Dark Night: A True Batman Story

Author:  Paul Dini, art by Eduardo Risso
Year of Publication:  2016
Length:  128 pages
Genre:  Graphic novel, autobiography

In January 1993, scriptwriter Paul Dini was at the height of his profession.  Specializing in cartoons, he wrote for Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs and was writing for the internationally successful Batman:  The Animated Series (for which he created the character Harley Quinn).  However, one night returning home from a date, Dini was set upon by two muggers and savagely beaten to within an inch of his life.  After his horrific experience Dini feels unable to face life again, let alone write Batman.   After all, where was the Caped Crusader when he needed him?

Dini structures the book as if it is a movie pitch to bored Hollywood executives.  he starts with his childhood where his loneliness and frequent run-ins with bullies are mitigated by his imagination, and his love of cartoons and comics.  As an adult, his recuperation is detailed partly with a series of conversations between Dini and Batman, and famous Batman villains, such as the Joker, Two Face and Poison Ivy.  Batman is that voice that tells him to suck it up and deal with it, the Joker is more seductive, telling Dini that he doesn't need to work on that script, just play video games and watch TV, he can get back to work the next day, or the day after that, or the day...

Risso's art is beautiful, detailing the characters in lusciously coloured paintings, that evoke the look of early 1990s cartoons.  I read it in a few hours and enjoyed it immensely.  It is sometimes dark, sometimes funny, often gritty.  It is a powerful and effective tale of healing and the power of art and creation, and also the fact that fictional characters can have such great value to real life.

       

Fables: Legends in Exile

Written by: Bill Willingham, art by Lan Medina, Steve Leialoha and Craig Hamilton
Number of Pages: 145 pages
Genre:  Graphic novel, comics, fantasy, murder mystery,

Fables is a comic book series published by Vertigo Comics which started in 2002 and is still ongoing, having reached 129 issue so far.  Basically, all the characters and creatures from fairy tale and folklore, who call themselves "Fables", have been driven out of their various magical worlds by a powerful enemy known only as "The Adversary".  The only world safe from the Adversary is the mundane, or "mundy", world which is our world.  So the Fables escape to contemporary New York City where they form an uneasy community trying to keep their true magical nature hidden from the mundy world and also trying to retake their homelands from the Adversary.
This book collects the first five issues of the series.  It's basically a murder mystery story in which the Fables' sheriff, the reformed Big Bad Wolf who has taken human form and the name Bigby Wolf, tries to solve the mystery of the disappearance and possible brutal murder of Rose Red, who happens to be the estranged sister of Snow White, the Fables' deputy mayor.

It's a completely self-contained story although with sub-plots and references that spin off into a larger Fables     narrative and can be read and enjoyed on it's own merits without picking up any of the other volumes.  The series hits the ground running with an entertaining story and distinctive characters.  Even the minor characters are developed well with their own personalities and relationships.  The idea of fairy tale characters in the modern world is not a new one but Fables has always worked with it better than most.  The art is detailed and colorful.

The book also contains a short prose story by Bill Willingham about how the Big Bad Wolf came to join the Fables, and a short comic story which fist appeared in the 2009 book Peter and Max: A Fables Novel.

It is definitely worth checking out for fantasy fans.

A word of warning though, although it's about fairy tales and magical creatures it is definitely not for kids.  It contains some strong language, violence and sexual scenes.

"EmiTown: Volume 2" by Emi Lenox

Year of Publication:  2012
Number of Pages:   408 pages
Genre:  Autobiography, diary, comics, graphic novel

For the past couple of years Portland, Oregon resident Emi Lenox  has been chronicling her life in a daily "sketch diary".  This second volume covers 1 May 2010 to 30 April 2011, and marks a slight change from the first volume as it deals with both Emi's relationship with a new boyfriend and the loss of her job, as well as burgeoning success in her career as a comics artist (including a guest artist spot in an issue of Sweet Tooth, whose creator Jeff Lemire contributes a short comic strip as an afterword).

One of the big problems for diary comics often face is how much to share and how much should remain private.  Lenox deals with this by disguising some of the more personal episodes with fantasy strips involving tin-hat wearing soldier cats and superheroes.  These tend to be obscure but the reader can get enough of the gist of what is happening without feeling too intrusive.

This book is darker than the first book and a little more complex, as Lenox endures some pretty tough times, however there are still plenty of the incidental pleasures of life, which made the first volume such a delight and even the darker elements are shot through with a strong vein of humour.  There is a page for every day of the year, some are done like traditional comic strips, some are illustrations with notes, others are a single full page drawing.  There are also random song lyrics interspersed throughout.  Each month is prefaced by a list of the songs referenced that month.

Emi Lenox is a very talented artist and she started EmiTown initially as a private exercise in developing her art, before putting it out in the world initially as a website (http://www.emitown.com/) and reading through both published volumes you can see how she becomes more skilled and confident in both her writing and art as it progresses.  Lenox is an effortlessly likeable and engaging narrator whose cartooning is some of the most adorable around.  

You won't regret a visit to the world of Emi Lenox and EmiTown is a place you will want to visit again and again.

         

A History of Violence

Year:  2005
Director:  David Cronenberg
Screenplay:  Josh Olsen, based on the graphic novel A History of Violence by John Wagner and Vince Locke
Starring:  Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, William Hurt, Ashton Holmes, Peter MacNeill
Running Time:  96 minutes
Genre:  Crime, action, drama, gangsters

Canadian director David Cronenberg is probably most familiar to audiences as the "King of Venereal Horror" with films such as Shivers (1975), Rabid (1976), The Brood (1979), Scanners (1980), Videodrome (1982), The Fly (1986), Dead Ringers (1988) and the hugely controversial Crash (1996).  Here he makes his first entry into the crime thriller genre, with largely successful results.

In the small town of Millbrook, Indiana, Tom Stall (Mortnesen) owns the local restaurant and is a well-liked family man.  After he is forced to kill two gunmen in self-defense, when they attempt to rob his reatuarant, Tom is hailed as a national hero.  However, before long he is is visited by a group of mobsters led by the sinister Fogarty (Harris), who threaten him and his family.  Fogarty insists that Stall is not who he claims to be, and Tom is forced to confront his own dark history of violence.

On one level this is a gripping crime thriller, full of action and suspense, and on another level it is a meditation on how violence affects those who commit it, and the way it both attracts and repels, frequently at the same time.  Maria Bello puts in a strong performance as Tom's initially loving wife, who is terrified by the changes in her husband, but is at the same time aroused by the previously latent savagery that she glimpses in him, while their bullied son (Ashton Holmes) shows that his father's potential for violence is also within him enabling him to strike back against his high school tormentors. 

The film is well made effectively depicted cluttered small town domesticity, and the cast give strong perfomances throughout, with Viggo Mortnesen being a particular stand out in the lead.  As fun as the gangster thriller scenes are, the film is strongest when it deals with the Stall family.  The climax is too abrupt but the film ends with a powerful and ambiguous scene.

As you might expect from the title and the plot there is a fair amount of violence here and Cronenberg has never been known to back away from the depiction of violence, but as usual in his films, the violence is not glamorised or particularly dwelt upon. 

Viggo Mortensen and Maria Bello confront A History of Violence
        

Demo by Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan

Year of Publication: 2008
Number of Pages: 364 pages
Publisher: Vertigo

A girl stops taking the medication she needs to keep her devestating mental abilities under control. A unhappy girl can make anyone do whatever she wants. A brother and sister discover a shocking family secret. A man with superhuman strength finds himself torn between his family and his friends. A young woman appears to everyone as who they most want her to be until someone sees her for the first time as she truly is. A newly married man returns to the quiet suburban neighbourhood where as a child he dealt out violent revenge. You'll meet all these and more in Demo a graphic novel collection of twelve short stories written by Brian Wood and illustrated by Becky Cloonan.

Originally published as twelve monthly comic-books, the stories deal with young people (ranging from teenagers to people in their twenties or thirties) faced with a life altering decision to make. Many, but not all, of the subjects of the stories have superpowers but none of them are superheroes, and their powers are rarely much of a help to them (in most cases quite the reverse).
The characters are alienated, unhappy people faced with recognisable problems, trying to find some kind of place in the world. The strength of the book is that it is a collection of stories about people who, superpowers or no, are searching for what we all want: happiness, acceptance and, ultimately, love.
The stories are well-told and evocative and accompanied by stunning black-and-white artwork in a range of styles. Coming across like a quiet but striking indie film, or that one song that comes across the radio late at night that breaks your heart, this is a book that will stay with you for a long time.

If you've read any of Demo before then you know what I'm talking about. If not, then cognratulations. You've just found your new favourite comic.

John Constantine, Hellblazer: The Gift

Written by: Mike Carey, illustrated by Leonardo Manco and Frazer Irving
Year of Publication: 2007, originally published as John Constantine: Hellblazer issues 207 to 215 in 2005 and 2006
Number of Pages: 221 pages
Genre: Grpahic novel, horror, supernatural

Summary: Following a battle with his three demonic offspring, occultist John Constantine is left with most of his friends dead and his sister Cheryl murdered and her soul damned to Hell.
The only solution is for Constantine to make the perilous journey into Hell himself to rescue his sister. However, his only guide is the treacherous demon, Nergal, whose blood Constantine once accepted into his veins. Along the way, Constantine encounters enemies both old and new and quickly discovers that there is far more going on then he could have suspected. As Constantine is pitted against some of the oldest and darkest forces of Hell he is forced to relive painful moments from his past and cofnront the terrible price that must be paid for his powers.

Opinions: This graphic novel contains the final nine issues of Mike Carey's work on the monthly Hellblazer comic book. The book is a powerful piece of urban horror taking the charismatic, chain-smoking "urban mage" and con-man antihero John Constantine into some of his darkest places yet. It collects three linked stories from the series which all follow on from each other, the six part "Down in the Ground, Where the Dead Men Go", the one issue "The Gift", and the two part "R.S.V.P.".
Blending gritty urban reality with startling supernatural horror, this collection is an example of Hellblazer it's best.
This is a must read for fans telling a gripping and disturbing narrative with some powerfully evocative artwork, however it is not recommended for newcomers to the Hellblazer universe, due to it's multiple references to earlier stories and the fact that it is a direct continuation of the previous collection Reasons to be Cheerful.
It also contains probably the bleakest depictions of magic that you are ever likely to find.


"My talents for lying. For sticking the knife in when people least expect it. Then walking away with a smile and a wave before they realise they're bleeding."
- John Constnatine, Hellblazer: The Gift

Batman: The Cult

Written by: Jim Starlin, illustrated by Bernie Wrightson, Bill Wray and John Costanza
Year of Publication: 1991, originally published as Batman: The Cult issues 1 to 4 in 1988
Number of Pages: 208 pages
Genre: Grpahic novel, superhero, crime, horror

Summary: Batman is investigating a bizarre series of crimes targeted at the criminals of Gotham City, many of whom are mysteriously disappearing in violent circumstances. His investigation leads him to the mysterious and charismatic preacher Deacon Blackfire who has set up a base in the sewers of Gotham and is recruiting an army of the homeless and the disenfranchised.
However Blackfire captures Batman first. Held prisoner, Batman is starved, drugged and brutally tortured both physically and psychologically. Almost totally broken down he comes under Blackfire's malevolent influence.
As Blackfire's plans for Gotham become clearer, Batman has to face his worst fears and nightmares if he has any hope of saving the city.

Opinions: The 1980s were kind of a watershed for Batman. With the collapse of the Comic Code, which had heavily restricted the content of American comics since the 1950s, creators were able to write books for an adult audience and had greater freedom in their depiction of darker themes and violence. The Batman series took full advantage of this new freedom in such stories as Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns and Year One, Alan Moore's The Killing Joke and Grant Morrison's Arkham Asylum, and this series The Cult, which often seems to be unjustly neglected.
Right from the opening this chilling psychologial drama, originally published as a four part mini-series in 1988, depicts Batman in his weakest state. Plagued by horrific nightmares and hallucinations and sadistically tortured the story explores some of darker areas of Batman's psyche. In a way, Blackfire's purge of the criminal element of Gotham isn't too different from the Dark Knight's own crusade, however unlike Batman, Blackfire is more than happy to kill. Of course, the impact is not just on Batman himself as the whole of Gotham City is brought to it's knees by Blackfire's brutal army. Robin features heavily in the story and here he really comes into his own, becoming more than just the side-kick, which he is often depicted as.
This was quite controversial on it's first publication due to it's depictions of violence. The level of violence is high for a Batman book but it is justified in terms of the story that is being told. The art is effectively dark and moody.
This is a must-read for Batman fans.

"Akira" by Katsuhiro Otomo

Year of Publication: 1982 - 1990, originally serialised in Young Magazine
Number of Pages: 2182 pages, published over six volumes.

Summary: December 1992: An apparent new type of bomb explodes over Tokyo, decimating the city, and triggering World War III. By 2030, a new city named Neo-Tokyo has been built, around the ruins of the old one. Neo-Tokyo is due to hold the Olympic Games the following year, but is gripped by political strife, violent anti-government fighters, strange religious cults and warring teenage biker gangs. Tetsuo Shima, a member of one of the gangs, is badly injured when he encounters a strange child with an aged, wizened appearance and devastating psychic powers. The child turns out to be one of three similarly wizened children who are being kept as part of a government experiment. Each has a number tattooed on the palm of their hand (25, 26 and 27). After Tetsuo's encounter, he begins to develop psychic powers of his own, which quickly grow beyond his ability to control them, causing him to violently lash out at both friends and enemies, turning his best friend, Kaneda (who also happens to be the leader of the gang), against him. However Kaneda is also preoccupied by a mysterious and beautiful girl named Kei, who is part of the resitance movement against the government. As the government scientists in charge of the psychic project, under the charge of the formidable Colonel, try to get control of Tetsuo and his power, it becomes apparent that there is a still greater power awakening in Neo-Tokyo. A mysterious super-being, known only as Akira, stored at a temperature of Absolute Zero in a top-secret facility beneath the city's Olympic stadium is beginning to respond to Tetsuo's power, and the consequences could mean far more than the end of the world.

Opinions: This is probably one of the most famous examples of Japanese "manga" (comics). The story is long and complex and yet still moves at a break-neck pace. The artwork is primarily in black-and-white and is extraordinarily detailed and full of genuinely startling imagery. The story is on an epic scale. It is just one story told over a total of 2,182 pages. At times, the story is bogged down by the multitude of characters and sub-plots and also the dialogue at times seems mostly to consist of characters shouting each other's names. However the sum total is a genuinely spectacular piece of work. The story deals with themes of teenage alienation and angst, political corruption as well as social and historical themes such as the bombing of Japan in World War II. Throughout the series Otomo gleefully destroys several times and the books are full of apocalyptic imagery. Otomo's artwork is very powerful and in the series frequent dialogue-free pages, the way he does faces and expressions, as well as the stylised look of some of the panels and drawings, helps to create a powerful emotional response. Particularly in the second half of the series, Otomo creates a bleak and striking science-fiction world.
Of course, most people know of Akira through the 1988 animated film version which Otomo wrote and directed and was a huge cult hit worldwide and was one of the main things that helped to popularise Japanese manga and "anime" (animation) in the West. The film, while good in it's own right, is famously incoherent (apparently, given the manga's huge popularity in Japan, it never occured to Otomo that people would watch the movie who had not read the manga) and differs hugely from the series. A lot of the film's weirdness is explained in the comic, although it does have it's fair share of weirdness in the comic too.
The comic belongs very much to the "cyberpunk" genre of science-fiction and features many images and concepts that will be familiar to fans of the genre.
Bleak, violent, frequently humorous and often strangely moving, this is a must read for science-fiction and comic fans.

John Constantine, Hellblazer: The Fear Machine

Written by: Jamie Delano, illustrated by Mark Buckingham, Richard Piers Rayner, Mike Hoffman and Alfredo Alcala
Year of Publication: 2008, first published monthly as John Constantine, Hellblazer issue 14 (December 1988) to issue 22 (September 1989)
Number of Pages: 239 pages
Genre: Graphic novels, horror, supernatural

Summary: Occultist and magician John Constantine is accused of a murder he didn't commit. On the run in the English countryside he befriends a group of New Age travellers in particular a young girl named Mercury, who has strong psychic powers, and her mother Marj. He decides to join up with them, until one morning the camp is raided and Mercury is kidnapped. Constantine determines to track her down and follows the trail to London. He discovers that Mercury is being held by a sinister organization who want to use her psychic powers as part of a devestating new weapon known as the Fear Machine. However, Constantine soon realises that the Fear Machine is just part of a much wider conspiracy which reaches to the upper echelons of power in Britain. A conspiracy that is attempting to awaken a powerful supernatural force, older and more terrible than anything that Constantine has yet faced, and he may be far too late to stop it.

Opinions: One of the most striking things about the Hellblazer comic-book series is the way it blends supernatural horror with a recognisable, gritty reality. Another element that sets it apart is the character of John Constantine himself, a charismatic and fundamentally well-intentioned man who nevertheless is very much an antihero, who frequently manipulates, discards and endangers both friends and lovers, who frequently loses and who, when he does win, often does so more through luck than skill.
This story is a good example of early Hellblazer which, despite some of the aspects of the story coming across as quite dated now, nevertheless still stands up well. The only criticism really is that the conclusion is kind of rushed and leaves a lot of questions unanswered. However for the most part the story is interesting and complex and also very bleak, but it also features plenty of the comic's trademark strain of dark humour. Some of the artwork is a little crude when compared to more recent comics but it serves it's purpose, and the original issue covers by Dave McKean and Kent Williams (which are reproduced in this volume) are very impressive.
Another good point about the Hellblazer series is that it is relatively accessible to newcomers. Most of the storylines can be read without having read any of the others in the series, and this one is no exception although there are a few references early on to events that presumably occured in an earlier story.
While this might not be the ideal introduction to the Hellblazer universe, it can still be enjoyed by non-fans, and fans of the series will certainly like it.

"EmiTown" by Emi Lenox

Year of Publication: 2010
Number of Pages: 408 pages
Genre: Diary, autobiography, graphic novel

Summary: As it says on the front cover, this is a "sketch diary" in which writer and artist Emi Lenox details a year of her life from May 2009 until April 2010 through notes, comic strips, sketches and song lyrics. She describes the details of her day to day life as well as comics detailing her as superhero "Ocean Girl" and a general leading an army of cats among many others.

Opinions: The book began as a web comic. Read straight through as a collected book it works really well. The switch from daily notes to the fantasy comics are slightly disconcerting at first but it's not long before you get used to it. As a diarist Lenox has a good eye for the details of daily life both funny and sad, and she is a very talented illustrator. It's kind of amazing that she manages to produce work of this quality on seemingly a daily basis. It is an endlessly entertaining and hugely charming book, which for the most part has a refreshingly positive outlook on life and the world, without ignoring the dark side.
If you are looking for a unique and engaging reading experience, this is well worth checking out.

John Constantine, Hellblazer: Dangerous Habits

Written by Garth Ennis, illustrated by William Simpson, Mark Pennington, Tom Sutton, Malcolm Jones III
Year of Publication: 1996, first published monthly as John Constantine, Hellblazer issues 41-46 in 1991
Number of Pages: 160 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, horror, supernatural

Summary: Working-class sorcerer John Constantine is dying. However it is not due to mystical forces, demons or other supernatural enemies, instead it's because of Constantine's habit of smoking thirty cigarettes a day, which has given him terminal lung cancer. Constantine is determined not to die, especially since he has tricked the Devil himself once too often, and who now can't wait to get hold of Constantine and exact revenge for the rest of eternity. Rapidly running out of time and options, Constantine has to play the most dangerous game there is with the highest stakes there are.

Opinions: This book is a powerful and often moving piece. Outside of the supernatural horror elements, it deals with the cynical and guilt-ridden John Constantine coming to terms with his life and death. The writing is intelligent and often darkly humorous, and complemented by impressive artwork. The book's main skill is that it manages to imbue a storyline which could seem cliched or like a bad TV movie with genuine heart and compassion. One of the things that is so good about the Hellblazer series is it's realism which makes the supernatural elements all the more effective. In all of the darkness and horror, the book celebrates life, and the simple joys of friendship and life itself. However it is still Hellblazer and as such features plenty of gruesome monsters and gore.
The Dangerous Habits storyline was one of the main sources for 2005 film Constantine, the movie adaptation of Hellblazer.

John Constantine, Hellblazer: Original Sins

Written by: Jamie Delano, illustrated by John Ridgway and Alfredo Alcala
Year of Publication: 1992, first published monthly as John Constantine, Hellblazer issues 1-9 in 1988
Number of Pages: 256 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, horror, supernatural

Summary: John Constantine is at first glance an ordinary working-class Englishman from Liverpool. However he is a powerful magician and exists in a shadowy world of black magic, demonic forces and the ghosts of old friends and lovers. Here Constantine finds himself pitted against a grotesque hunger demon bent on consuming the inhabitants of New York, yuppies from Hell who are buying and selling with human souls as currancy, Vietnam ghosts attacking the inhabitants of a small town in America, and sinister religious cults at the vanguard of a catastrophic war between the forces of Heaven and Hell. Through it all only Constantine can save the world, providing he's stocked up on cigarettes and can get down to the pub before it shuts.

Opinions: John Constantine was originally created by Alan Moore in 1985 in the ground-breaking The Saga of the Swamp Thing comic-book series. The Swamp Thing itself, by the way, has a brief cameo in this book. Constantine came about because the artists Stephen R. Bissette and John Totleben, who were both fans of the rock group The Police, approached Moore with the desire a character who looked like Sting. In 1988 Constantine made his debut in his own monthly comic-book John Constantine, Hellblazer which has been published continuously since. Incidentally, the title was originally going to be Hellraiser but was changed to avoid confusion with the 1987 Clive Barker film of the same name.
This book contains the first nine issues of Hellblazer. The book mostly consists of one or two part stories but soon introduces an overall story arch linking them. This is as good an introduction to the Hellblazer universe as anything, although one of the advantages of the comic series is that it is very accessible to newcomers. The series belongs to the genre of urban horror. It takes place in a recognisable time and place, and deals with a lot of the real world political and social problems. It was orginally published in the late 1980s and there is a lot about life in Margaret Thatcher's Britain. Constantine himself is a very morally ambiguous character. Essentially a good person, with a conscience, he tries to do the right thing but is severely flawed and is not averse to using his friends and lovers even if it costs them their lives, and lives with horrible guilt because of it. He is also cowardly and something of a con-man.
The stories are well written and witty and complemented by some decent artwork.

Local

Written by: Brian Wood, illustrated by Ryan Kelly
Year of Publication: 2008
Number of Pages: 376 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, coming of age, drama,

Summary: Megan McKeenan is a young woman who drifts from place to place across North America, searching for herself and for a place in the world. The book consists of twelve inter-connected stories each set in a different location in North America with Megan as the linking character. The stories are slice of life vignettes concerning themes of home, belonging, family, memory, friendship and loneliness.

Opinion: Local was originally published as a twelve part limited series comic book between 2005 and 2008. Originally it was intended to be a series of one off stories each taking place in a different North American location and each linked by the recurring character of Megan who would appear in each story, sometimes as the lead character and sometimes as a background character. As the series progressed though, it began to focus increasingly on Megan's story. The book is powerful and emotional, sometimes funny, often shocking and frequently heartbreaking. It's intelligently written, with Megan coming across as a genuinely believable and engaging character, even when she is not particularly likeable. As is only fitting, given the concept of the book, it has a very strong sense of place, with each location becoming almost another character in the story. The detailed artwork complements the stories perfectly. Even if you don't like comics, this is strongly recommended.

The locations featured in Local are:
Portland, Oregon
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Richmond, Virginia
Missoula, Montana
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Brooklyn, New York
Tempe, Arizona
Wicker Park, Chicago
Norman, Oklahoma
Austin, Texas
Toronto, Ontario
Vermont

The Comical Tragedy or Tragical Comedy of Mr. Punch

Written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Dave McKean
Year of Publication: 2006
Number of Pages: 96 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, horror, fantasy, mystery

Summary: A man remembers when, as a young boy, he stayed with his grandparents in an English seaside town. His grandfather, who would later go mad, and his hunchback great-uncle own an unsuccessful amusements. While he is there he meets a mysterious Punch and Judy Show operator (or "professor") and begins to uncover the secrets of the "oldest and wisest play", as well as the dark secrets at the heart of his personal and family history.

Opinions: Acclaimed author Neil Gaiman is probably best known in the comics world for his ground-breaking series The Sandman (1989-1996) but he has done many limited series and one-off gaphic novels. This book is a disquieting and compex meditation on memory and childhood. Told almost entirely through the fragmented memories of the unnamed narrator the story deals with a child confronting the bizarre and often disturbing world of adults intermixed with the fantasy of the Punch and Judy shows, which were bizarre and frequently quite violent puppet shows for children which at one time were hugely popular. The story hints at a lot, but very little is actually revealed. Gaiman's text is superbly complemented by McKean's artwork, which blends detailed paintings, with text, photography, models and other objects. Reading this is a genuinely disturbing and powerful experience.

Batman: Year One

Written by: Frank Miller, illustrated by David Mazzucchelli, with Richmond Lewis and Todd Klein.
Year of Publication: 1987
Number of Pages: 143 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, action, superhero, adventure

Summary: Jim Gordon, a cop with a chequered past, moves to the crime ridden town of Gotham City with his pregnant wife Barbara to join the police department. However he soon finds out that the police department is completely corrupt, and that the corruption reaches to the highest levels of the city authorities. As one of the few honest cops on the force, Gordon soon finds himself a target of not only the criminals but also his fellow officers. Meanwhile, Gotham's wealhtiest resident, playboy Bruce Wayne, returns to the city after twelve years abroad. Shortly afterwards, Gordon finds himself investigating a powerful new vigilante on the scene. A mysterious costumed figure known as Batman.

Opinions: In the 1980s DC Comics decided to revamp many of their long-running superhero titles, by going back to basics and reinventing or expanding upon their origin stories. This book, which was originally published as a four part story in the Batman comic, details not only Bruce Wayne's first year as Batman, but also the future Comissioner Gordon's first year in the Gotham City Police. The book doesn't radically change the origin story of Batman, but it does expand on it, and provided a huge influence on the future development of the character. A year previously Frank Miller had written the acclaimed and controversial Batman: The Dark Knight Returns which returned the character to the dark, gritty, ambiguous character he had been in the beginning, and this book keeps the gritty feel of Dark Knight Returns. The story is fast moving and energatic and provides a refreshing take on a familiar tale, and the dynamic artwork complements it well. This is a must-read for Batman fans and especially for fans of the movies Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008) bith of which, while not being direct adatations, borrowed many elements from Year One.

House of Mystery: Room & Boredom

Written by: Matthew Sturges and Bill Willingham, illustrated by Luca Rossi
Year of Publication: 2008
Number of Pages: 128 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, horror, fantasy

Summary: Welcome to the House of Mystery, which stands at the crossroads between many realities. Anyone who can find it is welcome to stay and the first drink is always on the House. However, to pay for any further food or drink the customer has to tell a story, which is the only currency accepted in this realm. Sometimes when people find the House they cannot leave, unless they are selected by a mysterious coachman. The latest person to find the House is architecture student Bethany "Fig" Keeler, who has been seeing the House in her dreams for years. She escapes there after being chased by a mysterious ghostly pair and finds herself the latest one to be trapped there.

Opinion: House of Mystery is a horror anthology comic book series that was first published in 1951 until 1983 and has been sporadically revived since. In 2008, Vertigo Comics, an imprint of DC Comics which specialises in publishing comics aimed at more adult audiences, revived the House of Mystery as an ongoing series, the first five issues of which are reprinted in this graphic novel. Most of the book concerns itself with the central story of Bethany Keele trying to escape from the House, but it also features some of the stories told by the House's customers (each of which is illustrated by a different artist which gives them a unique look). The book is entertaining with some refreshing dark humour and some striking artwork. The graphic novel also contains a short prose story and some draft character designs.

Kick-Ass

Written by: Mark Millar, illustrated by John Romita, Jr.
Year of Publication: 2010
Number of Pages: 216 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, superhero, action

Summary: Have you ever wanted to be a superhero? David Lizewski did and makes his dream a reality. A bored, nerdy New York teenager, David's main interests in life are comic books and classmate Katie Deauxma, until he buys a scuba wetsuit off e-bay and, naming himself "Kick-Ass", sets out onto New York's mean streets to fight crime, despite having no powers and no special training. Needless to say, his first attempts are an abysmal failure and he is very badly beaten up. Following months of operations, therapy and three steel plates in his head, Kick-Ass is out once more and, after footage of him foiling a mugging is uploaded onto YouTube, finds himself a sudden celebrity. However, after meeting murderous ten year old vigilante Hit Girl and her father Big Daddy, David soon finds himself seriously out of his depth.

Opinions: This book started life as an eight issue comic book series based on Scottish writer Millar's own teenage dreams of being a superhero. The book is hugely entertaining with frequently hilarious foul-mouthed dialogue and complemented with great artwork. It won't be too everyone's taste since it is full of graphic, over the top violence. More than likely the book's main audience will be fans of the movie which was based on it and, while the film follows the storyline of the comic very closely, the comic is several shades darker than the film. David Lizewski is a likeable and sympathetic main character, but the most memorable character is the good natured but extremely violent Hit-Girl.
If you're a fan you'll also want to get down to your friendly neighbourhood comic book store to pick up Kick-Ass 2 the first issue of which is currently on sale.

Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Serious House on Serious Earth

Written by: Grant Morrison, illustrated by Dave McKean
Year of Publication: 1989
Number of Pages: 216 pages
Genre: Graphic novel, superhero, horror, fantasy

Story: On the outskirts of Gotham City, Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, founded in the 1920s by Dr. Amadeus Arkham, has housed some of Gotham City's most dangerous criminals and now the lunatics have take over the asylum as, lead by the Joker, the inmates riot taking over the asylum and taking the staff hostage. Their main demand is for Batman to join them in the asylum. In the dark, twisting corridors of Arkham, Batman has to encounter his deadliest adversaries as well as coming face to face with his own heart of darkness.

Opinions: The book moves between the present day narrative of Batman in Arkham Asylum and the tragic story of the founding of the asylum by Amadeus Arkham in the 1920s, told through journal entries. The narrative weaves together multiple references from the Tarot to religion, from Lewis Carroll to Philip Larkin, and from Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho (1961) to Lindsay Anderson's film O Lucky Man! (1971). It moves away from the gritty realistic approach to superhero comics that were popular in the late 1980s with the likes of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen (published in 1987) and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns (published in 1986) to present a surreal, nightmarish vision. Destroying any lingering ideas of Batman as the colourful baddie-bopper from the 1960s TV series, this presents the Dark Knight as more or less borderline psychotic. There are frequent references to the fact that Batman is not really much different from his villains, who are presented here as more pathetic, grotesque and horrific than ever before.
The surreal artwork by Dave McKean incorporates his usual multimedia style which mixes painting, sculpture, text and photography emphasises the fact that the book is a psychological horror story. More of a nightmare than waking reality.
While this won't be to everyone's tastes, this is one of the darkest and most disturbing of all the Batman stories and is strongly recommended.
The popular video game Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009) is loosely based on the graphic novel.

"The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes" by Neil Gaiman

Year of Publication: 1991
Number of Pages: 238 pages
Genre: Horror, fantasy

Summary: The Sandman is Morpheus, also known as Dream, one of a family of immortal beings known as The Endless. After decades of being trapped by an evil occultist, a severely weakened Morpheus escapes but finds that his realm, The Dreaming, is in ruins. However, to restore order to his world and the dreams of humans, he needs to regain his tools which were stolen from him: A helmet, a pouch of sand and a ruby. In his quest to regain them he teams up with cynical occult detective John Constantine, has to fight a super-powered psychopath and enter Hell itself.

Opinion: This book is the first compilation of stories from the classic comic book The Sandman, collecting issues one to eight. Now, The Sandman is one of the greatest comic book series of all time, blending horror, fantasy, past, present, history and mythology with dark humour to create a genuinely powerful, artistic and literate saga. It's fair to say though, that this book does not present the best of The Sandman. It's fairly obvious that they weren't sure at this point in which direction to take the story, and it is very much a horror comic. That is not to say that it is not good though. The stories are imaginative and well written and the artwork (by Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg and Malcolm Jones III), while not as good as it would later become in the series, suits the stories and provides plenty of memorably grotesque images. This is the best place to start off your Sandman experience, aside from introducing the character, the storylines echo throughout the rest of the series. Fans of DC Comics will probably enjoy the appearances from other characters from the DC Universe, such as John Constantine (from the Hellblazer comics, and the 1995 movie Constantine where the blonde Englishman was played by the dark-haired American Keanu Reeves) and there is also a brief appearance from Jonathan Crane, aka The Scarecrow, (from the Batman comics).

"Never trust a demon. He has a hundred motives for anything he does... ninety-nine of them, at least, are malevolent."
- The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman

"Scott Pilgrim" by Bryan Lee O'Malley

I know that previously I've reviewed the first and second installments of the six volume Scott Pilgrim series of graphic novels individually, but since I read the other four books back to back over the past day I decided to cover them all in this one post:



Scott Pilgrim and the Infinite Sadness (2006): Scott Pilgrim finds himself pitted against Ramona Flowers' third Evil Ex-Boyfriend, Todd Ingram who, due to his vegan lifestyle, has developed devestating psychic powers and, to make matters worse, Todd is dating Scott's ex-girlfriend Envy Adams, who Scott has still not managed to get over after she broke his heart over a year previously and who is now a world-famous rock star.



Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together (2007): Two months after the events of the previous volume things are finally going well for Scott and Ramona. However the lease is up on the tiny apartment that he shares with his best friend and roommate Wallace Wells, meaning that Scott has to find somewhere to live and worst of all get a job for the first time in his life. Add to that he is being pursued by the half-ninja Roxie Richter, Ramona's Evil Ex-Girlfriend.



Scott Pilgrim vs. The Universe (2009) Now turned 24 and living with Ramona Flowers, Scott has to start facing up to adulthood properly for the first time. As well as being forced to face up to his own less than exemplary romantic history, Scott has to defeat Ramona's fifth and sixth Evil Ex-Boyfriends, the Katayanagi Twins and their robot army.



Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour (2010) Ramona has vanished and Scott has fallen into despair. He faces his toughest challenges attempting to pull his life together, find Ramona and confront Gideon Graves, the seventh and most powerful of her Evil Ex-Boyfriends.

Summary: These comics blend comedy, romance, coming of age drama, bizarre fantasy and numerous references to indie rock music, vintage video games, movies and comics. The comic is drawn in the style of a Japanese manga comic and is simple but effective. The dialogue is clever and witty and frequently hilarious with almost every page peppered with humorous captions and details. The Scott Pilgrim comics also have the almost unique ability to be at turns hilarious, exciting and also genuinely moving. Definitely among the best comics that I've read in a long time.