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Batman

The Dark Knight Returns

By Frank Miller, Lynn Varley (Colorist), John Costanza (Calligrapher)

(163)

| Paperback | 9781852867980

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Book Description

If any comic has a claim to have truly reinvigorated the genre then The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller--known recently for his excellent Sin City series and, previously, for his superb rendering of the blind superhero Daredevil--is probably the supreme contender. Batman repContinue

If any comic has a claim to have truly reinvigorated the genre then The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller--known recently for his excellent Sin City series and, previously, for his superb rendering of the blind superhero Daredevil--is probably the supreme contender. Batman represented all that was wrong in comics and Miller set himself a tough task taking on the camp crusader and turning this laughable, innocuous children's cartoon character into a hero for our times. In his introduction the great Alan Moore (V for Vendetta, Swamp Thing, the arguably peerless Watchmen) argues that only someone of Miller's stature could have done this. Batman is a character known well beyond the confines of the comic world (as are his retinue) and so reinventing him, while keeping his limiting core essentials intact, was a huge task.

Miller went far beyond the call of duty. The Dark Knight is a success on every level. Firstly it does keep the core elements of the Batman myth intact, with Robin, Alfred the butler, Commissioner Gordon and the old roster of villains, present yet brilliantly subverted. Secondly the artwork is fantastic--detailed, sometimes claustrophobic, psychotic. Lastly it's a great story: Gotham City is a hell on earth, streetgangs roam but there are no heroes. Decay is ubiquitous. Where is a hero to save Gotham? It is 10 years since the last recorded sighting of the Batman. And things have got worse than ever. Bruce Wayne is close to being a broken man but something is keeping him sane: the need to see change and the belief that he can orchestrate some of that change. Batman is back. The Dark Knight has returned. Awesome. --Mark Thwaite

5 Reviews

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  • 1 person find this helpful

    Miller strikes again. Thrilling and action packed, The Dark Knight Returns starts with an odd point of view: an old and tired Bruce Wayne fights his everyday demons, without any clue of what to do or not to do about the crime that is tearing down Gotham City after ten years from Batman retirement. H ... (continue)

    Miller strikes again. Thrilling and action packed, The Dark Knight Returns starts with an odd point of view: an old and tired Bruce Wayne fights his everyday demons, without any clue of what to do or not to do about the crime that is tearing down Gotham City after ten years from Batman retirement. He won't be alone, old enemies had been waiting this moment for too long...
    All the beauty of this graphic novel is the richness of details around the main events. Wayne is Batman more than ever, Batman is something he cannot escape from.
    A battle for a city becomes soon a personal blind crusade against crime and against whatever lies in the deepest paths of reason, justice and madness.

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    Gekko P. said on Jan 19, 2009 | Add your feedback

  • I must admit, i was never a big fan of Batman.
    Iv always had this thing against most superheroes, and batman never had that much appeal to me.
    But this book turned out to be a really good read for me.
    The story, though not quite as intense and epic as i had hoped, was well written an ... (continue)

    I must admit, i was never a big fan of Batman.
    Iv always had this thing against most superheroes, and batman never had that much appeal to me.
    But this book turned out to be a really good read for me.
    The story, though not quite as intense and epic as i had hoped, was well written and interesting enough to keep me reading it through to the end.
    Avoiding any spoilers, i must say the ending was the highlight of the entire book for me.
    I truly wasn't expecting events that had been hinted at throughout to happen.
    It gave me a much deeper respect for the character of batman and his motives.
    There were a few things i did not completely understand seeing as this is my first real delve into the DC universe, but nothing that took away from the experience as a whole.

    And I'm sure we can all agree, Robin's outfit is much more suited to a girl.

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    Shooxoot said on Sep 24, 2009 | Add your feedback

  • This graphic novel is from 1986 and it seems like it was written and drawn just yesterday... I definitely can understand why Miller set a mark in Batman's and comics' history.

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    Simbul said on Dec 17, 2007 | Add your feedback

  • This is the comic that got me back into comics. That comics were going to be gritty, violent, and adult. It would take awhile for Creator-owned comics to catch up, but they do. I love this book.

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    Seda Lyons said on Sep 29, 2007 | Add your feedback

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