9. Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka And Michael Lark On 'Gotham Central' (2003 - 2006)
Gotham Central was a series that was disappointingly cancelled much earlier than it should have been, which has always struck us as strange considering it seemed like such a no-brainer idea for a successful comic. The series focussed on a select group of detectives and street cops working for the Gotham City Police Department. It was an amazing exploration of what it would really have been like to be a police officer in a city that routinely turned to a costumed vigilante in order to battle the outlandish and terrifying villains causing chaos and destruction. In the past, DC had featured a few GCPD members who weren't big fans of Batman, namely Detective Harvey Bullock, but Gotham Central was the first time that they really delved into how everyone felt about the Dark Knight, from the secretary whose job it was to turn on the Batsignal to Jim Gordon himself. The series was also notable for portraying a different angle than fans had ever seen on the antics of Gotham's costumed crowd. How frightening would it be for a regular cop if the Joker suddenly picked up a sniper rifle and randomly started picking off citizens and city officials? We can't help but feel that Gotham Central was simply a few years ahead of its time, and if it was to be published in 2014 it would stand a much better chance of finding a sustained audience, particularly as writer Ed Brubaker's star has risen considerably in that time period. The series was a collaborative goldmine, with Brubaker sharing writing duties with seasoned novelist Greg Rucka (Queen & Country) on some story arcs and alternating scripting duties on others. Artist Michael Lark brought a simple, unfussy style to proceedings, perfectly suiting the notion of regular people finding themselves in highly irregular situations.
