Batman's Night Business: Prey

Recently I got cut loose from work a few hours early, and was able to take up my usual role when I'm not on the clock as a comics vagabond/hobo. Upon visiting the comics shop at the King Of Prussia Mall and grabbing the new titles I was seeking that week, I decided to tempt fate and possibly deplete my wallet even more by browsing the back issue bin. I came across two items of interest, issue numbers 11 and 15 of Batman Legends of the Dark Knight: Prey parts 1 and 5 by Doug Moench Paul Gulacy and Terry Austin . Prey is of interest, because lately it has been getting some press. It was rumored that the newest and final Chris Nolan Batman film would be based heavily on this storyline. Upon hearing the news I took a mosey on over to amazon, where copies of the trade are currently selling for $140.00 used!!! So it goes with out saying that I would pick up these issues for a measly $6.


Upon opening the pages and leafing through, I could not help but get a sense of art deja vu...like perhaps I had seen something similar before. And then it hit me like a ton of bricks! For some reason Prey reminded me a lot of Night Business by Benjamin Marra! I don't know why, but the style used by Gulacy and Marra are very similar. The colors used on Marra's covers also are very similar to the interior colors of Prey.


Marra's drawings are certainly a bit more crude than Gulacy's, but there is a similarity in the approach of the figures and handling of the subject matter that I cannot help but notice. Prey was produced in the early nineties, when the 80's still had a heavy presense in pop culture. Batman: Prey seems to be a product of the time it was created. Perhaps that's why Prey does not have a greater presence today like Batman:Year One or The Dark Knight Returns does, it lacks that timeless quality. Night Business is set in 1983, and I can only assume is intended to emulate the type of comic Prey is (sans the superheroes).


I would argue that Marra's action sequences are a little more fluid, more kinetic than Gulacy's which seem a little stuff at times. Marra recently drew a short in Marvel's Strange Tales II. Perhaps this could lead to more mainstream comics work? I would love to see his take on the caped crusader.

-Eamon