Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again

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And then amidst all of the chaos, 9/11 happened as he was creating the book and Miller decided to shoehorn that into the story too! So we literally have a 9/11 scene of citywide devastation, massive buildings falling down, that sits completely out of place with the rest of the story. It's just there because it happened and Miller thought he'd put it in his book. Because. Years later he would go on to make an even more polemical and nonsensical book with terrible art - which DC would see sense and deny him the use of their characters Batman and Catwoman - called Holy Terror, but that's another (godawful) story. Butterfly of Death and Rebirth: Not a real butterfly, but rather Vic's last words are telling Montoya how she has to change "... like butterflies." I originally gave this book two stars due to some of the interesting ideas of blending current politics and outlandish super-heroism, something that DKR did brilliantly. And yet, there's no clear focus in how much it tries to cram in too much. For a book that is about the return of superheroes, there is nothing to be optimistic about here. Green Arrow—a communist, activist and billionaire with a mechanical arm, Oliver Queen has long been part of Batman's forces. Real Men Wear Pink: In several of the Ditko and early Cowan stories, the gas turns the Question's shirt salmon.

Which leads to some invoked Fridge Logic when combined with All-Star Batman & Robin, the Boy Wonder. For instance, this comic lauds Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) specifically as a noble hero exiled by the petty people of Earth, but who is shown to be absolutely worthy of godlike power. In contrast, the Goddamn Batman once lured Hal into an ambush and beat him savagely with little provocation. The beating occurs canonically before he entrusts Bats with a means to summon him, but was written afterward. Canon Immigrant: Montoya was created as a side character for Batman: The Animated Series. She has come a long way. Kryptonian Physiology: Under the effects of a "yellow" sun, Superman possesses the same potential weaknesses as an average Kryptonian. These include: Deputy Mayor Stevenson, the deputy mayor of Gotham City. After the unnamed Mayor is killed, Deputy Mayor Stevenson is sworn in as the new Mayor of Gotham City.

Heat Vision: Superman can, as a conscious act, fire beams of intense heat at a target by looking at it. He can vary the heat and area affected.

Alfred Pennyworth, Wayne's trusted butler and assistant, now in his 80's. He dies of a stroke at the end of the book. Author Tract: The Ur-Example in comics. Steve Ditko often used the comic as a soapbox for Objectivism during its Charlton run, though to a lesser degree than the similar character Mr. A.Canon Invasion: The Question was originally owned by Charlton Comics before said company was bought out by DC. The character was introduced to the main DC Universe Post-Crisis.

We ARE Struggling Together: Green Arrow and The Question, in that one wants Marxist Socialism, and the other Randian Objectivism. Green Arrow: an activist billionaire with a mechanical arm, Oliver Queen has been part of Batman's forces ever since the Dark Knight returned. As a Marxist, he often engages in fierce argument over ideology with the much more right-wing Question. Villain Decay: Brainiac and Lex Luthor aren't nearly as smart in TDKSA as they are in other stories. In fact, some of the decisions they make are downright moronic.Thou Shalt Not Kill: Zig-zagged at times, and mostly averted for both Questions despite their disgust of murderous criminals. Vic was originally highly against killing, often feeling very conflicted on how far to go in enforcing justice due to his own repeated temptation to kill criminals. His mentor Professor Rodor kept him from crossing that line, until he ended up killing to save the daughter of his love interest. At some point it got easier, as Vic kills again in the 1991 Brave and the Bold mini-series and the 2005 Question mini-series, but was implied to have a change of heart when he strongly advocates against murder in Huntress' Cry For Blood mini-series. Montoya is agonized over the issue of killing criminals, even refusing to kill the murderer of her partner in the GCPD, but ends up killing a child suicide bomber later on and has a Despair Event Horizon after the fact. I feel like this isn't Batman at all, this is Miller's fetish-dream of what he would be like as Batman. This also shits all over every other DC mainstay, and while TDKR made me believe what had happened to them, this revealing of their actuality is just plain sad. We get it Frankie, you HATE SUPERMAN! Batman speculating that he could make people think his way with Green Lantern's ring... that's not how it works. In "Batman: The Dark Knight, Hunt the Dark Knight," the Joker appears on a stand-in for Late Night with David Letterman along with his psychiatrist, Dr. Bartholomew Wolper. The good doctor is convinced that Batman's fascism has caused the rise of crime in Gotham City, while Joker is but a victim of the Batman's actions. Having been catatonic while Batman was away, now that the Dark Knight has returned, the Joker is awake and playing into Wolper's beliefs. Deciding that Batman and his methods are the only way out, Superman, Wonder Woman and their daughter join him and assist in his plan. By having Lara pretend to hand herself over to Brainiac, the Atom is able to slip into the bottle and free the Kandorians who use their combined heat vision to destroy Brainiac, the heroes subsequently destroying the power source of the dictatorship and inciting revolution. Batman allows himself to be captured and tortured by Luthor, who plans to use satellites to destroy most of the world's population and leave them with a more manageable number of people. The satellites, however, are destroyed by the now god-like Green Lantern who wraps a giant fist around the Earth, destroying Luthor's several trillion dollars-worth of weapons. Luthor is subsequently killed by the son of Hawkman whose parents had been killed earlier on. This is an action Batman planned and approves, much to Flash's horror.

Scenery Porn: One of the few well-received things about the series. Jim Lee took the comic seriously and turned in some truly amazing work. Green Arrow: an activist billionaire with a mechanical arm, Oliver Queen has been part of Batman's forces ever since the Dark Knight returned. A left-winger, he often engages in fierce argument over ideology with the more right-wing Question.

Martian Manhunter—a victim of Luthor's nanobots, which have deprived him of most of his powers, J'onn J'onzz has become addicted to alcohol and tobacco. He retains a precognitive sense which he uses to help Question. Dying to Be Replaced: Renee Montoya and Vic Sage were added to the cast of 52 with the specific intention of killing Vic and replacing him with Renee. The series was a smash critical and financial success, as were subsequent stories to star Renee as the Question, but the decision did generate some controversy for the seemingly unnecessary killing of a well-established character just to give his replacement motivation and a title to bear. You Killed My Father: Luthor killed Hawkman and Hawkwoman. Their children, Hawkboy and his sister, want revenge.