Batman: Strange Apparitions

Rating:
Summary: One of the best runs on a Batman monthly, ever!
Review: This run reprinted from late 70s Detective Comics has many good things going for it. Steve Englehart for the first time weaves ongoing subplots into a Batman story, Marshall Rogers (a man who has an architechtural background) uses art deco to capture Gotham City and pencils very illustrative versions on the Batman and his villains, etc.

The reasons this collection didn't get 5 stars from me;

-The beautiful covers were not reprinted from the original issues or the Shadow of the Batman mini-series that reprinted these very same issues in 1986.

-The first cameo appearance of Clayface III is not reprinted. This issue contained an aftermath of the whole Boss Thorne subplot courtesy a nice framing sequence by Len Wein/Marshall Rogers. Where is it? It's an incomplete run without it.

-The first couple of chapters are very poorly illustrated by Walt Simonson. His work prior to these issues was the stunning Manhunter series and The Cape and Cowl Conspiracy from an earlier Detective Comics. He would go on to draw better Batman stories like Dreadful Birthday Dear Joker but what happened here? His pencils on this book are weak compared to other works by this master artist. Was he a last minute fill in?