Batman #411 – “Second Chance” – Max Allan Collins/Dave Cockrum/Don Heck
This one starts with Two-Face robbing a bank (the Second National Bank, naturally) in broad daylight, figuring it’ll be safe since Batman only comes out at night. Sure enough, Bruce Wayne is attending a meeting at the hospital where he’s offering to fund some more free clinics. He hears about the robbery and goes to see Commissioner Gordon as Batman. They discuss Two-Face’s clue (a poker hand of two pair) that was sent to Gordon’s office last issue and Batman wonders if it means Two-Face will be
committing two robberies, or four. At Wayne Manor, Bruce learns that Jason Todd spent the day in bed and wonders if he’s having trouble adjusting to the demands of being the new Robin. (Of course, we know Jason’s just sulking because he found out Two-Face killed his father and is pissed off at Bruce for not telling him.) Jason also thinks Two-Face’s original robbery (of the casino last issue) doesn’t fit his usual pattern of doubles, but can’t figure out what it means. They do manage to anticipate Two-Face’s next target, a baseball game (a double-header of course) and show up to stop him robbing the gate receipts. But Robin goes nuts and tries to strangle Two-Face to avenge his father and 
that surprises Batman so much that Two-Face gets away after a chase through the baseball diamond. Back in the Batcave, Batman apologizes for not telling the truth about Jason’s father’s fate, but says that dealing with that kind of thing is harder than dealing with the danger of a fight. Batman says learning to temper revenge with justice is hard for adults, let alone kids (and I guess he’d know). Jason figures out that Two-Face will hit the casino again to complete his double pattern and they stake the place out, pounding Two-Face’s men when they try to steal the take. Two-Face ends up in a giant roulette wheel about to be crushed, but Robin saves him, proving Batman’s lesson has gotten through.
Detective #578 – “So Shall Ye Reap” – Mike W. Barr/Todd McFarlane
This s the final chapter of Year Two and starts with Joe Chill (the murderer of Batman’s parents) reporting to his mob boss (Moritz) about what happened last issue. Chill was working with Batman (not knowing who he really is, of course) to draw out the Reaper, who’s been wasting criminals. Chill was supposed to kill Reaper, then take Batman out too, but things didn’t work out. He promises he’ll kill both of them this time. Meanwhile, Reaper tells a police informant to let the cops know about a big mob meeting on Friday. Bruce Wayne heads out on another date with Rachel Caspian (unaware that her father is actually
the Reaper) and proposes to her, putting the ring in a fortune cookie. Rachel says yes, but we see Bruce’s fortune reads “You may avoid your fate, but never escape it”, which doesn’t bode well for their future. On Friday, the cops show up at the mob meeting and so does the Reaper. He starts wasting mobsters (including Moritz) while the cops try to stop him. They’re distracted when Batman shows up and it turns into a three-way fight, since Gordon thinks Batman has started working with the mob. Chill blows up a van to cover his and Batman’s escape, leaving Gordon to learn that Batman was fighting the mobsters too. 
Gordon uses the Bat-Signal to let Batman know all is forgiven, but Bruce is over at Rachel’s place, letting her know that he has one last thing to take care of before they can be together. That one last thing is Joe Chill, who Batman stashed in a safehouse on Crime Alley. He shows Chill the place where his parents were killed and reveals his identity, pounding Chill and holding a gun to his head (the same gun Chill used to kill his parents). Before he can decide what to do, Reaper shows up and kills Chill, pointing out that he now knows Batman’s secret. They fight in the incomplete Wayne Foundation Building and Reaper loses his mask. Batman recognizes him as Rachel’s father, but Reaper lets himself fall to his death, saying Batman will make a fine replacement for him. But Batman puts the gun that killed his parents in the cornerstone of the building, burying the part of him that seeks blood for blood. Now that Rachel knows about her father, she’s decided to become a
nun after all to atone for his sins, so that’s it for her engagement to Bruce. Bruce funds a clinic for Leslie Thompkins and heads off to continue his mission as Batman. This storyline isn’t as popular as Year one and I can see why. Batman is really out-of-character, cooperating with Joe Chill (and other crooks) and using a gun. In fact, this story may even be apocryphal, since most later writers seem to ignore it. There are internal inconsistencies (like how long ago Bruce’s parents were actually killed), not to mention overall continuity mistakes (Year Two being way too early for Gordon to be Commissioner, or for Batman to have changed his chest symbol). Couple that with the fact that DC kept changing Joe Chill’s history (is he alive or is he dead? Who knows?) and this whole story seems like a bit of a waste of time.
Outsiders #23 – “And the Rockets’ Red Glare” – Mike W. Barr/Dave Ross/Bob Smith
Most of this issue is told as a flashback, a literary device I hate, but that comics writers seem to love using. The framing device is the Outsiders discovering that someone named Fusion has escaped from prison. Windfall doesn’t know who that is (and neither do we, since this is a continuity insert), so Looker helpfully tells the story of how they first fought Fusion. It started in Mozambia (around issue 12) with the People’s Heroes being rescued from confinement by three super-powered guys who can merge into one, hence the name Fusion. Fusion sends the People’s Heroes back to Russia, saying he has his own
mission to complete in America. Back in the USSR, the People’s Heroes find out that Fusion has gone rogue and wants to destroy the Statue of Liberty during a relighting ceremony for its hundredth anniversary. Because such an incident could lead to World War II, the People’s Heroes are assigned to work with the Force of July, and neither team is happy about it (especially the Americans, who are all jingoistic blindly patriotic assholes). The two teams try to find Fusion (who’s working with a local terrorist group to destroy the Statue), but the Outsiders are attending the ceremony and detect the presence of the People’s Heroes. The Outsiders confront the other two teams and a big fight 
breaks out. They’re so busy pounding each other, they don’t notice Fusion showing up and all three teams get gassed unconscious. They’re placed on a ship that’s carrying missiles to blow up the Statue (and kill the President), but Katana and Sickle manage to get free. They release the others and all three teams pound the terrorists, with Geo-Force, Hammer, and Major Victory taking Fusion down. Fusion is taken in by the American authorities and the three teams enjoy the Statue lighting ceremony. Back in the present, Looker finishes her story and Batman points out that Fusion’s escape probably means he’s still targeting the President.