Warning: Spoilers for Batman: The Long Halloween #3DC is causing the death of an important Batman villain, as a preview for Batman: The Long Halloween – The Last Halloween #3 causes the Riddler to meet his final destiny. A sequel to all-time classics The Long Halloween and Black Victory – both from Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale – set up another long mystery for Batman to solve, but this time it’s not a series of murders, but rather the kidnapping of Commissioner Gordon’s son.
Coming from the creative team of Loeb, Mark Chiarello and Richard Starkings, The Last Halloween #3 continues the story of the kidnapping of James Gordon Jr. With no ransom note or contact with the kidnapper, Batman doesn’t know what to do, what leads him to seek out the Riddler for help.
As seen in the preview, things are not looking good for Mr. Nigma. After being shot in the shoulder and knee by thugs in Batman masks, they gather around the Riddler, ready to finish the job like a “BLAM” The sound effect plays above a smear of blood and flying teeth.
DC teases the Riddler’s death in the iconic Long Halloween Stories
Who is behind the kidnapping of James Gordon Jr.? The Riddler might know…if he survives
Since The Last Halloween happens in the past, it’s highly unlikely that this will be the end of the Riddler. Edward Nigma will continue to torment Batman for years to come, but the creative team is smart in the way they involve the Riddler in The Last Halloween. Batman suspects that Nigma knows who is behind the kidnapping of James Gordon’s son, so even if the Riddler isn’t dying, he could be taken out of the picture for the rest of the story due to his injuries. Of course, it’s also equally possible that the next page after the preview sees Batman swooping in to save the Riddler.
Batman: The Long Halloween – The Last Halloween Brings back former DC art director Mark Chiarello
Batman/Houdini: The Devil’s Workshop Cover #1 by Mark Chiarello
In addition to discovering the Riddler’s final fate, The Last Halloween #3 is special due to the beautiful painted artwork provided by Chiarello. The Long Halloween and Black Victory artist Sale sadly passed away in 2022, so The Last Halloween it became a tribute book of sorts, with several prominent artists providing pages in Sale’s place. Chiarello’s contribution here is significant, as it is the artist’s first work for DC after serving as the company’s senior vice president and director of art and design from 1992 to 2019.
The Last Halloween #3 also marks the first time Chiarello has illustrated the interior of a comic book since 2007, when he drew Two-Face’s origin in Countdown #27. Working as a colorist for most of his career, Chiarello rarely provided full art for comic book projects, with his title Elseworlds Batman/Houdini: Devil’s Workshop #1 (with writers Howard Chaykin and David Tischman) being a career highlight. If the Riddler survives The Last Halloween or not, fans won’t want to miss the next installment to see how the Batman: The Long Halloween saga ends.
Batman: The Long Halloween – The Last Halloween #3 is available November 27, 2024 from DC Comics.