Batman in the 1980s Issue 65: November-December 1986 + The Best of 1986

 

The Dark Knight in the 1980s
by Jack Seabrook &
Peter Enfantino

Byrne

Batman #401

"A Bird in the Hand..."

Story by Barbara Kesel

Art by Trevor Von Eeden

Wealthy women in Gotham City are being killed by trick necklaces created by Magpie, a villain who loves pretty things like jewels. Batman arranges for a showing of the Wayne Collection of the most precious jewels in town and, at the gathering, Bruce and Commissioner Gordon are harangued by G. Gordon Godfrey, a loudmouth who thinks superheroes are nothing but dangerous vigilantes.

During the party, Magpie murders a woman with a sharp, jeweled necklace, right under the noses of Wayne and Gordon. Batman departs to hunt for Magpie, while Godfrey blames the Caped Crusader for the murder. The Dynamic Duo quickly locate Magpie's hideout, where they battle her henchmen before being trapped in an elevator rigged with fatal laser beams. Batman deflects the lasers with a mirror and the heroes escape; they catch Magpie and take her into custody.

Jack: This issue marks the start of Denny O'Neill's tenure as editor, and it's a breath of fresh air. There's nothing new in the story by Barbara Kesel (credited as Barbara Randall), but it hurtles forward at a rapid clip and includes just enough excitement to be fun. I've seen better art from Trevor von Eeden, but I really like his version of Batman, which hearkens back to the way the Dark Knight looked in 1939. I think more changes are coming that will help revive this series.

Peter: I loved "A Bird in the Hand" and its retro art by von Eeden. The story is more violent than we're used to, perhaps as a consequence of the popularity of The Dark Knight Returns. I'm not familiar with the Magpie character but I'm always up for a new villain whose elevator doesn't go to the top floor. 

Janson

Detective Comics #568

"Eyrie"

Story by Joey Cavalieri

Art by Klaus Janson

During a rally denouncing super-heroes as passe and dangerous, a spectator is attacked by a giant falcon. Luckily, the Dynamic Duo had been on hand to watch the proceedings and Batman quickly traps the huge bird and eliminates any more bloodshed.

Meanwhile, the Penguin has taken interest in Dr. Baird, the man responsible for the giant Peregrine; he breaks into the scientist's lab and grabs his notes. Batman arrives and attempts a rescue, but Penguin makes a getaway, mad scientist in tow.

Turns out the scientist is breeding large falcons for an Arab sheik and the Penguin is hoping to ransom the recipe for a big bundle of cash. With a bit of deduction, the Dark Knight manages to track the Penguin to his lair and, with quite a bit of help from the professor, quashes Cobblepot's mad scheme. Back to Arkham goes the fowl felon.

Peter: A very disjointed adventure from the get-go. I assume the interludes with rabble-rouser Godfrey, who's not shy about giving his opinion on superfolk, have something to do with the mini-series, Legends, which was crossing over into several titles during the latter part of 1986. I've never read the series, so I've no idea what the gist of the story is, but what sneaks its way into "Eyrie" doesn't seem all that interesting. The Penguin's grand blackmail scheme doesn't break any new barriers, but its lightweight tone is perfect for a one-and-done. It's nice to see Joey Cavalieri given a chance to flex his funny book muscles in a full-length thriller. Wouldn't it make sense, though, for the bad guys to escape now and then rather than getting hauled back to their cells? It would certainly make it easier to swallow than being paroled every nine months. 

The Klaus Janson art here is not that great, sorry to say. I know he's always been a big fan favorite and I loved his stint on Marvel's Daredevil, but his work here looks rushed. Batman has almost as big a beak as Penguin, but no one fares worse than the Boy Wonder, who runs the gamut from emaciated pre-teen to overweight middle-ager.

Jack: The excitement continues in this full-length story written by GA scribe Cavalieri and illustrated by inker Janson! The pages look great and the layouts are terrific, but some of the close-up faces are a bit shaky. Janson isn't quite as skilled as Colan, but it's a big step forward from Mandrake. I'm always happy to see a classic villain like the Penguin and I have to note that Godfrey looks completely different than he did in this month's Batman.

Starlin

Batman #402

"There's Nothing So Savage--As a Man Destroying Himself!"

Story by Max Allan Collins

Art by Jim Starlin

Batman interrupts a couple of violent muggers and breaks their necks! Of course, it's not really Batman, but the public and the news reporters don't know that and think that the Dark Knight has finally crossed the line. At Wayne Manor, Bruce asks Alfred to start calling around to see about renting a Batman costume. Jason Todd wonders what's so bad about killing off bad guys, but Batman sets him straight.

When Alfred learns that all of the Batman costumes for rent have been stolen, it becomes clear that someone is impersonating the Caped Crusader. Bruce Wayne visits Howard Despond, a man whose wife was murdered; Despond recalls a nice young detective who found the killers before they got off on a technicality. After nightfall, a man robbing a liquor store is caught and killed by the fake Batman. Commissioner Gordon informs Batman that the dead man had shot a store owner the year before and was let off on another technicality.

Those ears!

Gordon and Batman realize that Tommy Carma, the nice young detective, is the link between all of the cases. Batman tells Robin that Carma was not only a policeman, but also a Golden Gloves boxer, a black belt karate expert, and a former Marine. His wife and daughter were killed when the mob blew up his car. Tracking down Carma, Batman learns that the former detective lives with his mother. Batman visits the woman, who thinks he's her son and reveals that Carma worshipped Batman and named his daughter Robin.

Batman asks Gordon to tell him the location of a mob assassin named Snuffer. Before Batman can get to him, the fake Batman bursts in and tosses Snuffer out of a high window, but the real Batman arrives just in time to catch the crook before he hits the pavement. A brief fight ensues between Batmans, but when Robin shows up, Carma is distracted and Batman knocks him out, ending the menace.

Jack: I'm a fan of Max Allan Collins and Jim Starlin, so I was excited to read this story after I saw the credits. It's pretty hard-hitting for an issue of Batman and reads like it's been influenced by the work of Frank Miller. Starlin's art is pretty good, but he draws the ears on Batman's mask so long that they almost look like bunny ears.

Peter: I liked this a lot as well. No surprise since I've been a fan of Max for nearly forty years. No other crime writer is as consistently good as Collins and the proof is in the three series he created featuring Nate Heller (PI), Nolan, and Quarry (both hit men), the latter of which gives Donald E. Westlake's Parker books competition for Best Crime Series of All Time. As with "A Bird in the Hand...", the hook here is that Snuffer is psychotic; he's got his reasons for his actions but those reasons aren't exactly rational. Standout scenes for me would be Batman's discussion with Ma Snuffer and the Seven-esque panels of Bats perusing the "wall of fame." It's a pity Max only sticks around for a short stint, as the writer would have definitely steered our hero down some very dark alleys.

Davis/Neary

Detective Comics #569

"Catch as Catscan"

Story by Mike W. Barr

Art by Alan Davis & Paul Neary

With help from Catwoman, Batman and Robin quash the robbery of a valuable piece of equipment known as the Catscan. After the bad guys (ironically, all former employees of Selina) have been vanquished, Cats wants to discuss with Bats their on-and-off romance, but the Dark Knight doesn't seem to want to be bothered.

Meanwhile, across town, the Joker is frustrated with the quality of his latest heists and tells his men they need to step it up. One of the more eccentric among them brings Joker the latest Gotham Gazette and points at a headline screaming "Dynamic Trio Nabs Gang." The Clown Prince of Crime has an epiphany.

The Bat-signal lights the sky and the Dynamic Duo head to Commissioner Gordon's office, where they meet up with Catwoman, and the Commish shows the heroes a Joker calling card delivered to the precinct a few hours before. Batman deciphers the message on the back of the card and the trio head for the Gotham Library. Sure enough, Joker and his henchmen are hiding in the aisles and a fierce brouhaha ensues. Joker gets the upper hand and traps Batman and Robin in a liquid straitjacket that tightens as its captives struggle. Joker zaps Catwoman and takes her away to his lair.

There, the villain confers with a mad scientist named Dr. Moon who, with the aid of the stolen Catscan, will "tear apart" Selina's brain. Joker misses Selina as a comrade and, clearly, the idea is that Moon will be able to bring back the "old" Catwoman. At the library, Batman practices his Zen and relaxes every muscle of his body (except for his brain, of course) and slips the constraining bonds. He frees Robin and then ponders their next move.

Peter: A solid, fun adventure with some dazzling art, as if Will Eisner had written a script and Bernie Wrightson had realized it. Lots of goofy, throwaway bits to celebrate here... Batman's rebuff of Selina's seduction ("Please, Selina... not in front of the boy.")... Henchman Scoop riding in on what appears to be a motorized tricycle to hand over the newspaper to his boss... Selina lounging like a pin-up on Gordon's couch... Scoop's deranged monologue, while dressed as Rambo, in the library ("You're pretty brave now... now that we fought the wars for you... bled and died while you wimps got sore feet protestin'...")... there's a lot to like from Mike Barr's script.

Of course, I will always have nits to pick... It might be just that I'm confused, since there are so many femmes in and out of Bruce Wayne's life, but the last I recall, Selina didn't know Bruce was Batman. I might have been asleep for the reveal (God knows you'd have to excuse my naps during the awful stories we got in the last year or so), but she's definitely in the secret circle as of this issue. Also, we never see how Joker acquires the Catscan. The last we see of the machine, it's been rescued by the "Dynamic Trio." Very minor quibbles. I can't quibble with the Davis/Neary art, though. It's fabulous and stylish. Their depiction of Joker is both beautiful and hideous at times, while Selina (as I mentioned) is curvy and erotic. Robin is suitably cartoony and Bats is big and scary. A total winner! What a great month for Bat-adventures.

Jack: The new art team of Davis & Neary blew me away! I love the cover and the interior art is just as good, though their Joker is a bit feminine and incredibly skinny. They clearly delight in drawing Catwoman! This issue returns to the classic formula: super villain + fun + cliffhanger=one of the best stories of 1978!

Miller & Janson

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #4

"The Dark Knight Falls"

Story by Frank Miller

Art by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson

Following the massacre at the amusement park, the police arrive to arrest the Joker and Batman. Robin gets away by hanging onto a helicopter, while Batman, who is badly injured, sets off some explosives and is lifted to safety with Robin's help. When the Joker's corpse is found, Batman is charged with murder.

In Gotham City, a vigilante group calling themselves the Sons of the Batman begin to get very tough on crime. Meanwhile, the Mutants are kept behind bars, where they watch the news unfold on TV: Russia has sent a massive nuclear bomb to hit an island after their troops were forced to withdraw. Superman intercepts the missile and redirects its course toward the desert, but when it explodes it disrupts electrical systems in the USA.

Barely out of the operating room at Wayne Manor, Batman puts his costume back on and he and Robin head downtown on horseback, just as a plane, its electrical system lost, crashes into a building. Chaos envelops the city streets, the mutants break out of prison, and Batman faces off against the Sons of Batman at the city dump and enlists their aid in calming the citizens of Gotham. Out in space, Superman is near death from his encounter with the giant bomb, but a close encounter with the sun returns his vigor and good looks. With the aid of the Mutants and the Sons of Batman, the Dynamic Duo restore order to Gotham City.

A week later, darkness reigns as a nuclear winter has descended. An aged Oliver Queen visits Bruce Wayne and together they hatch a plan for Batman to face off against Superman, who has been ordered by the president to bring in the Dark Knight. Batman puts on a high-tech suit and meets Superman for a final battle. In the end, "The Dark Knight Falls," brought down by a heart attack. In the days that follow, it's reported that Batman was Bruce Wayne and that the billionaire's fortune has disappeared. Wayne Manor was blown up by Alfred, who dies from a stroke. Clark Kent attends Bruce's funeral and, as everyone leaves, he detects a faint heartbeat below the ground with his super hearing. It seems Oliver Queen had a hand in faking Batman's death! Clark winks at Robin and, later on, Bruce Wayne is back in what's left of the Batcave, instructing the next generation of crime fighters.

Peter: Of the four chapters, this is easily the weakest, due to Miller's clipped dialogue, the frenetic pace, and the intermingling of perspectives. It's all way too confusing for this little brain, and that's from someone who absolutely loved the first three installments. I'm sure there are those out there who will say that Frank Miller maintained quality all through the series and put the perfect bow on the package, but it was a mighty big disappointment for me.

Jack: Like you, I found this confusing on first reading it, but when I went back through it to write the summary, it made more sense. I haven't been a fan of this series, but I have to admit that Miller succeeded in doing something new, even if I didn't really want to see it. The art is exciting, though I don't care for Miller's technique of drawing Batman and Superman as giant, lumbering monsters. I also don't care for the "adult" aspects of the story, including the language and the violence. Still, we have to reckon with this series and all that's come after it, so it certainly qualifies as a landmark.

THE BEST (AND WORST) OF 1986

PETER

Best Script: Frank Miller, "Hunt the Dark Knight" (The Dark Knight Returns #3)

Best Art: Frank Miller & Klaus Janson, "Hunt the Dark Knight"

Best All-Around Story: "Hunt the Dark Knight"

Worst Script: Harlan Ellison, "The Night of Thanks, But No Thanks," (Detective Comics #567)

Worst Art: Tom Mandrake, "Strike Two" (Batman #399)

Best Cover: Bill Sienkiewicz, Batman #400 >

The Five Best Stories

1- "Hunt the Dark Knight"

2-  "Catch as Catscan" (Detective Comics #569)

3- "The Dark Knight Returns" (The Dark Knight Returns #1)

4- "The Dark Knight Triumphant" (The Dark Knight Returns #2)

5- "A Bird in the Hand..." (Batman #401)

JACK

Best Script: Frank Miller, "The Dark Knight Returns" 

Best Art: Alan Davis & Paul Neary, "Catch as Catscan," 

Best All-Around Story: "The Dark Knight Returns"

Worst Script: Harlan Ellison, "The Night of Thanks, But No Thanks," 

Worst Art: Tom Mandrake, "Binary Brains," (Batman #397)

Best Cover: Marshall Rogers, (Shadow of the Batman #2)

The Five Best Stories

1-"The Dark Knight Returns"

2-"Double Crosses," Detective Comics #564

3-"Catch as Catscan"

4-"The Dark Rider," Batman #393

5-"Free Faces," Detective Comics #563

Next Week...
Did we really need an "In Deep II"?

Batman in the 1980s Issue 63: August 1986

 

The Dark Knight in the 1980s
by Jack Seabrook &
Peter Enfantino

Miller

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #3

"Hunt the Dark Knight"

Story by Frank Miller

Art by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson

The new police commissioner has issued a warrant for the arrest of Batman for various misdemeanors; the President of the United States has ordered the Man of Steel to bring his old friend in for the good of America; the Sons of Batman have been assassinating jaywalkers; and Robin 6.0 has a mind of her own and thinks nothing of disobeying her mentor. It's been a hell of a day for the Dark Knight.

Add to that the simply asinine decision by psychiatrist Dr. Wolper that the Joker is a cured man and perfectly safe to appear on the David Endochrine Show. Of course, the Clown Prince of Crime uses his deadly smile gas to kill the entire audience and then vanishes. While attempting to apprehend the lunatic, Batman is attacked by the commissioner and the entire police force. He and Robin narrowly escape.

While visiting Selina Kyle, who's hung up her Catwoman suit and become a high-priced madam, Batman learns his former lover has been forced to aid the Joker and that the evil clown's next target is the county fair. The dynamic duo race to the fairgrounds, where the Joker is already mid-terrorism, having murdered dozens with poisoned cotton candy and attaching bombs to roller coaster rides. Robin manages to save most of the coaster riders while Batman sets off after Joker, who has ducked into the House of Mirrors.

With the guilt of knowing that if he had only killed the Joker years before, thousands would still be alive, Batman heads into the attraction with murder on his mind. The two old enemies have a vicious tussle and the Dark Knight is gravely wounded, but Batman just can't commit the final act. With a heavy sigh of disappointment, Joker kills himself.

Peter: There's a whole lot going on here, much more than a short synopsis can contain. As with the first two chapters, this is heavy, heavy reading with Frank Miller tearing away at everything we've learned and believed about superheroes for (at that time) nearly fifty years. Miller's questions about vigilantism and law and order aren't that far off from Don Siegel's Dirty Harry. Laws might need to be broken to bring in the bad guys, but how much force should be used and who should use it? Superman's transformation from morally-grounded world-saver to brainwashed pawn of a crooked politician is startling; I'd forgotten just how startling. And Joker's suicide by self-inflicted broken neck is perfect (Nolan used Batman's inability to kill the Joker to great effect in The Dark Knight), leaving Batman feeling almost guilty for not giving in to his inner rage. We've got one more installment left (which was delayed until December 1986, so we won't discuss that until the Halloween day post) but, to me, this is the strongest, most powerful and memorable chapter yet.

Jack: I didn't dislike this issue as much as I did the last one, mainly because the Joker is such a strong character. Still, I had a negative reaction to Miller's wholesale attack on the icons of the Batman universe. Selina is old and fat and she runs an escort service? Not for me. I like Batman's relationship with the new Robin, but I question how much training she really got and why he lets her participate in such dangerous activities. Miller uses a lot of women in roles previously filled by men; there's the topless Nazi villain with swastikas on her breasts and buttocks; Robin, of course; and the new commissioner. Still, it seems like the women are either evil, stupid, or naive, and I don't think that advances the feminist cause.

Miller's worldview is so dark that it infects every aspect of the story and there's nothing fun about reading it. I don't like the Joker being a mass murderer and the way the world is depicted is much too dark. If one were to argue that this is more realistic than comics had been in the past, stop to think a moment: has anyone ever murdered an entire TV audience? Or killed a large group of kids at an amusement park? It's not realistic--it's hyper-violent and it's done to try to demonstrate that violence and vigilantism are justified in the face of such horror. I don't think that was true in 1986 and I don't think it's true now.

Miller's plotting is good and his artwork is very good, but I think even Peter would have to admit that these pages look very mid-'80s and have dated quite a bit.

Mandrake

Batman #398

"About Faces!"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Tom Mandrake

Catwoman is annoyed that Batman isn't willing to commit to being her partner in love as well as in fighting crime. They call a truce and head to see Commissioner Gordon on the roof of Police HQ, where Batman explains that he has a plan to capture Two-Face. Meanwhile, Circe and Two-Face head to the Gotham Museum to steal an Egyptian sarcophagus, though Two-Face is unaware that Circe is working with the Caped Crusader and this is all a setup.

Bats and Cats wait and watch as Circe takes out a gold mask from the mummy case and gets Harvey Dent to try it on, hypnotizing him into thinking his good side can prevail. Unfortunately, Two-Face is determined to be a bad guy and he smacks Circe, at which point Batman, Catwoman, and Robin burst in and a fight ensues. Two-Face is defeated, and Catwoman departs, leaving Batman to wonder about the future of their partnership.

Peter: "About Faces!" brings to an end yet another forgettable arc. Nothing new here. Harvey Dent struggles with his duality, then spends quite a lot of time making up his face for a ten-second masquerade, only to become evil Harvey again. Catwoman continues to waffle between loving partner and jealous pain in the arse. Ditto Robin. To make matters worse, Doug opens the story with a rambling dialogue between Batman and Catwoman about... well, I don't know what it was about. Doug's time on the Bat-titles is coming to a close and he's done some good work here and there, but he's not going out with much of a bang.

Jack: This was much more fun to read than The Dark Knight Returns! Mandrake still struggles with his art and I imagine the Batman face on the cover has a bit of help from an uncredited Dick Giordano. The interior artwork reminds me of something we'd see in 1940s comics, where it looked charming and unspoiled. The improvements in comic art over the decades make Mandrake's work look amateurish. I enjoyed most of the banter between Batman and Catwoman and I still think Two-Face is a great villain, so I was glad Moench had room to expand the story. As my summary shows, not much happened, but I liked it anyway, perhaps as an antidote to all the darkness from Miller.

Colan/Giordano

Detective Comics #565

"The Love Killing"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Gene Colan & Bob Smith

Batman investigates the grisly murder of Mona Lamont, an airline stewardess; not an ordinary crime of passion... this woman was beheaded! Bats's chief suspect is Roy Spivey, the dead woman's ex-boyfriend, but the Dark Knight can find no evidence and the man seems to stay inside his apartment, night and day. 

Meanwhile, the rift between our costumed hero and his lady love, Catwoman, seems to grow wider every day. Now Selina won't even prowl the streets on patrol with him and she's spending more time with her panther. As for Jason, he finds himself falling more and more in love with Rena every day, with his Robin duties suffering as a result.

Unbeknownst to all parties involved, Roy Spivey has been keeping a secret safely hidden in a bucket of solution in his apartment basement. Spivey reaches in and reveals the shrunken head of Mona Lamont!

Peter: A truly batshit tale and, even as goofy as it is, a welcome rest from the same ol' same ol'. I have no idea what Roy Spivey's game is but, for the first time in a really long while, I can't wait to read part two in Batman #399. The reveal of Mona's teensy tiny head is a macabre shocker. The Rhett Butler/Scarlet O'Hara nonsense with Bats and Cats takes up way too much space; it's repetitive and sappy. In issues past, Bats was giving Cats the cold shoulder and now it's flipped. I get it, Doug wants to point out (several times in this issue) how love can destroy love... that is what he's trying to say, right? Let's just get back to Catwoman being in the Rogues Gallery rather than a sometime squeeze.

Jack: The issue starts off with a great cover by Colan and Giordano, and Colan and Smith keep up the level of quality inside as well. They sure make Harvey Bullock a real slob, don't they? Unlike Frank Miller, Colan has the murder occur off-camera, but it's still effective. I like the way Moench compares the breakdown of the relationship between Batman and Catwoman with the developing relationship between Jason and Rena, all set against the backdrop of the destructive relationship between murderer and victim. I really liked the panel with the severed head, too!

"Death by Misadventure"

Story by Joey Cavalieri

Art by Stan Woch

Green Arrow survives the exploding door (see last issue) and discovers that behind it is none other than Rick O'Connor (a/k/a Hi-Tek) and Mayor Bolt's son Bruce, watched over carefully by the gorgeous Professor Cuthbertson. Meanwhile, Steelclaw's henchmen turn against him after they believe the villain has killed Black Canary (he hasn't, though; he's only given her a knockout drug, because he's really good guy Mayor Bolt, who everyone thinks is a bad guy but he's just acting like a villain so that he can infiltrate the underworld and clean up the city he runs) and left the city wide open for running drugs and guns and all sorts of bad stuff. Both men empty their guns into Steelclaw and beat a hasty retreat. Having heard the gunfire, Green Arrow exits the building to find the unconscious Canary and the apparently-dead Claw. Meanwhile, across town, Onyx reveals exactly nothing to her friend Tommie.

Peter: An enjoyable seven pages, with a whole lot of interesting twists. Well, the Onyx stuff is annoying rather than interesting, but the rest of the events are intriguing. I assume Mayor Bolt/Steelclaw is not dead since the reveal once he's unmasked would leave him a villain in the eyes of everyone living in Star City, including his kid. The art, by newcomer Stan Woch, is very good. Standout is the two-panel page of the thugs icing Steelclaw. Dynamite!

Jack: I didn't think much of the art, which seemed a step back from what we've been seeing recently in this series. I don't like how Cavalieri wraps up the main story and then sticks in the obligatory Onyx page at the end.

Cowan/Giordano

Batman Annual #10

"Down to the Bone"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Denys Cowan & Alfredo Alcala

Stockholders in the Wayne Foundation are scared into selling their holdings to a mysterious person who succeeds in taking control of the corporation. Bruce Wayne knows something is not right, so Batman and Robin decide to visit the former stockholders to try to find out what's going on. Alfred receives a visit from the man behind the scheme and is so shocked by his identity that he has a stroke.

Soon, Bruce Wayne is bankrupt and Wayne Manor is sold to the highest bidder, leaving Amanda Groscz to notify him that he's no longer a fit guardian for Jason Todd and the boy will be placed elsewhere. Bruce walks the streets and learns just how little he can buy with $37 in 1986; as Batman, he visits the former stockholders, only one of whom is not too scared to tell him anything much. Once he learns that the man who bought Wayne Manor and took over Wayne Foundation used the name Steven Strangways, Batman proves why he's a great detective and quickly deduces that Hugo Strange is not dead and is behind it all.

Batman grabs Robin from the orphanage and the duo are soon attacked by one of Strange's Mandroids, disguised as the Caped Crusader and riding the Bat-Cycle. The dynamic duo return to Wayne Manor and the Batcave, where they confront the real Strange (and some more Mandroids). Strange escapes in the Batmobile but Batman and Robin chase him in the Bat-Copter (or Whirlybat) and knock him out. Commissioner Gordon arrives to take Strange to the pokey where the villain is convinced that Batman hypnotized him into thinking that the Dark Knight's secret identity is Bruce Wayne, something he realizes cannot be true. Alfred recovers from his stroke and returns home to find Stately Wayne Manor in ruins.

Peter: Despite having 38 pages to breathe, Doug Moench's script feels empty. Hugo Strange doesn't even show up until the closing pages, so perhaps it might have been more of a surprise if his face hadn't been plastered across the cover. Doug gets in plenty of digs at Ronnie Reagan, the rich, and even health care, with his overcooked and cliched observations (In this modern world, objective and subjective are one and the same, inextricably merged, the symbol supplanting reality. Money is not just yachts and VCRs--it is food and shelter and even the life-sustaining care which should come from love and concern... but which actually derives from the goal of a physician's paycheck...).

Batman questions whether an
eight-year-old Robin was a good idea.

The "Bruce Wayne loses everything" storyline has been done before and will be done again; what's interesting to see is if the destruction at Wayne Manor or the life-altering events that led to Batman sleeping on a dirty mattress in a belfry will ever be reflected in the regular titles. The art is top-notch (there goes my Alcala love again), but I will say... yet again... someone at the editor's desk should be hanging post-its around the artists' easels to remind them of Jason Todd's age. Within this single story, the kid seems to age from a toddler to a grown man.

Jack: I had high hopes for "Down to the Bone" due to the excellent cover, but the interior story and art were only fair. When Robin first appears, he looks exactly like the college-age Dick Grayson, but soon it becomes clear that he's Jason Todd and he ages in reverse as the story unfolds. I had a hard time getting worked up over Wayne Foundation's financial troubles and agree that it will be interesting to see if this is a one-off or if the regular titles continue the story. I suspect it will never be mentioned again.

Next Week...
Prepare yourself for disaster!

Batman in the 1980s Issue 62: July 1986

 

The Dark Knight in the 1980s
by Jack Seabrook &
Peter Enfantino

Miller/Janson

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #2

"Dark Knight Triumphant"

Story by Frank Miller

Art by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson

The Mutant crime wave in Gotham City is getting worse. Commissioner Gordon is attacked by one of the scoundrels and responds by pulling out his gun to shoot and kill his assailant. None of this deters a young girl named Carrie, who dons a Robin costume and heads out into the night to fight injustice. The head Mutant makes a statement that he will kill Gordon and Batman, adding that he plans to "rip the meat from his bones and suck them dry." Complicating matters is that little Kevin Ridley, heir to a chewing gum fortune, has been kidnapped.

Batman quickly tracks down the mutant kidnappers, beats them senseless, and rescues wee Kevin. Despite his seeming heroics, people remain divided about whether he's a good guy or a bad guy. Ellen Yindel is named new Commissioner of Police and announces that her first act will be to issue an arrest warrant for Batman. Undeterred, the Dark Knight heads out in his new, improved Batmobile/Sherman Tank to the city dump, where the Mutants have gathered. Unbeknownst to Batman, Robin has also arrived on the scene and is watching as events unfold. Batman is goaded by the chief Mutant into exiting the safety of his tank and engaging in hand-to-hand combat; the Mutant gets the upper hand until Robin comes to the rescue by distracting him so that Batman can knock him out with a gas pellet.

In the White House, the President asks Superman to get involved in the Batman/Mutant fracas and settle down the Caped Crusader. Batman is badly injured but realizes that the new Robin saved his life, so he welcomes her to the Batcave. Outside the sanctuary, things remain dire as a madman shoots three people in a movie theater. The mayor makes the mistake of visiting Mutant #1 in jail and is murdered for his trouble; Batman is on the mend and tells Robin that her training will begin tomorrow. Batman arranges for the Mutants to gather at the city dump and for Mutant #1 to be released from prison. At the dump, Batman and the head Mutant engage in extreme mud wrestling and, when Batman wins the fight, the Mutants suddenly shift their allegiance to the Dark Knight.

Peter: I continue to be astonished at how fresh, imaginative, and groundbreaking this series was/is. So many startling images and ideas, all emanating from the brain of one man. I mentioned last time how you can spot all the iconic scenes that influence the Batman movies from Burton's blockbuster all the way up to Matt Reeves's dour, pensive, and exciting The Batman. With this second chapter, I can see the bits and pieces used for Todd Phillips's Joker, particularly in the way Batman influences the young of Gotham to follow his ways blindly. Miller can't help getting in several digs at then-president Ronald Reagan and the squeaky-clean image of DC's other powerhouse, Superman. More on that next time.

Jack: Am I alone in strongly disliking this issue? The cover is ugly and Miller amps up the violence in a transparent bid for realism. I still can't figure out what year this story is supposed to be set in; the President seems like Reagan and everyone dresses like its 1986, yet there are Mutants running wild. Many of Miller's ideas and plot points seem obvious and one-sided; the Batmobile is a tank, Superman is a fascist, the Mutants talk like a cross between bad science fiction characters and Black characters written by Bill DuBay. The idea that the mayor would visit the head Mutant in jail alone and be murdered is ludicrous; even more ridiculous is that the same Mutant would then walk out of prison.

Miller's writing seems like that of a frustrated, angry man who thinks things have gone very wrong in his country and someone needs to Make it Great Again. I am not sure whether this version of Batman was the cause of bad things to come in the comics and films or a symptom of what was already developing, but I loathed this comic and I think it was the start of Batman going in the wrong direction.

Mandrake

Batman #397

"Binary Brains"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Tom Mandrake

Two-Face is back on the street and, while Batman discusses the villain's escape from Arkham Asylum with Commissioner Gordon, the fiend is telling his gang that he plans to rob a computer genius. In addition, someone just put a black wreath on the Sionis crypt! Batman and Robin start looking for Two-Face while Catwoman goes on the hunt for Circe to see if she knows anything about the wreath.

While Two-Face forces computer guy to sell him the "Binary Brains," a pair of computers that reach different conclusions when fed the same data, Catwoman locates Circe, who is performing at a strip club and removing everything but her mask. Circe tells Catwoman that her brain is concocting schemes of revenge while her body is busy gyrating. The Dynamic Duo fail to locate Two-Face who, two weeks later, uses the computers to determine the best method to heist a bank. In subplot land, Lucius Fox informs Bruce Wayne that he is considering running for mayor.

Two-Face and his gang successfully rob the bank, despite the arrival of Batman and Robin, who choose the wrong one of two getaway cars to follow. Back at his lair, Two-Face learns that Circe wants to meet with him and may be able to provide him with a new face.

Peter: It seems, between Doug's anemic scripts and Mandrake's loony doodles, the regular Bat-titles just keep getting worse and worse. Several laughs this time out. Gordon tells Batman that Two-Face broke out of Arkham using his infamous two-sided coin and Bats doesn't even question why the lunatics he risks his life to put behind bars are allowed to keep their tchotchkes in their cells with them. And how about that Gordon dialogue: "Two-Face has escaped Arkham Asylum by putting on a "second face"--actually a third face, I suppose, considering he's already got two..." On the splash, Robin looks taller than Batman despite his pre-teen age. Check out the panel on page four where Batman's cape appears to be approximately a third the length of the building. Circe sheds clothes to Pat Benatar's "Hit Me with Your Best Shot," not my idea of a striptease number (but the extra-risque cheesecake panels are a nice treat). So, if guffaws are all you need to enjoy a funny book, have at it. Me, I hope we climb out of this pit (deeper even than the one Bruce Wayne had to climb out of in The Dark Knight Rises) real fast.

Jack: Had I not been so disturbed by this month's issue of Dark Knight, I would've been quicker to dump on this issue of Batman. The Mandrake art remains amateurish, with panel after panel looking like fan art at best. There's one panel on page 21 at the top where I suspect Dick Giordano lent a hand, since Batman looks significantly better than he does anywhere else. As for the story? Yes, it's silly, but it's more of what I expect from a comic book and it didn't upset me the way Miller's narrative did. I wish we could have Moench's writing and Miller's art together. I wonder where the Catwoman saga is heading? In this issue, she tools around on her Catcycle and seems like a substitute for Batgirl.

Colan/Giordano

Detective Comics #564

"Double Crosses"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Gene Colan & Bob Smith

Circe approaches Two-Face with a request: she wants Harvey to bust Roman Sionis out of Arkham so she can kill him for disfiguring her face. In exchange, she'll let Two-Face in on a fabulous heist plan she's cooked up involving a pharaoh's tomb on exhibition. Two-Face tells Circe he'll consider it while he's pulling his own heist at Dos Cruces Brewery. His fancy shmancy computer will decide his heists from here on in.

Meanwhile, the chipper pre-teen/teenage/young adult Jason Todd prepares for a night out with girlfriend Rena, a trip to the movie theater to see Steven Spielberg's controversial new film, The Color Purple. Could this be Spielberg's masterpiece or, as his nerd fans proclaim, an icky history lesson with no flying saucers or deadly arks? Also meanwhile, we discover through a trip backstage of the Ecdysia strip joint, that Circe is acting with the Batman to trap Harvey Dent with her sarcophagus heist. Outside the nightclub, Catwoman observes and, of course, believes Batman has visited Circe for a/ romantic reasons or b/ because he doesn't trust Selina.

Thanks to the computers of Lucius Fox, Bruce Wayne deduces that Harvey's next robbery will be at Dos Cruces and he heads there, sans partners. But it turns out Two-Face is smarter than Batman gives him credit for; the rip-off is a set-up. Harvey traps the Caped Crusader in a giant beer vat and shouts "So long, Batbrains" as he rushes out the door (Holy 1966, Batman!). Bats uses the explosive device from his utility belt to blow the lid off the sucker and exits the vat to find Circe standing above him. After a bit of dialogue wherein Bats confesses he doesn't trust Circe, she lifts her mask to reveal... Catwoman! Inexplicably pissed that her Dark Knight beau doesn't trust Circe (women!), she storms off, leaving Batman to ponder the mysteries of the female of the species. Across town, Harvey flips his coin, blasts his computer, and decides to enter into an agreement with Circe.

Peter: "Double Crosses" is just as maddeningly sub-par as the last umpteen issues of Doug's tenure. The initial powwow between Harvey and Circe drags on for three pages and nothing seems to be said. The dialogue is awful and zigzags between subjects. The continual seesawing of the Circe character (she's bad... no, she's good... she's evil... no, she wants to redeem herself...) is as nauseating as the equally up-and-down relationships Bats has with his two partners. Now we have to deal with Selina's jealousy of Circe as well as the obligatory rantings of Jason. And, hey, could someone send a memo to the Bat-title artists that we need a little consistency regarding Robin's height and age? 

Jack: Easily my favorite Bat-story of the month, and probably in the running for my top five of 1986, "Double Crosses" features excellent art by Colan and Smith along with not one but two plot twists that took me by surprise: when we see that Circe is working with Batman behind Two-Face's back, and when Circe takes off her mask and turns out to be Catwoman. It's rare that any plot twist is unexpected, so kudos to Moench. Kudos also to Colan and Smith, who not only tell a good story but do it with style; Colan's gruesome Circe face is one for the books. There is a spot of questionable proofreading on page four when Circe repeats an entire word balloon in two successive panels, but what really shocked me is Two-Face saying, "'You've screwed yourself.'" In a DC comic? Times are changing.

"This Masquerade"

Story by Joey Cavalieri

Art by Jerome Moore, Steve Montano, & Rodin Rodriguez

If Mayor Bolt doesn't allow a drug shipment to enter Star City's harbor, real estate man (and sometime drug kingpin) Marty Costa will kidnap Bolt's son. Green Arrow and Black Canary attempt to find out where Bolt hid his son so that they might get him to safety. Meanwhile, Bolt dons his faux-bad guy outfit and hits the streets as Steelclaw. He arrives at the mansion where his son is being hidden at the same time as Canary and Arrow. Mistakenly believing that Canary has gone over to the dark side, Steelclaw puts Dinah Lance out of commission and calls the police to haul her away. Meanwhile, within the house's walls, Ollie meets a similar fate when a door blows up in his face. Across town, Onyx gets her obligatory one-panel cameo.

Peter: Joey sure makes things hard on himself, concocting a plot so convoluted and contrived that there's no way he can write himself out of his corner. The title of this episode is perfect, though: Bolt's a good politician masquerading as a bad one while he moonlights as a good superhero posing as a villain. Nothing confusing there. And can we just get a full-story arc for Onyx out of the way once and for all? If you pasted together all her appearances in the last year, you might be able to fill one page of story. Hey, whatever problems I have with the story, I've got none with the art. Why wasn't someone in the editorial office taking notice of the Moore/Montano/Rodriguez team here and giving them the chores on the woefully drawn Batman title?

Jack: I thought the art was inconsistent, probably due to having two inkers. The story is decent and they replace the scene of GA chatting with BC across the kitchen table with one of them chatting on her motorcycle. The Onyx cameos bother me, too!

Next Week...
Creepy tackles the horrors of the media.
This should be... interesting.

Batman in the 1980s Issue 61: June 1986

  

The Dark Knight in the 1980s
by Jack Seabrook &
Peter Enfantino

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #1

"The Dark Knight Returns"

Story by Frank Miller

Art by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson

Ten years after the retirement of the Batman, Bruce Wayne finds himself a bored man. What he wouldn't give for a little action. His best friend, Commissioner Jim Gordon (who now knows the real identity of the Caped Crusader), is days away from retirement, Dick Grayson and Bruce are not on speaking terms, Harvey Dent's disfigured face has been fixed and he's has been found legally sane, and a new breed of street terrorists calling themselves the Mutants are spreading death and destruction across Gotham. The Batman's archenemy, the Joker, sits in Arkham, waiting. 

When Harvey goes missing shortly after his release and the nightly murders weigh on his conscience, Bruce Wayne dons his cape and cowl for the first time in a decade and heads out into the night to kick ass! And kick ass he does, breaking limbs, busting jaws, and severing arteries throughout the alleys of the city. The people of Gotham are split on the return of the Dark Knight; some see him as a savior amidst an unending wave of violence, while others see our hero as an unthinking, fascist vigilante who takes the law into his own hands.

A mysterious face on the news, calling himself the leader of the Mutants, promises to kill both Gordon and the Batman. Not one to wait for the battle to come to him, the Dark Knight enlists the aid of Gordon to track down this leader. Could it be Harvey? All Gordon knows is that two military helicopters have been stolen and an air attack on Gotham seems imminent. The Batman kicks in the teeth of one of Harvey's henchmen and learns enough to stake himself out on one of Gotham's "Twin Towers." Sympathetic to his old pal Harvey's diminished sanity, the Batman vows to take Harvey Dent alive. 

The copter lands and, using hallucinogenic pellets, the Batman takes out the crew of the first helicopter before they can cause mischief, but then he comes face to face with the bomb. He uses a freezing agent to keep the bomb from detonating and then sets off to find Harvey. Rather than hide, Harvey opens fire on his foe and then leaps for the landing skid of the bomb-laden helicopter, which is exiting stage left. Dent misses the skid and soars head-first toward the ground until the Batman catches him and deposits him safely in one of the tower's office suites. Miles away, the copter explodes, killing its villainous occupants.

Peter: What a breath of fresh, original, and vibrant air this project provided in those semi-dark summer 1986 days. I vaguely remember the hoopla leading up to the release, but you have to remember that this was three years before Tim Burton made Batman a worldwide phenomenon and most folks thought of the Caped Crusader as that jokey Adam West thing from a couple of decades before. Neal Adams and Denny O'Neil had hinted at how dark this knight could be, but it took Frank Miller to jettison the good guy and transform our 55-year-old playboy into a ruthless, bone-breaking machine who actually admits to himself that he misses hurting bad guys.

There are so many layers to unwrap, unlike with the monthly comics which (for better or worse) just lie there and present their narratives with little to no depth. It's not a flawlessly told story (I had to read the climax three or four times to figure out what was going on with the two copters and the henchmen), but it is damn near perfect. It's no wonder that every scriptwriter and director from Burton to Nolan to Reeves "borrowed" elements and atmosphere from this and Miller's Year One (coming soon to a blog near you); it's a veritable smorgasbord of great ideas and visuals. Did Gordon's throwaway comment about "what happened to Jason" lead to the decision to kill the kid later on? According to Denny O'Neil, nope. But you have to wonder. Miller wasn't a fan of Todd's killing, calling it the "ugliest" and "most cynical thing" he'd ever seen in comics. It's been thirty-five-plus years since I first read this novel, so I'm eager to see if the quality holds up.

Jack: It's certainly a tremendous, landmark achievement, but was it really $2.95 for a 52-page comic book? I think it was printed on card stock and square bound, but still, $2.95 was a lot of money for a comic that was half the size of the 100-pagers we got in the '70s for 60 cents. That aside, the cover is unlike anything we've seen recently, if ever. Questions about whether Batman was a vigilante had been percolating in the regular comics for some time, and the spike in crime that serves as the catalyst for the story was topical in 1986, even if the story itself is supposed to take place at some future date. That's never clear--is it 20 years after 1986? Or has Bats been gone since 1966? Everything looks like the mid-'80s to me.

It's interesting that there seems to be an underlying theme that excessive heat provokes crime; this was used by Ray Bradbury in a story decades before. The storytelling and art are dynamic and this issue is obviously a landmark development in the limited series format that would become so prevalent in years to come. When Batman says he's "born again," that's a nod to the '80s revival of Protestant religion in the USA.

I don't care for Miller's politics (except when he's on my side), but that's Monday-morning quarterbacking. This is unquestionably a great comic and I can't wait to read the next issue.

Mandrake

Batman #396

"Box-Office Smash"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Tom Mandrake

Batman and Catwoman are too late to stop the Film Freak from attacking Al Jacobs and they are duped by the FF when he pretends to be Jacobs and sends them on a wild goose chase. Meanwhile, Robin and Harvey Bullock follow a clue left by the Film Freak on a videotape in a room across the alley from police HQ. Tired of the two-tiered approach to crime fighting, Commissioner Gordon brings the teams together and gives them a stern lecture.

Certain that the Film Freak plans a "Box-Office Smash" that will kill his former director during his big movie premiere, the foursome head to the theater. Batman saves the day and prevents a catastrophe when a reel of film explodes. Across town, the Film Freak is dressed as King Kong when he attacks Julia Pennyworth and carries her to the building's roof for the big finish. With help from Catwoman and Robin, Batman knocks FF out cold and ends the menace.

Peter: If this were just another Bat-month, "Box-Office Smash" would come off as your usual mediocre Moench script and fair-to-middling Mandrake art but, coming after the launch of The Dark Knight Rises, the story accentuates the slump the titles are in. Nothing of consequence happens and the events that do occur come off as stupid and/or petty. Why in the world would the Film Freak go to the elaborate lengths he does? There might be reasoning somewhere, but after three mindless and boring chapters, I've lost the plot. Similarly, Tom Mandrake can be a perfectly average penciler if he avoids close-ups. In one panel, Catwoman looks like a bug-eyed male and Bats is obviously taking his toys and going home. 

Jack: You make a good point. Without Miller's work to compare it to, this issue of Batman would be below average, but in light of The Dark Knight Returns, it looks pretty bad. There are a couple of panels where Bullock is twice the size of the Boy Wonder. I don't know how long this team-up between Batman and Catwoman will last, but unless Moench does something interesting with it, it seems like a pointless diversion. I think it's time for a new writer and definitely a new artist.

Colan/Giordano

Detective Comics #563

"Free Faces"

Story by Doug Moench

Art by Gene Colan & Bob Smith

Jason Todd's having problems with his Geography grades and it doesn't seem to be the nightly crime raids that are the culprit, but rather that ol' debbil, Love! Every time Jason's eyes wander to prepubescent beauty Rena he sees stars; in fact, during a particularly heated homework session in Jason's room, the dopey kid almost shows the girl his Robin suit. Alfred is worried and lets Master Bruce know what's going on; Bats shrugs and promises he'll get on the kid right away, but duty calls.

The Dark Knight meets Catwoman at the graveyard headquarters of Black Mask's crew, the False Face Society. The search reveals nothing untoward, as the tomb is empty, save the crew's empty masks. But as Bats and Cats turn to leave, they see a funeral wreath hanging on the mausoleum door. And it wasn't there when they entered!

During all this melodrama, Harvey Dent, a/k/a Two-Face, uses some "colloidal make-up" and his supremely gullible lawyer to break out of prison. Making his way back to his apartment hideout, Dent tells his right-hand man that they'll be going out for a heist. Flipping the coin, Two-Face determines that the robbery will involve a party committing illegal activities. His target becomes Candyman, the pusher who's been supplying Gotham High School with its drug supply. Since Robin has been trailing Shane, a fellow classmate, he witnesses the violent attack on Candyman by Two-Face. Knowing he's outnumbered, Robin heads off to let his boss know who's back in town.

Peter: Though most of its length is spent filling readers in on past events (including a way-too-long retelling of the origin of Two-Face), I liked "Free Faces." It's certainly a more substantial story than the abysmal "Film Freak" arc we just mercifully finished and the art is a heck of a lot better (although, in the panel I've reprinted below, you'll see that Rena seems to have been yet another victim of Two-Face). More time is given over to Jason who's been, for the most part, ignored the last few months. I'm intrigued by the Rena character. 

I'm not sure why Batman felt the need to bust into the tomb of the False Face Society other than the fact that it gave Doug the chance to introduce yet another subplot to be explored somewhere down the line: the much-requested return of Circe, I guess.

Jack: At first, I thought it odd that Two-Face would turn up in two comics in the same month, but then I realized it's fitting! He's such a great character and his origin story never fails to fascinate me. Colan's art is as impressive as ever and the drug dealer is depicted as grotesque, though not as horrible as post-acid bath Harvey Dent. The Detective stories, even though they're 15 pages, often seem like the setup or wrap-up to the Batman stories, which are only seven pages longer.

"Winner and Still Champion"

Story by Joey Cavalieri

Art by Jerome Moore & Dell Barras

Green Arrow fights the Champion and beats him pretty easily. Afterward, Ollie and Dinah (a/k/a Black Canary) discuss the victory and inadvertently work out the secret identity of baddie, Steelclaw. 

Peter: An odd installment in that most of the seven pages are given over to post-battle discussion around the kitchen table. As I've said before, Joey Cavalieri has a knack for pulling off the "talk around the table" more assuredly than his action scenes. The Champion is tricked and beaten rather quickly, but I'm not complaining, since he was a tenth-tier villain we could do without. Now, hopefully, Joey will do the same with the equally useless and cliched Steelclaw.

Jack: This is not a good entry in the Green Arrow backup series, just as I was starting to think it was improving. It's just a quick fight and then talking heads. I thought some of the house ads were intriguing and they show DC moving in the direction of more limited series, such as The Last Days of the JSA, which sounds cool.

Next Week...
More Nino Madness!