Continued:
The anti-censorship idea makes this book remarkably exuberant and fun because of the extreme way the content pokes fun at hard-core fans of the characters.
Its not just the way everything is repeated over and over, but also the central joy behind it, the way certain words are capitalized, the way the absurdities of the piece generally enrich its thesis and perspective. The work is shameless, what with 5 pages, about a fourth of the first issue, being spent with Vicki Vale in her lingerie, Batman referring to Dick as a brat, Superman saying only the word damn throughout issues three and four, Batman having sex with Black Canary (We keep the masks on. Its better that way. Classic!), and Eat glass, LAWMAN!. Some things in it are deliberately provocative, from Batman remembering how he touched his mothers breast to see if there was a heartbeat when she died, to the sheer energy of the shameless repetition in Somebody murdered his parents. Brutally. Brutally. It was brutal, and of course the continued use of the goddamn Batman, which clearly offends those who like their childhood icons a little too much (although that line is actually pretty poignant with the metaphor of the horned, violent demon Batman- welcoming Dick to hell, his subterranean lair underground). While some may feel this work does not purely capture the essence of its protagonist it in fact is much more resonant when it takes the symbolism behind him to contextualize him in a way that demands more of the reader for him being there. With the Dark Knight books, Frank gave him new life and relevance, captured his essence more purely than anyone else in Year One, and, influencing a wide range of Batman stories and contributing to Spawn/Batman and Batman Black and White, helped to define his modern voice, he now remains a consistent, vital voice to the character and indeed is creating the most relevant, best-selling book he appears in to emphasize the way deconstructing him and challenging his readers thematically and artistically gives him greater relevance
indeed the Dark Knight Universe as a whole has produced some of the greatest modern graphic novels in history. Because this work visually and philosophically refuses to conform even to the prejudice of fans of Franks other Batman works, it is one of the most individualistic and, arguably, important comics currently being published. The thesis of the work I concluded after Jokers appearance being the idea that if you are not allowed to be exposed to certain ideas, you are not allowed to act on them is fitting first because Batmans ideology is in agreement with this, but also because the deliberate provocation in the work emphasizes that a more personal, raw, uncensored vision is also a more vital one. There is no embarrassment in say, Vicki Vales ass shot (as Frank wrote in the script, Im shameless, Jim.). The creators are having a ball with the book and when they do, so do the readers.
Way back when issue #1 of this thing came out, I wondered aloud if it was satiric. I understand now that theres no need to wonder anymore, as theres plainly no satire here. I dont think theres any parody either. I do think theres elements of self-reference on Millers part, that much is clear, but after these three issues Im convinced that the intent behind this book is largely straightforward. This is what Miller considers to be Fun comics
This book started out rocky, and I blame the dissonance between writer and artist. But that evaporates here. There is no embarrassment in the issue, though I figure the title will always toe the line.
How can it do any less?
This is undeniably to me an entertaining book, as of this issue, happy to be floating off in its own world. The DC All Star line has two good comics in it, as far as Im concerned.
Thank god for some mature, sensible comment: a veritable island of calm, thoughtful, reasoned, humility within a sea of reactionary, juvenile hysteria that seeks to reduce mature, talented men to mechanical support pillars of corporate mediocrity, while preserving the childhood dreams of boymen who refuse to grow up. Boymen who demand that their fixed, narrow perspectives of characters that are by the very nature of their being, and the creative process which births them, open to interpretation and reinvention.
Or perhaps Im wrong and grown, talented men when assigned the contracts by DC should also waive all rights to think, examine, play, mould, shape, and create. Perhaps this waver should prevent adults from applying their knowledge, opinions, erasing all personal feeling and political viewpoints and just produce easily digestible monthly fodder that is unerringly simple in concept and delivery, that can be consumed by 13 year old boys without ever challenging their 13 year environment, sensibilities or awareness: No wait. We have that. We have J. Loeb. We have the Batman adventures. We have a host of hacks that churn out pap in any number of inoffensive, safe Spiderman or Superman titles. The likes of Gaiman and Moore have huge deservedly so- reputations, but the only comic artist who has managed to work within this most conservative of mediums and actually play, morph and these moribund culture icons into something contemporary and immediate and now, is Frank Miller: His much lauded, historical achievement with DKS feat- of delivering an authentic high-speed comic ride, while simultaneously critiquing the entire Reagan-neo con era - a prescient act that outranks another pilloried work- Spike Lee's "do The Right Thing, is only exceeded in brilliance and forethought by the visionary excoriation within DK2 of the ties that bind between an authoritarian government and muted, satiated, meek populace, accurately foreshadowing the post September 11- middle eastern invasion era that was to come
. I ask, in all seriousness, how weighty is a publication such as Tom Strong , the inward looking fantasy of Sandman, the flaccid, corporate garbage such s 1602, actually compare to the Millerverse. Perhaps Miller is the one who overstretched: he has always rejected the term Graphic novel artist. perhaps the most *********ory, self-justifying phrase invented within the last 20 years of the pop-cuturalsphere; and self-consciously defined himself as a cartoonist, a definition that was write large within the visual representation of DK2, clearly homaging the historical war propaganda epistemology of the medium/character, and claming that call to arms didactic within the ongoing narrative of DK2 through the- I luv how you put it- the will to power. Something the American media and public is only just waking up to.
So as a political cartoonist Miller provides work that makes people think, as opposed to those who want to satiate themselves on perpetual repetitions of the Human Torch flaming on, or Spidey slinging a web through New York city, without anything like, oh, I dont know - Iraq, Scooter Libby, the repeal of Wade vs Woe, institutional governent backed anti- gay leglisation, a return to school segregation- and on and on. No, I must stop. The boys read the coloured frames to get away from all of that. They demand from the web site and blogs that owners artists and printers should only churn produce work that allows them to ignore their children, tune out their girlfriends, ignore the demands of their bosses, and let them pretend they are actually flying through the cosmos about to save an intergalactic civilization from an exploding sun, so that we might place an American flag on their home world and introduce them to the sanguine prose of the founding fathers. How dare the likes of Miller and Lee do anything but use their hard earned sills to give the children anything but bright colours, tight pants heads being thrown through walls. Action that compete with the x-box or playstation, sure, but no more than that. For the children luv these characters. They know them better than the creators themselves. If they could- and this is their secret, secret super-power- they'd write better than Noman Mailer. If they could draw, they'd take commissions away from Michaelangelo.
I am tired of the children on silver bullets this and Millar world that, promoting themselves as self-appointed gate-keepers, and well-intentioned guardians of the unsanctified character who they will determine, control and shape for our enjoyment and protection. A little modesty would go a long way in my opinion, to say nothing of a sharp, injection of reality, as well as a small awareness that the comic reading market is not composed of individuals who share , echo and endorse their pathetic, insular, Peter Pan, hallowed days of yore, mentality.
Lastly, I wait to see where this present All star run will go. Im excited by the originality. The cheek. The boldness. The sheer lets throw this baby up in the air and see where it lands balls. Im not interested in whether I fully embrace the project: Its the ride tat matters. Seeing whether these two great artists can actually pull this daring vision off. Im giving them the chance. And if they fail, so what? No one will die. I congratulate DC for allowing such well-known creations to be put under the knife and opened up. Why on earth do the infants continue to act like character such as Batman can be damaged, killed of, or irretrievably hurt by such publications: These cartoon characters, - and I know the nappy suckers are kicking over their pottys after reading this simple truth- are immortal. Stronger than a speeding bullet. More durable than a 12 issue run from even the combined genius of the present writer/artist team.
I hope that people with free minds continue to buy the comic and enjoy it for what it is, and I have a feeling, despite the inane, overblown on-line chatter from the newly born, though irretrievably brained damaged conservative rabble, that the present successful sales - and I have no doubt that the trade paperbacks will break records - will reflect the power and market value of JL and FM. And isnt that the whole point. For good or bad, this is Frank Millers Batman. You know what youll get. If you dont like it, dont waste time or print, go buy the latest issue of Teen Titans on your way to pick up your monthly order of diapers, and leave those who actually like to open a comic and be challenged, stimulated, appalled, repelled, enthused, energized, excited, intrigued - surprised even; to be just that.
