Detective Comics #392

Detective Comics #392 (On Sale: August 28, 1969) has a cover by Neal Adams. It is kind of cool that at least one side of this cover is based on the Bob Brown panel on the inside.

Inside we have Batman in "I Died... a Thousand Deaths" by Frank Robbins, Bob Brown and Joe Giella. Angles Moore lets Batman know that he is read to turn on mob-boss Scap Scarpelli. Batman does not trust Angles, and, as expected, Angles tries to kill Batman, their fight ending with them both underwater and the scene on the cover occurring. Angles is a hero to the mob, but he keeps finding evidence of Batman still being alive.

Eventually Scap decides that Angles must have botched killing Batman, so he is going to bump him off instead when it is revealed that, of course, Angles has been Batman since the two went underwater. Batman explains it all as he takes Scap in for booking. This was reprinted in Showcase Presents: Batman Vol. 5 TPB.

The back-up Batgirl story is "A Clue... Seven-Foot Tall" by Frank Robbins, Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson. and introduces Jason Bard. On her way to work, Barbara notices a man with a cane looking over the  site of a recent murder in Central Park. When the same man comes into the library later on, Barbara and a co-worker, Stella, try to guess what kind of book he will be looking for. As he checks out a book on botany, Barbara tells of seeing him at the murder site. He, Jason bard, explains that he is an armature criminologist and asks her out for lunch. He explains that while the police say the killer hid in the bushes, Jason notes that the leaves on the ground are not from the bushes, but the tree and surmises that it was hit by someone around seven feet tall. They head off to that night's basketball game and notice that one player, Topper, has a bandage on his forehead, as if he whacked it on a tall tree.

During the game, Jason sneaks off to check out Topper's locker while he is on the court, only to run into two of Topper's "friends" who rough him up a bit. Just as one is about to smack him with a blackjack, Batgirl shows up and saves the day. They both meet back at their seats and bot are wondering how to ditch the other so they can continue crime-fighting. This story is continued next issue and was reprinted in Showcase Presents: Batgirl Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Julius Schwartz.