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Batman Post-Crisis #5
Batman: Prey
From the pages of LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #11-15 and 137-141! Batman must confront the sinister Dr. Hugo Strange, a man with a deadly secret who is determined to kill the Dark Knight. Who is the fearsome Night Scourge, and what is his link to the GCPD? And how does Catwoman fit into all this?
Contains two stories - Batman: Prey and Batman: Terror.
Contains two stories - Batman: Prey and Batman: Terror.
256 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2001
62 people are currently reading
345 people want to read
About the author
Doug Moench
2,071 books122 followersDoug Moench, is an American comic book writer notable for his Batman work and as the creator of Black Mask, Moon Knight and Deathlok. Moench has worked for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Dark Horse Comics and many other smaller companies; he has written hundreds of issues of many different comics, and created dozens of characters, such as Moon Knight. In 1973, Moench became the de facto lead writer for the Marvel black-and-white magazine imprint Curtis Magazines. He contributed to the entire runs of Planet of the Apes, Rampaging Hulk (continuing on the title when it changed its name to The Hulk!) and Doc Savage, while also serving as a regular scribe for virtually every other Curtis title during the course of the imprint's existence. Moench is perhaps best known for his work on Batman, whose title he wrote from 1983–1986 and then again from 1992–1998. (He also wrote the companion title Detective Comics from 1983–1986.)
Moench is a frequent and longtime collaborator with comics artist Paul Gulacy. The pair are probably best known for their work on Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu, which they worked on together from 1974–1977. They also co-created Six from Sirius, Slash Maraud, and S.C.I. Spy, and have worked together on comics projects featuring Batman, Conan the Barbarian and James Bond.
Moench has frequently been paired with the artist and inker team of Kelley Jones and John Beatty on several Elseworlds Graphic Novels and a long run of the monthly Batman comic.
Moench is a frequent and longtime collaborator with comics artist Paul Gulacy. The pair are probably best known for their work on Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu, which they worked on together from 1974–1977. They also co-created Six from Sirius, Slash Maraud, and S.C.I. Spy, and have worked together on comics projects featuring Batman, Conan the Barbarian and James Bond.
Moench has frequently been paired with the artist and inker team of Kelley Jones and John Beatty on several Elseworlds Graphic Novels and a long run of the monthly Batman comic.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
September 30, 2017
First, there was Batman: Prey, and the secretly-demented Dr. Hugo Strange seeks to destroy, replace, and become the Batman. Add a later series of the return of Strange, and you have Batman: Prey, an even finer volume.
May 17, 2013
This is a graphic novel that almost follows on from Batman: Year One, excluding of course the introduction of Batman villains such as Joker. This is an earlier version of Batman, a Batman still struggling with himself and his identity as a crime-fighter. A Batman who needs Jim Gordan to help him in his war on crime.
In this story, the new villainy of Dr. Hugo Strange is introduced for the first time. Hugo Strange is a psychologist, one of those breed of bizarre individuals who wear creepy spectacles and have shaved heads and have mannequins in the place of lovers. Or at least, those are the stereotypes of psychologists adopted in this book. That, for me would have to be one of the major negatives of this work, that there are so many stereotypes of the unknown 'other' of the psychologist adopted for this novel. That said, Hugo Strange, as a villainous mastermind who works out Batman's identity and sets up several intriguing traps is a fascinating character.
If you want a graphic novel with a classic story and some dazzling artwork I'd fully endorse this. It's Batman at his finest: as the Caped Crusader, Dark Knight and world's greatest detective all rolled into one. Now with added action. Did I mention also for the fanboys that Catwoman features prominently in this book? I didn't? Well what other incentive is there to go and read this?
October 10, 2013
Set in the early years when Bruce was just starting out as Batman, Gotham City is slowly adjusting to the appearance of the Dark Knight with many still fearing him. Dr Hugo Strange, a prominent psychiatrist, builds upon that fear to leverage power and fame by convincing the Mayor to order Captain Gordon to set up a Batman task force to take down the vigilante and haul him in for questioning. Gordon gets hot-head officer Max Cort to lead the team as another vigilante, a cat burglar, emerges – but what does Hugo Strange really want?
Doug Moench wrote a lot of Batman comics in the early 90s and none of them were any good. The Knightfall Trilogy where Bane famously broke Batman’s back was wayyy too long and his other books, like the more recent Batman: Unseen with Kelley Jones, have been similarly terrible. Batman: Prey has gained some prominence in recent years thanks to Hugo Strange’s appearance in the brilliant video game Batman: Arkham City, but, based on this book, he’s nowhere near as cool or interesting. In fact, Batman: Prey is a downright awful book but not just because of Strange but because of the entire cast, including Batman, as written by Moench.
Let’s start with Strange. It’s an obvious comment but the name is apt. When he’s not saying weird things about Batman on TV, he’s talking to his female mannequin in his apartment and dressing up as Batman. Yeah, that’s pretty nutty, but on the barest pieces of information, he’s able to figure out Bruce Wayne is Batman – although never explicitly saying so out loud or to anyone else – and can set up elaborate traps in Wayne Manor involving lifelike mannequins who look exactly like Bruce’s parents. You’d think Bruce would’ve set up some security cameras or anything around Wayne Manor – he is trying to stop people figuring out he’s Batman after all! Anyway, Strange needs to do all of that because the plot says so, not because it makes sense.
The dialogue in this book is horrendous. Strange spends most of his time turned towards the reader making speeches about this and that, thinking out loud, repeating plot points, etc. Strange’s dialogue is the worst but none of the characters really say anything that sounds at all convincing. Everyone’s thinking out loud and telling you what they’re doing as they’re doing it!
Catwoman’s outfit is just bad. She’s called a cat burglar in the press so she has to play up the cat part by literally having a tail, cat ears and whiskers, all of which do nothing. If you think the tail is her whip, it’s not – her whip is coiled up around her shoulder. A tail, cat ears, and whiskers – honestly, what’s the point? It’s sooo stupid! Forgetting her appearance (in theory – I won’t forget this, Moench!), she is a completely pointless addition to the book. She shows up, steals some jewels, runs away from Batman across Gotham’s rooftops, escapes – repeat, rinse. They smooch, she saves him (but only because Bruce is so damn incompetent in this book), and that’s it. In other words, just like every other Catwoman appearance ever.
Max Cort is the worst character in the book. He’s apparently a great police officer who behaves more like a bar brawler, only more dangerous because he has guns. After repeatedly failing to bring Batman in, he’s brainwashed by Strange through hypnosis (really) into becoming a vigilante himself laughably called Night Scourge. He just happens to have a ninja outfit with spikes tailor made for him, complete with a variety of knives and swords, all of which he’s suddenly proficient in, and manages to successfully take on Batman. So, as a police officer with far more resources at his disposal he was unable to do anything about Batman but suddenly, mind-wiped, with fewer resources, and a mask, he’s able to achieve more? Whaaat?!
But the worst of the bunch is Batman. When Bruce became Batman for the first time, he’d gone through years of training, physically and mentally preparing himself for the demanding role he was now taking on. In Batman: Prey, it’s like that training never took place. Not only can he barely deal with Strange – a non-super-powered psychiatrist – or any of the GCPD, but he’s routinely challenged by no-name street thugs, and, in the second story arc of the book, Terror, he gets beaten up by Jonathan Crane aka Scarecrow! These two are the villains of the book: Strange and Scarecrow, and they’re supposedly Batman’s physical equal! Only in this book. I understand this is Batman in the early years but you can only play up Bruce’s lack of experience so much.
Moench is famous (relatively speaking) for doing this kind of nonsense narrative. In Batman: Unseen, Batman fights an invisible man by taking off his clothes, drinking the invisibility potion thus becoming invisible – then he puts on his Batman outfit again, negating the invisibility and then goes out to fight him! Moench writes Batman as a brain-dead nitwit and it seems whether he was doing it in the early 90s or the late 00s, that’s how his Batman will always be.
In Terror, the sequel to Prey, also included here, Scarecrow is the main villain. This story is also utterly hideously written and conceived, but it at least has a genuinely hilarious origin story for Jonathan Crane. Apparently he was teased in high school for being scrawny and his bullies would say to him “Go scare some crows, Crane!” (which sounds exactly like something teenagers would say) and these insults so scarred him(!) that the only way he could relieve his frustration was, yes, scaring some crows(!!!). The panel showing Crane lunging after some crows is amazing. He then developed his own “Crane-style” fighting moves which involves him kicking his legs up really high while waving his arms around - this weird dance move is the same fighting style that bests Batman! So of course he puts on a Scarecrow costume and (sigh) becomes Scarecrow. This is one of the dumbest origin stories I’ve ever read. Good for a chuckle though.
The story, in both instances, is plodding and tedious at best. Batman is chased by doofuses (doofi?) and, because he’s also moronic in this book, he has trouble escaping them and solving the “mystery”. The storylines are utterly forgettable and stupid, how anyone can rate this book at all is beyond me. Paul Gulacy’s art is no great shakes but I didn’t mind it and it’s definitely the only commendable thing about this book. But it’s still not that good – the expressions on the mannequins and the human characters look exactly the same.
And one last thing, and it’s rare to have to bring this up, but the lettering in this book is diabolical. Batman’s narrative boxes – of which there are a sizeable number – are written in this flowery cursive style that makes reading them really hard. I suppose this being part of the Legends of the Dark Knight series, Batman is writing these adventures down in a book or something and maybe that’s why we’ve got this awkward handwriting style? It’s the only reason I can see why the letterer has chosen to do this but it underlines a basic truth about comics – if a comic has bad lettering, then it becomes a bad comic. Even if it had legible lettering, it’s still be the pits because of Moench’s script, but the two combined make this a nightmare to read.
Batman: Prey is a book written by an idiot, for idiots, starring idiots - don’t bother. In fact avoid anything written by Doug Moench!
Doug Moench wrote a lot of Batman comics in the early 90s and none of them were any good. The Knightfall Trilogy where Bane famously broke Batman’s back was wayyy too long and his other books, like the more recent Batman: Unseen with Kelley Jones, have been similarly terrible. Batman: Prey has gained some prominence in recent years thanks to Hugo Strange’s appearance in the brilliant video game Batman: Arkham City, but, based on this book, he’s nowhere near as cool or interesting. In fact, Batman: Prey is a downright awful book but not just because of Strange but because of the entire cast, including Batman, as written by Moench.
Let’s start with Strange. It’s an obvious comment but the name is apt. When he’s not saying weird things about Batman on TV, he’s talking to his female mannequin in his apartment and dressing up as Batman. Yeah, that’s pretty nutty, but on the barest pieces of information, he’s able to figure out Bruce Wayne is Batman – although never explicitly saying so out loud or to anyone else – and can set up elaborate traps in Wayne Manor involving lifelike mannequins who look exactly like Bruce’s parents. You’d think Bruce would’ve set up some security cameras or anything around Wayne Manor – he is trying to stop people figuring out he’s Batman after all! Anyway, Strange needs to do all of that because the plot says so, not because it makes sense.
The dialogue in this book is horrendous. Strange spends most of his time turned towards the reader making speeches about this and that, thinking out loud, repeating plot points, etc. Strange’s dialogue is the worst but none of the characters really say anything that sounds at all convincing. Everyone’s thinking out loud and telling you what they’re doing as they’re doing it!
Catwoman’s outfit is just bad. She’s called a cat burglar in the press so she has to play up the cat part by literally having a tail, cat ears and whiskers, all of which do nothing. If you think the tail is her whip, it’s not – her whip is coiled up around her shoulder. A tail, cat ears, and whiskers – honestly, what’s the point? It’s sooo stupid! Forgetting her appearance (in theory – I won’t forget this, Moench!), she is a completely pointless addition to the book. She shows up, steals some jewels, runs away from Batman across Gotham’s rooftops, escapes – repeat, rinse. They smooch, she saves him (but only because Bruce is so damn incompetent in this book), and that’s it. In other words, just like every other Catwoman appearance ever.
Max Cort is the worst character in the book. He’s apparently a great police officer who behaves more like a bar brawler, only more dangerous because he has guns. After repeatedly failing to bring Batman in, he’s brainwashed by Strange through hypnosis (really) into becoming a vigilante himself laughably called Night Scourge. He just happens to have a ninja outfit with spikes tailor made for him, complete with a variety of knives and swords, all of which he’s suddenly proficient in, and manages to successfully take on Batman. So, as a police officer with far more resources at his disposal he was unable to do anything about Batman but suddenly, mind-wiped, with fewer resources, and a mask, he’s able to achieve more? Whaaat?!
But the worst of the bunch is Batman. When Bruce became Batman for the first time, he’d gone through years of training, physically and mentally preparing himself for the demanding role he was now taking on. In Batman: Prey, it’s like that training never took place. Not only can he barely deal with Strange – a non-super-powered psychiatrist – or any of the GCPD, but he’s routinely challenged by no-name street thugs, and, in the second story arc of the book, Terror, he gets beaten up by Jonathan Crane aka Scarecrow! These two are the villains of the book: Strange and Scarecrow, and they’re supposedly Batman’s physical equal! Only in this book. I understand this is Batman in the early years but you can only play up Bruce’s lack of experience so much.
Moench is famous (relatively speaking) for doing this kind of nonsense narrative. In Batman: Unseen, Batman fights an invisible man by taking off his clothes, drinking the invisibility potion thus becoming invisible – then he puts on his Batman outfit again, negating the invisibility and then goes out to fight him! Moench writes Batman as a brain-dead nitwit and it seems whether he was doing it in the early 90s or the late 00s, that’s how his Batman will always be.
In Terror, the sequel to Prey, also included here, Scarecrow is the main villain. This story is also utterly hideously written and conceived, but it at least has a genuinely hilarious origin story for Jonathan Crane. Apparently he was teased in high school for being scrawny and his bullies would say to him “Go scare some crows, Crane!” (which sounds exactly like something teenagers would say) and these insults so scarred him(!) that the only way he could relieve his frustration was, yes, scaring some crows(!!!). The panel showing Crane lunging after some crows is amazing. He then developed his own “Crane-style” fighting moves which involves him kicking his legs up really high while waving his arms around - this weird dance move is the same fighting style that bests Batman! So of course he puts on a Scarecrow costume and (sigh) becomes Scarecrow. This is one of the dumbest origin stories I’ve ever read. Good for a chuckle though.
The story, in both instances, is plodding and tedious at best. Batman is chased by doofuses (doofi?) and, because he’s also moronic in this book, he has trouble escaping them and solving the “mystery”. The storylines are utterly forgettable and stupid, how anyone can rate this book at all is beyond me. Paul Gulacy’s art is no great shakes but I didn’t mind it and it’s definitely the only commendable thing about this book. But it’s still not that good – the expressions on the mannequins and the human characters look exactly the same.
And one last thing, and it’s rare to have to bring this up, but the lettering in this book is diabolical. Batman’s narrative boxes – of which there are a sizeable number – are written in this flowery cursive style that makes reading them really hard. I suppose this being part of the Legends of the Dark Knight series, Batman is writing these adventures down in a book or something and maybe that’s why we’ve got this awkward handwriting style? It’s the only reason I can see why the letterer has chosen to do this but it underlines a basic truth about comics – if a comic has bad lettering, then it becomes a bad comic. Even if it had legible lettering, it’s still be the pits because of Moench’s script, but the two combined make this a nightmare to read.
Batman: Prey is a book written by an idiot, for idiots, starring idiots - don’t bother. In fact avoid anything written by Doug Moench!
January 22, 2016
Interesting older story from the early 90's. A "new" Batman walks the streets of Gotham and Cpt Gordon is ordered by the mayor to form a task force to capture him. Helping him in this task is obsessive cop Sgt Cort and psychologist Dr. Hugo Strange. Set in the days before Batman had ALL of his gadgets and it introduces Gordon setting up a preliminary bat-signal and batman getting a batmobile. So it was interesting to see him operate in a "Year One" scenario. He is not the famous hero of later years and comics and heck he isn't even the martial arts master we see in later and newer versions of the comics (not that he's a slouch but he is not someone that can just breeze through a half dozen opponents like he is portrayed now). It is an in depth psychological examination of what makes the Batman tick told from Wayne and Dr. Strange's perspectives. If you like a brainer Batman story..check this one out. The artwork is pretty solid as well considering the time.
May 14, 2024
I'm pretty disappointed. But, in the same breath, I have to say that I DID enjoy reading it all the way through, because I'm pretty harsh in this review.
I've thought about lowering my rating, but there are a lot of natural aspects of Batman stories that I love no matter what. The traps, the illustrations, Gordon, the Batman-iness of it all is just too beautiful.
That said... It's the whole issue with the first story, Prey. I probably would've enjoyed this early on in my Batjourney, but it feels like a rehash of all the Batman comics, movies, episodes, probably even the fanfic. It all revolves around breaking Batman psychologically, but there's zero subtlety to any of it. Just Strange blurting "I'm going to break the bat psychologically!" to a mannequin (mannikin?) that he put in lingerie (by the way, it's more than implied that he does have sex with that thing. Yikes.). The only other plot is that the police force are after Batman, which has been told a bajillion times and is one of the LEAST interesting Batman stories to tell.
Everything just feels so unoriginal, can't say there's a single thing here that isn't done better in another Batman comic. Hugo Strange does nothing that the Joker doesn't do more interestingly, which is sad, because I was actually really excited about his character specifically, but it seems like a poor attempt to re-insert Strange as Batman's arch-enemy. But because of the ending, that CAN'T be it, right? So why does it feel like that?
And somehow it's 5 issues. It does NOT need to be that long while saying and doing so little worthwhile.
My expectations are probably what killed me on this one. I had high, high hopes (and even silently hoped to myself that Hugo Strange would become a new favorite villain, even though the only other time I'd seen him was B:TAS, where I didn't care about him one way or the other.) for the story, but it's not really worth seeking out, just stumbling across and going "Hey, I like Batman!"
The art is sometimes great and sometimes fugly, especially with women's faces.
It sounds like I hate the story, but it's really just easier to focus on the negatives. I mostly did enjoy it. I just can't appreciate it as much as I'd like to because it's painfully average. So, 3 stars; an "average" rating. I truly did wrestle with the rating and I think this is fitting. It just let me down as a Batman story, but didn't compromise any of my morals for the character or ruin important pieces of what I love about him.
Now, Terror.
Great things: Gordon (again), a more established Batman (but still no Robin 😔), fantastic art and coloring, a really cool opening, and Catwoman actually playing a role in the story instead of just kind of... Being there.
But that's it, and the rest is meh to bad.
I was most excited for Scarecrow in this story (expectations again), because even though all of his stories are so similar, I just KNOW somebody can do something great with him. There has to be somebody who can tap into his potential, and for that, he's among my favorite Batman rogues just for potential. Unfortunately, not only is this just a Scarecrow story that hinges entirely on Batman's reaction to fear gas (of course relating to his parents death... as always), but they make Scarecrow exponentially lamer.
The whole book he calls everyone "bully" (or Bat-bully), because they reveal his origin story as... A kid who was bullied!
Gasp!
They don't really ever show this traumatic bullying, though.
It's a fine message, yeah. Bullying can be traumatizing. But I hate seeing that in Batman stories. It's just not interesting to me, and it's always SO in-your-face. As far as anti-bullying goes, Welcome to the Dollhouse is more effective, and that's not an anti-bullying movie. And it's just... It's lame. Scarecrow sounds like a child running around, saying "no fair! You're a bully!" For someone obsessed with fear, he's not the least bit menacing. So Scarecrow is the WORST part of this story. His design is also the scrawny Scarecrow design that I don't care for at all.
But there's nothing else to review. That's it. He's the whole story.
So... It wasn't very good. 2-2.5 stars.
Overall, I don't reccomend trying to read this. It's so unimportant in the grand scheme of Batman lore and you'll read a million things like it if you plan to read any Batman. It's not the classic that it wants to be, and sadly, it's not the classic that I wanted it to be.
I've thought about lowering my rating, but there are a lot of natural aspects of Batman stories that I love no matter what. The traps, the illustrations, Gordon, the Batman-iness of it all is just too beautiful.
That said... It's the whole issue with the first story, Prey. I probably would've enjoyed this early on in my Batjourney, but it feels like a rehash of all the Batman comics, movies, episodes, probably even the fanfic. It all revolves around breaking Batman psychologically, but there's zero subtlety to any of it. Just Strange blurting "I'm going to break the bat psychologically!" to a mannequin (mannikin?) that he put in lingerie (by the way, it's more than implied that he does have sex with that thing. Yikes.). The only other plot is that the police force are after Batman, which has been told a bajillion times and is one of the LEAST interesting Batman stories to tell.
Everything just feels so unoriginal, can't say there's a single thing here that isn't done better in another Batman comic. Hugo Strange does nothing that the Joker doesn't do more interestingly, which is sad, because I was actually really excited about his character specifically, but it seems like a poor attempt to re-insert Strange as Batman's arch-enemy. But because of the ending, that CAN'T be it, right? So why does it feel like that?
And somehow it's 5 issues. It does NOT need to be that long while saying and doing so little worthwhile.
My expectations are probably what killed me on this one. I had high, high hopes (and even silently hoped to myself that Hugo Strange would become a new favorite villain, even though the only other time I'd seen him was B:TAS, where I didn't care about him one way or the other.) for the story, but it's not really worth seeking out, just stumbling across and going "Hey, I like Batman!"
The art is sometimes great and sometimes fugly, especially with women's faces.
It sounds like I hate the story, but it's really just easier to focus on the negatives. I mostly did enjoy it. I just can't appreciate it as much as I'd like to because it's painfully average. So, 3 stars; an "average" rating. I truly did wrestle with the rating and I think this is fitting. It just let me down as a Batman story, but didn't compromise any of my morals for the character or ruin important pieces of what I love about him.
Now, Terror.
Great things: Gordon (again), a more established Batman (but still no Robin 😔), fantastic art and coloring, a really cool opening, and Catwoman actually playing a role in the story instead of just kind of... Being there.
But that's it, and the rest is meh to bad.
I was most excited for Scarecrow in this story (expectations again), because even though all of his stories are so similar, I just KNOW somebody can do something great with him. There has to be somebody who can tap into his potential, and for that, he's among my favorite Batman rogues just for potential. Unfortunately, not only is this just a Scarecrow story that hinges entirely on Batman's reaction to fear gas (of course relating to his parents death... as always), but they make Scarecrow exponentially lamer.
The whole book he calls everyone "bully" (or Bat-bully), because they reveal his origin story as... A kid who was bullied!
Gasp!
They don't really ever show this traumatic bullying, though.
It's a fine message, yeah. Bullying can be traumatizing. But I hate seeing that in Batman stories. It's just not interesting to me, and it's always SO in-your-face. As far as anti-bullying goes, Welcome to the Dollhouse is more effective, and that's not an anti-bullying movie. And it's just... It's lame. Scarecrow sounds like a child running around, saying "no fair! You're a bully!" For someone obsessed with fear, he's not the least bit menacing. So Scarecrow is the WORST part of this story. His design is also the scrawny Scarecrow design that I don't care for at all.
But there's nothing else to review. That's it. He's the whole story.
So... It wasn't very good. 2-2.5 stars.
Overall, I don't reccomend trying to read this. It's so unimportant in the grand scheme of Batman lore and you'll read a million things like it if you plan to read any Batman. It's not the classic that it wants to be, and sadly, it's not the classic that I wanted it to be.
July 27, 2016
Prey/Terror
Storyline: 3/3
Artworks: 5/5 Gulacy rocks!!!
May 30, 2011
"A decir verdad, voy a leer esta historia porque está incluida en "Batman la Colección" (entre el tomo 2 y el el 3), pero subo la edición separada de Planeta por si se me ocurre opinar algo en especial de esta historia en particular (cosa poco probable). La marco en esta edición porque creo que usa exactamente la misma traducción. Cuando tenga más datos, seguro complete la lista."
Me equivoqué. La saga está bastante buena y guión y dibujo se complementan a la perfección, en un cómic que huele a 80s sin apestar en ningún momento. Salvo por el coloreado, me cerró en casi todo, y ahora sé que le voy a poder entrar a "Terror", de la misma dupla creativa, sin asco. A ver cuándo me animo al hiperpospuesto Slash Maraud.
Me equivoqué. La saga está bastante buena y guión y dibujo se complementan a la perfección, en un cómic que huele a 80s sin apestar en ningún momento. Salvo por el coloreado, me cerró en casi todo, y ahora sé que le voy a poder entrar a "Terror", de la misma dupla creativa, sin asco. A ver cuándo me animo al hiperpospuesto Slash Maraud.
November 17, 2022
Prey may very well be one of the biggest surprise Batman story arcs because even though it doesn’t introduce any new characters or being about any new revelations about Bruce Wayne/Batman, it’s just a damn good story.
Well told, well paced, and one of the most action packed of any Batman comic I’ve read. Plus its time frame, fitting in right after the events of Year One makes for one of Batman’s best periods.
And that’s not even mentioning Gulacy’s gorgeous artwork that looks amazing in both decades this arc covers. Neither Batman nor Catwoman has looked this good since Brian Bolland’s stellar work on the Dark Knight.
Well told, well paced, and one of the most action packed of any Batman comic I’ve read. Plus its time frame, fitting in right after the events of Year One makes for one of Batman’s best periods.
And that’s not even mentioning Gulacy’s gorgeous artwork that looks amazing in both decades this arc covers. Neither Batman nor Catwoman has looked this good since Brian Bolland’s stellar work on the Dark Knight.
February 8, 2017
It's no shock that Moench and Gulacy put together 10 issues of fantastic Batman. What's perhaps shocking is that the second arc, "Terror", is a sequel to "Prey"-- 11 years later! While the first story (Legends of the Dark Knight 11-15) has that delightful late 80's very early 90's gritty DC look, the second one (LotDK 137-141) is more stylized, in line with what DC's books were like in 2001.
I prefer the earlier look, but they're both recognizably Gulacy. His women are gorgeous (we get lots of Catwoman in these books, as well as other ladies). His layouts are creative. And the presence of the Scarecrow means he gets to stretch his horror muscles a bit in the later issues.
If I had one complaint, it would be that Batman's narration feels a little bit off in the later story. Moench gets it so perfect the first time around that even a near-miss in the second story is obvious. But it probably wouldn't have been noticeable if I had read the stories eleven years apart.
I prefer the earlier look, but they're both recognizably Gulacy. His women are gorgeous (we get lots of Catwoman in these books, as well as other ladies). His layouts are creative. And the presence of the Scarecrow means he gets to stretch his horror muscles a bit in the later issues.
If I had one complaint, it would be that Batman's narration feels a little bit off in the later story. Moench gets it so perfect the first time around that even a near-miss in the second story is obvious. But it probably wouldn't have been noticeable if I had read the stories eleven years apart.
December 12, 2024
So this was actually a collection of the prey storyline and the Terror storyline .
For me the Prey storyline was the better of the two , as it really felt like the true successor of Year one storyline . This story introduced Hugo Strange and how his intellect is only overpowered by his crazyness . The story was action packed , thrilling , and the art supplemented everything . We also had the cameo of Catwoman but for most part her role was limited .
The terror storyline was also decent , however i felt this storyline was filled with too much monologues and plot holes , heck it even had the return of flashback to Scarecrow origin . In the end , it left a lot of unanswered questions and the art was meh at best
Both storylines displayed the fascinating characters and their respective growth or fall from grace , gordon , catwoman and Batman were really well done and Hugo strange just felt sinister .
The biggest drawback for the storyline was how needlessly sexualised the female characters were , from the posture , to the scant clothings to nude silhouette. It's sexy sure , but do we really need it in a comic book that kids also read . Probably a product of its time but still creepy
For me the Prey storyline was the better of the two , as it really felt like the true successor of Year one storyline . This story introduced Hugo Strange and how his intellect is only overpowered by his crazyness . The story was action packed , thrilling , and the art supplemented everything . We also had the cameo of Catwoman but for most part her role was limited .
The terror storyline was also decent , however i felt this storyline was filled with too much monologues and plot holes , heck it even had the return of flashback to Scarecrow origin . In the end , it left a lot of unanswered questions and the art was meh at best
Both storylines displayed the fascinating characters and their respective growth or fall from grace , gordon , catwoman and Batman were really well done and Hugo strange just felt sinister .
The biggest drawback for the storyline was how needlessly sexualised the female characters were , from the posture , to the scant clothings to nude silhouette. It's sexy sure , but do we really need it in a comic book that kids also read . Probably a product of its time but still creepy
July 27, 2024
3.75 stars. This creative team tells two stories about a decade apart and the first one was interesting, but a bit too “90’s” to enjoy in a serious manner and revolved around Hugo Strange and his obsession with Batman. The second story later on was much better in terms of the art style that had become evolved, the writing, and the story choices. This second half was much better, focusing on Scarecrow primarily, but spinning out of the first story with Hugo Strange. Overall, not a bad read!
September 26, 2022
Siempre ha sido mi saga favorita y perteneciente a mi etapa favorita
June 6, 2012
I have thoroughly enjoyed this story arc since the first time I read it. I was very happy when I saw that DC was going to recollect this because the older copies are being sold for a heinous amount of money. I wish it was in hardcover but I am still happy none-the-less.
The story is about a psychiatrist named Hugo Strange that is trying to figure out the identity of the Caped Crusader. The mayor has put Gordon in charge of a task force where the whole objective is the capture of Batman. Strange is appointed to be a police consultant to the task force which is a nuisance but it is later revealed that Strange has several ulterior motives to unmasking the real identity of Batman.
The story is about a psychiatrist named Hugo Strange that is trying to figure out the identity of the Caped Crusader. The mayor has put Gordon in charge of a task force where the whole objective is the capture of Batman. Strange is appointed to be a police consultant to the task force which is a nuisance but it is later revealed that Strange has several ulterior motives to unmasking the real identity of Batman.
June 6, 2019
Prey was great. I would give it 5 stars no doubt. The sequel was very good. I would give it 4. If I could do half star ratings I would for this book but I can't go the full Monty with 5 stars. So I'm sticking with 4. If anyone hasn't read this yet they really need to.
July 17, 2012
Hugo Strange - WAYYYYY to much Hugo Strange.
October 23, 2023
I am a casual Batman fan, cherry picking random collections based on creative teams or the era of original issue publication. The team of Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy was too great of a draw to resist. I normally despise ret-cons, as they usually mean one of two things: One, that the character(s) involved is/are so screwed up in their current incarnation that there is no other way to tell a cohesive story about said character(s), and/or Two, that the creative team involved is so lazy and unimaginative that there is no other way that they could tell a story using an established hero or villain. Batman seems to be the victim of endless retellings and reinterpretations of his early exploits, which serve to only further muddy the waters of continuity.
That said, these were enjoyable reads. Batman has more “dark” and “mature” themes applied to him than any other mainstream superhero, and given his origins as a derivative pulp character I can go with the Noir angle, but only to a point. Moench is a fine writer and Gulacy is a fine artist. Gulacy is paired with a pair of top notch inkers in Terry Austin and Jimmy Palmiotti. The art is easy on the eyes even if the paper in this book is shit.
The arc found in the first five issues collected in this book is a reinterpretation of Batman's first encounter with Doctor Hugo Strange which occurred in Detective Comics #36 way back in 1939 (the cover date was February, 1940, but the issue would have been on the stands in the final days of the 1930s). Since everything is better when it is made darker and grittier, Hugo Strange is made even kookier than he was in his first appearance, on down to a fetish with a manikin with a Batman costume...because, you know, story.
The second arc collected here is the sequel, this time with the Scarecrow in tow. I am a sucker for the Scarecrow, as scarecrows are cool as Hell. Catwoman is also featured prominently in this arc, but the ret-con factor totally ruins this for me. Like I said before, Moench is a fine writer, but is he really so bored with these characters that all's he can do is pretend that Batman doesn't know Catwoman? We have seen so many reboots, reinterpretations and ret-cons that none of these stories mean anything now. Cue douchebag fanboy whining, where they say Who cares one whit about continuity so long as we get a good story. If that's the case then nothing shown in any story matters. Sorry kids, but continuity matters because otherwise reading any story becomes a waste of your time. It matters or it doesn't...and if it doesn't then I don't care.
I loathe how Batman's narrative is done in a semi-cursive, semi-printed fashion. It is difficult to read in the murky gray boxes, made even murkier by the shitty paper that DC passes off on people in their collected editions. This was an at times entertaining read, although the aforementioned paper and lettering issues annoyed me.
That said, these were enjoyable reads. Batman has more “dark” and “mature” themes applied to him than any other mainstream superhero, and given his origins as a derivative pulp character I can go with the Noir angle, but only to a point. Moench is a fine writer and Gulacy is a fine artist. Gulacy is paired with a pair of top notch inkers in Terry Austin and Jimmy Palmiotti. The art is easy on the eyes even if the paper in this book is shit.
The arc found in the first five issues collected in this book is a reinterpretation of Batman's first encounter with Doctor Hugo Strange which occurred in Detective Comics #36 way back in 1939 (the cover date was February, 1940, but the issue would have been on the stands in the final days of the 1930s). Since everything is better when it is made darker and grittier, Hugo Strange is made even kookier than he was in his first appearance, on down to a fetish with a manikin with a Batman costume...because, you know, story.
The second arc collected here is the sequel, this time with the Scarecrow in tow. I am a sucker for the Scarecrow, as scarecrows are cool as Hell. Catwoman is also featured prominently in this arc, but the ret-con factor totally ruins this for me. Like I said before, Moench is a fine writer, but is he really so bored with these characters that all's he can do is pretend that Batman doesn't know Catwoman? We have seen so many reboots, reinterpretations and ret-cons that none of these stories mean anything now. Cue douchebag fanboy whining, where they say Who cares one whit about continuity so long as we get a good story. If that's the case then nothing shown in any story matters. Sorry kids, but continuity matters because otherwise reading any story becomes a waste of your time. It matters or it doesn't...and if it doesn't then I don't care.
I loathe how Batman's narrative is done in a semi-cursive, semi-printed fashion. It is difficult to read in the murky gray boxes, made even murkier by the shitty paper that DC passes off on people in their collected editions. This was an at times entertaining read, although the aforementioned paper and lettering issues annoyed me.
February 8, 2025
POPKULTUROWY KOCIOŁEK: Batman: Łowy to komiks, który przenosi nas do czasów, gdy Batman nie był jeszcze doświadczonym herosem, ale młodym, zdeterminowanym mścicielem, który dopiero uczy się swojego fachu. Obserwujemy, jak Bruce Wayne stawia pierwsze kroki jako Batman, jak testuje swoje granice, popełnia błędy i uczy się na nich. Widzimy, jak rodzi się legenda, jak kształtuje się Mroczny Rycerz, którego znamy i kochamy.
Mroczny Rycerz mierzy się tu z całą galerią złoczyńców, zarówno tych znanych, jak i trochę mniej popularnych. Na pierwszy plan wysuwa się doktor Hugo Strange, psychopatyczny geniusz, który stanowi dla Batmana nie tylko fizyczne, ale i psychiczne wyzwanie. Oprócz Strange’a, Batman musi również stawić czoła takim złoczyńcom jak Strach na Wróble czy tajemniczy mściciel znany jako Nocna Zmora. Każdy z nich wnosi do historii zarówno coś ciekawego, jak i dynamicznego i stanowi dla Batmana nowe wyzwanie zmuszającego go do osobistego rozwoju.
Album ten to nie tylko historia o walce ze złoczyńcami, ale również o relacjach i dylematach, z którymi musi się zmierzyć Batman. Widzimy, jak kształtuje się jego relacja z komisarzem Gordonem, jak rodzi się między nimi wzajemne zaufanie i szacunek, jak sam Batman powoli się rozwija. Doug Moench bardzo płynnie i ciekawie wplata w fabułę konsekwencje braku doświadczenia Batmana, co skutkuje jego błędami.
Poznajemy tu również Catwoman, która w tym komiksie odgrywa ważną rolę. Jej relacja z Batmanem jest skomplikowana, pełna napięcia i niejednoznaczności. Moench zgrabnie balansuje między tymi relacjami, dodając historii głębi i emocjonalnego ładunku. To właśnie te relacje, te interakcje z innymi postaciami, czynią Batmana bardziej ludzkim, bardziej zrozumiałym. Widzimy, że za maską Mrocznego Rycerza kryje się człowiek, który pragnie akceptacji, zrozumienia i, być może, nawet przyjaźni.
Zalety albumu to jedno, ale trzeba również przyjrzeć się pewnym wadom tytułu. Album dzieli się na dwie części (zebrane w albumach Prey i Terror). Pierwsza część (Prey) jest naprawdę ciekawa, angażująca i nawet w kilku momentach zaskakująca. Druga część komiksu niestety robi się bardziej sztampowa i nastawiona na większą ilość akcji. Nadal jest to solidny kawał superbohaterskiej lektury, ale pewna schematyczność powoduje, że czujemy tu pewne braki. Można mieć tu również pewne zastrzeżenia do większego skupiania uwagi autora na mniej istotnych kwestiach przy słabszym rozwinięciu innych ciekawszych wątków....
https://popkulturowykociolek.pl/kotka...
Mroczny Rycerz mierzy się tu z całą galerią złoczyńców, zarówno tych znanych, jak i trochę mniej popularnych. Na pierwszy plan wysuwa się doktor Hugo Strange, psychopatyczny geniusz, który stanowi dla Batmana nie tylko fizyczne, ale i psychiczne wyzwanie. Oprócz Strange’a, Batman musi również stawić czoła takim złoczyńcom jak Strach na Wróble czy tajemniczy mściciel znany jako Nocna Zmora. Każdy z nich wnosi do historii zarówno coś ciekawego, jak i dynamicznego i stanowi dla Batmana nowe wyzwanie zmuszającego go do osobistego rozwoju.
Album ten to nie tylko historia o walce ze złoczyńcami, ale również o relacjach i dylematach, z którymi musi się zmierzyć Batman. Widzimy, jak kształtuje się jego relacja z komisarzem Gordonem, jak rodzi się między nimi wzajemne zaufanie i szacunek, jak sam Batman powoli się rozwija. Doug Moench bardzo płynnie i ciekawie wplata w fabułę konsekwencje braku doświadczenia Batmana, co skutkuje jego błędami.
Poznajemy tu również Catwoman, która w tym komiksie odgrywa ważną rolę. Jej relacja z Batmanem jest skomplikowana, pełna napięcia i niejednoznaczności. Moench zgrabnie balansuje między tymi relacjami, dodając historii głębi i emocjonalnego ładunku. To właśnie te relacje, te interakcje z innymi postaciami, czynią Batmana bardziej ludzkim, bardziej zrozumiałym. Widzimy, że za maską Mrocznego Rycerza kryje się człowiek, który pragnie akceptacji, zrozumienia i, być może, nawet przyjaźni.
Zalety albumu to jedno, ale trzeba również przyjrzeć się pewnym wadom tytułu. Album dzieli się na dwie części (zebrane w albumach Prey i Terror). Pierwsza część (Prey) jest naprawdę ciekawa, angażująca i nawet w kilku momentach zaskakująca. Druga część komiksu niestety robi się bardziej sztampowa i nastawiona na większą ilość akcji. Nadal jest to solidny kawał superbohaterskiej lektury, ale pewna schematyczność powoduje, że czujemy tu pewne braki. Można mieć tu również pewne zastrzeżenia do większego skupiania uwagi autora na mniej istotnych kwestiach przy słabszym rozwinięciu innych ciekawszych wątków....
https://popkulturowykociolek.pl/kotka...
November 14, 2022
A dark and intriguing entry into the modern Batman chronology, this collected edition of the Hugo Strange focused 'Legends of the Dark Knight' (1989) comics is an interesting look at the early psychology of Batman and the difference between criminals and villains.
Batman: Prey takes place in the earliest days of Batman, specifically showing the creation of the Batmobile and a more human Batman who is still in the process of separating the Bat from the Man and what it means to be a symbol, to be something more than man which connects very well to the story built up in 'Shaman'.
Dr. Hugo Strange, the creepiest of psychologists is offering the GCPD his profiling skills to help catch 'The Batman' as part of an Anti-Vigilante Taskforce alongside an arrogant cop, much to the chagrin of Captain James Gordon who has been assigned to lead, even as he helps the man he is charged with catching. While Strange's analysis of the Bat are explosive, a truth is reflected in them that gives Bruce Wayne pause as he must learn to master himself and prove himself to the city as a new, more violent vigilante stalks the streets and Dr. Strange unravels with his growing obsession.
Batman: Terror takes place some months, possibly even a year later with both Gordon and Batman, now more secure in his place in the city musing about earlier events. A stronger story, with more of the villains of classic Batman referenced, Terror works specifically to cover new facets of the Crusade. It can be easy to see Bruce Wayne as merely a mask, but Terror does the work of showing that the Crusade must be fought on multiple fronts.
It also is a tour de force for the Scarecrow, giving Crane the formula for Fear Gas we are all familiar for and continuing the build up of the unique relationship between Catwoman and Batman. Whereas Year One focuses a lot on the standard criminal elements of mobsters, Terror picks up where Prey left off with giving us a strong story of a 'villain' whose crimes are about desire rather than desperation.
The art styles of each story are different, with Terror feeling more polished, almost shiny in comparison with the sketchier style of Prey. Both styles work very well for their respective stories, with Scarecrow nearly popping off the page in Terror with its strong use of color.
Overall, I would give this collection 3.5 stars, rounded up to four.
Batman: Prey takes place in the earliest days of Batman, specifically showing the creation of the Batmobile and a more human Batman who is still in the process of separating the Bat from the Man and what it means to be a symbol, to be something more than man which connects very well to the story built up in 'Shaman'.
Dr. Hugo Strange, the creepiest of psychologists is offering the GCPD his profiling skills to help catch 'The Batman' as part of an Anti-Vigilante Taskforce alongside an arrogant cop, much to the chagrin of Captain James Gordon who has been assigned to lead, even as he helps the man he is charged with catching. While Strange's analysis of the Bat are explosive, a truth is reflected in them that gives Bruce Wayne pause as he must learn to master himself and prove himself to the city as a new, more violent vigilante stalks the streets and Dr. Strange unravels with his growing obsession.
Batman: Terror takes place some months, possibly even a year later with both Gordon and Batman, now more secure in his place in the city musing about earlier events. A stronger story, with more of the villains of classic Batman referenced, Terror works specifically to cover new facets of the Crusade. It can be easy to see Bruce Wayne as merely a mask, but Terror does the work of showing that the Crusade must be fought on multiple fronts.
It also is a tour de force for the Scarecrow, giving Crane the formula for Fear Gas we are all familiar for and continuing the build up of the unique relationship between Catwoman and Batman. Whereas Year One focuses a lot on the standard criminal elements of mobsters, Terror picks up where Prey left off with giving us a strong story of a 'villain' whose crimes are about desire rather than desperation.
The art styles of each story are different, with Terror feeling more polished, almost shiny in comparison with the sketchier style of Prey. Both styles work very well for their respective stories, with Scarecrow nearly popping off the page in Terror with its strong use of color.
Overall, I would give this collection 3.5 stars, rounded up to four.
May 6, 2025
Wydany na początku roku klasyk, który ładnie polaryzuje, wskazując jak mocno rozwinęła się postać Batmana. Bo to są jeszcze czasy, kiedy Bruce Wayne jako Batman popełniał masę błędów, mając małe doświadczenie bojowe. I lata na Bat-lotni. Super.
Mamy tu dwie klasyczne już historie. Prey i Terror. Obie wprowadzają kultowych już złoczyńców ze świata Batmana. Łowy prezentują nam Hugo Strange'a, onegdaj normalnego psychiatrę. Ten nakreślony tutaj z normalnością ma mało wspólnego, zwłaszcza że w zaciszu mieszkania rozmawia z przebranym manekinem. Stara się też rozgryźć, kto kryje się pod maską Mrocznego Rycerza. A gdy już to zrobi, to poprowadzi bardzo misterną grę, która wstrząśnie Wayne'm bardzo mocno...
Druga historia pt. Terror kontynuuje działania Strange'a, który to zamierza rozszerzyć swoje ataki na Batmana poprzez pozyskanie sojusznika w postaci Jonathana Crane'a, a raczej jego alter ego, czyli Stracha na Wróble. I szczerze mówiąc - nie jestem w stanie wybrać, który budzi większy niepokój. Obaj są świetnie sportretowani. Obaj odcisną na Batmanie jakieś piętno. Chociaż wygląd Scarecrowa z kosą... Mistrzostwo świata.
To też moment, kiedy relacja z Catwoman nabiera jakiegoś kształtu, tworząc pomiędzy parą swoiste seksualne napięcie, zwłaszcza że sama Kotka ma tutaj mocno przeseksualizowany wizerunek. Nie jest to jedyna postać, z którą Batman zacieśnia stosunki, bo bohater może tu też liczyć na Gordona, który zdaje się być przekonanym w stosunku do zamaskowanego pogromcy przestępców. Cóż można więcej rzec?
Mimo, że omawiane historie ukazały się grubo powyżej trzydziestu lat temu, tak nadal mają sporo do zaoferowania. Mają wyjątkowo mroczny klimat czy elementy, których raczej dzisiaj na próżno szukać we współczesnych tytułach. Nie ulega jednak wątpliwości, że czuć, iż całość nadgryzł ząb czasu, co wyglądem może nie podpaść młodszym czytelnikom. Niemniej to nadal istotna cegiełka do budowy ikony, jaką jest dzisiaj Batman.
Mamy tu dwie klasyczne już historie. Prey i Terror. Obie wprowadzają kultowych już złoczyńców ze świata Batmana. Łowy prezentują nam Hugo Strange'a, onegdaj normalnego psychiatrę. Ten nakreślony tutaj z normalnością ma mało wspólnego, zwłaszcza że w zaciszu mieszkania rozmawia z przebranym manekinem. Stara się też rozgryźć, kto kryje się pod maską Mrocznego Rycerza. A gdy już to zrobi, to poprowadzi bardzo misterną grę, która wstrząśnie Wayne'm bardzo mocno...
Druga historia pt. Terror kontynuuje działania Strange'a, który to zamierza rozszerzyć swoje ataki na Batmana poprzez pozyskanie sojusznika w postaci Jonathana Crane'a, a raczej jego alter ego, czyli Stracha na Wróble. I szczerze mówiąc - nie jestem w stanie wybrać, który budzi większy niepokój. Obaj są świetnie sportretowani. Obaj odcisną na Batmanie jakieś piętno. Chociaż wygląd Scarecrowa z kosą... Mistrzostwo świata.
To też moment, kiedy relacja z Catwoman nabiera jakiegoś kształtu, tworząc pomiędzy parą swoiste seksualne napięcie, zwłaszcza że sama Kotka ma tutaj mocno przeseksualizowany wizerunek. Nie jest to jedyna postać, z którą Batman zacieśnia stosunki, bo bohater może tu też liczyć na Gordona, który zdaje się być przekonanym w stosunku do zamaskowanego pogromcy przestępców. Cóż można więcej rzec?
Mimo, że omawiane historie ukazały się grubo powyżej trzydziestu lat temu, tak nadal mają sporo do zaoferowania. Mają wyjątkowo mroczny klimat czy elementy, których raczej dzisiaj na próżno szukać we współczesnych tytułach. Nie ulega jednak wątpliwości, że czuć, iż całość nadgryzł ząb czasu, co wyglądem może nie podpaść młodszym czytelnikom. Niemniej to nadal istotna cegiełka do budowy ikony, jaką jest dzisiaj Batman.
September 10, 2023
O encadernado Batman Acossado não possui apenas a história que o nomeia, mas também a história Terror, ambas se passando após Batman Ano Um. Levando em consideração as histórias do primeiro ano de atuação do Batman, como o Longo Dia das Bruxas e Xamã, é difícil indicar com precisão onde este encadernado se encaixa, mas ele se passa no início de carreira do Batman, com elementos que apontam isso. É importante destacar que Batman Acossado é primeiro, e posteriormente vem Batman Terror, sendo uma continuação, mas não necessariamente da trama, pois Acossado possui final, mas uma continuação com menções e elementos da primeira história.
Em Batman Acossado temos nosso vigilante tendo que combater os vilões de Gotham e precisando lidar com a sua popularidade negativa sendo propagada pela mídia, em apoio do Prefeito junto com o Psicólogo Hugo Strange. É interessante ver o Batman sendo encurralado pela opinião popular e pela polícia, deixando-o apenas com Gordon como seu aliado, mas sem poder solicitar ajuda a ele. Também é legal de ver a mídia atuando na opinião das ações do vigilante, o que me remeteu a Cavaleiro das Trevas do frank Miller, o qual utiliza bastante desse elemento.
Já em Batman Terror, temos uma reviravolta interessante sobre o antagonista da história, pois Hugo Strange está de volta a Gotham e inicia seu plano contra Batman, no entanto Strange subjulga o Espantalho, e é traído por ele. O Espantalho nessa história é apresentado como um indivíduo temido, com elementos de história de Terror bem presentes durante a trama.
Em Batman Acossado temos nosso vigilante tendo que combater os vilões de Gotham e precisando lidar com a sua popularidade negativa sendo propagada pela mídia, em apoio do Prefeito junto com o Psicólogo Hugo Strange. É interessante ver o Batman sendo encurralado pela opinião popular e pela polícia, deixando-o apenas com Gordon como seu aliado, mas sem poder solicitar ajuda a ele. Também é legal de ver a mídia atuando na opinião das ações do vigilante, o que me remeteu a Cavaleiro das Trevas do frank Miller, o qual utiliza bastante desse elemento.
Já em Batman Terror, temos uma reviravolta interessante sobre o antagonista da história, pois Hugo Strange está de volta a Gotham e inicia seu plano contra Batman, no entanto Strange subjulga o Espantalho, e é traído por ele. O Espantalho nessa história é apresentado como um indivíduo temido, com elementos de história de Terror bem presentes durante a trama.
May 10, 2022
This is a two parter. Prey is excellent and one of my favourites so far that I didn't already know about. Very psychologically rich and superbly written. Everyone seems like they're up to something. Dr Strange hiding in the open and using the media to put pressure on batman. Gordon is forced to set up a task force hunting vigilantes. Leaves the bat with very little friends and as though everyone's against him. If he loses Gordon he loses it all. Assume this kind of pressure could lead him in to the stance taken with the Frank Miller dark Knight returns stuff. So everything seemed on track. Plus I'd always wanted a good Strange story so this delivered there. He even starts this batman fetish, which was hilarious.
In the second part, titled "terror", everything falls apart. There isn't the same kind of pressures and psychological stuff. They've tried to keep it along the same lines by having scarecrow but it just doesn't feel the same. The writing isn't as developed and the tone seems very different. Even the art work wasn't the same style. Whole thing was a lot sillier with Johnny C moaning about bullies. Not necessarily bad but it didn't fit at all with the first part. It was as though theyd been crammed together. Atleast there was more bat signal building and always love when he gets all horny with catwoman.
In the second part, titled "terror", everything falls apart. There isn't the same kind of pressures and psychological stuff. They've tried to keep it along the same lines by having scarecrow but it just doesn't feel the same. The writing isn't as developed and the tone seems very different. Even the art work wasn't the same style. Whole thing was a lot sillier with Johnny C moaning about bullies. Not necessarily bad but it didn't fit at all with the first part. It was as though theyd been crammed together. Atleast there was more bat signal building and always love when he gets all horny with catwoman.
March 12, 2024
Some good ol’ 90s Batman. Starting with "Prey," there’s a lot of dialogue, maybe a little too much dialogue, and it’s not particularly good dialogue either. Very cringeworthy at times. Strange is a Bat villain that I’m honestly not super familiar with, so I was intrigued, but he doesn’t really come across as a huge threat, just unhinged. All in all, the writing isn’t terrible, but definitely doesn’t measure up to the better Batman writers.
What I liked: the building dynamic between Batman and Gordon, which has always been interesting to me. I also liked the art for the most part. 80s/90s style isn’t usually my thing, but I really didn’t mind it here (except y’know the typical objectification of women that seemed standard in the industry at the time).
Minor gripe: the lettering, specifically, the cursive lettering for Batman’s narration. I can read/write cursive, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I want to in my comics. Kudos though on the lovely penmanship.
As far as "Terror" goes, I couldn't really get into it. It serves as a sequel to "Prey," but is definitely lacking whatever made "Prey" engaging.
What I liked: the building dynamic between Batman and Gordon, which has always been interesting to me. I also liked the art for the most part. 80s/90s style isn’t usually my thing, but I really didn’t mind it here (except y’know the typical objectification of women that seemed standard in the industry at the time).
Minor gripe: the lettering, specifically, the cursive lettering for Batman’s narration. I can read/write cursive, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I want to in my comics. Kudos though on the lovely penmanship.
As far as "Terror" goes, I couldn't really get into it. It serves as a sequel to "Prey," but is definitely lacking whatever made "Prey" engaging.
December 21, 2024
Two stories by Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy at different periods of time, dealing with the villain Hugo Strange, and his machinations in order to get under the skin of Batman, using other people to get to him.
Its interesting how his modus operandi seems consistent years apart of both stories, yet Moech and co. play with the fact that you cannt underestimate Gothams horror, or you might end biting more tha you can chew.
Gulacy's art in this one is kind of a 50-50, in the first story, the classic style serves well the entire narrative, setting a great tone for the story. But in the second one, the more digital style kind of harms many of his renditions, even if yoy can fill his style still there.
Two good psychological horros stories in a good Batman collected edition. I would have hoped more extra material from the creators, but you cant win them all.
Its interesting how his modus operandi seems consistent years apart of both stories, yet Moech and co. play with the fact that you cannt underestimate Gothams horror, or you might end biting more tha you can chew.
Gulacy's art in this one is kind of a 50-50, in the first story, the classic style serves well the entire narrative, setting a great tone for the story. But in the second one, the more digital style kind of harms many of his renditions, even if yoy can fill his style still there.
Two good psychological horros stories in a good Batman collected edition. I would have hoped more extra material from the creators, but you cant win them all.
May 12, 2022
I wanted to give this five stars. I really did. The reason it is really 4.5 is because of two reasons.
1. I hate the use of cursive writing in comics. Yes I can read them; it’s just annoying.
2. The first arc of the book is not that great, but the second arc is addicting.
So the primary villain of these arcs is Dr. Hugo Strange. I’ve seen Hugo in media before like the Arkham City game and the drama Gotham. Turns out comic book Hugo is brilliant and psychopath, but a dangerous highly functional psychopath.
The art is good (LOVED the art for the second art) it’s a good fun read that introduces Hugo Strange, gives some backstory for The Scarecrow, and gives Catwoman some love as well. Good collection; better than Batman: Gothic.
1. I hate the use of cursive writing in comics. Yes I can read them; it’s just annoying.
2. The first arc of the book is not that great, but the second arc is addicting.
So the primary villain of these arcs is Dr. Hugo Strange. I’ve seen Hugo in media before like the Arkham City game and the drama Gotham. Turns out comic book Hugo is brilliant and psychopath, but a dangerous highly functional psychopath.
The art is good (LOVED the art for the second art) it’s a good fun read that introduces Hugo Strange, gives some backstory for The Scarecrow, and gives Catwoman some love as well. Good collection; better than Batman: Gothic.
September 28, 2025
Almost a direct follow-up to, or almost set in parallel to ‘Batman: Year One,’ a younger Batman is forced to deal with a more psychological threat in Hugo Strange. Strange is Batman’s most compelling villain, by far. He’s the one with the most narrative potential. In this early-years Batman story, his presence really adds a more exhilarating and tense nature to the story. Unlike Batman Year One, this story doesn’t waste time to establish origin of character’s and jumps straight into the dark and mature mystery. Gordon, Batman and Catwoman are all pre-established central figures to this overarching Detective-Noir-focused 90’s era of Batman comics, and ‘Batman: Prey’ is almost an underrated story, or an unsung hero, amongst that era.
(4.5/5) - 90%
(4.5/5) - 90%
September 30, 2025
All throughout PREY, the walls close in on Batman. The police, the media, new villains—everyone’s hunting him, turning the predator into, well, the prey. It’s a gripping story and a lot of fun, even if parts of it (Catherine’s “outfit” for most of the story) hasn’t aged well.
Part of what makes PREY so good is its setting. It was published in Legends of the Dark Knight, a comic book series set in the early days of Batman’s career. At the beginning of this story, he doesn’t even have the Batmobile yet. His lack of transportation plays a role in the tale, as does the psychology Dr. Hugo Strange (an underrepresented villain) uses to break Batman down psychologically while his other hunters run him ragged.
Part of what makes PREY so good is its setting. It was published in Legends of the Dark Knight, a comic book series set in the early days of Batman’s career. At the beginning of this story, he doesn’t even have the Batmobile yet. His lack of transportation plays a role in the tale, as does the psychology Dr. Hugo Strange (an underrepresented villain) uses to break Batman down psychologically while his other hunters run him ragged.
August 17, 2023
I think it's a good one-off graphic novel that portrays batman well.
His struggles with his grief are done well, and it's also very dark and moody.
I love Gordon in this he's just a very fair and good honest man who ends up believing in batman. I like the development between Gordon and batman.
I also liked Dr. Hugo. I loved how he just went insane and how creepy it ended up being.
I didn't really find catwoman interesting. I feel like her being in this story was pointless as it added nothing, in my opinion.
The artwork is just beautiful. I love the old bat suit. I also found the pacing of the story to be decent.
7.5/10
His struggles with his grief are done well, and it's also very dark and moody.
I love Gordon in this he's just a very fair and good honest man who ends up believing in batman. I like the development between Gordon and batman.
I also liked Dr. Hugo. I loved how he just went insane and how creepy it ended up being.
I didn't really find catwoman interesting. I feel like her being in this story was pointless as it added nothing, in my opinion.
The artwork is just beautiful. I love the old bat suit. I also found the pacing of the story to be decent.
7.5/10
May 27, 2024
Really really was surprised, not surprised, but thrown by how good it was.
I absolutely loved everything about this comic. The cheesy but not too cheesy characters, some of the dialogue and innuendo but the writing was solid. Enjoyed the scarecrow in this even as silly as he was at times but the big surprise for me was Hugo Strange, he was a great nut and so was his helper. Well helpers when you add the "girlfriend "lol. Also loved the dynamic of Gordon and batman because they still don't know each other. Maybe Alfred was popular at this time or something but he felt underutilized. But that's my only nit pick, other then that, was just a great read.
I absolutely loved everything about this comic. The cheesy but not too cheesy characters, some of the dialogue and innuendo but the writing was solid. Enjoyed the scarecrow in this even as silly as he was at times but the big surprise for me was Hugo Strange, he was a great nut and so was his helper. Well helpers when you add the "girlfriend "lol. Also loved the dynamic of Gordon and batman because they still don't know each other. Maybe Alfred was popular at this time or something but he felt underutilized. But that's my only nit pick, other then that, was just a great read.
September 18, 2025
I thought this one was fun. Never thought Hugo Strange was that compelling of a villain, but this book changed my mind. His incel vibes really sell him better than the PG mad scientist version of him from BTAS does.
Gulacy’s art is peak boomer activities. Every woman looks like a stripper, tons of gratuitous nudity, all the cops and thugs look like village people. This era of art is for sure not for everyone, but I’m a sucker for 90’s comic schlock and the purple catwoman suit, sue me lol.
This collection also has the sequel story, Batman: Terror, which is a solid follow up and a pretty good Scarecrow story.
Gulacy’s art is peak boomer activities. Every woman looks like a stripper, tons of gratuitous nudity, all the cops and thugs look like village people. This era of art is for sure not for everyone, but I’m a sucker for 90’s comic schlock and the purple catwoman suit, sue me lol.
This collection also has the sequel story, Batman: Terror, which is a solid follow up and a pretty good Scarecrow story.
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