So far in its short but excellent run, Gotham Academy has managed to capture interest due to its close connection to Gotham, but also that it skirts the connection to create its own unique narrative.  The stories have thus been focused in a particular direction and they have thus maintained similarities in tone and content.  This issue is the first break in that trend, focusing instead on activities which would be something much more closely linked to the activities of young people.  At the same time, while this is essentially a loose collection of horror stories, it does the same as always with this series as it balances some connection to Gotham with its own stories, even if it is more of an aside than anything.

There is a bit of a forced setup as the girl’s are forced to camp out in the school gym because of a virus spread by the Joker.  It is a bit of a disconnect that something so dangerous is treated in such a cavalier manner, but it does work to get the characters into tents to tell spooky stories.  What is particularly interesting in this story is the combination actual urban legends with that of the Joker.  There are only three stories told, but each connects in way, either to the Joker or to the Red Hood, and adds a bit of background to the character who has none.  Although the background is usually considered to be much more mundane (falling in a vat of acid) as the Joker represents true chaos and anarchy, there is no reason to think that in some way that he is not tied to these stories in some way.

There is perhaps a bit of a disconnect between this standalone issue and the rest of the series, but it doesn’t really matter.  While this does not advance the main plot of Gotham Academy in any way, it is also nice as it helps to develop the characters in a more complex way, even if they did not need much more development as opposed to a lot of other comic characters.  This issue also ties the characters together with Gotham once again, though also really doesn’t at the same time.  It is this balance where the series finds its success and it finds it here too, even if it is relatively unimportant to the overall narrative of the series.

Story: Becky Cloonan and Brendan Fletcher  Art: Jeff Stokely
Story: 8.3 Art: 8.3 Overall: 8.3 Recommendation: Buy