Batman: The Last Halloween

[Author: Matteo Marcenaro]

Many of you will know, or perhaps have already read Batman: The Long Halloween, the classic 1993 13 issue limited series by Jeff Loeb and Tim Sale, which not only inspired every adaptation of the Dark Knight, but also sprung a plethora of sequels, expanding its continuity in the transition period between the mob-ridden Gotham presented by Frank Miller in Batman: Year One to the city we see in modern comics, one full of criminals with colorful masks and eccentric gimmicks.

Less of you will know, perhaps, that the conclusion to this thirty-year saga is currently being released across the Ocean, while Panini (the Italian comic book publisher for dc and marvel comics)is preparing to bring it to us in January. It was therefore by a stroke of luck, and a fated visit to Lucca Comics, that the author of this article managed to get his hands on a copy of its first number.

I write this review for those interested on the train back, having just finished a careful read of this debut.

(Spoilers for Batman: the Long Halloween, Dark Victory, The Long Halloween Special and Catwoman: When In Rome)

Jeff Loeb’s presence behind the keyboard is immediately clear: a noir narrative, building on an internal self-referential continuity, with dialogues that wouldn’t be out of place in an old detective novel. What is new and fascinating is the presentation of this young Robin (who, as fans will recall, lived through his origins in Dark Victory and fought alongside Bruce in The Long Halloween Special). Bold, funny and brave, but often in over his head, this characterization of Dick Grayson sees the Boy Wonder at a rarely recounted point in his life (who we’ll soon also be able to appreciate in the pages of Mark Waid’s Batman and Robin: Year One, italian release date pending), preparing an internal conflict with Loeb’s Batman, who we need to note is a Bruce with less experience, often too slow to trust or not prepared enough. The Dynamic Duo enters this story ready to develop and grow, becoming closer not in terms of emotion (which we’ve seen already in detail in Dark Victory), but rather in on-field chemistry, to become the undefeatable crime-fighting machine that will characterize a long period of the Caped Crusader’s life.

Catwoman also returns, as her arc, set up by The Long Halloween and When in Rome, has set her on a collision path with Mario Falcone, her last living relative. How will Selina’s life develop in this last arc? Only time, and Loeb’s pen, will reveal it.

James Gordon makes a comeback too, just in time for his toddler (who fans of Batman: The Black Mirror will not be able to look at without suspicion) to be kidnapped for the second time.

Last, but most certainly not least, Harvey and Gilda Dent, hidden in the sewers after the tragic origins of Two Face and the subsequent crimes, get an unexpected visit from the Joker. 

The story, of course, opens on Halloween night.

A closing remark must be made about the art: after the tragic and all too early loss of Tim Sale (a drawing of whomst is still the cover of the issue), the heavy mantle of drawing the Loebverse will fall, in this series, upon a different artist in every issue. Eduardo Risso, issue 1’s artist, takes up this gauntlet and makes Sale’s universe truly his (in the interview at the end of the comic, he will claim he needed only to “Draw Batman with pointier ears”). The flat and bright colors on a dark and gray background, which have so characterized the saga so far (and which, some speculate, are a callback to the German Expressionist classic The Letter M), on the other hand, remain always with their comforting shades, welcoming readers back like a childhood home, abandoned too long for a residence.

Keeping all of this into consideration, I conclude strongly suggesting to read Batman: The Last Halloween, Issue 1 by Jeff Loeb and Eduardo Risso when, in January, it will become available on the shelves of a comic book store near you.