The snazzy hardcover you see to your left (with the bizarre asymmetrical cover by Chip Kidd) is at least the third version of this story I've owned; it replaced an old beaten-up trade paperback (which I think I bought in the UK as a remainder there), and I still have the original issues, which I bought when they came out. This is a somewhat new hardcover edition; it came out last year but I finally broke down and got a copy of it a couple of months ago.The only thing new in this package is an afterword by David Mazzucchelli, which is just OK -- on the other hand, it's only a $19.99 hardcover, so it's not a huge investment. And anyone who can stand any kind of long-underwear comics must own this story.
This was the first major modern retelling of Batman's origin, and one of the few retellings that didn't focus on the death of his parents; it's the story of the first year of "Batman" -- and, actually, it's as much or more the story of then-Lieutenant Gordon. Everything about it works exceptionally well; this is one of the Batman stories that makes you think that vigilante justice in black tights might be plausible. (And it's amazing to think of how the various Sin City collections are basically just this story with all morality and hope carefully drained out of it.)
Again, if you ever had any interest in Batman, you need to own this. (But, then, you probably already do.)
The Fabulous Book-A-Day Index!
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