Batman: Year One
Yesterday morning twitter informed me that it was Free Comic Book
day. I immediately followed the link to find a participating comic book
store nearby and went off to collect my free comic book. Well, I
didn't end up getting a free comic book; most of the selection was aimed
at kids. But I did get my hands on Frank Miller's Batman: Year One and I rounded out my Sandman collection with Death: The High Cost of Living.
Batman: Year One was published in 1986 as part of DC's effort to reimagine some of its superheros and introduce them to a new generation. I don't think this book does much to alter Batman's origin story, but it adds some detail.
Honestly, it's interesting to start thinking about the major superheroes. They're all familiar, but the details of the stories differ over the years. Bruce Wayne became Batman in 1939, in 1986, and in 2005. I'm sure there were variations on his origin story told multiple other times in the intervening years, but those are the dates that come to mind immediately. Well, 1939 came from Wikipedia.
Frank Miller certainly puts an interesting spin on Batman's beginnings in this tale, which is as old as I am. The point of view switches between Bruce Wayne and Police Commissioner James Gordon. Bruce Wayne returns to a incredibly corrupt Gotham city where crime is thriving at the same time that Gordon receives a new job there. Both of them find themselves faced with corruption at every turn.
Bruce Wayne faces more problems becoming Batman than I've ever seen in one of his stories before. He has to figure out to select his targets. He decides on his costume. He gets his ass kicked time and time again. Meanwhile, Gordon faces some similar opposition on the police force and devotes most of his energies to catching the dangerous vigilante, Batman.
The book also includes an origin story for Catwoman, a former prostitute with a penchant for taking in stray cats. She's a burglar with no illusions of crime fighting, but finds herself frustrated at being either mistaken for Batman or assumed to be nothing more than his assistant.
This was a great story about how Bruce Wayne came to be the protector of Gotham City. There were a few great references to Superman out in Metropolis. It's fun to think that all these superheroes exist together in the same universe. (Sandman also makes references to Arkham Asylum, which features in the Batman story prominently. I'm starting to see how tied together all of the figures are in the DC universe. It really is a single, complete universe)
It was also fun to see a slightly different take on this particular story. It's always interesting to see which elements remain constant (the murder of Bruce's parents by a mugger, Alfred's help, Wayne's reliance on his family fortune, the Batcave, Harvey Dent) and which details change for the story (how Bruce Wayne chose the bat, how he covers his tracks, how far he's willing to go to protect the city and punish the criminals). Frank Miller, who I know mostly from Sin City, but who also wrote Spirit and Daredevil, has a penchant for showing off the dark underbelly of cities and creating larger than life urban myths. His take on Batman did not disappoint. If you have any interest in the mythology of Batman, this is definitely a must-read
Batman: Year One was published in 1986 as part of DC's effort to reimagine some of its superheros and introduce them to a new generation. I don't think this book does much to alter Batman's origin story, but it adds some detail.
Honestly, it's interesting to start thinking about the major superheroes. They're all familiar, but the details of the stories differ over the years. Bruce Wayne became Batman in 1939, in 1986, and in 2005. I'm sure there were variations on his origin story told multiple other times in the intervening years, but those are the dates that come to mind immediately. Well, 1939 came from Wikipedia.
Frank Miller certainly puts an interesting spin on Batman's beginnings in this tale, which is as old as I am. The point of view switches between Bruce Wayne and Police Commissioner James Gordon. Bruce Wayne returns to a incredibly corrupt Gotham city where crime is thriving at the same time that Gordon receives a new job there. Both of them find themselves faced with corruption at every turn.
Bruce Wayne faces more problems becoming Batman than I've ever seen in one of his stories before. He has to figure out to select his targets. He decides on his costume. He gets his ass kicked time and time again. Meanwhile, Gordon faces some similar opposition on the police force and devotes most of his energies to catching the dangerous vigilante, Batman.
The book also includes an origin story for Catwoman, a former prostitute with a penchant for taking in stray cats. She's a burglar with no illusions of crime fighting, but finds herself frustrated at being either mistaken for Batman or assumed to be nothing more than his assistant.
This was a great story about how Bruce Wayne came to be the protector of Gotham City. There were a few great references to Superman out in Metropolis. It's fun to think that all these superheroes exist together in the same universe. (Sandman also makes references to Arkham Asylum, which features in the Batman story prominently. I'm starting to see how tied together all of the figures are in the DC universe. It really is a single, complete universe)
It was also fun to see a slightly different take on this particular story. It's always interesting to see which elements remain constant (the murder of Bruce's parents by a mugger, Alfred's help, Wayne's reliance on his family fortune, the Batcave, Harvey Dent) and which details change for the story (how Bruce Wayne chose the bat, how he covers his tracks, how far he's willing to go to protect the city and punish the criminals). Frank Miller, who I know mostly from Sin City, but who also wrote Spirit and Daredevil, has a penchant for showing off the dark underbelly of cities and creating larger than life urban myths. His take on Batman did not disappoint. If you have any interest in the mythology of Batman, this is definitely a must-read
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