Batman #396

Issue Details

Synopsis

BOX-OFFICE SMASH The Film Freak is still on the loose and on his quest to eliminate all the people from his past who he believes have betrayed him. After having hospitalized his former girlfriend, his next victim is his former friend and actor, Al Jacobs. Batman and Catwoman deduce the Film Freak's target, but they arrive too late to save Jacobs.   In the meantime, Harvey Bullock and Robin have located the Film Freak's hideout, learning the vital clues for his movie related crimes. With the information, they pretend to outsmart and beat Batman and Catwoman to capture the criminal, but Commissioner Gordon puts an end to the competition, summoning all of them to the GCPD Headquarters and telling them to share information and collaborate in order to capture the killer.  Having shared the information discovered, all the heroes deduce that Film Freak's next target is the movie director Paul Vasseria, whose first big movie premiere will take place within few hours. Going to the movie theater, the police surrounds the building and examines every corner of the place, looking for the Film Freak, but despite their best efforts, they can't find him. As the movie starts, Bullock's film knowledge gives Batman the last clue they need to deduce that Film Freak's target was not the movie director, but the film itself. Batman takes the film reel to the safe where the box-office receipts are stashed and closes the vault before the bomb explodes, saving everyone in the place. With the crisis averted, the heroes realize that the bomb had a timing device and that the killer was nowhere near the theater. Like this, they come to the conclusion that Film Freak must be trying to end what he started and is going to kill Julia Pennyworth.   True to their deductions, Film Freak breaks into Julia's apartment disguised as a gorilla and kidnaps her, taking her to the rooftop. The heroes arrive at the place a few minutes later and Bullock deduces the course of action once again. Batman climbs through the elevator shaft to the rooftop while Robin and Catwoman climb through the sides in order to ambush the killer. Robin is the first to get there and he stops Film Freak from tossing Julia to the street. Batman comes in second, forcing Film Freak to focus on him while Catwoman disarms him with her whip. Finally, Batman takes down the Film Freak and leaves him for the police to get him while he takes care of Julia, who is still in shock. Batman's attention to Julia makes Robin and Catwoman jealous, but they decide to spend the night watching some good TV.