Batman: Year One

This Batman comic is a wonderful choice for kids who are starting to explore superhero stories. The content is age appropriate, engaging, and easy to follow, making it perfect for young readers who enjoy action without anything too dark or intense. The illustrations are colorful and dynamic, which really helps keep kids interested, and the story flows smoothly, making reading feel fun rather than challenging. My daughter enjoyed it from the first pages and stayed engaged all the way through. What I appreciate most is that it introduces the world of Batman in a way that’s suitable for younger audiences. The themes focus on bravery, problem-solving, and doing the right thing, which makes it both entertaining and positive. The book is well made, with good print quality and sturdy pages, so it holds up well to repeated reading. Overall, this is a great purchase for parents looking to introduce their children to Batman in a fun, safe, and enjoyable way.

During the 1980s there was a real attempt in the comic book industry to cater to the interests, maturity, and cynicism of adults rather than to the naivete, innocence, and adventurous spirit of children. Many classic comic book superheroes were resurrected into the world of the '80s and given very grim contemporary story lines to make them more realistic and compelling. Perhaps one of the most compelling of these story lines is that written by Frank Miller. In the late '70s and into the early '80s, Miller had made a real name for himself while working at both Marvel and DC, and his revitalization of the Daredevil and Punisher characters for Marvel Comics had proven to be a major success with fans and critics. But perhaps Miller's greatest achievement in comics came when he created two very different and very dark depictions of Batman for DC Comics. In the now legendary "Batman: The Dark Knight Returns" , Miller turned Batman into a Dirty Harry-like vigilante, whose brutal methods were only matched by the brutality of the crumbling futuristic Gotham that he lived in. The book was somewhat controversial as it changed or rather embellished certain characteristics of the Batman and pushed the envelope as to the amount of violence and killing that could occur within mainstream superhero comics. Personally, I have not read this particular Batman tale since I don't care for some of Miller's overly authoritarian depictions of heroism, but I will admit that the man is a great talent, as both a writer and an artist, and that his macho-noir vision was groundbreaking in the comic book medium. For me, Frank Miller's shining moment of creative genius came when he revisited Batman's past and how it was that he came to be the Dark Knight of Gotham City that we all know and love. As mentioned earlier, DC Comics wanted to update their characters by retelling their origin stories with a new level of depth and complexity in order to attract more intelligent and sophisticated readers. To do this, they often challenged the idealized version of the superhero which had been so prevalent in the past by placing them in corrupt societies where their methods of enforcing order became increasingly harsh and their morality began to wane. When writer/editor Denny O'Neil (who had, along with editor Julius Schwartz and artists Dick Giordano and Neal Adams, reinvented many of DC Comics' great characters during the late '60s and '70s) asked some of the writers and artists at DC who would be interested in tackling Batman in a realistic and psychologically grounded story that would explore the character's past, it became clear that the job would have to go to a collaborative team that knew how to deal with the character. Enter Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli. In "Batman: Year One", which was originally published as a four-issue miniseries in 1987 before being collected into a bestselling graphic novel, Frank Miller told readers a tale of how Bruce Wayne became Batman in a way that was ultimately definitive. In terms of character origins, the story emphasized the psychology of the protagonists, Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon, and showed them as truly heroic albeit sometimes flawed figures. Miller took what had come before in comics and elaborated on it and in doing so established a new version of the Batman mythos which has been an inspiration and influence to almost every writer who has set out to tell a Batman story since. David Mazzucchelli had been a talented artist with a very unique visual sense. Hand-picked by Miller, Mazzucchelli created a stunning depiction of Gotham replete with gothic settings, film noir atmosphere, and stark contrasts between light and shadows, monochrome and color. Mazzucchelli modeled his version of Bruce Wayne on young Gregory Peck and Jim Gordon is reminiscent of many of the iconic hard-boiled police and detective characters found in illustrated pulp magazines of the '30s and '40s. The cityscape of Gotham is a strangely believable combination of modern New York with a distinctly retro-noir look to it. What sets "Year One" apart from other Batman stories is the way that it so efficiently juxtaposes Bruce Wayne's journey into becoming Batman with Jim Gordon's rise in the Gotham City Police Department as one of the few honest cops amidst all the corruption. I really love the fact that as much time is spent with Bruce Wayne/Batman as is spent learning about Gordon, who had up until this point never really been given the focus that he deserved as a character. The story itself is also unique since it doesn't rely on Batman's colorful enemies to flesh it out or engage readers. Selina Kyle, also known as the femme fatale Catwoman, is given an introduction as prostitute who turns to cat burglary and the last page of the comic introduces the Joker as a new threat to the citizens of Gotham, but all in all, there are no supervillains. This more down to earth approach allows for Miller to display Wayne's evolution as Batman and to show him learning how to apply his keen intelligence, martial arts training, and detective skills to costumed crime-fighting. Without the presence of theatrical megalomaniac villains, the focus returns to corrupt politicians and police officers, to street-level crime and poverty, which really shows the social crusader aspects of the Batman and Gordon characters brilliantly. My only complaint as far as the writing goes is that the Alfred character is so under-utilized and is left merely to make dry humorous comments and that Selina Kyle's appearances are so few. However, these are very minor qualms with what is truly a masterpiece of superhero fiction! All in all, "Batman: Year One" is perhaps the best Batman graphic novel ever written in that it so carefully adheres to the moody detective roots of the character created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, while injecting the world of Gotham City with a vitality that was both refreshingly modern and yet timeless. Of all Frank Miller's work, this manages to stand out in my memory as his most intelligently scripted, most dynamically drawn, and most memorably heroic.

This book is enormous, which is what we want. The detail is exquisite and the introduction very informative of the creative process. The sketches are very telling of the process also. As far as I can tell, this edition has every page of the original comic which blows my mind. You can follow the story page by page as we would expect while many artist additions are missing pages, understandably.

Batman:Year One is a story, which, as the title suggests details the first year of action for Batman and the inspiration for many of his methods, and, also, his mentallity, but it doesn't just foccus on a single character; a noticable part of the book is centered on James Gordon, the police comissioner we all know and love, and how he came to be where he is, and how his alliance with Batman was forged. Of both characters I found myself rooting the most for the comissioner, who Frank Miller managed to make into a compelling, interesting, multilayered and, most importantly, flaved and humane character, and his segments in the comic, atleast I personally, found to be the most interesting(to say the thruth, this comic actually made Gordon my favourite character of the Batman mythos, yes, that's right, I prefer him to Batman). Not to say that the Batman sections in the novel were bad or uninteresting, but his story is one most Batman fans(excluding some of the more specific details upon which this comic expands) by now pretty much know by heart, so it was James Gordons part of the story, that, atleast for me, had the most impact and had the most interesting setpieces, which I refuse to spoil here. What I can say is that, you'll witness some truly memorable moments, the transformation and evolution of both protagonists before your eyes and some new information regarding both characters, that will shed them in a much different light. The story itself is structured over the time spane of a single year and shows how Batman was inspired to create his costume, how Catwoman(who also is an important part of the story) choose to lead a life of vigilantism and first met(perhaps not strictly in perosn)Batman, and just quite how deep did the corruption run in Gotham city. Frank Millers writing is as good as always, ussualy portrait in the inner monologs of many characters, that create a new and interesting angle into the characters mentallity. The story is riddled with many intense set-pieces, that, worry not, I will not spoil in this review, as much of their impact relies on surprise(also worth of mentione is the dark and brooding atmosphere which envelops much of the story and greatly helps the immersion). I will say, however, that it is refreshing to see Batman actually be in mortal danger for once in a story and not just steam-roll his way through the opposition, relying on the "prepared for anything" gimmic, that he has been relying on so much in many modern comics(I know "being prepared" is part of Batmans character, but it destroys much of a tension a story can have, if you know that Batman just happened to be prepared for the exact type of trap The Riddler had for him, six years ago). My only criticism of the story comes from the fact that, do to the stories structure which spans an entire year, it can often be the case, when entire months are given just one or two pannels of exposition , and the story often insists on jumping from character to character a bit too often, which can make the story feel a bit disjointed. For these flaws I deduct the comic a star. Sppeaking of the art, I have heard many people calling it too simplistic, uninteresting or just plain simply bad, but I beg to differ with these oppinions - yes the art isn't overtly detailed, and the coloring may seem very simplistic and perhaps even primitive, but I think it does the story a favour, in the sense that it portrays a more simple time in Gothams history were there weren't no supervillains and hardly any superheroes or vigilantes. The colloring also helps enchance the depresing mood of the city, that suits the story well. I also didn't particullary mind the simplicty of the art, to say the truth I even prefered it to many modern, overly detailed comic art, which may seem great individualy, but as a part of a coherent whole, they often can ruin the pacing of the story. That wasn't the case in Batman:Year one, the art had a great pacing(despite the loose nature of the story) and was always portrayed from a great angle, and, most importantly it always had a great impact and punch to it, be it scenes of action or drama, the art seemed always able to portray the required emotion and power of them. As far as the purchase recommandation goes, the question stands: should you buy this comic? In short - yes! It doesn't matter if your a long time Batman fan or new to the whole mythos, or, perhaps, the whole comics genre; Batman:Year One is as good of a place to start as any. In fact Batman:Year One is one my highest recommandations as a starting point for comics(alongside Watchmen, The Joker and Kick-Ass), for people who are new to the genre:it contains great art, inteligent story, humane characters and great writing(and that is discounting all the bonus materials, such as scetches and parts of the script), and I believe almost anyone could find something worth of interest inside this great story!

This is probably one of the best stories, not just Batman tales, but one of the best STORIES, period, I have read. This is a modern redo of Batman's origins that also intertwines his rise with Lieutenant James Gordon's slow rise to the post of Commissioner (by the end of Year One he is a Captain). The main storyline revolves around Bruce Wayne returning from 18 years of training and traveling across the world after the murder of his parents to start his "quest" and James Gordon moving from the Chicago PD to Gotham's police force, which, unsurprisingly, is pretty corrupt (A one page prologue drawn as a Gotham newspaper has an article that sets the tone for this). Slowly, since they both are basically working towards the same goal, the start to move toward each other until they finally cross paths. By the end they have developed a working relationship of sorts, and have started to tackle the mundane but powerful elements of crime and corruption in Gotham City; the Mafia, their business partners, and many of Gotham's government officials. I particularly liked the fact that this story does look at what inspired Bruce Wayne to use a bat as a symbol, and how Jim Gordon became such a tough cop. Outside of the Nolan Batman films, this is probably the most strictly speaking realistic Batman you will see, with all of the human flaws and mistake-making that tend to define people. This also applies to Gordon, who has his own weakness and mistakes to overcome as well. We also see Harvey Dent already have a working relationship with Batman early on as an Assistant D.A. before the addition of Gordon to the team, which adds to his later, tragic character as Two-Face. This is a story you could read twice in a row; I would definitely recommend reading this! Sidenotes: This story is the current foundation story which is used as the jumping off point for most of the modern Batman comics, and about 10 or so other stories have been written that take place within Year One, right after Year One, or parallel to it. A good follow up story is Batman: Shaman, which goes into deeper detail as to why Bruce Wayne seized on the bat as a symbol, and looks at what some of his training entailed. Alternatively, given the hint at the end, an additional good follow up would be Batman: The Man Who Laughs, which introduces the Joker after his accident, and Batman:Dead to Rights, which depicts the Joker's trial after the Man Who Laughs. I should also mention that there is a notable subplot in Year One that involves the origin of Catwoman throughout the main story, which serves to show how Batman, to some degree, inspires or creates his super-villain enemies, and how similar he is to them. Additionally, establishes that Catwoman and Batman are very similar people as well(and could be a couple, thus starting their weird relationship). I should also point out that about 30 or so pages of bonus materials are included in the book, and the story itself is 96 pages (97 counting the "newspaper"). The cover for the paperback is very nice and has a plastic coating that helps keep it looking fresh. Cons: I noticed that although most of the reviews are positive, there are a few very negative ones, so I will attempt to list potential reasons why people might not find this story appealing: A. It does not have any colorful or fantastic supervillains (unless you count Catwoman), since Frank Miller was going for a realistic angle. B. The story does not have a typical one-off plot where a villain is introduced, schemes, and is defeated or escapes; instead it is focused on origins and the development of the characters.This means that the story is a little deeper and longer and takes a bit more effort to follow than a typical comic book storyline. C. The art is good, but the colors used are chiefly a lot of blues, greys, blacks, reds, oranges and yellows(mainly for the background, not the characters themselves) to set a gritty "tone", so those who prefer a somewhat more colorful comic or are comic art critics or hard core comic fans may be disappointed. The average reader, like myself, should not find this to be an issue. The only issue I had with my copy was that there were slight marks from shipping, but since this has nothing to do with the enjoyment of the product, I give it 5 stars.

Frank Miller's take on the origins of Batman is a refreshing and well paced story from start to end. I'm not great at reviewing in the traditional paragraph form so I've decided to do pros and cons and to keep this review as short and concise as possible. PRO: - The story is as simple as they come all the while still leaving a fulfilling feeling at the end of it. There was never a dull moment and I really enjoyed myself throughout the whole thing. - The art is amazing. David Mazzucchelli brings a unique and bold art style to the world of Gotham. He uses bold strong lines with shades and contour that should be admired. I don't want to spoil it but it's great and quite possibly the best part of this piece. - The story is half Batman and half Jim Gordon. This works out extremely well because somehow they manage to make Gordon's arrival at the Gotham PD and Wayne's transformation into Batman equally interesting. Just as you're beginning to tire of one of them, the other takes over the panels and by the end when they are sharing panels it seems like a great pay off. - One thing I despise in comics is when the writer turns to dialogue and makes the whole thing too wordy. Frank Miller excels in showing not telling and I really wish that more comic writers would work close with their illustrator to achieve this. Never did I look at a page and feel daunted by the amount of dialogue or wordiness on the page. Comics are meant to tell a story but they are not meant to be books with a picture fighting a text bubble for attention. - An after word by artist David Mazzucchelli is a very nice way to wrap up the book and provides a nice insight into what he was trying to achieve in illustrating year one. CON: - It is short. I wish there was more to read but that's just because it is so well done. It is 96 pages of pure genius and I wish it were that plus a couple zero's at the end of that number. - There is a catwoman origin stuck in their that seemed rushed and not so great. I think given time and space it could have grown and become something substancial but it seemed cut off and no closure was brought to the character. - The beginning is abrupt and doesn't give as much background that I would have liked but that's a small complaint in an otherwise perfect story structure. Overall the comic is a great addition to anyone's collection and Miller should be commended for his simplistic yet deep style of telling a story. All in all, perfect Batman origins comic and a great comic for a person to get started in the character.

There's likely nothing more that can be written about how fantastic this Batman story is. Frank Miller published this very soon after his monumental Dark Knight Returns series, except this story was to take place within the main DC continuity. Following in the vein of TDKR, Year One reinvented and rejuvenated the Batman mythos. However, I think this book outclasses Dark Knight Returns on a few levels. Firstly, the art is vastly superior to TDKR. Frank Miller can write, but his art talent has rarely appealed to me. It's inconsistent, messy, and filled with many bizarre figures. His Batman looks imposing and dark, but is surrounded with mediocrity. David Mazzucchelli, on the other hand, draws everything with stunning, sleek realism, capturing Miller's troubled Gotham and the young Bruce Wayne like no other. While not the most detailed work, it works efficiently and propels the reader through the story with gripping visuals. Despite the simplistic style, it's never cartoonish. This is some mature material, and the art reflects this. Included in this title are several early renderings from Mazzucchelli, as well as some of his commentary. It is almost enough art to be considered a second Year One. The writing is, of course, superb. Miller's TDKR Batman is gruff and callous, befitting of an older Wayne. Miller writes the young vigilante just as well, showing that he is driven in his mission by pain, yet still carrying a sense of empathy for others, even criminals. Gordon is the other highlight of this story, showing the yet-to-be commissioner as tough, vulnerable, and not as squeaky clean as his ideals. Jim Gordon has always been an important character in Batman, likely in the top four, following only Alfred, Joker, and Robin. Jim experiences, and is susceptible to, temptation. Showing that he is human does not take away from his heroic nature, but rather makes him more of a three-dimensional character. Wayne and Gordon both begin their time in Gotham intent on cleaning up the city, but obviously in very different manners. This parallel journey introduces the bond these two will forge, and the eternal boundary that will separate them. This is my favorite Batman story, surpassing TDKR with ease. Here, Batman's a hero, plain and simple. He's not afraid to use intimidation and violence, but he's undoubtedly one of the good guys. the writing and art is top notch, the standard for which all good comics should be held. Yes, it's an origin story, but it's an origin story like no other. At less than $10, I can't think of a better Batman comic to be purchased.

This is without doubt one of my favorite batman stories. The art work makes it feel old. Great book