Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? I

[Ahimaz]

Finally, I take a sigh of relief or a relief of un-relief, a swansong to Batman! Someone said superheroes never do die! Well, Mister No-Fan-Man-Boy they very much do.



Give Grant Morrison a cozy space and he will kill every superhero out there and not out there with an awful twist of fictitious fate. I haven’t read his Batman Rest in Peace yet for it being, as hearsay has it, a loathing portrayal of Batman and ending its myth, if only Bruce Wayne’s. I might as well read it sometime and like it or hate it. What I am glad, perhaps gladder, of is DC choose to pass his torch to Gaiman, even if only for a short two-part dirge to a legendary hero. I thought I will dig it and indeed did.



I must confess I never stood in line midnight to break of dawn for a Harry Potter release to grab a hot copy, nor did I for this DC release, but did read it within two days of its availability in another corner of the Universe. I never did read anything else within a short span of publication. How I came about to is a secret I must withhold now. Who doesn’t think I better stop my bragging at once and get to what needs to be said?



Batman 686 or Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? I is the first of Gaiman/Kubert’s two-part story that sets up the stage for Batman’s funeral. The artist brings in all the imageries that have been conceived from day one of Batman to his last day in a coffin paying tribute to the league of artists associated with the character.



Catwoman enters through the Gotham Crime Alley to the funeral hall, notice he is not laid in Wayne Manor vicinity, then follow Two-Face and Joker. All the Rough Gallery alongside some Good Gallery is gathered and the final words for the departed is called forth. Selina Kyle comes first and then Alfred the Butler, oh he did it, and they share their observations on the hero, their relationship with him, and how he comes about to meet his dreadful fate.



The monologues of Batman creep up now and then and he’s got company in Death – yes, he is conversing with her. Intriguing part is both sides of the story are incredible and everyone knows it. At the end of the first part, the question remains what kind of a ride the author is embarking on.



In Sandman Worlds’ End, Gaiman placed his characters in a location Chesterton made reference to in The Napoleon of Notting Hill. Here he adds to the same author's The Club of Queer Trades, inspired meanwhile being sophisticated as he can always be. Alfred’s version The Getleman's Gentleman's Tale again is a deeper exploration of his short yarn A Black and White World he did for Batman: Black & White.



My favorite tale in Worlds’ End A Tale of Two Cities has a gripping artwork. Well, Kubert’s artwork as good as it is does not complement Gaiman’s narration and is not so powerful to make me shrink. Dave McKean did that with him in Black Orchid. I wish McKean or someone of his flair were roped in here. Then again, the literary crowd will grab it but not the continuity-crazed fan crowd.



Yet another trouble with ending a superhero career is it is taken as a blow by its yet-to-come-of-age followers which cannot be blamed on them, doesn’t one always grow up, but on the spoon-feeding publishers. They do that for a long time and do the other to add the shock value – tricky publication stunt. The beauty is there are creative minds to add an edge over the clichéd superhero genre by their ground-breaking ventures, if only for short runs.



That will be all folks. I am least inclined to give away a wee bit of the two stories and play a spoiler. That being said, this was a great read. Even if the two of two falls short of this, which it shouldn't given Gaiman's artistry, I cherish this one. I can't wait for the next in the series.

[gotham city]

wow i like it, the graphics are awesome