ted and Ralph anyway.

DC Nation will feature some DC-related MAD shorts, so expect it to be reran. 

Rafa Rivas takes Twitter

Or so I claim.
Well, it's mostly me annoying DC with "Y U NO REVIVE ELONGATED MAN" kind of comments (and Sue, and Ted, and Dmitri, and Vic, and Wally and the real Maxwell, and...).

I'm thinking of other things to tweet about. So far, I figured, I should use my completely anonymous account to give my local, and very corrupt (and very evil) politicians a piece of my mind (until they block me that is). Don't worry, that's in Spanish, so you won't have to read it.

I'm also sucking up to Neil Gaiman and some other clever people like Morrison, Dini, Straczynski. However, since I can't follow my real acquintances and friends with my anonymous account (hence, 'anonymous', duh), and I didn't think about asking for contact info of my friends at the now nonexistent DC Comics Message Boards (ja74, indiaink, munkeypunk, elhijodelbruce, where are you?!!), it's not like I get much interaction. So, I'm exhorting (yes, I do know some fancy words) you reader, along with the community of bloggers to exchange Twitter account info so that we can all waste our time in a proper manner. Who knows? It might even be fun...

My account is @RafaRivas2099

Follow me... Or else... (I'll get really bored).

The Doomsday Book!

Yep, this really happened.

Can you imagine a story in which Batman, Sherlock Holmes, the Elongated Man, Slam Bradley and Robin team-up to stop the ultimate master plan of Moriarty? Well, it happened in 1987's Detective Comics #572.

To commemorate the 50^th anniversary of Detective Comics, DC made a 54-page special issue featuring the three most iconic detectives in its history, along with Sherlock Holmes, the big papa of all detectives, who, oddly enough, was also celebrating his 100^th anniversary!

Double birthday cover: Detective Comics' 50th and Sherlock Holmes' 100th.

When Mike W Barr's run on 'tec started, it was decided to make the title exclusively about Batman in a single feature format,  however he decided to take a break of sorts and feature more detectives and multiple features to celebrate the occasion. In his words:

The story is structured in 5 parts, the first four feature the individual efforts of each of the star detectives and the fifth part is the climax. Well, more or less.

The first two chapters star an aged Slam Bradley and feature a cameo by Batman and Robin. Slam was the earliest long lasting feature of the title, so this was a very fitting choice. 

The third chapter is basically a classic Elongated Man feature illustrated by Carmine Infantino, just like the ones that characterized Detective Comics during the brightest days of the silver age of DC Comics, by then, at the middle of its run. 

Then, we have the Holmes part, a postmodern trip to the classic and most iconic era of the detective fiction.

The final chapter has Batman leading Slam and Dibny against the thread that brought them together. The current, longest and most important star of the book, leading past stars under the guiding hand of their inspiration against the ultimate foe of detective fiction. As you can see, quite a solid premise!     

A great strength of the story is characterization. Batman has his 80s dark and tough personality, and there's somewhat of a free card with Robin II, who was relatively new. Not much of a challenge so far. However, Ralph is done in his full silver age glory, always the creative and optimistic sleuth; Sherlock is brilliant,
polite, elegant - he is spot on; and the most changed character is a Slam Bradley... 

A lot has changed for old Slam.

In this story, Slam has  been reasonably watered down by age. However, that change makes sense. Slam was never a sophisticated detective, although streetwise, he was a choleric bully who saved the day by beating the answers out of whatever minority or poor looking person that crossed his path. His original stories read like a hilarious Saturday Night Live skits these days. In "The Doomsday Book", Slam has lost his sidekick ("Shorty" Morgan, his codependent lap dog) and his strength has been worn down by age. But don't worry, he's still tough as nails (not even Guy Garner has the guts to tell Batman what he can do with his orders), only he has to save the guns for special occasions and now resources to street trickery more often. The great part about this change is that Barr uses elements from hardboiled detective fiction are used to compensate Slam's brute force.   

Tough, isn't he?

His butt kicking days are over, but that's nothing that some old school tricks can't compensate.

The flawless characterization is related to the fact that this special is a fine example of pastiche in comics. The part lead by Slam Bradley, as I said, is done in hardboiled and golden age of comics style, the Elongated Man part mimics silver age style and that of Sherlock Holmes feels like a classic Victorian crime mystery.
All wrapped in the modern setting of Batman and Detective Comics. There is some metafiction (the Holmes chapter) and even a snarky protagonist (Slam), so, it can be said that this is a great example of postmodernism is comics. 

Same old Ralph toying with his food.

Chapter three might as well have been written by Gardner Fox and Julie Schwartz themselves. As in any Elongated Man story, he happens to run into something odd to investigate, a lot of amusing thug beating and a lighthearted mystery that only Ralph can solve. The only thing missing was Ralph's nose twitching and Sue being send to shop or something at the beginning of the story (the later happens off-panel, though). Ralph's main function in the overall story is as an expert on Holmes history.

Isn't he awesome?

Barr scripted the Holmes story with even more chameleonic mastery than he did for the Elongated Man one. If features every trademark scene of a classic Holmes mystery:
Watson being introduced to a client that just arrived, Holmes shocking the client by deducing key elements of his identity, the client's exposing a really of the case, Holmes rushing to action once he confirms that his unlikely deductions are real and the confrontation with the culprits, whose plot is almost outlandish. Like in many stories, what seems like an unimportant oddity turns out to be a very complex scheme of grandiose ambitions. 

It's go time!

After all the pieces are delivered and the heroes figure out the evil scheme that needs to be foiled, the story turns into Barr's characteristic Outsiders and Brave and the Bold action. It's Batman leading a team of specialists to a Mission: Impossible type of task. The type of stuff that made people say "how the hell did he pull that?" -- "He's Batman". The Goddamn Batman in all his glory. Luckily, Ralph gets to play MacGyver #2 in this part.  

He's Batman!

MacGyver #2 isn't far behind. This is why they are the two Justice Leaguers.

The plot is excellently crafted down to the climax. Well, actually, down to just before it. In the climax of good mystery story, the heroes face the culprits the clues led them to discover who they are and what they are doing. In this case, the clues that lead to Moriarty's big plan are pretty explicit. It's also a bit unsatisfying that the title, the one big clue and the master plan are not that tied. One would expect Moriarty great grandnephew to be a little neater. 

The ultimate mastermind.

That being said, I'd still give it 9 out of 10 stars; the story is one hell of a ride, and it can't be said that the heroes didn't work their way to catch  Moriarty. Detective Comics #572, "The Doomsday Book" is an obligatory must for Slam Bradley fans, Elongated Man fans, Sherlock Holmes fans, Mike W. Barr fans, Detective Comics fans and, in general, fans of detective fiction. DC Comics should dust this issue and revaluate what makes Detective Comics great.