By far, the greatest Batman story ever told (or at least among the greatest). For those of you who aren't too familiar with this comic book series, this was one done by Frank Miller (a comic book writer who has been known to create some good, weird and just plain stupid comic books and films, mostly related to Batman) and its one that has Bruce Wayne gone into retirement after a few years of being Batman (and for the most part, the origin story is nearly the same but with a few detours, such as Batman not having a Robin until his return later on and the Justice League not lasting that long). It takes place in a dystopian near-future of Gotham City and what makes it one of the greatest Batman stories, is the dramatic changes to Joker, Two-Face and Catwoman as well as Green Arrow and Superman, among other things as well. And its also home to one of the most iconic lines in comic book history and home to the battle of the century, Batman VS Superman (step aside Snyder, this is where its at). So like before, let's look at the comic book series first.
Comic Book Series
So as this is a standalone story that doesn't take place in the mainstream DCU, Batman up until his retirement, never had a sidekick (although he does mention about Jason and Dick so its possible that they were offered a chance to be his sidekick, but didn't end well) but was aware of there being other superheroes in the world and the majority of his enemies were created in the way we know they were created and the fate of Bruce's parents are the same as its always been. Anyway before I go off topic, Bruce Wayne, now at the age of 55, is finding his retirement hard and as such, decides to be Batman again and throughout the story, he goes up against the likes of Harvey Dent (who had his face cured, but is forever cursed with the scary face that he had), A gang of mutants, Joker (who has awakened from a catatonic state upon hearing about Batman's return) and his forces, the GCPD (which upon James Gordon's announcement that he is retiring, is under the command of his successor, Ellen Yindel) and even Superman (who now serves the US government). During the story, Batman gets a chance to tie up all loose ends, tries to bring an end to the crime wave in Gotham and also recruit his one and only sidekick, a girl named Carrie Kelley who becomes the Robin of this story. Now a number of things that I would like to say is that the story is great, but has some problems (and with it being a story by Frank Miller, that's to be expected). For a start, it was very predictable that Batman would face both the Joker and Superman because everybody wanted it to happen and it did, with fatal consequences as expected. Its also one of many comic books where nearly every single panel is filled with dialogue and it can be frustrating and annoying, especially as it may not shut up for a bit. But all those aside, it was a good story with some great action going on and of course, the things that the fans wanted was in it and for the most part, it pulled off. Let's see how Snyder does when he does his take on a Superman VS Batman film. 9/10
Movie - Part 1
In the first part of the two part film adaptation of the comic book, the story is the same, but some people could say that its better than the comic book its based on and I'm inclined to agree. I mean the comic itself was OK, but there was just too much going on so fortunately these 2 films managed to adapt it well in a way that people are able to understand it without having to spend a long time on one page reading. That's my thoughts anyway. Now as for the film itself, its off to a great start. Just by watching the first couple of scenes, it tells you one thing. Batman is back to finish what he started long ago. Its a great film with action packed moments and it just shows how much people love Batman. But you won't be seeing the Joker or Superman fighting him in this film so that's a bummer. 9/10
Movie - Part 2
So with Two-Face and the Mutants dealt with, Batman's plan is going ahead smoothly. The only things he now has to worry about are Joker, Superman and the GCPD who are now lead by a new commissioner called Ellen Yindel, following James Gordon's retirement. The battles with Joker and Superman are great and are dealt with in ways that Batman fans would envision them to be. Much like the last film, its very action packed once again and I enjoyed it a lot, although (and I know some critics have said this already) the cold war subplot felt a bit out of place, but at least we get to see Superman fighting in the war which is truly something to behold. 9/10
And that is it for all the direct to DVD films (a part from Gotham Knight which I've already reviewed, the Superman/Batman films and the Justice League films starring Batman which I will look at another time).
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