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Batman: Dark Victory
Batman: Dark Victory #1
Gotham City is caught in the middle of a battle between what's left of the Falcone mob and freakish villains such as the Joker, Mr. Freeze and Catwoman. Plus, the serial killer named Holiday seems to have returned to a life of crime, but who is committing Holiday's murders this time?
48 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 29, 2014
5 people are currently reading
224 people want to read
About the author
Jeph Loeb
1,591 books1,386 followersJoseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an Emmy and WGA nominated American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a Co-Executive Producer on the NBC hit show Heroes, and formerly a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost.
A four-time Eisner Award winner and five-time Wizard Fan Awards winner (see below), Loeb's comic book career includes work on many major characters, including Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, Hulk, Captain America, Cable, Iron Man, Daredevil, Supergirl, the Avengers, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, much of which he has produced in collaboration with artist Tim Sale, who provides the comic art seen on Heroes.
A four-time Eisner Award winner and five-time Wizard Fan Awards winner (see below), Loeb's comic book career includes work on many major characters, including Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, Hulk, Captain America, Cable, Iron Man, Daredevil, Supergirl, the Avengers, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, much of which he has produced in collaboration with artist Tim Sale, who provides the comic art seen on Heroes.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
February 24, 2025
ladies and gentlemen we are witnessing peak fiction right about now
January 29, 2026
Outstanding. Continuing the Long Halloween story and managing to maintain the quality.
Peak storytelling with artwork to match.
Crime families are moving their chess pieces around the board. Jim Gordon's relationship with his wife is in the gutter and fragile to say the least with Batman.
Two-Face has been kidnapped and the city is awash with violence.
Peak storytelling with artwork to match.
Crime families are moving their chess pieces around the board. Jim Gordon's relationship with his wife is in the gutter and fragile to say the least with Batman.
Two-Face has been kidnapped and the city is awash with violence.
September 2, 2025
4/5
we have never been more back. the aftermath of long halloween feels even worse than what happened in long halloween. everyone is just depressed and lonely but somehow it just keeps getting worse. FUCK YES!!!!
we have never been more back. the aftermath of long halloween feels even worse than what happened in long halloween. everyone is just depressed and lonely but somehow it just keeps getting worse. FUCK YES!!!!
August 8, 2025
What a first issue, the art is amazing, the story is thrilling and gut wrenching, and using the DC high volume podcast as a companion to this is the best thing in the world. Sure it gives away some of the early secrets with the very notable voices , but it’s all worth it. Plus this immediately acts as the perfect continuation of long Halloween, why have I not read this series alongside the other Loeb/Sale DC stuff, I’ve only been doing a disservice to myself. This issue starts all the way back to that dark lonely alley where Bruce found himself on the other end of the gun, unable to act physically or mentally after loosing his parents. He remembers back to the funeral, all the people that came to him to tell him how sorry and assure him he was not alone…except for one man…Carmine “The Roman” Falcone. Even then Bruce knew he was evil, and as we cut to the modern day this scene is reflected in Bruce standing on a mausoleum watching the funeral of Carmine Falcone as his, now wheelchair bound, daughter hosts the service and receives the same apologies and promises should she need anything that Bruce once received. Except this time…everyone is evil. Additionally, Selina Kyle is in attendance tonight, sporting a new man on her shoulder. That night Selina made a promise to her father’s grave, to restore balance in Gotham by taking power away from the “freaks” who have taken so much of their territory. But suddenly one random guard walked up and somehow balanced on the same structurally unsound roof batman is standing on. GIVE THIS GUY A MEDAL FOR the EFFORT!! He could of easily fired on batman from the ground, lol, but it wouldn’t matter anyway as just as easily batman threw batarangs to knock him off the roof and the rest of the attendees opened fire. As Sofia stares at batman, I can’t help but feel she ropes him into the rest of the “freaks” she wants to purge from the city. Batman rushes into action, aided by Sale’s amazing artwork, as he pushes past the guards the best he could…only to be aided by a very peculiar cat. He runs over and tackles her to a safe position, scolding her for showing up here, but right as the police sirens roar in the distance…they are gone.
As Gordon stands at the scene after it is cleaned up he can’t help but feel mad that out of all the big crime families there, they could only arrest the small fry. Luckily Chief of Police Clancy O’Hara is there to console Gordon, he’s been on the beat a long time and he sees catching anything as a good thing. But as Gordon looks out there and wonders why batman is not showing himself, we are reminded of a promise batman said earlier as the funeral kicked off. Today was not only the last birthday celebrated by Carmine Falcone, but also the anniversary of acid being thrown into Harvey Dent’s face. On that day Batman lost a friend, and now he sees the burden of ridding Gotham of evil as his own, it must be his and his alone. There is no longer room to bring Jim into this, he could only get hurt.
As the next day comes around we jump over to Wayne manor as Bruce is swimming laps in the pool, only to suddenly come up and find Selina Kyle waiting for him, and she brought a guest…Marion Falcone, the other Falcone brother who was deported. It’s so immediately clear that Bruce doesn’t like him and I love how they showcase Bruce’s height over Mario immediately. Mario has come here because he is getting setup in the city with a legit import business and has always heard the Wayne family is apart of Gotham and that they are indebted to the Wayne’s. Bruce brushes him off, the debt is paid for, and I love that Bruce leaves the conversation with a comment about Selina knowing the way out, shoving it in Mario’s face that she has been there with him before. Petty, lol.
As time passes into September a night comes that DA Janice Porter drags Jim out of his office and over to Arkham to visit Alberto. Batman doesn’t seem impressed with her or her experience as the DA of Boston. He sees the two as completely different things, and Harvey can’t be replaced that quickly. As the two arrive at Arkham, they meet Alberto alongside his brother, Mario, as they deliver the news that a court date has been set and a judge is interested in reviewing Alberto’s case. Well I should say that Porter was there to deliver the news, as Jim remained rightfully very vocal that this is insane and Alberto killed dozens as Holiday. Mario doesn’t take Jim’s “opinion” with much consideration, and Porter has to step in and stop everyone to assert her authority before a full fight breaks out. But as they are leaving, a new and very buff orderly walks up and whispers to Alberto that he is watching, lol, I love when Batman is like that. As Gordon and Porter leave Arkham and walk in the main wing filled with spiraling cells, the two get into it a bit about Harvey’s time as DA and what he did in office…and they happen to do it all right in front of Harvey’s cell. But Porter’s ultimate point remains the same, they have relied too much on batman crossing the line and she is using Alberto as an example that is not okay.
That night Sofia sits in her father’s penthouse working with others on a hit, they are planning on killing Harvey Dent. But she wants to make sure that no one is to hurt Alberto during the process. Suddenly the lights go out and her goons get a bit trigger happy, but she calms them down. They took the precaution of electrifying the balconies in case they had an uninvited guest, something just set it off and Sofia sent her new personal bodyguard, Mr. Mirti, to check it out. Seems that he did find something…a single grappling hook, lol.
Elsewhere on the Gotham city bridge, at midnight, Gordon and O’Hara meet. This used to be O’Hara’s beat and he still walks it everyday, and it’s here that O’Hara passes off a mysterious document to Jim. Something that no one else knows about and something he didn’t feel comfortable handing over in front of anyone, even the others at the office. O’Hara thinks back on his time here, things used to be different…up until the Wayne murders. They became a stain that couldn’t come out of the department, and it has never been the same, being a cop doesn’t mean what it used to. Jim wonders if they can make it mean something again, but O’Hara only has one opinion to give out…Jim should go and talk to the bat about this. The bat signal lit up that night, and Batman sure enough showed up to talk to Jim. But they don’t get to talk about much, Jim mentions Porter’s plans to release Alberto and Batman says to let her do what she wants, he has his own plans but he isn’t letting Jim in on it. Jim tries to reach out again, he knows batman is hurting, they both lost a friend…but once again batman is gone. Later we see as batman broods on a rooftop as Catwoman comes and joins him, wrapping her tail around him int he process. Batman noticed she was injured, and although she isn’t telling him what it is I’m willing to bet that is from being shocked. The message she has for him confirms that, as she informs Batman that his friend Harvey Dent is in danger and the falcones intend to kill him. But all batman can say is that Harvey isn’t his friend anymore. Selina was very justified in slapping him after he said that, she sees nothing in him anymore and before she departs she mentions that she can only hope he will show more interest when they start gunning for her.
But batman still cares, and that night, Halloween night, we see as batman visits Harvey in his cell in Arkham. Harvey pretty hilariously mentions that they both look like they are ready for Halloween, but as batman remembers back to that time and mentions Gilda…the scarred version of Harvey pipes up and dismisses his wife as someone he knows entirely. All the while as they are talking a team of assassins is breaking in, setting up explosions, and firing off shots that batman finally takes notice too. Batman forces Harvey to promise that no matter what, he won’t try and escape…and Harvey’s side actually promises. But as Batman leaves, the scarred part of himself takes over and they ultimately decide what to do not on a promise…but on a coin flip. But suddenly batman can’t worry about Harvey as the entire building goes up in flames! He has miscalculated Catwoman’s warning, they aren’t just here for Harvey and are blowing the door off every cell! This has taken intricate planing and intimate knowledge of Arkham to pull off an assault this large. Batman works to start rounding up the rouges, crashing mad hatter into the ground, tying Ivy up, but suddenly his suspect list of who is behind this is narrowed down as he realizes who is already gone. Joker and scarecrow were prepared, and the preparation was even down to sending Grundy to occupy batman during this breakout. Luckily batman was able to use a rope and the pounds of his fist to take Grundy down, leaving him to run to the person who would benefit the most from this. But as he arrives in the cell block of calender man and Alberto Falcone…only calendar man is gone. Alberto is standing in his broken cell, not going anywhere. He claims he is innocent, why would he run? But as the chaos calms down there is one noticeable person missing…Harvey Dent. That night Batman visited Sofia in her penthouse, seems that electricity is no match for him. In her mind she hopes he is dead, but batman promises her that if she keeps going after this he can guarantee she will lose everything. This triggers Sofia, what else does she have left?! As she sits in her wheelchair, neck brace on her head, she rips off her wig to show a head full of scars from surgery. She doesn’t believe she has anything left, and she owes it all to Harvey Dent.
November comes around and court is in session. Per the judge’s decree Alberto will be released into the full custody of his brother, Mario. This of course comes with a short leash and a one way ticket back to prison if any violation occurs. Additionally the judge will make it his personal visit to get Mario deported again. I agree with Gordon as he tells Porter that she will regret this for the rest of her life. As Mario and Alberto walk away freely and push past the press, Jim stands sulking at the top of the court house steps…only to have a voice whisper out to him that they will be watching Alberto very closely. Now if you haven’t read this it would be easy to assume that is batman but he isn’t showing his face because he isn’t working with anyone right now. But if you listen to the audio version with the full cast…you would be very surprised to find out that is Harvey. So it is also probably Harvey that goes to the grave of Carmine Falcone and busts it open, and probably the same person that broke that grave open to cut off Carmine’s wedding finger to send to Sofia. This act reflects an old style message to tell Sofia that someone intends on taking everything from her. Yeah…it’s Harvey. I wonder if it was also Harvey who broke into the office of DA Porter and stole every file that Harvey Dent ever worked on in that office. But I really hope it wasn’t Harvey who commuted the act that ends this issue. As Chief of Police O’Hara is found, hung from the Gotham bridge he walked as part of his beat for thirty years. Left on his body was a cut out newspaper talking about Holiday walking free, with a hangman’s puzzle written in blood. It wasn’t completed, but if you fill in the rest of the clues it says “none of you are safe.” Oh no…please tell me that wasn’t Harvey.
As Gordon stands at the scene after it is cleaned up he can’t help but feel mad that out of all the big crime families there, they could only arrest the small fry. Luckily Chief of Police Clancy O’Hara is there to console Gordon, he’s been on the beat a long time and he sees catching anything as a good thing. But as Gordon looks out there and wonders why batman is not showing himself, we are reminded of a promise batman said earlier as the funeral kicked off. Today was not only the last birthday celebrated by Carmine Falcone, but also the anniversary of acid being thrown into Harvey Dent’s face. On that day Batman lost a friend, and now he sees the burden of ridding Gotham of evil as his own, it must be his and his alone. There is no longer room to bring Jim into this, he could only get hurt.
As the next day comes around we jump over to Wayne manor as Bruce is swimming laps in the pool, only to suddenly come up and find Selina Kyle waiting for him, and she brought a guest…Marion Falcone, the other Falcone brother who was deported. It’s so immediately clear that Bruce doesn’t like him and I love how they showcase Bruce’s height over Mario immediately. Mario has come here because he is getting setup in the city with a legit import business and has always heard the Wayne family is apart of Gotham and that they are indebted to the Wayne’s. Bruce brushes him off, the debt is paid for, and I love that Bruce leaves the conversation with a comment about Selina knowing the way out, shoving it in Mario’s face that she has been there with him before. Petty, lol.
As time passes into September a night comes that DA Janice Porter drags Jim out of his office and over to Arkham to visit Alberto. Batman doesn’t seem impressed with her or her experience as the DA of Boston. He sees the two as completely different things, and Harvey can’t be replaced that quickly. As the two arrive at Arkham, they meet Alberto alongside his brother, Mario, as they deliver the news that a court date has been set and a judge is interested in reviewing Alberto’s case. Well I should say that Porter was there to deliver the news, as Jim remained rightfully very vocal that this is insane and Alberto killed dozens as Holiday. Mario doesn’t take Jim’s “opinion” with much consideration, and Porter has to step in and stop everyone to assert her authority before a full fight breaks out. But as they are leaving, a new and very buff orderly walks up and whispers to Alberto that he is watching, lol, I love when Batman is like that. As Gordon and Porter leave Arkham and walk in the main wing filled with spiraling cells, the two get into it a bit about Harvey’s time as DA and what he did in office…and they happen to do it all right in front of Harvey’s cell. But Porter’s ultimate point remains the same, they have relied too much on batman crossing the line and she is using Alberto as an example that is not okay.
That night Sofia sits in her father’s penthouse working with others on a hit, they are planning on killing Harvey Dent. But she wants to make sure that no one is to hurt Alberto during the process. Suddenly the lights go out and her goons get a bit trigger happy, but she calms them down. They took the precaution of electrifying the balconies in case they had an uninvited guest, something just set it off and Sofia sent her new personal bodyguard, Mr. Mirti, to check it out. Seems that he did find something…a single grappling hook, lol.
Elsewhere on the Gotham city bridge, at midnight, Gordon and O’Hara meet. This used to be O’Hara’s beat and he still walks it everyday, and it’s here that O’Hara passes off a mysterious document to Jim. Something that no one else knows about and something he didn’t feel comfortable handing over in front of anyone, even the others at the office. O’Hara thinks back on his time here, things used to be different…up until the Wayne murders. They became a stain that couldn’t come out of the department, and it has never been the same, being a cop doesn’t mean what it used to. Jim wonders if they can make it mean something again, but O’Hara only has one opinion to give out…Jim should go and talk to the bat about this. The bat signal lit up that night, and Batman sure enough showed up to talk to Jim. But they don’t get to talk about much, Jim mentions Porter’s plans to release Alberto and Batman says to let her do what she wants, he has his own plans but he isn’t letting Jim in on it. Jim tries to reach out again, he knows batman is hurting, they both lost a friend…but once again batman is gone. Later we see as batman broods on a rooftop as Catwoman comes and joins him, wrapping her tail around him int he process. Batman noticed she was injured, and although she isn’t telling him what it is I’m willing to bet that is from being shocked. The message she has for him confirms that, as she informs Batman that his friend Harvey Dent is in danger and the falcones intend to kill him. But all batman can say is that Harvey isn’t his friend anymore. Selina was very justified in slapping him after he said that, she sees nothing in him anymore and before she departs she mentions that she can only hope he will show more interest when they start gunning for her.
But batman still cares, and that night, Halloween night, we see as batman visits Harvey in his cell in Arkham. Harvey pretty hilariously mentions that they both look like they are ready for Halloween, but as batman remembers back to that time and mentions Gilda…the scarred version of Harvey pipes up and dismisses his wife as someone he knows entirely. All the while as they are talking a team of assassins is breaking in, setting up explosions, and firing off shots that batman finally takes notice too. Batman forces Harvey to promise that no matter what, he won’t try and escape…and Harvey’s side actually promises. But as Batman leaves, the scarred part of himself takes over and they ultimately decide what to do not on a promise…but on a coin flip. But suddenly batman can’t worry about Harvey as the entire building goes up in flames! He has miscalculated Catwoman’s warning, they aren’t just here for Harvey and are blowing the door off every cell! This has taken intricate planing and intimate knowledge of Arkham to pull off an assault this large. Batman works to start rounding up the rouges, crashing mad hatter into the ground, tying Ivy up, but suddenly his suspect list of who is behind this is narrowed down as he realizes who is already gone. Joker and scarecrow were prepared, and the preparation was even down to sending Grundy to occupy batman during this breakout. Luckily batman was able to use a rope and the pounds of his fist to take Grundy down, leaving him to run to the person who would benefit the most from this. But as he arrives in the cell block of calender man and Alberto Falcone…only calendar man is gone. Alberto is standing in his broken cell, not going anywhere. He claims he is innocent, why would he run? But as the chaos calms down there is one noticeable person missing…Harvey Dent. That night Batman visited Sofia in her penthouse, seems that electricity is no match for him. In her mind she hopes he is dead, but batman promises her that if she keeps going after this he can guarantee she will lose everything. This triggers Sofia, what else does she have left?! As she sits in her wheelchair, neck brace on her head, she rips off her wig to show a head full of scars from surgery. She doesn’t believe she has anything left, and she owes it all to Harvey Dent.
November comes around and court is in session. Per the judge’s decree Alberto will be released into the full custody of his brother, Mario. This of course comes with a short leash and a one way ticket back to prison if any violation occurs. Additionally the judge will make it his personal visit to get Mario deported again. I agree with Gordon as he tells Porter that she will regret this for the rest of her life. As Mario and Alberto walk away freely and push past the press, Jim stands sulking at the top of the court house steps…only to have a voice whisper out to him that they will be watching Alberto very closely. Now if you haven’t read this it would be easy to assume that is batman but he isn’t showing his face because he isn’t working with anyone right now. But if you listen to the audio version with the full cast…you would be very surprised to find out that is Harvey. So it is also probably Harvey that goes to the grave of Carmine Falcone and busts it open, and probably the same person that broke that grave open to cut off Carmine’s wedding finger to send to Sofia. This act reflects an old style message to tell Sofia that someone intends on taking everything from her. Yeah…it’s Harvey. I wonder if it was also Harvey who broke into the office of DA Porter and stole every file that Harvey Dent ever worked on in that office. But I really hope it wasn’t Harvey who commuted the act that ends this issue. As Chief of Police O’Hara is found, hung from the Gotham bridge he walked as part of his beat for thirty years. Left on his body was a cut out newspaper talking about Holiday walking free, with a hangman’s puzzle written in blood. It wasn’t completed, but if you fill in the rest of the clues it says “none of you are safe.” Oh no…please tell me that wasn’t Harvey.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 21, 2021
This is next up in my Batman reading order. I took a break after The Long Halloween. Same writing-art team here. The look is and feel is the same. :)
Alberto Falcone is in Arkham Asylum as is Harvey Dent. Sofia orchestrates knocking off Dent. This is scheduled for Halloween, the anniversary of her father's (Falcone) death. In a surprise, her brother, Mario, has recently returned from exile overseas. Selina brought him by Wayne Manor. Bruce was unimpressed despite Mario's invocation that he was in debt to Bruce because of their fathers.
Batman is at Arkham Aslyum, of course. Most of the bad guys are loose. He has to deal with them. He is convinced that Alberto is going to be broken out, so he rushes there. Nope. A hit on Harvey. ;)
Alberto is paroled with the help of the new D.A., Janice Porter. Doesn't seem right. He is released into Mario's custody. They also ask for permission to allow ALberto to live in a family estate near Wayne Manor. The judge said he would take it under advisement.
Gordon is estranged from his wife, who has sought refuge in Chicago. He misses his son.
Selina still is after Batman. She helps in battle.
A police officer (O'Hara?) is killed. Who did this? Thus begins this new saga.
Alberto Falcone is in Arkham Asylum as is Harvey Dent. Sofia orchestrates knocking off Dent. This is scheduled for Halloween, the anniversary of her father's (Falcone) death. In a surprise, her brother, Mario, has recently returned from exile overseas. Selina brought him by Wayne Manor. Bruce was unimpressed despite Mario's invocation that he was in debt to Bruce because of their fathers.
Batman is at Arkham Aslyum, of course. Most of the bad guys are loose. He has to deal with them. He is convinced that Alberto is going to be broken out, so he rushes there. Nope. A hit on Harvey. ;)
Alberto is paroled with the help of the new D.A., Janice Porter. Doesn't seem right. He is released into Mario's custody. They also ask for permission to allow ALberto to live in a family estate near Wayne Manor. The judge said he would take it under advisement.
Gordon is estranged from his wife, who has sought refuge in Chicago. He misses his son.
Selina still is after Batman. She helps in battle.
A police officer (O'Hara?) is killed. Who did this? Thus begins this new saga.
July 22, 2025
I've begun to follow the chronological beginnings of Dick Grayson's Robin. I read the first issue of Batgirl/Robin year 1 not realizing I need to read this aswell. Man just by reading through a story of Gotham and I mean comically canon just gives a atmosphere that a lot of piece of media has tried for almost a century to fully capture. We see the whole situation between the some of Gothams "criminals" situations in Arkham while also seeing the conflict of how James Gordon and Batman trying to get to the bottom of it all. The ending really caught me off guard I'm not going to lie.
November 5, 2018
This is definitely a continuation of the fantastic The Long Halloween. The Falcone family is trying to come back from its losses, and Bruce Wayne no longer considers Harvey Dent his friend. Now there are new murders going on. I really like some of the art, but I don't like how anyone wearing glasses looks like they don't have anything behind the lenses.
August 1, 2022
didn't want it to end.
July 27, 2024
2024 - Year of The Bat (366 Days of Batman)
Day 208: Flows right from The Long Halloween. Good start.
Day 208: Flows right from The Long Halloween. Good start.
July 27, 2025
JEPH LOEB IS NOW MY NEW INSPIRATION
Read
August 31, 2025The sequel to The Long Halloween starts off strong and keeps one's interest from start to finish. Looking forward to continuing this.
September 12, 2025
(3.75) i wasn’t that hooked but there were some interesting parts
May 22, 2025
veni vidi vici
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