Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
Writer: Frank Miller
Artists: Frank Miller (Artist), Klaus Janson (Inker), and Lynn Varley (Colorist)
Only the Dark Knight can save Gotham City!
Ranking: 5 stars
This is by far, one of the greatest Batman stories ever made, and more importantly, it's my second favorite Batman comic, right behind BATMAN KNIGHTFALL! It's a combination of superior writing and imagination, and it fully explores into the depths of Batman's character! Frank Miller (along with Jeph Loeb) is one of the few writers to fully understand what makes the Dark Knight who he is: the son of two of Gotham's most wealthy citizens who fell into a world of tragedy and darkness when his parents were brutally murdered by a mugger before his own eyes. It ripped all kindness and emotion from his soul, and all that was left was a promise to destroy the crime in Gotham City that took his parent's lives. For years he would train his body and mind to perfection, in order to become a terrifying creature of the night. One that would install fear into his enemies. He became the Batman!
But that was decades ago...
Times in Gotham City have changed now. The Batman has not been seen for ten years and the city is now overrun with violent gangs, the Mutants are the worst of them. The Mutants are not your average gang. They are known for random acts of violence including murder, mutilation, and some that are too extreme for even the news media to print. As Gotham tears itself apart through crime and despair, an elderly Bruce Wayne has retired from crime fighting and is drinking in despair of the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin. But as the crime rate grows worse, and old villains like Two-Face and the Joker remerge, Bruce realizes that he cannot ignore his duty any longer, and redonns the Bat Suit. With the aid of a young female Robin (Carrie Kelly), Alfred, and Commissioner Gordon, the Dark Knight retakes Gotham back from the Mutants in a brutal fight with their leader, fights the Joker one last time, and ends it all with a final confrontation against Superman! He is no longer in his prime, and is very vulnerable to injury in his old age, which makes everything harder for the Dark Knight!
These are the elements that make THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS a truly worthy Batman story for any fan of the caped crusader. Frank Miller is probably the only writer able to put Batman in a possible dystopian future, and make a sensational story out of it. He dives deep into the emotions of Batman and realistically shows that he is not young man anymore, and is weaker than he used to be! Miller also gives time to show us on how the general public has reacted to Batman's return. Throughout the story, reporters (or talking news heads) debate Batman's every move, and the public opinion is heavily divided on Batman as some support the dark knight for bringing justice to Gotham, while others believe Batman to be a public menace, and dangerous influence on youth. This not only portrays how people would react to vigilantism in the real world, but also makes Batman's agenda even harder than before!
My only criticism is that the story got darker in the last two chapters, and I have my limits on violence in comics. This is definitely not for small children and I would seriously recommend that you be at least 14 or 15 years old before you read it. But you cannot truly be a Batman fan until you have read THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS! Frank Miller has an uncanny ability to drive deep into the dark knight's heart and soul, revealing the character's inner thoughts that help the story flow. Very few writers have accomplished this as most Batman stories in the past focused more on Batman's rouges than the hero himself, but Miller, along with Jeph Loeb (THE LONG HALLOWEEN, HUSH) and Scott Snyder (THE COURT OF OWLS), gives a majority of the story's focus towards the dark knight! If your impression of Batman is the campy and goofy Adam West version from the 60s, forget it! This is who the Batman really is: a man born in tragedy, who has focused his life to ridding his city of the darkness and corruption that murdered his parents! It is a story that all followers of Batman must read at one point in their lives.
It is truly a book worthy for all Batman, or DC Comics Readers!
