Detective Comics Vol 1 696

"Contagion, Part Eight: Babylon Falls"

Batman: Contagion

Cover

Contagion, Part Eight: Babylon Falls

Editors

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This is the home of hopeless causes and blind faith.

— Alfred Pennyworth

Detective Comics #696 is an issue of the series Detective Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of April, 1996.

Appearing in "Contagion, Part Eight: Babylon Falls"

Featured Characters:

Batman

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

Dave (governor; voice only)
U.S. Military

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

Synopsis for "Contagion, Part Eight: Babylon Falls"

Nightwing delivers Robin to the batcave and Alfred takes care of the boy wonder, who has been infected by the virus now known as "the clench". Alfred then tells Nightwing to go and help Batman because Robin was now in good care.

At Babylon Towers, Huntress watches as the people burn the building to the ground. Inside the building Batman and James Gordon seek a way out of the burning building. Batman covers Poison Ivy's unconscious body with a plastic bag and carries her upstairs. Gordon shoots a man who threatened his life and when there was no more stairs to climb, they decide to break a window and try their luck in a leap of faith. Batman manages to bring Ivy and Gordon to the ground unscathed. Once on the ground, James Gordon goes to see what happened with the GCPD members he brought to Babylon. There were only Harvey Bullock and Renee Montoya; the rest left to stay with their families. The three of them watch as Babylon Towers burns.

Armand Krol is notified by the governor that the National Guard will seal off Gotham City until the plague is contained. Krol is unable to leave City Hall for protection. He and Andrew Howe, the appointed police commissioner, are chatting when blood starts to leak from Krol's eyes, meaning he is infected. At that moment, Oracle receives a call from Catwoman asking for information over the third and last survivor of the plague; a woman named Leanore We.

Batman and Nightwing reach the Batmobile and are driving home when they encounter the National Guard. They manage to escape using the Batmobile's nitrous feed. Batman calls Alfred to know how Tim was doing. Batman then realizes that the plague is out of control and reaching almost everyone in Gotham. Meanwhile Alfred sits sadly by Tim's dying side.

Notes

This is the eighth part of the Batman: Contagion storyline; as stated on the cover.
The events of this issue takes place between Shadow of the Bat #49 and Batman Chronicles #4.
This issue is reprinted in the Batman: Contagion collected edition, as well as the 2016 edition.

Trivia

Armand Krol refers to the Governor as "Dave." Gotham City has been established as existing in New Jersey. At the time, New Jersey's real life governor was Christine Todd Whitman.
Alfred states that he storaged medical equipment from the last time they faced death in the batcave. This refers to the Knightfall events.
A newspaper headline reads: Joker: Back in Arkham. Joker last appeared in Action Comics #719.
James Gordon hints to know Batman's secret identity when he tells the vigilante that his childhood didn't leave him time to do normal kids activities.
Batman makes a reference to Dante Alighieri's epic poem Divine Comedy. Specifically to the first part, Inferno. After Gordon compares Babylon Towers with "the pit"; Batman asks which one of them is Dante and Virgil as they were the main characters that traveled through hell.
Gordon destroys a Biedermeier chair to open an exit of Babylon.

Links and References

Contagion Crossover
The events from this issue are related to the Contagion crossover that went through the Batman Family Titles in 1996, in which Gotham City had an epidemic of a mutant strand of the Ebola virus. The events of Contagion lead into Batman: Legacy, Batman: Cataclysm, and ultimately No Man's Land.

Crossovers

Shadow of the Bat #48 • Detective Comics #695 • Robin #27 • Azrael #15 • Catwoman #31 • Batman #529 • Shadow of the Bat #49 • Detective Comics #696 • Batman Chronicles #4 • Catwoman #32 • Azrael #16 • Robin #28

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