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Batman: Knightfall #2, 2012 Edition
Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 2: Knightquest
Mentally defeated and physically broken, Bruce Wayne suffered a crippling blow while battling the brutal Bane. Now, the mantle of the Bat must be passed on to another, and Jean Paul Valley answers the call!
But as the new Caped Crusader slowly loses his grip on sanity, his idea of justice takes a violent and deadly turn. Witnessing this dangerous behavior firsthand, Nightwing and Robin try to come to grips with Bruce's highly controversial decision while the new Batman sets his sights on taking revenge against Bane!
This volume collects Detective Comics #667-675, Shadow of the Bat #19-20, #24-28, Batman #501-508, Catwoman #6-7 and Robin #7
But as the new Caped Crusader slowly loses his grip on sanity, his idea of justice takes a violent and deadly turn. Witnessing this dangerous behavior firsthand, Nightwing and Robin try to come to grips with Bruce's highly controversial decision while the new Batman sets his sights on taking revenge against Bane!
This volume collects Detective Comics #667-675, Shadow of the Bat #19-20, #24-28, Batman #501-508, Catwoman #6-7 and Robin #7
656 pages, Paperback
First published April 26, 1994
159 people are currently reading
1156 people want to read
About the author
Chuck Dixon
3,426 books1,031 followersCharles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, perhaps best-known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.
His earliest comics work was writing Evangeline first for Comico Comics in 1984 (then later for First Comics, who published the on-going series), on which he worked with his then-wife, the artist Judith Hunt. His big break came one year later, when editor Larry Hama hired him to write back-up stories for Marvel Comics' The Savage Sword of Conan.
In 1986, he began working for Eclipse Comics, writing Airboy with artist Tim Truman. Continuing to write for both Marvel and (mainly) Eclipse on these titles, as well as launching Strike! with artist Tom Lyle in August 1987 and Valkyrie with artist Paul Gulacy in October 1987, he began work on Carl Potts' Alien Legion series for Marvel's Epic Comics imprint, under editor Archie Goodwin. He also produced a three-issue adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Eclipse with artist David Wenzel between 1989 and 1990, and began writing Marc Spector: Moon Knight in June 1989.
His Punisher OGN Kingdom Gone (August, 1990) led to him working on the monthly The Punisher War Journal (and later, more monthly and occasional Punisher titles), and also brought him to the attention of DC Comics editor Denny O'Neil, who asked him to produce a Robin mini-series. The mini proved popular enough to spawn two sequels - The Joker's Wild (1991) and Cry of the Huntress (1992) - which led to both an ongoing monthly series (which Dixon wrote for 100 issues before leaving to work with CrossGen Comics), and to Dixon working on Detective Comics from #644-738 through the major Batman stories KnightFall & KnightsEnd (for which he helped create the key character of Bane), DC One Million , Contagion , Legacy , Cataclysm and No Man's Land . Much of his run was illustrated by Graham Nolan.
He was DC's most prolific Batman-writer in the mid-1990s (rivalled perhaps in history by Bill Finger and Dennis O'Neil) - in addition to writing Detective Comics he pioneered the individual series for Robin , Nightwing (which he wrote for 70 issues, and returned to briefly with 2005's #101) and Batgirl , as well as creating the team and book Birds of Prey .
While writing multiple Punisher and Batman comics (and October 1994's Punisher/Batman crossover), he also found time to launch Team 7 for Jim Lee's WildStorm/Image and Prophet for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios. He also wrote many issues of Catwoman and Green Arrow , regularly having about seven titles out each and every month between the years 1993 and 1998.
In March, 2002, Dixon turned his attention to CrossGen's output, salthough he co-wrote with Scott Beatty the origin of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl in 2003's Batgirl: Year One. For CrossGen he took over some of the comics of the out-going Mark Waid, taking over Sigil from #21, and Crux with #13. He launched Way of the Rat in June 2002, Brath (March '03), The Silken Ghost (June '03) and the pirate comic El Cazador (Oct '03), as well as editing Robert Rodi's non-Sigilverse The Crossovers. He also wrote the Ruse spin-off Archard's Agents one-shots in January and November '03 and April '04, the last released shortly before CrossGen's complete collapse forced the cancellation of all of its comics, before which Dixon wrote a single issue of Sojourn (May '04). Dixon's Way of the Rat #24, Brath #14 and El Cazador #6 were among the last comics released from the then-bankrupt publisher.
On June 10, 2008, Dixon announced on his forum that he was no longer "employed by DC Comics in any capacity."
His earliest comics work was writing Evangeline first for Comico Comics in 1984 (then later for First Comics, who published the on-going series), on which he worked with his then-wife, the artist Judith Hunt. His big break came one year later, when editor Larry Hama hired him to write back-up stories for Marvel Comics' The Savage Sword of Conan.
In 1986, he began working for Eclipse Comics, writing Airboy with artist Tim Truman. Continuing to write for both Marvel and (mainly) Eclipse on these titles, as well as launching Strike! with artist Tom Lyle in August 1987 and Valkyrie with artist Paul Gulacy in October 1987, he began work on Carl Potts' Alien Legion series for Marvel's Epic Comics imprint, under editor Archie Goodwin. He also produced a three-issue adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Eclipse with artist David Wenzel between 1989 and 1990, and began writing Marc Spector: Moon Knight in June 1989.
His Punisher OGN Kingdom Gone (August, 1990) led to him working on the monthly The Punisher War Journal (and later, more monthly and occasional Punisher titles), and also brought him to the attention of DC Comics editor Denny O'Neil, who asked him to produce a Robin mini-series. The mini proved popular enough to spawn two sequels - The Joker's Wild (1991) and Cry of the Huntress (1992) - which led to both an ongoing monthly series (which Dixon wrote for 100 issues before leaving to work with CrossGen Comics), and to Dixon working on Detective Comics from #644-738 through the major Batman stories KnightFall & KnightsEnd (for which he helped create the key character of Bane), DC One Million , Contagion , Legacy , Cataclysm and No Man's Land . Much of his run was illustrated by Graham Nolan.
He was DC's most prolific Batman-writer in the mid-1990s (rivalled perhaps in history by Bill Finger and Dennis O'Neil) - in addition to writing Detective Comics he pioneered the individual series for Robin , Nightwing (which he wrote for 70 issues, and returned to briefly with 2005's #101) and Batgirl , as well as creating the team and book Birds of Prey .
While writing multiple Punisher and Batman comics (and October 1994's Punisher/Batman crossover), he also found time to launch Team 7 for Jim Lee's WildStorm/Image and Prophet for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios. He also wrote many issues of Catwoman and Green Arrow , regularly having about seven titles out each and every month between the years 1993 and 1998.
In March, 2002, Dixon turned his attention to CrossGen's output, salthough he co-wrote with Scott Beatty the origin of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl in 2003's Batgirl: Year One. For CrossGen he took over some of the comics of the out-going Mark Waid, taking over Sigil from #21, and Crux with #13. He launched Way of the Rat in June 2002, Brath (March '03), The Silken Ghost (June '03) and the pirate comic El Cazador (Oct '03), as well as editing Robert Rodi's non-Sigilverse The Crossovers. He also wrote the Ruse spin-off Archard's Agents one-shots in January and November '03 and April '04, the last released shortly before CrossGen's complete collapse forced the cancellation of all of its comics, before which Dixon wrote a single issue of Sojourn (May '04). Dixon's Way of the Rat #24, Brath #14 and El Cazador #6 were among the last comics released from the then-bankrupt publisher.
On June 10, 2008, Dixon announced on his forum that he was no longer "employed by DC Comics in any capacity."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 261 reviews
September 18, 2017
After slogging through 600+ pages of Jean Paul Valley as Batman, the best way to sum him up is to steal a line from Wayne’s World (because that’s about as hip and as current as I get, and because it’s a temporally apropos reference): if Jean Paul Valley were ice cream, he would be pralines…and dick.
JPV might be the single most boring (and kind of douchey) hero in the history of superheroes, and that includes D-Man, Jack of Hearts, and Aquaman. He would be nigh-unendurable over the course of a single story arc; the effect is exponentially multiplied given the hernia-inducing size of this volume.
Why, then, did I finish it? Three reasons:
1) Intermittently, there were interesting parts (most notably an arc with the Joker in which he talked some Hollywood producer types into financing a movie of his actual attempt to kill Batman) that gave me hope that there were more interesting things to come (sadly, there weren’t; it’s a little bit like unwrapping the top of a secret surprise candy bar, seeing a bit of chocolate, eating it, and the unwrapping the rest to reveal a giant stalk of non-chocolate-covered asparagus (oddly enough, I think that, like consuming that asparagus treat, reading this story made my pee smell funny));
2) I’m something of a masochist who needs to finish what he starts (draw your own conclusions as to whether that extends beyond collections of bad 90s comics; I welcome wild speculation as to the nature of my personal life); and
3) Sometimes nostalgia compels me to do strange things (shut up…it is too totally awesome that I’m listening to Nelson’s “After the Rain” right now; it’s the second best song ever recorded by the second best 80s band to debut in the 90s). (Incidentally, Nelson’s best work is, obviously, (Can’t Live Without Your) Love and Affection (in part because I have a mild erotic fixation with parentheticals, as you may have noticed), and the best 80s band to debut in the 90s was, of course, White Lion.)
I’m given to understand by certain parties (ahem, DAVID) that Vol. 3 is much better, so I may continue to trudge my way through this arc once my pee smells normal again.
JPV might be the single most boring (and kind of douchey) hero in the history of superheroes, and that includes D-Man, Jack of Hearts, and Aquaman. He would be nigh-unendurable over the course of a single story arc; the effect is exponentially multiplied given the hernia-inducing size of this volume.
Why, then, did I finish it? Three reasons:
1) Intermittently, there were interesting parts (most notably an arc with the Joker in which he talked some Hollywood producer types into financing a movie of his actual attempt to kill Batman) that gave me hope that there were more interesting things to come (sadly, there weren’t; it’s a little bit like unwrapping the top of a secret surprise candy bar, seeing a bit of chocolate, eating it, and the unwrapping the rest to reveal a giant stalk of non-chocolate-covered asparagus (oddly enough, I think that, like consuming that asparagus treat, reading this story made my pee smell funny));
2) I’m something of a masochist who needs to finish what he starts (draw your own conclusions as to whether that extends beyond collections of bad 90s comics; I welcome wild speculation as to the nature of my personal life); and
3) Sometimes nostalgia compels me to do strange things (shut up…it is too totally awesome that I’m listening to Nelson’s “After the Rain” right now; it’s the second best song ever recorded by the second best 80s band to debut in the 90s). (Incidentally, Nelson’s best work is, obviously, (Can’t Live Without Your) Love and Affection (in part because I have a mild erotic fixation with parentheticals, as you may have noticed), and the best 80s band to debut in the 90s was, of course, White Lion.)
I’m given to understand by certain parties (ahem, DAVID) that Vol. 3 is much better, so I may continue to trudge my way through this arc once my pee smells normal again.
November 29, 2016
As much as I enjoyed the first volume of Knightquest where Batman is defeated by Bane, I found the reincarnation of Batman via Ariel to be a bit overbearing. OK, so Bruce finally recovers and takes back the mantle and mask, but they lost me sometime during Ariel's screwups. I don't know, maybe I just need Bruce because Snyder's Batman 52 universe using Inspector Gordon in The Suit after Bruce's demise also turned me off. Call me old-fashioned, but in any case, I had a hard time staying interested in this one.
November 19, 2022
2.5 stars. An extremely uneven volume, but it did have some entertaining moments, mostly to be found in the first half.
For instance, the Tally Man was pretty cool.
And then, when the Joker used freakin classic horror movie monsters to go after Batman?
Damn did I love that shit! Seriously, the whole Joker-making-a-movie-called-The-Death-of-Batman-as-a-clever-cover-for-the-fact-that-he-was-really-trying-to-kill-Batman subplot was definitely my fave, fun stuff.
The second half, however, was generally so painful that I’m in the process of scouring it from my memory. Hopefully the final volume is a bit more impressive, because this one was often pretty mediocre.
For instance, the Tally Man was pretty cool.
And then, when the Joker used freakin classic horror movie monsters to go after Batman?
Damn did I love that shit! Seriously, the whole Joker-making-a-movie-called-The-Death-of-Batman-as-a-clever-cover-for-the-fact-that-he-was-really-trying-to-kill-Batman subplot was definitely my fave, fun stuff.
The second half, however, was generally so painful that I’m in the process of scouring it from my memory. Hopefully the final volume is a bit more impressive, because this one was often pretty mediocre.
July 29, 2016
Deciding to make yet another Knightfall installment as the graphic novel to mark the end of my second wave of Batman comics diet has more or less solidified my growing suspicion that I have this neurotic tendency not to make things easy for me every now and then when it comes to reading a story.
I deserve a goddamn break from difficult-to-swallow-and-digest sort of comics from a Batman title, do I not? How could I ever allow myself to spend the last two weeks of December reading a 600-plus-paged omnibus concerning a Batman who is not Bruce Wayne underneath the cowl at all? I could never figure out the answer for myself until I managed to finish the said damn thing and write this review at almost four o'clock on a Tuesday morning. The answer is that I'M CRAZY.
Truth be told, I think the Knightfall series is an important historical artifact that deserves a place in the Batman comics legacy but the three massive volumes are no happy strolls in the park especially when that park is located in Gotham and the caped crusader supposedly guarding said city and its streets is just as mentally unstable as the next Arkham Asylum patient. The most disheartening piece of information I could give to you if you ever want to read this is that the first volume features Bane who is a character you will either like or despise, and that Bruce Wayne suffers a serious spinal injury courtesy of aforementioned jackass. And then he assigns the Batman title to a man named Jean Paul Valley who was a pretty cool guy at first when he was just playing second fiddle as Azrael.
However, as soon as he puts on the Bat-cowl, something immediately feels off. Suddenly, you're reading about a Batman who is utterly, selfishly and holyjesusfuck insane and extreme on his methods and overall modus operandi as the new sheriff in godforsaken Gotham City. The only good thing that ever came from Jean Paul becoming the new Batman is the fact that he was able to beat the crap out of Bane but the readers merely traded one devil for another. Tim Drake as Robin is justifiable with his concerns regarding Jean Paul's painfully slow descent to madness but Bruce and Alfred have to go to another country so he could get heal and recuperate so Tim's on his own about that.
Meanwhile, Jean Paul Valley continues his run as the Batman, putting the dark on the Dark Knight and turning the knight part into a symbol of horror. His costume also becomes a full-metal one that is regularly maintained like a well-polished nightmare. It's worth noting that the more he upgrades it, the crazier he also seems to get. BECAUSE IT'S A METAPHOR OF IRONY SYMBOLIC OF HIS OWN MENTAL AND MORAL DECAY, YO. But there's no keeper for Jean Paul Valley--unless you count the two delusions in his head called Saint Dumas and his abusive father who take turns having arguments concerning ethics and the holy mission Jean Paul must fulfill (did I mention that they both only exist in Jean Paul's head?).
But it's not a party yet. Oh, no. Throw some mob strife and rampaging low-class criminals into the mix as the city's asshole mayor and Commissioner Gordon with the rest of GCPD having little disagreements of their own and you got yourself an un-fun orgy that breeds the most exquisite hellish scenarios. With, of course, regular doses of Catwoman, the Joker and Clayface just to make it extra special. The heap of steaming bullshit you just read is covered by this second volume.
And you know what? I still encourage you to read everything. Oh, yes. There are unavoidable troubling moments when you'd feel as if you're being punished for reading through this mess but your attention span and patience will be later rewarded once you do encounter the Catwoman and the Joker stories which for me are the strongest and most entertaining of the omnibus itself. I hated Jean Paul Valley at first instinct myself but found him becoming more complex, conflicted and multi-layered issue after issue that I find my hatred lessening, and my sympathy...still lacking. I pity the bastard but I will never, ever forgive him for his actions.
But I understood his pain more than anything which is why I think I'm a little afraid of this version of Batman. As disgusted as I am with Jean Paul Valley roaming around wearing a symbol of the childhood hero I've always looked up to when he doesn't deserve that honor, there are those brief glimpses readers are offered into his humanity, scarce as it may be at this point, and they do make a tiny portion of my soul ache. I will maintain that Jean Paul Valley is one of the most detestable, sickening and pitiful characters you will ever encounter, but he is also one of the most nuanced and fascinating anti-heroes you will never stop reading even if your only goal is to see his downfall unfold.
Oh, that time of reckoning will happen and you know it, so you will pick up the third volume right after this like I would because you have officially become a part of the wreckage, so you might as well see it all the way to the end.
Knightquest: The Crusade is absurdly compelling. Comprised of seventeen issues ranging from the Batman, Shadow of the Bat, Catwoman and Detective Comics titles, it's guarantee to kill something inside you while you read about the daily struggles and ridiculously violent and condescendingly moral ways of a man who is so starkly different from Bruce Wayne as Batman, and yet he is also arguably a better fit for Gotham's criminal atmosphere. I may not agree with his methods. I may want to punch him in the brain, but he's the devil that I know and cannot un-know after this. I think both Knightfall: Broken Bat, the first volume, and this one are a mixed bag. They both have flaws and redeeming qualities. Tonality-wise, they're vastly different but they both concern two characters that are polarizing and challenging to have any sort of sympathy for. As collected works, they'll make you queasy and rage-quit a few times if your heart is simply not in it, but I advise you to stick around and just have fun with it.
There were a few awesome character moments in between that can be funny (Jean Paul's hilarious pent-up sexual anger towards Catwoman; the Joker making a movie about the death of Batman) and downright chilling (that storyline about mothers from distant countries selling their babies to be adopted by Gotham-based parents; Gordon's confrontation with Jean Paul Valley as he demonstrates just how deeply he believes in Batman as symbol of hope for the city he loves; and how utterly betrayed he is to find out that this is not the partner he had worked and built a relationship with anymore).
In a nutshell, I struggled with this volume but when all is said and done, I thought that Knightquest: The Crusade was a remarkably eye-opening experience even if it darkened a space in my head a little. Jean Paul Valley as the central figure of this collection was consistently enthralling even when I outright hated his stupid face. He has allowed me to contemplate about my own belief system and set of values. He has further enhanced my love for Bruce Wayne as Batman. The writers who handled Jean Paul's characterization (Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, and Alan Grant) deserve all the applause in the world--as well as a light slap in each of their cheeks for making me undergo a reading experience so rife with annoyances, grievances and holyjesusfuck moments. Pick this up at your own risk.
You have been sufficiently forewarned.
RECOMMENDED: 7/10
DO READ MY BATMAN COMICS REVIEWS AT:
I deserve a goddamn break from difficult-to-swallow-and-digest sort of comics from a Batman title, do I not? How could I ever allow myself to spend the last two weeks of December reading a 600-plus-paged omnibus concerning a Batman who is not Bruce Wayne underneath the cowl at all? I could never figure out the answer for myself until I managed to finish the said damn thing and write this review at almost four o'clock on a Tuesday morning. The answer is that I'M CRAZY.
Truth be told, I think the Knightfall series is an important historical artifact that deserves a place in the Batman comics legacy but the three massive volumes are no happy strolls in the park especially when that park is located in Gotham and the caped crusader supposedly guarding said city and its streets is just as mentally unstable as the next Arkham Asylum patient. The most disheartening piece of information I could give to you if you ever want to read this is that the first volume features Bane who is a character you will either like or despise, and that Bruce Wayne suffers a serious spinal injury courtesy of aforementioned jackass. And then he assigns the Batman title to a man named Jean Paul Valley who was a pretty cool guy at first when he was just playing second fiddle as Azrael.
However, as soon as he puts on the Bat-cowl, something immediately feels off. Suddenly, you're reading about a Batman who is utterly, selfishly and holyjesusfuck insane and extreme on his methods and overall modus operandi as the new sheriff in godforsaken Gotham City. The only good thing that ever came from Jean Paul becoming the new Batman is the fact that he was able to beat the crap out of Bane but the readers merely traded one devil for another. Tim Drake as Robin is justifiable with his concerns regarding Jean Paul's painfully slow descent to madness but Bruce and Alfred have to go to another country so he could get heal and recuperate so Tim's on his own about that.
Meanwhile, Jean Paul Valley continues his run as the Batman, putting the dark on the Dark Knight and turning the knight part into a symbol of horror. His costume also becomes a full-metal one that is regularly maintained like a well-polished nightmare. It's worth noting that the more he upgrades it, the crazier he also seems to get. BECAUSE IT'S A METAPHOR OF IRONY SYMBOLIC OF HIS OWN MENTAL AND MORAL DECAY, YO. But there's no keeper for Jean Paul Valley--unless you count the two delusions in his head called Saint Dumas and his abusive father who take turns having arguments concerning ethics and the holy mission Jean Paul must fulfill (did I mention that they both only exist in Jean Paul's head?).
But it's not a party yet. Oh, no. Throw some mob strife and rampaging low-class criminals into the mix as the city's asshole mayor and Commissioner Gordon with the rest of GCPD having little disagreements of their own and you got yourself an un-fun orgy that breeds the most exquisite hellish scenarios. With, of course, regular doses of Catwoman, the Joker and Clayface just to make it extra special. The heap of steaming bullshit you just read is covered by this second volume.
And you know what? I still encourage you to read everything. Oh, yes. There are unavoidable troubling moments when you'd feel as if you're being punished for reading through this mess but your attention span and patience will be later rewarded once you do encounter the Catwoman and the Joker stories which for me are the strongest and most entertaining of the omnibus itself. I hated Jean Paul Valley at first instinct myself but found him becoming more complex, conflicted and multi-layered issue after issue that I find my hatred lessening, and my sympathy...still lacking. I pity the bastard but I will never, ever forgive him for his actions.
But I understood his pain more than anything which is why I think I'm a little afraid of this version of Batman. As disgusted as I am with Jean Paul Valley roaming around wearing a symbol of the childhood hero I've always looked up to when he doesn't deserve that honor, there are those brief glimpses readers are offered into his humanity, scarce as it may be at this point, and they do make a tiny portion of my soul ache. I will maintain that Jean Paul Valley is one of the most detestable, sickening and pitiful characters you will ever encounter, but he is also one of the most nuanced and fascinating anti-heroes you will never stop reading even if your only goal is to see his downfall unfold.
Oh, that time of reckoning will happen and you know it, so you will pick up the third volume right after this like I would because you have officially become a part of the wreckage, so you might as well see it all the way to the end.
Knightquest: The Crusade is absurdly compelling. Comprised of seventeen issues ranging from the Batman, Shadow of the Bat, Catwoman and Detective Comics titles, it's guarantee to kill something inside you while you read about the daily struggles and ridiculously violent and condescendingly moral ways of a man who is so starkly different from Bruce Wayne as Batman, and yet he is also arguably a better fit for Gotham's criminal atmosphere. I may not agree with his methods. I may want to punch him in the brain, but he's the devil that I know and cannot un-know after this. I think both Knightfall: Broken Bat, the first volume, and this one are a mixed bag. They both have flaws and redeeming qualities. Tonality-wise, they're vastly different but they both concern two characters that are polarizing and challenging to have any sort of sympathy for. As collected works, they'll make you queasy and rage-quit a few times if your heart is simply not in it, but I advise you to stick around and just have fun with it.
There were a few awesome character moments in between that can be funny (Jean Paul's hilarious pent-up sexual anger towards Catwoman; the Joker making a movie about the death of Batman) and downright chilling (that storyline about mothers from distant countries selling their babies to be adopted by Gotham-based parents; Gordon's confrontation with Jean Paul Valley as he demonstrates just how deeply he believes in Batman as symbol of hope for the city he loves; and how utterly betrayed he is to find out that this is not the partner he had worked and built a relationship with anymore).
In a nutshell, I struggled with this volume but when all is said and done, I thought that Knightquest: The Crusade was a remarkably eye-opening experience even if it darkened a space in my head a little. Jean Paul Valley as the central figure of this collection was consistently enthralling even when I outright hated his stupid face. He has allowed me to contemplate about my own belief system and set of values. He has further enhanced my love for Bruce Wayne as Batman. The writers who handled Jean Paul's characterization (Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, and Alan Grant) deserve all the applause in the world--as well as a light slap in each of their cheeks for making me undergo a reading experience so rife with annoyances, grievances and holyjesusfuck moments. Pick this up at your own risk.
You have been sufficiently forewarned.
RECOMMENDED: 7/10
DO READ MY BATMAN COMICS REVIEWS AT:
October 14, 2020
While this is obviously a step down from Knightfall, I'm surprised so many people say this is awful. Maybe because there's no big branching storyline, and I can see that as being a fault. This is mostly just a bunch of story of Jean Paul being batman.
Let me just say this. I'm in huge favor for Bruce retiring, just stepping down, going off in to the sunset and being in love with Selina till they fuck enough to have a kid, and just enjoy life. I would love for someone to take over for him. Dick has before and it was amazing. You know who SHOULDN'T take over for Bruce? Jean fucking Paul
Jean Paul is angsty as hell and honestly boring at the same time. It's crazy how that's even possible. He mostly just goes around stopping crime, which in itself is fine. It's true to the nature of Batman and the villains range from pretty good to silly as fuck (I won't even get into the cowboys...Dixon what the living shit was this?) But still, Jean Paul is missing everything that you need for a lead, but mostly a decent personality.
This is mostly Jean Paul decent into madness and by the time Bruce returns, back somehow cured, he wants to be Batman again but Jean Paul like "No bro, finders keepers losers weepers" and so Bruce and Tim decide they must get it back by force. Bruce goes to train.
That's the whole big storyline basically is how shitty Jean Paul is. And each story varies in quality. Some good, some okay, and some shitty. but it's 600+ pages so yeah...
Either way not great but not horrible. It's around a 2.5-3.
Let me just say this. I'm in huge favor for Bruce retiring, just stepping down, going off in to the sunset and being in love with Selina till they fuck enough to have a kid, and just enjoy life. I would love for someone to take over for him. Dick has before and it was amazing. You know who SHOULDN'T take over for Bruce? Jean fucking Paul
Jean Paul is angsty as hell and honestly boring at the same time. It's crazy how that's even possible. He mostly just goes around stopping crime, which in itself is fine. It's true to the nature of Batman and the villains range from pretty good to silly as fuck (I won't even get into the cowboys...Dixon what the living shit was this?) But still, Jean Paul is missing everything that you need for a lead, but mostly a decent personality.
This is mostly Jean Paul decent into madness and by the time Bruce returns, back somehow cured, he wants to be Batman again but Jean Paul like "No bro, finders keepers losers weepers" and so Bruce and Tim decide they must get it back by force. Bruce goes to train.
That's the whole big storyline basically is how shitty Jean Paul is. And each story varies in quality. Some good, some okay, and some shitty. but it's 600+ pages so yeah...
Either way not great but not horrible. It's around a 2.5-3.
October 1, 2022
A Quickie Review
More insane action with this new Batman, complete with a rather chilling ending. I'm curious to see how this story arc finishes. The content concerns are pretty much the same as the first volume.
Score: 3/5
More insane action with this new Batman, complete with a rather chilling ending. I'm curious to see how this story arc finishes. The content concerns are pretty much the same as the first volume.
Score: 3/5
June 17, 2016
"A force of darkness bringing light--salvation wrought from terror."
This was a very long book for several reasons. I generally liked it, but Jean Paul Valley is not my favorite. He's not Bruce Wayne, he's not likable, he's not redeemable. He's mostly without a conscience. Any time he seems to be growing a conscience or more likable, he makes a swift about face. The St. Dumas/System mythology isn't as interesting or deep as I had hoped. And he has no Robin to provide tactical support, moral critique, or comic relief. So what you have is a mean, cold, hardcore Batman dressed as a fascist Voltron. What you have is Gotham but without Bruce Wayne and without his iconic villains, butler or sidekick. It takes some getting used to.
Who is Jean Paul Valley, aka Azrael, aka The Batman?
"Tonight it gets real. Real serious. Real scary. Real painful. Real fast."
He's a "dark knight" inspired and derived from the Knights of Templar and the Order of St. Dumas, which had knowledge of magic, wealth and power from the Temple of Solomon. Which has what to do with him exactly, I don't know. Jean begins having dreams and hallucinations of St. Dumas telling him to be an angel of vengeance and to lead a Crusade, the most fundamental theme of this book. His character evolves over the course of the story, at first an angel of vengeance, a protector and defender of life, then both dark and light but mostly terror. He is controlled by The System, subliminal brainwashing implemented by his father since childhood, with ties to the real life Project MK Ultra drug and mind control experiments. Is it St. Dumas or is it LSD? Who knows. Either way he's not exactly sound of mind, to say the least.
While Jean Paul Valley does undergo change like any protagonist should, I feel that the writers really missed out on vital characterization. Or maybe I just don't like him. Probably both. We know he never knew his mother and he hates his father. We know he was brainwashed. He does feel sometimes, lusting for Catwoman, saving a school bus of orphans. But then he goes back to breaking arms and slicing faces.
"On your feet, boy! You are Azrael! Angel of vengeance! You were not made to die!"
We finally see some potentially great characterization around page 581 (near the end of the book) where he breaks the rule, but not exactly by choice, to the shocking witness of Tim Drake. St. Dumas and Jean's father are back, arguing in his head, respectively telling him to save or to kill Abattoir. In his indecision something irreparable happens. (Finally! Fuck that guy!) And Jean loses it, the system wreaking havoc on his head. Here we go! He's growing a conscience! But it isn't guilt or remorse, it's righteousness. Wow. What a cold hearted prick! But we can't blame him. It's The System. His father won out over St. Dumas, the angel and devil on his shoulders, the mindfuck drug-induced hallucinations. But The System ends up feeling like a convenient plot device, however, to get out of characterization and to make him a robot. But how come he--System. Why did that--System.
That's why Bruce is our favorite, because of his tragedy, his golden rule, his humanity. He hurts and mourns the death of those he cannot save. But Jean gives zero fucks. Jean is a god damn robot by the end who we can't wait to see bloodied and beaten by the real Batman.
"Find your true self in an ISO-TANK. Now in stock."
So that's your Batman. And the villains don't improve things. Tell me if you recognize any of these names: The Trigger Twins, Danny Doyle, Tally Man, Mekros, Mr. Freeze (there's one!), Joker (two!), Abattoir, The Corrosive Man, The Malevolent Mainiaxe, Lady Clayface, Clayface 3 (almost!), Gunhawk, Rat Gang. The trouble with these villains is they're disposable and probably never seen elsewhere in the comic world. It's hard to care about them because we don't know or fear them. Cowboys, thugs, a sniper, a serial killer. The Mainiaxe are just these idiotic punk Three Stooge rip offs with what I would call lobotomy dialog. At least Corrosive Man was made of acid and was nearly unstoppable. He's on acid!
The villain who gets hundreds of pages is Abattoir, a blood drinking, bone eating occultist serial killer who kidnaps, tortures and kills his own extended family and anyone else who gets in his way. Motivation? He's nuts. Special skills? He's nuts. He's the one who kidnaps a school bus of orphans and plans on eating their flesh. Yeah. Somehow he's also a master escapist, so Jean just keeps lettikf him get away to kill more people. I think I prefer even Professor Pyg to Abattoir, he's so disgusting and one dimensional. Good riddance.
What really bothered me is the lack of Bane. He's supposed to be running free in Gotham doing who knows what, much like in Volume 1. I was expecting an epic rematch, but instead Bane magically appears in Blackgate having supposedly been put there by Jean. What the fuck? When did this happen? Why was this not written about? Talk about a lost opportunity. Instead we had to read about fuckheads like Abattoir torturing his cousin and the Malevolent Mainiaxe. Good grief!
The Joker has a decent but relatively small role, and maybe that's a good thing considering he's making a Hollywood movie called the "Death of Batman." He's got a green ponytail, weird pants, and a fifteen million dollar budget. Yeah, bay bay! (Did anyone ever talk like this?) Cameras rolling, he sets up Jean again and again, and while it's rather cheesy and hard to take seriously, it makes for some much needed comedy in this book. Can you say drugged whip cream pies? For example...
Two producers debate:
"He's updated his image for the nineties, Joker. A sleeker look. A Batman for those with a shorter attention span. I can't say I like this new Batman."
"I won't agree with that. Batman's gone for a retro-medieval appearance. With the armor and new weaponry he presents a classic image of the dark knight."
What about the heroes? Few and far between. There's Robin for about twenty pages, Joe Public (who?), Ballistic (who?), and Catwoman, joined by the Friends of the Earth Nature Magic Alliance. No, that's not a typo. It's mostly the Jean Paul Valley Show.
And finally, the Sonic Bat Train (my coinage). Admittedly, this is a terrible idea because, you know, trains have a hard time stopping. Inertia, momentum, etc. And Jean almost crashes into the D train! I think the SBT is really cool and stupid and probably physically impossible. I mean, this is the man's main mode of transportation and it does 300 miles per hour. It can't even fly. Doc Brown's train can fly.
So did I like fascist robot Voltron asshole Batman? Yes, I liked it okay. I didn't really like it, and I certainly didn't love it. Almost 700 pages is far too much of Jean Paul Valley the unlovable fuckface. But his gadgets are pretty cool. The Sonic Bat Train is pretty cool. The artwork is great. And while his villains aren't iconic they are challenging and bring out the worst, most violent version of Batman. And Jim Gordon has a helluva time dealing with Jean. Fans of Bruce Wayne should approach with caution, but if you're open to Jean Paul Valley you'll probably like it. Here's hoping he gets the living shit beat out of him in Volume 3.
July 31, 2023
These are the adventures of Jean Paul Valley formerly known as Azrael and currently known as Batman. With the absence of Bruce Wayne a new Batman has taken up the mantle and changed it into a nightmarish version and is busy crossing all lines the Bruce Batman has set himself.
Robin has to warn Bruce of his replacement.
It is unsettling to see JPV as Batman slide away into his nightmares and lose his grasp on reality. The police is feeling it’s own pain due to fact that the renewed Batman is so much more violent and less playing with the team. It makes Gordon question the vigilantes identity and rules.
The criminals are more in awe of this new Batman who is far more dangerous and in the end one of them pays a price which signals JPV ‘s journey into madness.
This is surely not my favorite period of the Batman chronicles but I see why they chose to alter the storylines which still shows Batman’s strength and morals, which also proves that Batman is a force of justice but has his own path which is difficult to maintain.
Well drawn and best read in these omnibuses where you get to follow the story the best.
Robin has to warn Bruce of his replacement.
It is unsettling to see JPV as Batman slide away into his nightmares and lose his grasp on reality. The police is feeling it’s own pain due to fact that the renewed Batman is so much more violent and less playing with the team. It makes Gordon question the vigilantes identity and rules.
The criminals are more in awe of this new Batman who is far more dangerous and in the end one of them pays a price which signals JPV ‘s journey into madness.
This is surely not my favorite period of the Batman chronicles but I see why they chose to alter the storylines which still shows Batman’s strength and morals, which also proves that Batman is a force of justice but has his own path which is difficult to maintain.
Well drawn and best read in these omnibuses where you get to follow the story the best.
September 27, 2023
Knightquest is the story of Jean Paul Valley’s crusade as the Batman, but a Batman driven to kill if need be. The stories and tie-ins were violent with a host of middling villains such as the twin blonde cowboys and Abattoir with the best story in this collection being the last one from Robin #7 in which Bruce comes back to confront Paul.
But overall, the armored and intense faux Punisher Batman just didn’t work for me and this was a marathon phone book of a read. I am glad I finally read it decades after it came out.
But overall, the armored and intense faux Punisher Batman just didn’t work for me and this was a marathon phone book of a read. I am glad I finally read it decades after it came out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 30, 2015
I haven’t been this disappointed in a Batman story since Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again. When you have a sequel to an amazing story, you want that story to continue and to be everything its predecessor was (and hopefully more). Unfortunately, the second volume of Knightfall definitely falls in the “extremely disappointing sequel” category. Admittedly, it’s really part of the same story, but definitely the same feelings here.
Volume One gives you all the excitement and drama of Bane’s appearance, his masterminding a gauntlet of horrors for Batman and ultimately his bloody defeat of Batman. With his back broken, Bruce Wayne must give himself time to heal and because Gotham cannot wait for a protector, he asks Jean Paul Valley aka Azrael to step in for him and assume the mantle of the Bat. I’m really not sure he could have made a worse choice. There’s definitely an argument to be made here that Dick Grayson should have been the one to ask. I get that Dick has his own territory to watch over now but still…you’re really gonna choose a guy you don’t know all that well to take over the crusade you’ve dedicated your life to? Even if it’s just temporary? But apparently this doesn’t occur to Bruce so he takes off to convalesce and track down some missing friends while leaving Robin (Tim Drake) behind to act as Valley’s conscience.
To everyone’s surprise, Valley doesn’t handle things well. He has been brainwashed by his own father into THE SYSTEM of a crazy quasi-Templar cult called the Order of St. Dumas. Sarcasm doesn’t translate well in print but I got really fucking tired of The System by the end of this volume. It'll just randomly help Valley out anytime he's in trouble. About to get his ass kicked? System kicks in! Rescues a lady who only speaks Spanish? System kicks in and now he speaks and understands Spanish perfectly! It gets old really REALLY fast. So this System essentially made Valley into a badass, ruthless assassin. Valley had previously rejected this training but shockingly, when he takes on the dark protector identity of Batman, his old training resurfaces and Azrael-Batman is more violent, more ruthless and less concerned with unintended consequences than Bruce Wayne’s Batman. He also wants no partners so he walls off all the entrances to the Batcave and essentially tells Robin to fuck off. Valley is all the violent parts of Batman on steroids with none of the things that make Batman awesome:
Batman’s intelligence and planning are the main reason I’ve always loved him. But Valley hates detective work. He’s filling in for the World’s Greatest Detective and he’d rather just beat the shit out of someone than do anything involving his brain.
Consequently he does absolutely zero research on Batman’s enemies so he has no idea who Freeze is and decides that Joker isn’t a real threat. That’s right. He’d rather chase down muggers and common criminals than the guy who has probably murdered more people in Gotham than anyone. His reasoning? Joker is just a crazy dude that Bruce Wayne has a fixation on and is no more dangerous than any other criminal. I’m not gonna argue that Bruce and Joker don’t have a strange relationship but I’m pretty sure I would make bringing in a homicidal maniac my first order of business as Batman.
And as a last complaint….those bad guys were awful. First you get two identical twin cowboys/gunslingers who have never met each before but happen to find each other in Gotham and proceed to wreak all kinds of havoc. Old West style gunslinger twins. Seriously. And then we get the Maniaxe who are arguably the most irritating. If I was thinking up Batman villains, I’m pretty sure that “former-post-grunge-punk-band-turned-band-of-criminals modeled after The Three Stooges” wouldn’t be on the short list, the long list or any other kind of fucking list.
So…Volume Two gives us bad writing, incredibly irritating characters and a new violent Batman who doesn’t care that he’s breaking every one of Batman’s cardinal rules . The only parts of this I enjoyed were Tim Drake (who was actually pretty interesting as a kid trying to balance being Robin, trying to rein in a complete psycho and being a normal teenager) and the confrontation between Bruce and Valley when Bruce finally returns and finds out how badly Valley has tarnished Batman’s name. Now I just want to see Bruce kick the shit out of Valley and reclaim his place as the true Batman. If that was the goal of this volume, then…mission accomplished.
Volume One gives you all the excitement and drama of Bane’s appearance, his masterminding a gauntlet of horrors for Batman and ultimately his bloody defeat of Batman. With his back broken, Bruce Wayne must give himself time to heal and because Gotham cannot wait for a protector, he asks Jean Paul Valley aka Azrael to step in for him and assume the mantle of the Bat. I’m really not sure he could have made a worse choice. There’s definitely an argument to be made here that Dick Grayson should have been the one to ask. I get that Dick has his own territory to watch over now but still…you’re really gonna choose a guy you don’t know all that well to take over the crusade you’ve dedicated your life to? Even if it’s just temporary? But apparently this doesn’t occur to Bruce so he takes off to convalesce and track down some missing friends while leaving Robin (Tim Drake) behind to act as Valley’s conscience.
To everyone’s surprise, Valley doesn’t handle things well. He has been brainwashed by his own father into THE SYSTEM of a crazy quasi-Templar cult called the Order of St. Dumas. Sarcasm doesn’t translate well in print but I got really fucking tired of The System by the end of this volume. It'll just randomly help Valley out anytime he's in trouble. About to get his ass kicked? System kicks in! Rescues a lady who only speaks Spanish? System kicks in and now he speaks and understands Spanish perfectly! It gets old really REALLY fast. So this System essentially made Valley into a badass, ruthless assassin. Valley had previously rejected this training but shockingly, when he takes on the dark protector identity of Batman, his old training resurfaces and Azrael-Batman is more violent, more ruthless and less concerned with unintended consequences than Bruce Wayne’s Batman. He also wants no partners so he walls off all the entrances to the Batcave and essentially tells Robin to fuck off. Valley is all the violent parts of Batman on steroids with none of the things that make Batman awesome:
Batman’s intelligence and planning are the main reason I’ve always loved him. But Valley hates detective work. He’s filling in for the World’s Greatest Detective and he’d rather just beat the shit out of someone than do anything involving his brain.
Consequently he does absolutely zero research on Batman’s enemies so he has no idea who Freeze is and decides that Joker isn’t a real threat. That’s right. He’d rather chase down muggers and common criminals than the guy who has probably murdered more people in Gotham than anyone. His reasoning? Joker is just a crazy dude that Bruce Wayne has a fixation on and is no more dangerous than any other criminal. I’m not gonna argue that Bruce and Joker don’t have a strange relationship but I’m pretty sure I would make bringing in a homicidal maniac my first order of business as Batman.
And as a last complaint….those bad guys were awful. First you get two identical twin cowboys/gunslingers who have never met each before but happen to find each other in Gotham and proceed to wreak all kinds of havoc. Old West style gunslinger twins. Seriously. And then we get the Maniaxe who are arguably the most irritating. If I was thinking up Batman villains, I’m pretty sure that “former-post-grunge-punk-band-turned-band-of-criminals modeled after The Three Stooges” wouldn’t be on the short list, the long list or any other kind of fucking list.
So…Volume Two gives us bad writing, incredibly irritating characters and a new violent Batman who doesn’t care that he’s breaking every one of Batman’s cardinal rules . The only parts of this I enjoyed were Tim Drake (who was actually pretty interesting as a kid trying to balance being Robin, trying to rein in a complete psycho and being a normal teenager) and the confrontation between Bruce and Valley when Bruce finally returns and finds out how badly Valley has tarnished Batman’s name. Now I just want to see Bruce kick the shit out of Valley and reclaim his place as the true Batman. If that was the goal of this volume, then…mission accomplished.
February 13, 2015
This second volume was just as outstanding as the first.This collection gave a real good insight into Jean Paul Valley accepting the mantle of the bat and just how different of a Batman he is compared to Bruce Wayne.The inner turmoil he suffers through in the book really illustrates his struggle to do whats right and just but at whatever cost necessary.Robin plays a decent part in things as well trying to convince the new Batman that he should strive to hold up the standards and heroics of the original Batman.
Catwoman played a large part as well.This story delved into the reasons behind why she does certain things and the way in which she does them.Lastly a outstanding array of supervillians really brought things to life.Each one more unique and crazier then the last.
Catwoman played a large part as well.This story delved into the reasons behind why she does certain things and the way in which she does them.Lastly a outstanding array of supervillians really brought things to life.Each one more unique and crazier then the last.
July 7, 2016
While this is not quite as good as Volume 1, it's still an interesting read, and delves deeper into the mind of an intriguing (but unstable) character.
March 13, 2021
Part of my Batman comic book reread project. Continued from Knightfall: Part Two.
Knightfall and Knightsend are their own stories, and everything is done linearly from one issue to the next across all the Batman titles. Knightquest can't make that claim. It's a bunch of short stories put together the way comic book stories are normally done when they're not collaborating. However, it's also part of a bigger story. Some of the stories are just one issue, others involve three or four issues of the same book which don't cross over into other titles. Others will share a story with another title from time to time. Along with that, characters in one story will refer to something else going on in another story in another title which wouldn't make sense if you haven't read the other story, and will sometimes drop a spoiler. However, if you read these in the order of publication, you'll read part one of story one, then read a different story, then part two of another story, then another separate story, then finally get to part two of the first story. Reading it like that sucks a baboon's ass, so it's better to complete one story, then do another one. PLUS! There are two overall stories going on at the same time: Knightquest: The Search which involves Bruce Wayne and Alfred trying to find Tim Drake's father, and Knightquest: The Crusade which follows Jean Paul Valley as the new Batman, taking care of things in Gotham City with Robin until they have a break and Robin gets his own title with issues that kind of/kind of don't relate to other matters in The Crusade. You don't want to read one and then the other because of the occasional cross-references and spoilers, and they both take several months and come together at the end. AND Catwoman gets involved in a couple of places with her own issues, and while a side story doesn't entirely relate to the Knightquest saga, you don't want to just see the middle part of the story and be left hanging. Same with a Robin/Huntress story. In short, this makes putting these in any kind of logical order an absolute knightmare, and very few sites on the internet agree on exactly how it should be done. I picked the one that looked best, and still made a couple of alterations, and I might make more if I read this again because a couple of parts are just going to get clunky no matter how you arrange it. I'll post the order I used at the end of this review.
Search is easily five stars all the way. It's one long story with a new villain, Benedict Asp, who is a pretty nasty piece of work. We also get to see how badass Bruce Wayne is because he can still take down the bad guys regardless of his broken back. By the end he's
Crusade gets four stars. It chronicles Jean Paul Valley's slow descent into darkness as the Batman starts stooping to levels Bruce would never allow, culminating in letting It's a mixed bag of hard hitting stories, fun stories, and others that are "meh, whatever." I'll skip the latter ones, but go over a couple others.
First up are the Trigger Twins:
I love westerns, so how could I not love this? I confess, it's dorky as hell. I mean, two desperadoes committing a train robbery in Gotham City... Still, it is Gotham where anything goes.
Jean Paul Valley decides the new Batman doesn't need a sidekick, so he kicks Robin to the curb after nearly killing him. We should cut JPV some slack, but we won't. He was brainwashed since birth, after all, but that's no excuse. Being Batman means being able to overcome brainwashing. Robin goes off on his own adventures at this point, one involving the Spoiler, and they kinda/sorta start dating while stopping crimes (but not really) though Spoiler has no idea who Robin really is. Complicating things is Robin's girlfriend in his Tim Drake world, Ariana.
Batman takes on noob Tally Man who is rather strange (so he fits right in). Batman beats him pretty badly, putting him in the prison hospital. It's here that we see JPV getting a little more hardcore than necessary because stopping the bad guys isn't enough; they sometimes need to be broken.
Catwoman deals with eco terrorists, and Batman believes she's involved with the terrorists. It's here that Commissioner Gordon and Catwoman suspect/discover that this Batman is not the same Batman from before because the first Batman would never misread Catwoman so badly.
The Joker kidnaps some Hollywood producers to help him make his movie The Death of the Batman. This is one of my favorite stories in this set, mostly because it has the Joker in it, and he's always fun and crazy. Also, it has this image:
That's right. Batman gets hit in the face with a pie, and pie fights are always funny. I laughed out loud and for quite a while when that happened. But, I was also confused. Batman dodges shit all the time. How could he not see a pie in his line of vision heading directly for his face? It's even more confounding considering this happened in the Catwoman story:
He's able to catch an apple tossed at him from behind, but can't see a pie heading directly for his schnoz? Maybe he was having an off night, but come on, dude; get with it.
The Abattoir story takes up the last several issues of Knightquest, though it's not all about Abattoir. Abattoir is a serial killer who kills only his family members, drinks their blood, and sucks the marrow out of their bones. This somehow rejuvenates his soul, or so he believes. If he's running low on soul stuff, he digs up old ancestors and gnaws their bones to get by. He's after his cousin, and several times Batman let's Abattoir get away so he can rescue people who had gotten in Abattoir's crosshairs. But Batman finally tires of this and goes after Abattoir instead of rescuing his victims, and it doesn't end well for anybody involved, least of all Batman who crosses a line the original Batman would never cross.
Throughout this story arc, a lot of side villains show up including...
...the Maniaxe.... Yes, I'm afraid so. It's the Three Stooges, Gotham style. Mojo (in the middle), Surly-Schmo (left), and Hairy. They talk and act like the Stooges, and I'm sorry, but this is just wrong. I love the Three Stooges, and I can't give this blasphemy a pass.
The last few issues of the Abattoir story line up to lead right into Knightsend where the books have a clearly defined order across all the Batman titles. It's clear that JPV is no longer fit to be the Batman, and that Bruce will have to take back the mantle of the Bat. Commissioner Gordon has even had it, and has destroyed the bat signal because he's done with the new Batman. However, JPV is convinced he and his new hardcore style is what Gotham needs, and he will not give it up. And although Bruce is healed, he's not in good enough shape to take on JPV, and... well, that's for next time.
And now here are a couple of fun ads, or at least ones important to me. Actually, the fun, dorky ads aren't in these later books, but they do elicit memories.
I actually didn't watch Seaquest DSV because it came on at the same time as Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, but I sure had the hots for Jonathan Brandis back when it was on. Lois and Clark had Justin Whalin as Jimmy Olsen for eye candy, but let's face it: JW ain't no JB even if both of them ended up in the spank bank. It's a shame Jonathan killed himself.
Remember when AIDS was a hot topic? DC did its part to educate its audience with several PSA's like this one. However, I have to wonder where Robin is going to "get some facts" since the Bat Computer has every fact known to man, and he was just sitting right at it. And since we're talking about AIDS, here's That's What Friends Are For by Dionne Warwick and Friends which was recorded for AIDS research and prevention. It's a fave. How could I not take the opportunity to drop it here?
Next checkpoint: Knightsend
Pierce's Knightquest reading order:
Justice League Task Force 5 & 6
Detective Comics (DC) 667 & 668
Robin 1 & 2
Shadow of the Bat (SOTB) 19 & 20
Batman 501 & 502
DC 669
SOTB 21-23
DC 670
Catwoman 6
Batman 503 & 504
Catwoman 7
DC 671-673
SOTB 24
Robin 3-5
Batman 505
Showcase 94 5
Robin 6
Showcase 94 6
SOTB 25
Batman 506 & 507
Legends of the Dark Knight 59-61
SOTB 26 & 27
DC 674
Batman 508
SOTB 28
DC 675
Robin 7
Knightfall and Knightsend are their own stories, and everything is done linearly from one issue to the next across all the Batman titles. Knightquest can't make that claim. It's a bunch of short stories put together the way comic book stories are normally done when they're not collaborating. However, it's also part of a bigger story. Some of the stories are just one issue, others involve three or four issues of the same book which don't cross over into other titles. Others will share a story with another title from time to time. Along with that, characters in one story will refer to something else going on in another story in another title which wouldn't make sense if you haven't read the other story, and will sometimes drop a spoiler. However, if you read these in the order of publication, you'll read part one of story one, then read a different story, then part two of another story, then another separate story, then finally get to part two of the first story. Reading it like that sucks a baboon's ass, so it's better to complete one story, then do another one. PLUS! There are two overall stories going on at the same time: Knightquest: The Search which involves Bruce Wayne and Alfred trying to find Tim Drake's father, and Knightquest: The Crusade which follows Jean Paul Valley as the new Batman, taking care of things in Gotham City with Robin until they have a break and Robin gets his own title with issues that kind of/kind of don't relate to other matters in The Crusade. You don't want to read one and then the other because of the occasional cross-references and spoilers, and they both take several months and come together at the end. AND Catwoman gets involved in a couple of places with her own issues, and while a side story doesn't entirely relate to the Knightquest saga, you don't want to just see the middle part of the story and be left hanging. Same with a Robin/Huntress story. In short, this makes putting these in any kind of logical order an absolute knightmare, and very few sites on the internet agree on exactly how it should be done. I picked the one that looked best, and still made a couple of alterations, and I might make more if I read this again because a couple of parts are just going to get clunky no matter how you arrange it. I'll post the order I used at the end of this review.
Search is easily five stars all the way. It's one long story with a new villain, Benedict Asp, who is a pretty nasty piece of work. We also get to see how badass Bruce Wayne is because he can still take down the bad guys regardless of his broken back. By the end he's
Crusade gets four stars. It chronicles Jean Paul Valley's slow descent into darkness as the Batman starts stooping to levels Bruce would never allow, culminating in letting It's a mixed bag of hard hitting stories, fun stories, and others that are "meh, whatever." I'll skip the latter ones, but go over a couple others.
First up are the Trigger Twins:
I love westerns, so how could I not love this? I confess, it's dorky as hell. I mean, two desperadoes committing a train robbery in Gotham City... Still, it is Gotham where anything goes.
Jean Paul Valley decides the new Batman doesn't need a sidekick, so he kicks Robin to the curb after nearly killing him. We should cut JPV some slack, but we won't. He was brainwashed since birth, after all, but that's no excuse. Being Batman means being able to overcome brainwashing. Robin goes off on his own adventures at this point, one involving the Spoiler, and they kinda/sorta start dating while stopping crimes (but not really) though Spoiler has no idea who Robin really is. Complicating things is Robin's girlfriend in his Tim Drake world, Ariana.
Batman takes on noob Tally Man who is rather strange (so he fits right in). Batman beats him pretty badly, putting him in the prison hospital. It's here that we see JPV getting a little more hardcore than necessary because stopping the bad guys isn't enough; they sometimes need to be broken.
Catwoman deals with eco terrorists, and Batman believes she's involved with the terrorists. It's here that Commissioner Gordon and Catwoman suspect/discover that this Batman is not the same Batman from before because the first Batman would never misread Catwoman so badly.
The Joker kidnaps some Hollywood producers to help him make his movie The Death of the Batman. This is one of my favorite stories in this set, mostly because it has the Joker in it, and he's always fun and crazy. Also, it has this image:
That's right. Batman gets hit in the face with a pie, and pie fights are always funny. I laughed out loud and for quite a while when that happened. But, I was also confused. Batman dodges shit all the time. How could he not see a pie in his line of vision heading directly for his face? It's even more confounding considering this happened in the Catwoman story:
He's able to catch an apple tossed at him from behind, but can't see a pie heading directly for his schnoz? Maybe he was having an off night, but come on, dude; get with it.
The Abattoir story takes up the last several issues of Knightquest, though it's not all about Abattoir. Abattoir is a serial killer who kills only his family members, drinks their blood, and sucks the marrow out of their bones. This somehow rejuvenates his soul, or so he believes. If he's running low on soul stuff, he digs up old ancestors and gnaws their bones to get by. He's after his cousin, and several times Batman let's Abattoir get away so he can rescue people who had gotten in Abattoir's crosshairs. But Batman finally tires of this and goes after Abattoir instead of rescuing his victims, and it doesn't end well for anybody involved, least of all Batman who crosses a line the original Batman would never cross.
Throughout this story arc, a lot of side villains show up including...
...the Maniaxe.... Yes, I'm afraid so. It's the Three Stooges, Gotham style. Mojo (in the middle), Surly-Schmo (left), and Hairy. They talk and act like the Stooges, and I'm sorry, but this is just wrong. I love the Three Stooges, and I can't give this blasphemy a pass.
The last few issues of the Abattoir story line up to lead right into Knightsend where the books have a clearly defined order across all the Batman titles. It's clear that JPV is no longer fit to be the Batman, and that Bruce will have to take back the mantle of the Bat. Commissioner Gordon has even had it, and has destroyed the bat signal because he's done with the new Batman. However, JPV is convinced he and his new hardcore style is what Gotham needs, and he will not give it up. And although Bruce is healed, he's not in good enough shape to take on JPV, and... well, that's for next time.
And now here are a couple of fun ads, or at least ones important to me. Actually, the fun, dorky ads aren't in these later books, but they do elicit memories.
I actually didn't watch Seaquest DSV because it came on at the same time as Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, but I sure had the hots for Jonathan Brandis back when it was on. Lois and Clark had Justin Whalin as Jimmy Olsen for eye candy, but let's face it: JW ain't no JB even if both of them ended up in the spank bank. It's a shame Jonathan killed himself.
Remember when AIDS was a hot topic? DC did its part to educate its audience with several PSA's like this one. However, I have to wonder where Robin is going to "get some facts" since the Bat Computer has every fact known to man, and he was just sitting right at it. And since we're talking about AIDS, here's That's What Friends Are For by Dionne Warwick and Friends which was recorded for AIDS research and prevention. It's a fave. How could I not take the opportunity to drop it here?
Next checkpoint: Knightsend
Pierce's Knightquest reading order:
Justice League Task Force 5 & 6
Detective Comics (DC) 667 & 668
Robin 1 & 2
Shadow of the Bat (SOTB) 19 & 20
Batman 501 & 502
DC 669
SOTB 21-23
DC 670
Catwoman 6
Batman 503 & 504
Catwoman 7
DC 671-673
SOTB 24
Robin 3-5
Batman 505
Showcase 94 5
Robin 6
Showcase 94 6
SOTB 25
Batman 506 & 507
Legends of the Dark Knight 59-61
SOTB 26 & 27
DC 674
Batman 508
SOTB 28
DC 675
Robin 7
February 27, 2013
At this point, Knightfall gets most of its worth as an historical artifact. By which I mean that it isn't really very good, but it is an important even in Batman's history. (Which, post-Flashpoint, may never have happened after all.) The whole Knightfall storyline (Bane breaks Batman, Batman comes back) was the starting point for The Dark Knight Rises, and this volume covers what the movie (thankfully) chose to ignore: Bruce Wayne's less-than-worth successor to the cowl, Jean Paul Valley.
The thing is, Jean Paul's descent is compelling, on paper. But the execution... He falls so far, so fast, that Bruce starts to look stupid for even considering him as a successor. I get that the storyline as a whole was a "take that" to fans who wanted an even darker and edgier Batman, but Dixon needed a much more subtle hand to make Jean Paul's progression (regression?) in the story believable. As is, he's about as subtle as a two-by-four.
Nothing else here is really worthwhile. The original villains are dull and uninspired (cowboy twins? wow) and the established ones aren't used in interesting ways. And frankly, the setups used just aren't enough to hold my attention. I mean, this is a monster of a book (650 pages, or 27 issues) and it makes reading it all a slog. The art isn't that great either. Really, if it weren't such a pivotal event, it wouldn't be worth reading at all.
Oh, and one final note: the summary here on Goodreads mentions Nightwing, but he seems to be playing Sir Not Appearing in This Book.
The thing is, Jean Paul's descent is compelling, on paper. But the execution... He falls so far, so fast, that Bruce starts to look stupid for even considering him as a successor. I get that the storyline as a whole was a "take that" to fans who wanted an even darker and edgier Batman, but Dixon needed a much more subtle hand to make Jean Paul's progression (regression?) in the story believable. As is, he's about as subtle as a two-by-four.
Nothing else here is really worthwhile. The original villains are dull and uninspired (cowboy twins? wow) and the established ones aren't used in interesting ways. And frankly, the setups used just aren't enough to hold my attention. I mean, this is a monster of a book (650 pages, or 27 issues) and it makes reading it all a slog. The art isn't that great either. Really, if it weren't such a pivotal event, it wouldn't be worth reading at all.
Oh, and one final note: the summary here on Goodreads mentions Nightwing, but he seems to be playing Sir Not Appearing in This Book.
July 31, 2015
This graphic novel achieved very little except bore me to death and convince me that Jean Paul must go away !
Thankfully it's what will happen in the next volume !
Thankfully it's what will happen in the next volume !
February 17, 2020
What a joyless, neverending slog this was. I thought briefly about giving this book 2 stars, since some of the art is decent, and whenever it's a Chuck Dixon issue, his writing at least moves at a brisk pace, but I just can't do it. This book is just a massive doorstop of drudgery and terrible character development, and there simply was not a single story arc in it that I enjoyed.
Also, it is looonnng. Clocking in at nearly 700 pages, I can't believe I actually finished it. I really only did so because I enjoyed Knightfall itself so much that I was interested to see the fallout, and the eventual return of Bruce Wayne as Batman. But the main problem this book has is its inability to adequately build to literally anything.
The main thrust of this storyline is supposedly that Jean Paul Valley, the (terrible) new Batman, has begun to lose his grip on sanity, and as such is becoming unhinged and overly brutal. However, this is only shown via Robin explicitly stating this out loud, never through any of his actual actions. Sure, by the end of this book Valley has fully snapped, but it happens all at once based on seemingly nothing. There are no actual story moments that show his decline, or how far he's willing to push his violent version of Batman. He's just kind of a boring and bad Batman for like 600 pages, and then all of a sudden he's horrible. You can fully skip this book and feel like you've missed absolutely nothing.
And that's exactly what I recommend. With no Bruce Wayne in this volume at all (his storyline is mysteriously absent, only available in the Knightquest: The Search graphic novel), there's no one to compare Valley to. As such, it's truly a pointless endeavor to read this nonsense. It's sad that Knightfall, a classic Batman storyline, was immediately followed up by such garbage. But, what're ya gonna do?
Also, it is looonnng. Clocking in at nearly 700 pages, I can't believe I actually finished it. I really only did so because I enjoyed Knightfall itself so much that I was interested to see the fallout, and the eventual return of Bruce Wayne as Batman. But the main problem this book has is its inability to adequately build to literally anything.
The main thrust of this storyline is supposedly that Jean Paul Valley, the (terrible) new Batman, has begun to lose his grip on sanity, and as such is becoming unhinged and overly brutal. However, this is only shown via Robin explicitly stating this out loud, never through any of his actual actions. Sure, by the end of this book Valley has fully snapped, but it happens all at once based on seemingly nothing. There are no actual story moments that show his decline, or how far he's willing to push his violent version of Batman. He's just kind of a boring and bad Batman for like 600 pages, and then all of a sudden he's horrible. You can fully skip this book and feel like you've missed absolutely nothing.
And that's exactly what I recommend. With no Bruce Wayne in this volume at all (his storyline is mysteriously absent, only available in the Knightquest: The Search graphic novel), there's no one to compare Valley to. As such, it's truly a pointless endeavor to read this nonsense. It's sad that Knightfall, a classic Batman storyline, was immediately followed up by such garbage. But, what're ya gonna do?
May 3, 2023
Thank god that’s over. This arc is way too long and dull. Hopefully Vol 3 wraps it up nicely, but considering it is also 600 pages I feel like it’s going to drag.
May 29, 2019
Stuck between a 2 and a 2.5
It had some great parts but was overshadowed by the bland.
Probably an unpopular opinion but I do enjoy Jean Paul as Batman. He crosses a line I sometimes wish Bruce would do in some situations. They both suck as team players not letting Robin in on anything so I guess they have that in common.
It had some great parts but was overshadowed by the bland.
Probably an unpopular opinion but I do enjoy Jean Paul as Batman. He crosses a line I sometimes wish Bruce would do in some situations. They both suck as team players not letting Robin in on anything so I guess they have that in common.
July 28, 2022
Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 1 covered what most people know about the famous arc. Batman is threatened by a new Villain Bane and is slowly but surely whittled down physically and psychologically so Bane can quite literally break him. Since Nightwing has his own life and Robin is too young, Jean Paul Valley AKA Azrael takes over as Batman. In short order he proves himself to be a more brutal version of the Dark Knight and designs power armor to take on Bane, whom he defeats in short order. The first volume ends with Robin saying Azrael has his support because he didn't kill Bane and the police are of a similar mind.
Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 2 is almost entirely about Azrael being Batman encountering new and old villains and running across the previous Dark Knight's allies who catch on that this isn't the Batman they know. Azrael's sanity slowly erodes as his assassin programming resurfaces which culminates in him letting a murderer die through inaction and not feeling the least bit guilty about it. At this point Bruce and Robin decide it's time to take the mantle of the Batman back. I honestly didn't think I'd like this volume that much but surprised at how engaging Azrael's stint as the Batman was. If this sounds interesting to you give it a shot.
Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 2 is almost entirely about Azrael being Batman encountering new and old villains and running across the previous Dark Knight's allies who catch on that this isn't the Batman they know. Azrael's sanity slowly erodes as his assassin programming resurfaces which culminates in him letting a murderer die through inaction and not feeling the least bit guilty about it. At this point Bruce and Robin decide it's time to take the mantle of the Batman back. I honestly didn't think I'd like this volume that much but surprised at how engaging Azrael's stint as the Batman was. If this sounds interesting to you give it a shot.
December 8, 2024
This was very hard to get through.
Jean Paul Valley is extremely off-putting as the protagonist of this book. He has absolutely zero personality. His moral dilemmas involve the conflicting messages that were programmed into him. At no point does this guy show any values or ideas of his own that don't come from the "System".
Is Bruce really such a terrible judge of character? I wouldn't put JPV in charge of a hot dog stand, let alone Gotham.
The enemies he faces are a mixed bunch. First you have a couple of... long-lost twins? Who are also cowboys? Then he fights Catwoman and develops a virginal obsession with her. Selina smells him and immediately goes "you're not the old Batman because you don't smell like sex pheromones". Pretty gross, honestly, but certainly not the most disgusting couple in the volume.
The highlight of the book is the Joker, who is trying to make a movie. Not even JPV can bring the story back down into doom and gloom where the Joker is involved, and that part has some genuine funny moments.
The most relevant villain for the overall story is the serial killer "Abattoir". People, including Batman, want to find him. He hides from them. The resulting wild goose chase is convoluted and involves too many characters (one of them being a Clayface baby). Its end coincides with the culmination of JPV's internal struggles, which would be nice if I cared about him at all.
Jean Paul Valley is extremely off-putting as the protagonist of this book. He has absolutely zero personality. His moral dilemmas involve the conflicting messages that were programmed into him. At no point does this guy show any values or ideas of his own that don't come from the "System".
Is Bruce really such a terrible judge of character? I wouldn't put JPV in charge of a hot dog stand, let alone Gotham.
The enemies he faces are a mixed bunch. First you have a couple of... long-lost twins? Who are also cowboys? Then he fights Catwoman and develops a virginal obsession with her. Selina smells him and immediately goes "you're not the old Batman because you don't smell like sex pheromones". Pretty gross, honestly, but certainly not the most disgusting couple in the volume.
The highlight of the book is the Joker, who is trying to make a movie. Not even JPV can bring the story back down into doom and gloom where the Joker is involved, and that part has some genuine funny moments.
The most relevant villain for the overall story is the serial killer "Abattoir". People, including Batman, want to find him. He hides from them. The resulting wild goose chase is convoluted and involves too many characters (one of them being a Clayface baby). Its end coincides with the culmination of JPV's internal struggles, which would be nice if I cared about him at all.
April 4, 2021
Dacă Knightfall Vol. 1 mi s-a părut absolut fantastic, Knightquest e aproape pe jumătate la fel de bun.
Prima problemă: e muuuuuuuuult prea lung. Puteau scrie mai puține povești ca să ilustreze decăderea lui JPV și nevoia lui Bruce Wayne de a se întoarce. Există cîteva momente foarte faine, cameo-uri interesante și scene de tensiune autentică, dar sunt foarte puține raportat la cele aproape 700 de pagini cât are volumul.
A doua problemă: JPV e destul de insipid. Sigur, e violent și necruțător, chestii pe care ai vrea să le vezi mai des la Bruce Wayne, dar mna, nu despre asta e Batman.
Azi nu mă simt prea inspirat, așa că o să închei scurt. Grafica e destul de OK pentru niște numere lunare (nu se ridică la calitatea unui roman grafic, evident, dar se apropie destul de mult). Scriitura e și ea OK, atinge de câteva ori niște vârfuri. Ceea ce e păcat e că n-au un personaj mai interesant cu care să lucreze.
Recomand doar fainilor hardcore.
Prima problemă: e muuuuuuuuult prea lung. Puteau scrie mai puține povești ca să ilustreze decăderea lui JPV și nevoia lui Bruce Wayne de a se întoarce. Există cîteva momente foarte faine, cameo-uri interesante și scene de tensiune autentică, dar sunt foarte puține raportat la cele aproape 700 de pagini cât are volumul.
A doua problemă: JPV e destul de insipid. Sigur, e violent și necruțător, chestii pe care ai vrea să le vezi mai des la Bruce Wayne, dar mna, nu despre asta e Batman.
Azi nu mă simt prea inspirat, așa că o să închei scurt. Grafica e destul de OK pentru niște numere lunare (nu se ridică la calitatea unui roman grafic, evident, dar se apropie destul de mult). Scriitura e și ea OK, atinge de câteva ori niște vârfuri. Ceea ce e păcat e că n-au un personaj mai interesant cu care să lucreze.
Recomand doar fainilor hardcore.
February 7, 2023
So yeah months after I started reading it but then put it away and then picked it up after months, I finally finished the 2nd volume of this trilogy where each volume is 600+ pages long. This contained multiple comic series and it didn't always feel like the story flowed naturally as we jumped through the story. But the biggest issue is that Jean-Paul Valley or JPV is just the worst hero or rather the worst human, cringy, unlikeable, and what else and probably that was the idea but then again to go through 600+ pages it was a kinda chore to follow JPV through the pages. Let's hope the next big volume where in it's gonna be hero vs hero, but not just about now I should work on finishing the books already on my Currently Reading case and that's what I am gonna do just Keep on Reading.
I have always loved comics, and I hope that I will always love them. Even though I grew up reading local Indian comics like Raj Comics or Diamond Comics or even Manoj Comics, now's the time to catch up on international and classic comics and Graphic novels. I am on my quest to read as many comics as I can. I Love comics to bits, may comics never leave my side. I loved reading this and love reading more, you should also read what you love and then just Keep on Reading.
I have always loved comics, and I hope that I will always love them. Even though I grew up reading local Indian comics like Raj Comics or Diamond Comics or even Manoj Comics, now's the time to catch up on international and classic comics and Graphic novels. I am on my quest to read as many comics as I can. I Love comics to bits, may comics never leave my side. I loved reading this and love reading more, you should also read what you love and then just Keep on Reading.
September 21, 2019
Used to look forward to Azraels Batman but this was bad filled with lame ass villains I never heard of.
December 14, 2024
Continue with the trilogy of Knightfall, this tomo despite the lack of drama/action related to Bruce Wayne, it's quite interesting seeing Jean-Paul falling to madness while trying to handle the Batman mantle.
Expecting the third one to conclude this long and amazing story.
Expecting the third one to conclude this long and amazing story.
November 5, 2012
The Knightfall story arc is the ambitious undertaking of writers Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench, and Alan Grant. The arc, consisted of three parts: Knightfall, Knightquest, and KnightsEnd, and while the storyline was supposed to take place over the course of six months, the publication lasted a year. The storyline is infamous for its bloated content and long-term ramifications for the Batman Universe. It introduces the characters of Bane and Azrael, and continually questions whether Bruce is physically and mentally prepared for continuing his role as Batman.
Knightfall vol. 2 is the story arc Knightquest. Here we have a collection of comics detailing the rise of Jean-Paul Valley as Batman. Over three hundred pages of drawing and dialogue make up the downward spiral of Jean-Paul Valley. Is the Gotham of Knightquest darker? Grittier? One is made to think so, given the amount of technology, armor, and brutality Valley infuses into the role of Batman. His weapons are more sinister, lacking the restraint of Batman’s gadgets. It’s justice by any means necessary. His ruthlessness and anti-social personality have alienated his former allies. Even Jim Gordon has doubts as to whether Batman can fulfill his role as the city’s vigilante protector. Valley’s mental unbalance comes to the forefronts as he becomes increasingly tormented by visions of St. Dumas and his father. After strangling Robin, letting the serial killer Abattoir fall to his death, walling off the Batcave, and convincing everyone around him (including Cat Woman) that he is not the same Batman, the readers are left with a bitter taste in their mouths. One can only hope that Bruce Wayne miraculously appears to assume control again. Imitators will have their day, but heroes demand authenticity.
The one aspect I do not like about this collection, or rather this series, is the editor’s choice not to include Knightquest: The search in this volume. While Knightquest: The Crusade, offers an extensive amount of material in-itself, the story of Bruce Wayne’s search for Tim Drake’s father is pertinent to the story. Possibly DC comics will come out with a collection of this series to round out the Knightfall saga, but I cannot hide my disappointment in its absence.
The writing and artwork is 90’s Batman through and through. It’s campy, colorful and by today’s standards, a lot of it hasn’t aged well. It’s like the X-Men in the 80’s and 90’s, or Spiderman during that same time. The story is a classic in the Batman Universe, but some part of me, longs for a revamp. Just to see what a new artist and writer could come up with.
Knightfall vol. 2 is the story arc Knightquest. Here we have a collection of comics detailing the rise of Jean-Paul Valley as Batman. Over three hundred pages of drawing and dialogue make up the downward spiral of Jean-Paul Valley. Is the Gotham of Knightquest darker? Grittier? One is made to think so, given the amount of technology, armor, and brutality Valley infuses into the role of Batman. His weapons are more sinister, lacking the restraint of Batman’s gadgets. It’s justice by any means necessary. His ruthlessness and anti-social personality have alienated his former allies. Even Jim Gordon has doubts as to whether Batman can fulfill his role as the city’s vigilante protector. Valley’s mental unbalance comes to the forefronts as he becomes increasingly tormented by visions of St. Dumas and his father. After strangling Robin, letting the serial killer Abattoir fall to his death, walling off the Batcave, and convincing everyone around him (including Cat Woman) that he is not the same Batman, the readers are left with a bitter taste in their mouths. One can only hope that Bruce Wayne miraculously appears to assume control again. Imitators will have their day, but heroes demand authenticity.
The one aspect I do not like about this collection, or rather this series, is the editor’s choice not to include Knightquest: The search in this volume. While Knightquest: The Crusade, offers an extensive amount of material in-itself, the story of Bruce Wayne’s search for Tim Drake’s father is pertinent to the story. Possibly DC comics will come out with a collection of this series to round out the Knightfall saga, but I cannot hide my disappointment in its absence.
The writing and artwork is 90’s Batman through and through. It’s campy, colorful and by today’s standards, a lot of it hasn’t aged well. It’s like the X-Men in the 80’s and 90’s, or Spiderman during that same time. The story is a classic in the Batman Universe, but some part of me, longs for a revamp. Just to see what a new artist and writer could come up with.
March 3, 2022
The second volume of “Knightfall” really tested my ability to hate-read bad superhero comics. After Jean Paul Valley takes over the cape and cowl, there’s almost zero narrative momentum, so we get a monthly Batman book starring a Batman with even less charisma than usual. He gets really weird around women, first Catwoman and then again later with an actress the Joker casts in a “Death of Batman” movie. Like Chandler with bras, Jean Paul seems to fear women because he doesn’t understand them.
Catwoman says something about the real Batman having a sexual side, which, does he? I feel like so much of superhero comics is about explaining why the main (male) characters can’t be available to the beautiful women in their lives. Robin repeatedly ducks out on his girlfriend to hang with the Bat-bros; in Volume Three of “Knightfall,” he actually falls asleep while she’s talking! I’m not saying it’s homosexual, but it’s definitely homosocial.
The only interesting bit of narrative tension in this massive tome emerges from Jean Paul Batman’s supposed turn to the dark side, when he lets the serial killer Abattoir die. This decision isn’t particularly cold blooded—Jean Paul couldn’t really have saved Abbatoir, so he just accepts that fact and saves himself instead. When the rest of the Bat-bros find out, though, they get mad—we don’t let the bad guys die!—and I thought the reader would have an opportunity to feel conflicted over what appeared to be a misunderstanding. Here was Bruce Wayne, Nightwing, and Robin being mean to Jean Paul over something that wasn’t completely his fault. But when Wayne finally takes down Jean Paul in Volume 3, the lack of cruelty in Jean Paul’s decision to let Abattoir die is a point in his favor. See, our heroes weren’t wrong to be mad at him, but he may still be redeemable!
Catwoman says something about the real Batman having a sexual side, which, does he? I feel like so much of superhero comics is about explaining why the main (male) characters can’t be available to the beautiful women in their lives. Robin repeatedly ducks out on his girlfriend to hang with the Bat-bros; in Volume Three of “Knightfall,” he actually falls asleep while she’s talking! I’m not saying it’s homosexual, but it’s definitely homosocial.
The only interesting bit of narrative tension in this massive tome emerges from Jean Paul Batman’s supposed turn to the dark side, when he lets the serial killer Abattoir die. This decision isn’t particularly cold blooded—Jean Paul couldn’t really have saved Abbatoir, so he just accepts that fact and saves himself instead. When the rest of the Bat-bros find out, though, they get mad—we don’t let the bad guys die!—and I thought the reader would have an opportunity to feel conflicted over what appeared to be a misunderstanding. Here was Bruce Wayne, Nightwing, and Robin being mean to Jean Paul over something that wasn’t completely his fault. But when Wayne finally takes down Jean Paul in Volume 3, the lack of cruelty in Jean Paul’s decision to let Abattoir die is a point in his favor. See, our heroes weren’t wrong to be mad at him, but he may still be redeemable!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2016
I can't properly gage this book, as the issues were coming out a year before I started reading comics (I was 10 years old). So this Batman armor represents the epitome of cool to me. It's probably a horrible read, I wouldn't give this to anyone to read. But yet I feel it's essential. Ah yes, the year was 1995 and someone brings Batman #500 into class, a die-cut cover of Batman in his classic suit and when opened a new armored up Batman on the 2nd cover. Inside we have a more brutal Batman shooting mini batarangs at Bane. Good stuff. This issue isn't even included here but it's the beginning of AzBats.
The representation of change, even if it was a failure.
In the letters page there were countless fans stating they will never read Batman again. Wizard magazine constantly bashing it, and DC skipping this story arc for 2 decades and collecting Knightsend instead, treating it like... Jon Snow.
This Batman was influenced by the more brutal anti-heroes that were so popular, like Terminator and Punisher, DC gave it a test run, failed and in the end makes this book more infamous that famous.
Maybe the stories aren't great, maybe the villains are third rate, but it makes for a really really great train wreck.
The representation of change, even if it was a failure.
In the letters page there were countless fans stating they will never read Batman again. Wizard magazine constantly bashing it, and DC skipping this story arc for 2 decades and collecting Knightsend instead, treating it like... Jon Snow.
This Batman was influenced by the more brutal anti-heroes that were so popular, like Terminator and Punisher, DC gave it a test run, failed and in the end makes this book more infamous that famous.
Maybe the stories aren't great, maybe the villains are third rate, but it makes for a really really great train wreck.
February 9, 2013
Jean Paul Valley as Batman is such a mess. And reading this is like just waiting for him to implode and Bruce to come back (and wondering why anybody puts up with this freak). I don't recall if ever there was a sense that Bruce might not be back--that Azrael was taking over permanently, but in retrospect it's impossible to imagine anyone would think he was worthy (which kinda makes Bruce an idiot).
No comment on the cowboy twins (ugh), and other sundry plotlines (most of which are just so-so). The Joker as a villain in the hands of Dixon is likewise a mess. Apart from one or two recognizably insane moments, he might as well be anybody and his final confrontation with Azrael is a huge head scratcher: 1.) it took this long for him to realize that Batman wasn't really Batman? and 2.) on discovering this information he doesn't just nuke the imposter? Dumb.
This is one of those arcs where you just have to sigh and move forward and hope eventually you'll get so far ahead into the new continuity that you can forget any of this ever happened.
No comment on the cowboy twins (ugh), and other sundry plotlines (most of which are just so-so). The Joker as a villain in the hands of Dixon is likewise a mess. Apart from one or two recognizably insane moments, he might as well be anybody and his final confrontation with Azrael is a huge head scratcher: 1.) it took this long for him to realize that Batman wasn't really Batman? and 2.) on discovering this information he doesn't just nuke the imposter? Dumb.
This is one of those arcs where you just have to sigh and move forward and hope eventually you'll get so far ahead into the new continuity that you can forget any of this ever happened.
March 13, 2023
Batman: Knightfall Volume 2 -Knightquest by Chuck Dixon continues the long saga of Knightfall the big Batman DC Comics event of the 90's. Batman -Bruce Wayne has been broken by Bane and he handed the reigns over John Paul who was Arzael a conflicted hero. John Paul turns the batsuit into a dangerous weapon with a full redesign, he beats Bane and starts his crusade to take Gotham back all the while not using the same rules. This starts Knightquest! The comics are all leading to something but it is really unfocused, and when it gets to the end I don't know if it was totally earned. It reminds me of the current MCU, the first phases were so focused all leading to a big event like the first volume of Knightfall, then phase 4 was a mess with no direction like the second volume of Knightfall. I did like where the volume ended up and think this is the best direction for the final volume of the series. This volume was missing a lot of notable villains, it featured Joker, Catwoman, Clayface III and Lady Clayface, the rest of the villains are throw away villains with the creators having fun one group of villains is a punk spoof on the Three Stooges, the other is two twin gunslingers. The tension between John Paul and Tim Drake -Red Robin is interesting but over too soon. The pace moves okay, though the long storyline involving the villain Abattoir gets played out really fast and the story should not have been 9 issues long. Batman: Knightfall Volume 2 - Knightquest collects Detective Comics #667-675, Shadow of the Bat #19-20, #24-28, Batman #501-508, Catwoman #6-7 and Robin #7. Batman: Knightfall Volume 2 - Knightquest was published in May 1 2012.
Plot Summary: John Paul has just defeated Bane and cemented his role as the new Batman. Bruce is off on a mission to bring Tim Drake's father back that maybe Bane's people took and he has left Red Robin to watch over, only the new Batman works alone and nearly kills Robin to keep him away and has started fortifying the Bat Cave so only he has an entrance. Batman's first test is a twin gunslingers that come to town to cause trouble and rob the money train, The new Batman prefers to travel by a new Batmobile that runs on subway and incline rails. Batman has drawn the attention of the Joker who knows the new Batman is a fake and wants to kill him for a movie he is directing. Catwoman is back in Gotham and part of a nerve gas plot. This story is the best as the new Batman sees only Catwoman as a criminal and not how the original Batman came to see here as a petty criminal but not someone who would harm others. Abattoir who kills mostly his family and does a blood ritual to gain more power escaped from Arkham and is a relative to the Mayor of Gotham that he wants dead, Batman must stop this plot using any means necessary. One of the relatives who is in prison and father to the mayor makes thinks more crazy as he puts a hit on Abattoir. Batman is pushed to his limits and starts seeing visions of his father who wanted to turn him into an assassin before the original Batman stepped in start leading his thoughts on his quest to take Gotham out of the darkness by any means necessary making himself the villain in some peoples eyes.
What I Liked: I like how the title Knightquest works since John Paul Valley is on a crusade much like his Templar ancestry Saint Dumas and the order he serves. I liked the visions and how the ghost of John Paul Valley's father has a different view then the original Saint Dumas who end up fighting for control of Batman's quest. The tension between the new Batman and a robin that he clearly does not want was great I felt this moment could have been stretched, but I like where the tension eventually ends up in a pretty good fight. I liked the Catwoman story and the story where Commissioner Gordon stands up and wants nothing to do with the new Batman that he knows is not the same person. I like that John Paul only lives in the Batcave and let Wayne Manor go to pieces. The Twin Shooters won me over I did not like them at first but ended up enjoying their 3 issue arc. I did really like the end of this volume and what it means for the final volume of Knightfall.
What I Disliked: Abattoir as this volumes big bad, he stinks and was not interesting at all. He was worthy of an issue or two not 9 issues. I was happy to see this villain on the worst villains of Batman list. Batman needed more established villains to go wait this is not the same Batman I've been battling for years he's different and to see how that played out. The dropped story line of Catwoman went to South America on Bruce Wayne's private plane to learn more about Bane and is back in Gotham with no mention, maybe it was explained somewhere else but not here. Bane even though he's defeated should have still been involved in the story some how since events that were involving him are still playing out.
Recommendation: This book could have been better, but the whole Knightfall story is still worth it. I don't think reading all the comics included in this collection are necessary, some barely move the main story along at all. I rated Batman: Knightfall Volume 2 -Knightquest by Chuck Dixon 3 out of 5 stars. This book has been the weakest in the series so far with Volume 1 and the Prelude being better and more focused.
Plot Summary: John Paul has just defeated Bane and cemented his role as the new Batman. Bruce is off on a mission to bring Tim Drake's father back that maybe Bane's people took and he has left Red Robin to watch over, only the new Batman works alone and nearly kills Robin to keep him away and has started fortifying the Bat Cave so only he has an entrance. Batman's first test is a twin gunslingers that come to town to cause trouble and rob the money train, The new Batman prefers to travel by a new Batmobile that runs on subway and incline rails. Batman has drawn the attention of the Joker who knows the new Batman is a fake and wants to kill him for a movie he is directing. Catwoman is back in Gotham and part of a nerve gas plot. This story is the best as the new Batman sees only Catwoman as a criminal and not how the original Batman came to see here as a petty criminal but not someone who would harm others. Abattoir who kills mostly his family and does a blood ritual to gain more power escaped from Arkham and is a relative to the Mayor of Gotham that he wants dead, Batman must stop this plot using any means necessary. One of the relatives who is in prison and father to the mayor makes thinks more crazy as he puts a hit on Abattoir. Batman is pushed to his limits and starts seeing visions of his father who wanted to turn him into an assassin before the original Batman stepped in start leading his thoughts on his quest to take Gotham out of the darkness by any means necessary making himself the villain in some peoples eyes.
What I Liked: I like how the title Knightquest works since John Paul Valley is on a crusade much like his Templar ancestry Saint Dumas and the order he serves. I liked the visions and how the ghost of John Paul Valley's father has a different view then the original Saint Dumas who end up fighting for control of Batman's quest. The tension between the new Batman and a robin that he clearly does not want was great I felt this moment could have been stretched, but I like where the tension eventually ends up in a pretty good fight. I liked the Catwoman story and the story where Commissioner Gordon stands up and wants nothing to do with the new Batman that he knows is not the same person. I like that John Paul only lives in the Batcave and let Wayne Manor go to pieces. The Twin Shooters won me over I did not like them at first but ended up enjoying their 3 issue arc. I did really like the end of this volume and what it means for the final volume of Knightfall.
What I Disliked: Abattoir as this volumes big bad, he stinks and was not interesting at all. He was worthy of an issue or two not 9 issues. I was happy to see this villain on the worst villains of Batman list. Batman needed more established villains to go wait this is not the same Batman I've been battling for years he's different and to see how that played out. The dropped story line of Catwoman went to South America on Bruce Wayne's private plane to learn more about Bane and is back in Gotham with no mention, maybe it was explained somewhere else but not here. Bane even though he's defeated should have still been involved in the story some how since events that were involving him are still playing out.
Recommendation: This book could have been better, but the whole Knightfall story is still worth it. I don't think reading all the comics included in this collection are necessary, some barely move the main story along at all. I rated Batman: Knightfall Volume 2 -Knightquest by Chuck Dixon 3 out of 5 stars. This book has been the weakest in the series so far with Volume 1 and the Prelude being better and more focused.
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