Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller

So this was the first actual comic book I have ever read cover to cover. My friend Ryan let me borrow it because we had been discussing who would win in a fight, Batman or Superman, and the two go at it in this (apparently, according to wikipedia, non-canonical) story. The experience was both interesting and frustrating; on one hand, Batman's vigilantism is called into question and debated throughout the comic, but on the other I'm apparently not very good at reading comics and found it hard to figure out exactly what the hell was going on. Also, there was a lot of back story that I didn't have all the pieces to, though I could pretty much get the gist.

But enough about my failings as a comic book reader. I saw Batman in a different light in this edition. Though he still stops short of killing any of the villains he battles, he still seems to have little regard for due process. In one illustrative exchange, two talking heads discuss whether Batman's methods are acceptable.

Ted: "Miss Lang, you are the Batman's most vocal supporter. How can you condone behavior that is so blatantly illegal? What about due process, what about civil rights?"

Ms. Lang "We live in the shadow of crime, Ted, with the unspoken understanding that we are victims - of fear, of violence, of social impotence. A man has risen to show us that the power is, and always has been, in our hands. We're under siege - he's showing us that we can resist."

(this last dialogue bubble was at the bottom of a page. as I read it i was thinking, ummm, that has nothing to do with anything, which is why I was so glad when I turned the page and saw...)

Ted: Lana, you haven't exactly answered my question...

But we don't really get into it much further from there. The new police commissioner vows to hunt Batman down, but we don't get much more thoughtful debate on the right and wrong of it. Of course, I probably shouldn't expect much thoughtful debate on such a topic from a comic book, but in the end I kinda felt like Batman was a Constitution-hating dick.

So yeah, I didn't really love it and wouldn't recommend it if you're not into comics. And I still think that Superman is better than Batman.

Final Crisis by Grant Morrison

I'm not sure if anyone here besides me reads comics on a monthly basis, but anyone who does knows that every summer, both Marvel and DC have a major event, a storyline that crosses through nearly all their titles and, theoretically at least, has a lasting impact on their comics universe. Generally, these events don't interest me much, partially because they require constant vigilance and the purchase of many titles I'm not interested in, and also because they generally require a deeper knowledge of the universe than I actually have. There's also the minor detail that these events rarely have the long-term effects they promise. Anything the writers or fans dislike is retconned at the first opportunity, so if the story isn't good, what's the point?

Final Crisis was a little different though, because DC (rather bravely) handed the reigns of their summer event over to Grant Morrison, a writer second only to Alan Moore for "idea comics." Oh, yeah, and it was pretty common knowledge that Batman was going to die (more information than you ever wanted about Batman's death, in the comments).

So did the story live up to the hype? Well, yes and no. On the one hand, the story was strange and compelling, and, as usual, Morrison pulled some obscure characters out of the DC backpages for some big-screen heroics. On the other hand, the collection I purchased didn't have all the comics in the storyline, so there were a lot of blanks I had to fill in myself. Overall, it was well worth the read for me, but probably a hard sell for non-superhero fans.

And I know this review isn't very informative, but a) I have a lot of reviews to write and b) did anyone really want to read 5,000 words about the DC Multiverse?