Batman: The Long Halloween is a graphic novel by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale is set out as a murder mystery where the caped Crusader and the authorities attempt to unravel the identity of a mysterious killer who strikes on public holidays. It introduces a more younger and idealistic Bruce Wayne early on in his crime fighting career as the novel describes his transition from a more idealistic crime fighter who puts his faith in the system and other individuals to something that is darker. What makes the Novel different is its primary focus being on the activities of organized crime element of Gotham and the socio-political machinations that takes place behind the scene.The portrayal of the Falcone family, its familial relations headed by its patriarch Carmine "The Roman" family is a very clear homage to Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather". In retrospect, Knowledge of the film and the power structure of the characters offers some clues to the ending of the Novel. The novel is one of the source material for Christopher Nolan's interpretation of the Batman Franchise and many of the elements relating to the role of organized crime, the evolution of Harvey Dents character, unexpected plot twists as well as some clear visual tropes are inspired by the novel The novel also features the usual cast of characters drawn from Batmans villain gallery including the Joker, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, Solomnon Grundy. But they play more of a secondary role and are mainly there to add colour to the Novel. They also offer a contrast in terms of the order brought about albeit grudgingly by Organized crime syndicate as opposed to the chaos brought on by "super" villains. The novel and the Dark Knight film makes it clear that the mixing of the two worlds never ends well. A bigger focus of the Novel is the evolution of Harvey Dent and was one of the source material for the story arc featured in Christopher Nolan's Harvey Dent ( I believe in Harvey Dent is a common refrain echoed throughout the Novel by Batman). Also the Riddler who is typically sidelined in many tales of the Dark Knight is featured prominently and plays an interesting role. The artwork by Tim Sale compliments the tone of the novel, where for the most of the novel the artist has used limited colour tones while in the case of the actual murders that take place they are rendered in black and white except for some trinket that is left behind by the killer signifying the particular holiday on which the killer has struck. The artist also makes use of shadows very effectively where many characters faces are rendered in half black and half light signifying the dual natures and motives of many of the characters. The ending itself is quite unexpected and makes a lot of sense in retrospect and is quite satisfying. The title fully deserves to be ranked in lists of the top #10 Batman comics of all time. Book details - Good reads A Homage to Francis Ford Coppola's "The God father" The gallery of villains featured in the novel The graphic novel was one of the source material for Christoper Nolan's interpretation of the Dark Knight Similar themes particualrly with regard to the evolution of Harvey Dent are also explored in the novel Tim Sale's artwork fits into the mystery aspect surrounding the identity of the killer
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AuthorAvid reader of Historical fiction, High fantasy novels, Comics & Graphic Novels. Passionate about teaching & the future of education in general. Categories
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December 2023
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