25 Years Later - Still One of the Most Important Comics Ever
When Frank Miller wrote The Dark Knight he did more than tell a great story, he did more than redefine Batman, he did more than revolutionize superhero comics, he elevated an entire medium. Prior to this comic there were great stories targeted to mature audiences (regardless of age), but never before had fans, the media, critics, and the public at large all simultaneously hailed any one comic (or at least the graphic novel collection that included this comic's story arc) as the time comics 'came of age'. Never again were comics sneered at as juvenile without at least some qualifiers.
So, having written the end of the Batman saga, it was only natural to go back and write the beginning. And with issue four hundred and four, he radically changed the course of that comic. So, how does this issue hold up a quarter of a century later? Still damn well. While it may resonate more with those that actually lived through the 70s and 80s, Miller and Mazzucchelli's Gotham looks and feels like the crime ridden New York City of the pre Giuliani years. And Miller's minimalist style (which hadn't gotten too exaggerated yet) perfectly suits a story like this.
Lieutenant Gordon arrives in Gotham only to find it's corrupt to it's core, within the police and without. Simultaneously, Bruce Wayne makes his first attempt at vigilantism, disguising his appearance with makeup and taking on a pimp in the East End. Both men learn that they need more than their combat training to take on the big fish - they need to instill fear.
Many other things are deftly set up here - the proto-Batmobile is a black Porsche. Alfred, we learn, has combat medicine training. Wayne Manor is located over a large cave. The night young Bruce Wayne witnessed his parents murder they were coming from the theater where they had seen The Mark of Zorro - clever not only because of the subject matter, but also because it can date Batman's childhood to multiple eras. Selina Kyle, not yet Catwoman also appears, recast as a leather clad dominatrix and likely a prostitute.
In one issue Batman becomes the Dark Knight Detective he's been called - but not always portrayed as - for so long. It's not perfect - Miller has Bruce breaking an oak tree with a kick during training, and breaking the chain on handcuffs after having been stabbed and shot - exaggerating his strength and resilience to near Superman levels. The tree is never seen to fall, so I prefer to imagine it was just bark flying off the tree, but I wish Miller had chosen to have Bruce use lock-picking/escape artist skills to get free of the handcuffs, which would be more in keeping with the character conception. Still, these two sour notes can be mostly overlooked given the sheer brilliance of the rest of the comic.
Outstanding.
