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"The Dragon": While Bruce Wayne is attending Armand Krol's campaign dinner, Robin and Alfred are left watching a live television special about the opening of Prohibition-era gangster Nicky Fabio's secret vault. To entertain himself, Robin attempts to deduce the conten

Quote1 It's not every day I get to stop a murder that was planned sixty years ago. Quote2
Robin (Tim Drake)

Detective Comics #650 is an issue of the series Detective Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of September, 1992.

Synopsis for "The Dragon"

While Bruce Wayne is attending Armand Krol's campaign dinner, Robin and Alfred are left watching a live television special about the opening of Prohibition-era gangster Nicky Fabio's secret vault. To entertain himself, Robin attempts to deduce the contents of the vault before the special's hosts can. As he researches Fabio, however, Robin finds that the gangster held a disturbing obsession with the pharaohs of ancient Egypt - particularly those who set deathtraps in their tombs.

Meanwhile, Harold busies himself with mapping out the Batcave's furthermost branches, with only Ace the Bat-Hound as his companion. Eventually, Harold finds himself lost in a deeper part of the cave without his spelunking equipment. Not long after, he is confronted by a beast with glowing eyes and a thunderous roar.

Robin's research leads him to believe that Fabio may have set a trap in the vault for his rivals, and he urges Alfred to take him to the special's filming site. Unfortunately, they leave seconds before Ace returns from the caves, searching for someone to help Harold. Left on his own, Harold flees from the "beast", only to realize that it is a train; the Batcave's furthermost branches actually lead into some of Gotham's subway tunnels. Heartened by this discovery, Harold follows the train tracks to the surface.

Above-ground, Robin arrives just in time to save the special's hosts from being killed by the rigged machine gun inside Fabio's vault. A contented Robin and a mildly amused Alfred then drive home, only to spot Harold wandering around the city. Neither, naturally, knows a single thing of Harold's own adventure.

Appearing in "The Dragon"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • None

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

Notes

  • Harold's discovery of the Batcave's connection with Gotham's old subway tunnels is what later allows him to build the Batsubway Rocket.
  • The image on the cover references a dream of Harold's, and does not actually occur within the issue.
  • This story is reprinted in Batman: The Dark Knight Detective Vol. 8.

Trivia

  • The main plot of this issue is an obvious reference to the 1986 television special The Mystery of Al Capone's Vaults, albeit with a more action-packed conclusion.
  • A stray newspaper in this issue bears the headline "Batman nabs Cluemaster", referencing the events of last issue.
  • Graham Nolan begins his first run as penciller of Detective Comics starting with this issue.


See Also


Links and References

Superboy Vol 4 69
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