THE BOOK OF FATE #4 - May 1997

What If They Threw A War And Everybody Came?

Credits: Keith Giffen (writer), Ron Wagner (penciler), Bill Reinhold (inker), Gaspar (letterer), Mike Danza (colorist)

Summary: Jared is able to escape the war between Chaos and Order because neither side can touch him. His dagger vibrates, pointing like a compass towards Gotham City. Jared arrives to discover a Chaos-possessed Arkham Asylum. He’s thrown inside and forced alone with Two-Face, who claims he was left to fend for himself in Arkham after he rejected Order and Chaos. He handcuffs himself to Jared, who punches Two-Face and drags him outside. They emerge inside an “Order Patch.” The handcuffs revert back into Two-Face’s coin, which he flips to its scarred side.

Irrelevant Continuity: Jared is called “Fate” for the first time by the possessed Arkham Asylum building.

Review: I think I can grasp the basic idea behind this issue: Order and Chaos can’t directly harm Jared, so Chaos has manipulated him into entering Arkham Asylum, where Two-Face is sure to do the job. I don’t totally grasp the significance of the “Order Patch” and the handcuffs changing into Two-Face’s coin, but I’m going to assume that this is Order playing his part in the assassination.

I can certainly understand why Order and Chaos would be interested in Two-Face, and using him is a clever move on Giffen’s part, but I’m not sure why he would be a better assassin than a million other characters in the DC Universe. He looks cool, he fits the basic theme of the title, but he’s not particularly suited for the role he’s been given. Regardless, Two-Face looks amazing under Wagner’s pencils, and it’s certainly possible that Giffen has more in mind for the character. This is the most enjoyable issue of the series yet, although that’s mainly because it features a character I actually recognize and can understand.