good,but sometimes abit confusing
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lately i have been obsessed with batman, when I was a kid I watched batman on tele, but being young I didnt appreciate it, well I did the drawing and that because I was always drawing, but I mean I didnt relise how many variations there is of batman. Anyway to the point, I bought this book wanting to see how the badies are perceived, so overall the art is good, so if you appreciate illustrations when you buy a comic, its a good buy. Although I have to say, sometimes I missed the hidden meaning in the drawings, as it sometimes came across too cluttered, like mckean has fit too much onto one page and its hard to see what is happening(although this is mckeans style, so I should have known) Aswell, I found it really difficult to read what the joker was saying, as the text is red and scribbley. The story itself is clever though, and its a book to be read slowly, not rushed, to fully understand what is going on.
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very 1980s... and not necessarily in a good way
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At the risk of being mauled by several hundred angry Arkham Asylum fans, I have to say that this isn't a terrible graphic novel, but it is an incredibly over-rated one.
The main problem is Dave McKean's art. While he's a fantastic cover artist (just check out the gorgeous work he did on the complete run of Sandman and its associated collections), his ultra-impressionistic style just isn't suited to the demands of a linear comic book narrative. The inclusion of Grant Morrison's obsessively-detailed script only highlights this deficiency; so much of a reasonably interesting story has been sacrificed on the alter of admitedly awe-inspiring visuals. The nadir has to be when McKean translates a one-line description of Batman pricking his hand with a shard of glass into a double page orgy of gore as he rams the shard all the way through his palm. Why the hell would Batman do this? Your guess is as good as mine. The only answer I can come up with is 'because the artist thought it would look cool'. That sums up this book for me.
Grant Morrison's script isn't perfect either, although it would certainly have been better served by a Brian Bolland or a Dave Gibbons. The basic 'Batman is as crazy as his enemies' premise is almost as hackneyed as the 'Batman and Robin are gay lovers' one - a shallow take on the character that isn't even investigated very well here .
In his highly readable notes on the script, Morrison claims the story was a comment on the dark as hell, style over substance caricature that the Dark Knight had turned into in the post-Miller 80s. If that really was his intent, he was unsuccessful in bringing it across. Instead, the book seems to display all of the flaws of that period with few of the strengths. Morrison is very capable of writing classic Batman stories, but his 'Gothic' arc in Legends of the Dark Knight with artist Klaus Janson is superior on every level to his debut effort here.
Writer, artist and character have all produced excellent work in the field of comic books, but this just isn't a great example of it. The inclusion of the script makes this a value-for-money packaging of a curio of a bygone age, but the graphic novel itself leaves a lot to be desired.
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Reality Check
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I feel there's a need to respond to the review that calls Arkham Asylum "UTTER RUBBISH". Frankly, that statement is ridiculous. Books like Arkham need to be taken in context. They exist to show something different. For the publishers to show off a little, to display a bit of extravagance. To showcase talent they may have in the stables and give a character the treatment they deserve. Personally I think the script for Arkham gives it a greater dignity than many of the so called "landmark" titles achieve (Digital Justice anyone?).
I first bought Arkham on its release when I was an impressionable teenager but have returned to it on numerous occasions as an adult and even bought it again when my original copy went awol. Whilst I would concede that it might not be the strongest plotline in a Batman story, in my opinion that's just missing the point.
Arkham is a prime example of the type of literary indulgence that has been used to flesh out the world of Batman or explore a different vein on numerous occasions. That is, there's no new characters, no major turn of events that will register on the Batman richter-scale (eg Death in the Family, Killing Joke) but it does go someway into presenting aspects of the character that help some readers see him in a different light. In Arkham's case that is to really emphasise the dark, psychological element of Batman and the space he occupies. The fact that, like his nemesis, he exists in a form of complete psychosis so utterly defined by the death of his parents, the resulting feelings of solitude and his almost scizophrenic dual identity ("Mommy's Dead. Daddy's Dead. Brucie's Dead"). Though all of this may have been explored in other stories, Morrison and McKean have, like several others before them, been given the oppurtunity to attempt to do something different.
The artwork plays a key role in this. The whole book is a thing of real beauty. Alex Ross may rule for out and out brilliance of illustration but in my experience, only Bill Sienkiewicz in Elektra:Assasin has done anything so astounding as Dave McKean's work here using varying media. Yes, some frames may not drive the story forward much but hell, just take them in and enjoy them. Those drops of blood in the glass shard scene are just exquisite. The character profiles at the end of the book that serve no real purpose but as an excercise in superb graphic design.
Arkham Asylum should be in anyone's collection whether a Batman fan or not.
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Enjoyable Insanity
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This is a very well written novel and apparently one of the authors first, it was an enjoyable and disturbing read. The Joker is simply delightful as usual, his twisted sense of humour is written to perfection.
The multitude of characters incarcerated within the walls of Arkham asylum are given brief mention, it is the Joker who steals the show, seconded by Two Face. This novel covers the story of Arkham's founder intertwined with the present day activities of the inmates as they welcome Batman into their midst. Is he as mad as they are after all?
A further thing that should be mentioned about this marvelous read is of course the artwork. Quite unlike the usual illustrations I'm used to, it really matches the theme of the whole novel, roughly scrawled almost, but with the wild lines landing perfectly every time. Insanity inked.
The script for the novel at the back also makes for a good read, it's really interesting to see how a script can become a graphic novel, plus to see what was left out of the finished piece.
I recommend this book, just keep your sanity in a jar while you peruse it, to be safe.
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Wow
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Wow this book is definatly the best batman book i have read in along time. it is a bit hard to follow and i wouldnt reccomend it to younger readers but a very good read!!
5 stars well done Grant i salute you!
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