I have to say I really, really loved this issue. So much of the energy in the Batverse has been going into the inevitable costume switch thus far, so much so that the few tiny moments we did get of the Batfamily in mourning have really felt a little muted and forced, at least to me. I mean, we’ve seen Dick crying and Tim being distant and Alfred struggling, but it’s all seemed like an afterthought against a backdrop of all the practical issues of Gotham going to pieces. I think this is really the first story in which I actually felt the absence of Bruce and not just Batman.
I also liked the expansion of Battle for the Cowl’s justification for Dick not wanting to be Batman, which always felt a little overly simplistic to me. A story about Dick taking Bruce’s costume should really be a story about Bruce and Dick, and here we actually get to see a struggle that has more to do with Dick missing someone he loved and not being ready to let him go in spite of how mostly rational and practical he’s been when discussing it with Tim. Again, it’s something we’ve seen bits of before, but I felt like we needed more of an emotionally centered explanation for the turn around for it to really make sense for Dick.
But... now I really want to know what did happen to the skeleton. What exactly are they planning on doing with it if not burying it in the ground? Unless I'm missing something important, of course. [/morbid curiosity]
And the art is gorgeous, of course. The man tears in particular are kind of breathtaking.