92.
Title: [The Long Halloween]
Author: Jeph Loeb
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: November 8, 2016
Rating: ****

The Long Halloween tell the story of a mob-drenched Gotham City, and Batman's tenuous relationship with Gordon and Dent as the triad attempts to subvert the control of professional criminals. But when these criminals start dying by assassination, the media dubbing the serial killer "Holiday" for his/her preferred time of executions, doubt begins to creep in, and even the more colorful rogues of Gotham show interest in putting things to rights. The primary characters of interest here are the mobsters and Dent, the focus being the struggles against principles and necessitous action carrying the narrative through, with only brief interventions of the cowled hero in a well-paced examination of right versus wrong. The success of the book hinges on its careful pacing and strong characterization, ultimately rendering the book a success for its development of the Batman canon, and resistance to relying on the ex machina of the titular character.

80.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: Jokers and Madmen
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 19, 2016
Rating: ****

Th second volume of Gothic City Central is just as compelling a the first, carefully blending the genres of caped comics and police procedurals and ending up with a strong, character-driven book that develops carefully and with the drama and action appropriate to each, without jumping the shark (or nuking the fridge? What are we going with these days?). Well done, and a pleasure to read.

79.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: In the Line of Duty
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 17, 2016
Rating: ****

Rucka and Brubaker's Gotham City Central occupies the mundane world of Batman's Gotham City, taking a step back from the extraordinary of masked antiheroes and villains to develop an understanding of a police force faced with both typical and atypical crime, and a compatriot they don't exactly like, but understand they must call in when the atypical runs amok. These are the men and women who serve as Gotham City detectives, investigating rape and murder and abductions, and who are faced with the terrifying reality of supervillains from time to time. Though Batman exists in the text, he's on the fringe of the narrative - a looming necessary evil that the squads resent, and try to limit, but nonetheless needs to be called in from time to time. Though almost entirely missing the iconic figure of The Bat, Gotham Central is far from dull, and works well to show readers that Gotham itself, and the people who inhabit this fictional New York, can be just as compelling, and are far more than fodder in the extravagant fight of masks and capes. There are triumphs and failures, prejudices and personal lives, and a negotiation between morals and expectations. The artwork is grim and compelling, avoiding flashy colors and elaborate scenes for the texture of a place you expect to find in reality.  A well done work, and a wonderful addition to the Batman canon.

76.
Title: [Suicide Squad: Trial by Fire]
Author: John Ostrander
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August something, 2016
Rating: ****

I liked the movie.  Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed it - I left the theatre smiling and giggling and overall pleased with what I had seen.  I enjoyed the comic-like dialog, thought the music was well paired, and enjoyed the creative representations of most of the characters.  I hated the Enchantress plotline, but thought it clever and engaging that the true antagonist of the film is the industrial military complex of an American system devoid of checks and balances. As a scholar deeply involved in identity studies, I appreciated and followed the subtle discourse on villainy, its meaning and meaning makers, and its denoters. And I especially like Harley Quinn - yes, really. I know that there are many "fans" who love to hate Margo Robbie's presentation, but the arguments seem so shallow - I have a good friend, for example, who only wants HQ in her "real" Jester suit, when she hasn't donned the hideous thing in ages. Someone has been avoiding anything but the 1990s cartoon, methinks. The film recognizes that even in insanity Dr. Quinzle is a highly educated woman, who loses her sanity but not her intelligence. It also clearly recognizes that her actions are very much so a conscious performance, explicitly engineered to enable her a specific social and group standing.  I won't go into specifics, but I'll point to the car in the rain - there's a lot of depth in that scene. I also think it adds an interesting element to the Joker/Quinn romance, actually allowing them one, and making space for Quinn not as an abuse victim, but a willing participant in a nonnormative relationship. I think there's more there.

I have plenty more to say about the movie, but so does everyone else in the US right now, and mine is just another shout in the wind. What's pertinent here is that these detractors lead me to actually read the comic which inspires the film, and I equally loved it.  And the comic is everything the movie haters love to criticize about the film.

One complaint about the film was awkward exposition, which I'll say is entirely fair - and completed grounded in the comic, which does exactly the same thing. Boomerang and Enchantress are equally weak characters, and some of the awkward dialog and assertions of self are right there in the pages.  The first comic describes the building of the team, Amanda Waller's motivation and the consequences of her actions, and the murky morality of everyone involved. It's an interesting premise, believable in the world in which it takes place, and makes great space for a creative reintegration of well known villains.  Worth a read, I say.

Three more graphic novels bring me to my initial goal!

73.
Title: [The Saga of the Swamp Thing]
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 8, 2016
Rating: ***

Alan Moore's Swamp Thing is a canonical graphic novel that breaks new ground and shepherds the genre into new themes and ideas, abandoning caped crusaders to follow philosophical conundrums posed by the creation and existence of the humanoid character now known as Swamp Thing. I know this, and I knew it going into the book, but ultimately the entire text felt like an unfortunate chore - how I'm sure some high school freshman unfortunately feel when forced to read Romeo and Juliet because "it's a classic." I have no intention of debating Moore's influence on the genre, nor his prolific, and often intriguing productions. His narratives don't click for me as a general rule, and this book is no exception. While it was suggested to me both for its cannonical status and for its narrative on Othering and villainy, I didn't find anything that isn't likewise represented in texts I find more enjoyable to work with. A good box to check, but not a favorite for me.

74.
Title: [300]
Author: Frank Miller
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 9, 2016
Rating: ***

I saw the film 300 long before I knew the story was based on a graphic novel, and snagged it off the library shelf on a whim just recently. What I found was a treat of a story, paced and illustrated much like the kind of mythology which inspires its tale, and brief in its development and execution. The art style is a strong voice in the overall telling of the Spartan warriors willing to sacrifice their lives for their king and his stand for autonomy against an arrogant but powerful imperialist interloper. I couldn't help but let my imagination and the film fill in the narrative holes left in the original story, and I'm not quite sure that's a bad thing - there's certainly more to be said, and more one wants to hear about this march of men.

75.
Title: [Catwoman: A Celebration of 75 Years]
Author: Frank Miller
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 9, 2016
Rating: ***

This collection of Catwoman stories is the second I've read of its kind, and the editors select largely different representative stories, which allows me a stronger understanding of where the character has been, and where she may be going. Most valuable, though, are the editor's own descriptive introductions, placing the comics and the character into a larger cultural narrative, the better to understand her full development and impact; they speak of shows and movies, trends and cultural artifacts, and work to illustrate how she is a product of her time, while also timeless. Though I haven't yet found what I'm looking for in terms of primary source material, I'd say that this anthology is a great introduction to a classic anti-hero/villain/opportunist nearly as old as Batman, and just as dark and compelling.

70.
Title: [Batman: The City of Owls]
Author: Scott Snyder
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 2, 2016
Rating: ***

A sequel to the incredible Court of Owls, The City of Owls follows Batman as he seeks revenge on the Court, penetrating their previously impervious boundaries and hunting for those in true control. Secondary stories follow Dr. Freeze and his "romantic" mission against Wayne Enterprises, the teenage electrician Harper Row, and Alfred's father's confrontation with the Court of Owls. Like teh second in many popular trilogies, The City of Owls feels most like a filler book, offering narrative and development without great engagement with developing plot points.

71.
Title: [The Joker: Endgame]
Author: Scott Snyder
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 3, 2016
Rating: ******

This.  This. This book is a spectacular epic following the Joker's grand masterpiece of a final act, ultimately infecting over 90% of Gotham city and pushing Batman to his true limits. Woven throughout the book are teaser biographies of who the Joker "really is," whispered and shared by escaped Arkham Asylum inmates, their psychiatrist, and even boarding school students hiding from the madness of the chemical warfare beyond their school gates.  These biographies illustrate the reach and influence o Joker not just within the Batman canon, but in popular culture as a whole, demonstrating the hunger comic readers have for the "truth" behind the Joker's mystery, and the power of myth to grow and morph and promise and deny throughout telling.  As a whole, it is suspenseful and creepy, matching action with what amounts to ghost stories, and the ultimate twists are deeply satisfying and well written for such a spectacular character. Following the arc of Death of the Family I couldn't fathom what DC or Scott Snyder could do with the Clown Prince, and I for one am quite satisfied with their creative choices - and I'm thrilled for it analytic potential for my current research.

72.
Title: [Pretty Deadly]
Author: Deconnick, Brios, Bellaire, Cowles
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 3, 2016
Rating: ***1/2

Pretty Deadly is a fictional Western in which a young girl, Sissy, travels with her adoptive paternal figure, performing the story of Deathface Ginny as her own mysterious past unfolds around her. When Death comes to release a Beauty from her Mason husband, who has jealously locked her away in a tower, Death himself falls in love with the young woman, and together they produce a daughter, whom Death names Ginny. This mythology is the clearest narrative in the entire book, which as a whole teasingly places Sissy in the story, and slowly reveals the truth of the fairy tale, and the parts played by the characters included. The artwork is lovely, but the story feels clumsy, especially after reading Monstress; had I read Pretty Deadly first I may have rated it more favorably, but after such a great book this one falls a bit flat.

53.
Title: [Amazing X-Men: The Quest for Nightcrawler]
Author: Jason Aaron
Genre: Comic
Medium: paperback
Acquisition: Comic shop suggestion
Date Completed: June 17, 2016
Rating: ***

Like the last X-Men book on my list, The Quest for Nightcrawler is a shop-employee suggestion. In this first volume of Amazing X-Men, strange creatures begin appearing around the school, leading to a portal which suddenly transports a number of X-Men to heaven and hell, where they meet Azazel and a band of demonic pirates on a quest to collect souls and overthrow the afterlife.  Nightcrawler, himself deceased and pining for adventure despite his secure place in heaven, leads his former comrades in the fray against his father, literally captaining a hell-ship and defeating the empowered souls of notorious sinners such as Jack the Ripper.  At first, the entire plot device smacked of barely-palatable shark jumping, but as the book developed Nightcrawler as a conflicted and nuanced character, and brought the X-Men back from the afterlife to the present reality, it became far more compelling, and holds a promise of something interesting to come. Though a bit clumsy as a whole, the narrative reigns itself in successfully, and delivers appealing artwork to help fans through the rough patches.


54.
Title: [Batman: The Court of Owls]
Author: Scott Snyder
Genre: Comic
Medium: paperback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: June , 2016
Rating: ****

Batman: The Court of Owls is a dark and thrilling ride through a Gotham both familiar and not, taking well-known characters and complicating them in ways the series has failed to do in the past. A Gotham-known nursery rhyme speaks of a "Court of Owls," a shadowy cabal which controls the city. Having unsuccessfully searched for the court as a child, Batman dismisses the possibility of their existence, even after Bruce Wayne receives threats, and a subsequent assassination attempt, from the death-dealer of the Owls. As the plot unfolds, Batman realizes that he may not know the city quite as well as he thought, and his assertion that the city is "his" is soundly challenged.

One of the great appeals of Batman over supernatural superheroes is his fallibility - the very real possibility that he can fail, physically and intellectually, because he is human - and this first New 52 volume takes full advantage of his undeniable humanity. His struggles with the Court of Owls push him to the very brink psychologically, challenging the hero in ways far more poignant and compelling than brute and brawn. The book is well-paced and carefully developed, and much of the artwork is breathtaking, textured, and dark.  This book is a real winner.

49.
Title: [Batman: Year One]
Author: Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: 28 May 2016
Rating: ****

According to the introduction of Batman: Year One, DC Comics decides to revamp their bi names in the 1980s, afraid that the characters had grown stale. Denny O'Neil writes that Wonderwoman and Superman needed new stories, "but Batman was a problem. He was fine just as he was." Thus, the "editors decided, Batman's origin should not be changed. It could be given depth, complexity, a wider context." This is precisely what Frank Miller aims to do in Year One, originally published in 1986, and offering an origins story that fixes Gotham in the cultural imagination, and broadens the task of origin narration to include other significant characters. I haven't yet made it to my omnibus to see how much of, say, Gordon's story is original to Miller, but the book as a whole is dedicated to a consistent level of struggle and searching, looking forward to the characters so well known today.  Jim Gordon is transferred to Gotham after past failures, bringing along a newly-pregnant wife and a deep-seated repulsion for his newly assigned city; Bruce Wayne returns from twelve years in Europe, perfectly charming and confident, but in secret plagued with a sense of inadequacy that drives him to work harder and harder. Selina Kyle watches from the shadows before developing her own alternative identity, and pits herself in a contest of reputations with the mysterious Bat.

Batman: Year One does exactly what it promises, returning to the real origins of Batman - not the murder of the Waynes, but when Bruce Wayne seeks out an alternative identity through which to exercise his manic desire for revenge and street justice. What Batman No. 1 does in approximately nine frames Frank Miller details in ninety-six pages of thoughtful development.  Bruce Wayne, though wealthy and physically practiced, is uncertain of his means, and blunders in his first days on the street, making mistakes and earning scars - and a nasty official reputation.  Gordon, too, has his flaws, not quite the boyscout he is in my head, but with a sense of right stronger than a sense of self-preservation.  Selina Kyle isn't given quite the same attention, to my dismay, but it's not her book.  Though I found the clipped and awkward narrative jarring and pedestrian, the story itself was well paced, and the visual narrative more than made up for the staccato writing.  This is the Batman I've known all my life (I'm only a year older), and it was a pleasure to go back and see where he came from.

26.
Title: [Batman #1]
Author: Bob Kane
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: IS Primary Source
Date Completed: April 9, 2016
Rating: ****

To support my research, and to serve as a primary source, I sought out the very first introduction of The Joker, which happens to be in the 1940s Batman #1, when Batman earns his own book outside of Detective Comics.  The mystery begins when a strange voice over the radio predicts the death of a wealthy citizen, and the theft of his property; this prophecy is fulfilled to the letter, despite police presence and protection.  The mystery continues when a second ominous message is relayed, and again fulfilled, though through slightly different methods.  The perpetrator gains the attention of police and criminals alike - the police for their bafflement, and the criminal underworld for this man's usurpation of heists unofficially claimed by other thieves. Of course, Batman is needed to apprehend this unusual figure - before one gang or another is able to take him out.  The premise of this book is as the later rewriting has promised, to an extent - ominous predictions of death and theft, and even the methods of execution.  The original text, though, takes more time in the explication of the crimes, and thus offers a portrait of the Joker not as a madman bent on wreaking havoc, but as a calculating and cunning thief with an unusual calling card.  The Joker's costume is as much a performance as Batman's himself, and the two appear to be on much more even footing.  This is what strikes me most about his first appearance - the Joker is not yet the madman of modern narrative, but a stealthy (and relatively traditional) criminal whose motives are capitalistically understood.

25.
Title: [From Hell]
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: IS Primary Source
Date Completed: April 8, 2016
Rating: ***

I am of two minds about this Ripper conspiracy theory from comics behemoth Alan Moore, and my rating reflects only half of that mind.  The divide comes from its purpose and use-value: as a popular text intended to entertain, titillate, and thrill, and as a cultural object of study that reflects and forwards theories and perspectives useful for a continuing discourse on social, political, and values.

From Hell is Moore's foray into what is (actually!) known as Ripperology - the study of Jack the Ripper and the infamous Whitechapel murders of 1888, which remain officially unsolved to this day.  From the time of their act to now the spectacular case has drawn a great deal of interest, and serves as a modern whodunnit which holds the real-world promise of a spectacular resolution, if only someone finds, reads, and understands the right clues. The brutality of the crimes, the development of modern detection, and the sensationalism of nineteenth-century newspapers all add to the fervor, and from these real brutal slayings has come mountains of scholarship of varying levels of credibility, performance, art, and literature.

Moore's book forwards one particular conspiracy theory, based on his own reading of Ripperologists and historical research.  The solution offered defies nearly all logic and reason, but such is often the case with conspiracy theories, and this isn't something I hold against Moore.* Ultimately, however, I did not find the book to be entertaining.  Despite the sensational subject material, the plot is plodding, and long chapters seem extraneous to the movement of the narrative; though I understand why the author may have included such prolonged ravings and devoted espousals, they weigh down the text as opposed to building tension and anxious incredulity or curiosity.  In short, I found Ripper himself to be exceptionally dull, as are nearly all of the characters revolving around him, and the actions at hand.  An observation contrary to this criticism: one consistent trope in Moore's books, which seemed particularly successful in this text, is his explicit illustration of sex and sexuality. While I've found it unnecessarily gratuitous in other works (i.e. external to the plot), I thought the attention to human intimacy and sex to be compelling and forthright, and very well represented.

Despite my boredom with the graphic novel as a work of entertainment, I believe it is a useful, compelling, and thoughtful artifact which clearly articulates cultural values and systems worthy (and in need of ) deeper introspection.  For my present purpose, I found From Hell to represent a constant negotiation of gender, particularly masculinities, illustrating conventions, beliefs, and ramifications, both as these definitions are upheld and as they are challenged.  It promises to be a fascinating object of study, and so I am actually very excited to continue working with it.




* I don't really wish to spoil anything, but the fact that certain people would feel themselves completely powerless against the person who is Ripper is literally inconceivable; the ultimate end the murderer finds could have been implemented after the first death, with similar success.  That the instigator would not recall commands goes against all historical demonstration and documentation of character, decision, and action, and the final conclusion that it doesn't really work shows the frivolity of it all.

24.
Title: Batman/Houdini: [The Devil's Workshop]
Author: Howard Chaykin
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: April 7, 2016
Rating: **

The only thing redeeming this ridiculous comic is the visual representation of a Joker-like character, which happens to be beautiful and eerie.  The story is flat, the characters are useless, and the whole thing was really a dud.  It doesn't in any way live up to the legends of Houdini or Batman.

Great cover, though.

23.

Title: [Batman Detective Comics: Faces of Death]

Author: Tony S. Daniel

Genre: Comics

Medium: Paperback

Acquisition: Primary Source for IS

Date Completed: April 2, 2016

Rating: *****

This is the comic I was looking for - the pivotal moment when Joker has his face removed by the Dollmaker at which point they both proclaim they are "reborn."  Though the Joker himself plays a minimal active role in the book, this specific moment is a catalyst for the arc to come, and for my own reading of his masculinity.  The artwork is stunning.  

22.

Title: [The Hobbit]

Author: J.R.R. Tolkien

Genre: Fantasy

Medium: Paperback

Acquisition: Teaching Text

Date Completed: April 5, 2016

Rating: *****

19.
Title: [Batman: The Man Who Laughs]
Author: Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: IS Research
Date Completed: March 21, 2016
Rating: ****

One of the constant draws of The Joker is the uncertainty of his past; though narratives are offered from time to time (*cough*AlanMoore*cough*), even these "definitive" stories are challenged by the ambiguity of the character himself: he is literally not to be trusted. Ever. Even in the naming of his own past. This is one of the characteristics which makes him a memorable, and lasting, antagonist.  The Man Who Laughs is purportedly a re-telling (re-inking, re-publishing?) of the original 1940 comic, which saw the introduction of a strange jester.  I say "purportedly" only because I have not yet managed to read Batman #1, though I will.  In his first introduction, the Joker is all chaos - and nameless, given his famous moniker by the press as he mysteriously poisons Gotham elite (and anyone else who is inconveniently placed).  Arkham Asylum has not yet opened when the Joker first murders a reporter and cameraman in front of its gates, leaving an impression inside and out before he ever takes up residence.

As a story, it is a bit lackluster, given all the Joker will come to do.  As an origin, it's successful, providing the first and only really trustworthy beginning point of the villain who becomes Batman's mirror.

I'm not sure what counts as spoilers for comics readers; I tend to treat them like Shakespeare and other classic literature, in which the conclusion is already widely known, even by those who haven't actually read the book.  I don't think I've "given away" anything extraordinary here, but my apologies to any who disagree.

18.
Title: [Death of the Family]
Author: Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo
Genre: Comics
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: IS Research
Date Completed: March 20, 2016
Rating: *****

I'm finding it difficult to review this book casually; every time I begin writing I come to conclusions and observations I wish to save for the paper I'm crafting, and so I come back to square one.  The basics are straight forward: this New 52 title is a play on its predecessor, Death in the Family in which the Joker violently beats Jason Todd to death (at the encouragement of fans who voted, if I'm not mistaken).  Though this may read, and in the moment does, as a hugely significant narrative moment, for the Joker death is just another day at work, and play.  His history is tumultuous, with a few constants: mayhem, Arkham Asylum, and Batman.

In this new arc the Joker escapes one and uses another in order to achieve the full attention of the third, targeting the "Bat family" in the belief that they have sentimentalized Batman, and therefore made him weak, and thus less of a capable adversary. For an antagonist who identifies so intensely with his protagonist, this holds serious implications, and a year after disappearing from the asylum he sets out to "right" their dynamic through exceptional violence worthy of the most psychotic Joker arcs.

I sought out this book specifically looking for a moment of violence - when the Joker has his face removed by the Dollmaker, leaving it on a wall as a bloody calling card; this is apparently viewed as a moment of "rebirth" for the figure, and it's pertinent to my current research to think about what this means.  This moment proceeds the current book, but that doesn't detract from its interest. One point of contention I have is a major missing story - that of Catwoman. Though the Joker singles her out as a member of the "family," she is suspiciously missing from the final reunion.

Most of my conclusions and observations will (hopefully) end up in a paper this term, so I'll just end simply: I liked it.  More so, I think, than The Killing Joke, and certainly more than Death in the Family.