Batman vs. Two-Face

Batman

by Bill Finger, Dennis O'Neil, Len Wein

When a criminal threw acid on his face, disfiguring his left side, Gotham City's District Attorney Harvey Dent lost his grip on sanity and became the villain know as Two-Face, becoming one of Batman's greatest adversaries, but every step of the way, Batman has tried to help his friend leave the path of evil and remember that he was once a force for justice. Original.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Batman, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels Comics, Superheroes, Fiction

176 pages, Paperback

First published June 5, 2008

About the author

William "Bill" Finger was an American comic strip and comic book writer best known as the uncredited co-creator, with Bob Kane, of the DC Comics character Batman, as well as the co-architect of the series' development. In later years, Kane acknowledged Finger as "a contributing force" in the character's creation. Comics historian Ron Goulart, in Comic Book Encyclopedia, refers to Batman as the "creation of artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger", and a DC Comics press release in 2007 about colleague Jerry Robinson states that in 1939, "Kane, along with writer Bill Finger, had just created Batman for [DC predecessor] National Comics".

Film and television credits include scripting The Green Slime (1969), Track of the Moon Beast (1976), and three episodes of 77 Sunset Strip.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Kerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this collection, which features ten Two-Face stories from over the years.

One of the earlier stories actually has Batman utter this line to Robin: "Right! I'll say one thing --- it's lucky we've mastered these circus routines!"
I keep thinking of it and laughing, though I will say that particular story was alot of fun (it was in "Two-Face Strikes Again!). And Batman is right, it is indeed lucky that they have that particular set of skills!

I did like how in the more modern stories, Two-Face's dual personalities were already there before his injuries, rather than being caused by them. I found the earlier implication that his facial scarring alone was enough to splinter his personality completely, was rather thoughtless, though probably unintentionally so.

My favourite story was the short, black and white bonus Animated Adventures one. I've actually read that one several times, though today was the first time I've actually read the rest of book.

[John Yelverton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was so excited with what they were doing with the Two-Face character, and now they just turn around and put him back at square one.

[Matti Karjalainen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lapsena lueskelin Batman-lehteä paikallisen parturin tuolissa istuessani. Valtaosan jutuista unohdin saman tien, mutta syystä tai toisesta mieleeni jäi vuosikausiksi kummittelemaan tarina, jossa kerrottiin kuinka Gotham Cityn yleisestä syyttäjästä, komeasta ja suositusta Harvey Dentista tuli Lepakkomiehen vihollinen Kaksikasvo. Naamalleen happoa saaneen, mielenterveydeltään horjuvan ja runneltuun kolikkoonsa valintatilanteessa turvautuvan miehen tarinassa oli noin kymmenvuotiaan mielestä jotakin hyvin traagista ja vetoavaa.

En siis tältä pohjalta malttanut olla hankkimatta käsiini sarjakuva-albumia "Batman vs. Two-Face" (DC Comics, 2008), joka pitää sisällään kymmenen Harvey Dent -tarinaa, mukaan luettuna tuo muksuna lukemani syntytarina.

Sarjakuva-albumin viisi ensimmäistä tarinaa ovatkin lähinnä hupaisia camp-välipaloja, jotka toimivat kuitenkin hauskana aikamatkana sarjakuvan vielä melko viattomalle 1940-luvulle. Enter the Boy-Wonder! Golly, Bruce, this is terrible!

Aikuislukijan näkökulmasta sarjakuva alkaa saada enemmän syvyyttä jälkimmäisellä puoliskolla, jossa keskitytään moderneihin Kaksikasvo-tarinoihin, joissa Stevensonin Jekylliin ja Hydeen vertautuva rikollinen muuttuu astetta synkemmäksi ja väkivaltaisemmaksi.

Kohtalokkaan femme fatalen ja tämän enkelimäisen sisaren ympärille rakentuva "Two of a Kind" (Bruce Timm, 1996) vie film noir -henkisyydessään pisteet kotiin, nimetön Secret Origins -tarina (Mark Verheiden, 1989) on sekin suhteellisen mainio, eivätkä muutkaan kertomukset ole ihan sieltä onnettomimmasta päästä - siis mikäli kykenee suhtautumaan pahemmin nikottelematta koko viittasankari-genreen.

Jotenkin aiheeseen sopivasti "Batman vs. Two-Face" on kovin kaksijakoinen albumi; ei hyvä, ei paha, vaan jotakin siltä väliltä!

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know that Harvey Dent was originally Harvey Kent, but aside from that this collection didn't have much to offer. He might have two faces, but he's a one-note villain.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of all the major antagonists that the Batman has faced throughout his caped career, Two-face is the one that I like the least. Cured several times of his hideous appearance, Two-face somehow manages to once again fall from the pedestal of normalcy to again have his face and psyche scarred towards criminality.
That is demonstrated several times in this graphic novel, with the story of how District Attorney Harvey Dent became Two-face told several different ways. It just loses the interest of the reader when you are told once again how mobster “Boss” Moroni threw acid into the face of the handsome and crusading District Attorney.
Batman also undergoes a dramatic change in this collection, from the early stories where he is the noble hero to the last ones where he is a mentally unstable “Dark Knight.” This is much easier to process, for the more unstable Batman is a better Batman. One thing that the creators of comic books need to realize is that there are times when the life of a hero or a villain just has to end, with no resurrection. This collection is a good demonstration of one of the situations where that should happen.

This review appears on Amazon

[Cait · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, Golden Age comics! They really were...something. Something more than just laughable, really. It was interesting to see the modern and the old repeat each other, too.

I really liked Gilda's modern segment, from Secret Origins.

Also, the image of Harv in a scuba mask with a lit cigar is hilarious.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not a big fan of "Golden Age" stores, so I didn't read half of this trade. The modern stories were great. I especially liked the stories illustrated by Kelley Jones. He's a fantastic artist.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a great book that charts the evolution of the character and showcases some great storylines between Harvey and The Bat.

[Anne Barwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mix of various stories, old and new about Two Face. Interesting to see how the character has evolved over the years and the references to the war in the 1940s written story.

[Jase · Rating 2 out of 5]

I skipped the stories from the 1940's and 1950's.

[Joseph R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology presents ten Batman tales featuring my favorite from his rouges' gallery, Two-Face. The first story is his origin, when as handsome District Attorney Harvey Kent (later changed to Dent) prosecutes crime boss Moroni, who throws acid on Harvey's face during the trial. Half his face is hideously scarred. People, including is fiancee, are horrified at his appearance and Harvey has a mental breakdown. Moroni had a lucky two-headed silver dollar; Harvey scratches up one side of it so that the coin mirrors his own duality--handsome and hideous, good and evil, Jekyll and Hyde. Harvey adopts the name Two-Face and starts on a crime spree. The coin makes decisions for him--if he flips the clean side, he will do good with what he steals; if he flips the scarred side, he will do evil. His crimes often involve the number two or some sort of duality, like robbing the box office from a double feature or a person who has two faces, like an actor (his own and his character's). The most interesting stories involve his sense of justice and his history as district attorney, punishing criminals he couldn't prosecute because of lack of evidence.

He's a fascinating character as a villain. He has a moral split between good and evil that is resolved almost at random. He's a brilliant guy (he was a top district attorney) and extremely willful except he lets himself be governed by the coin. So he talks a lot about Fate for himself, his victims, and Batman. Sometimes he is cured or on the verge of being cured and he lets Fate (in the guise of the coin flip) take him down the wrong path--I found myself wishing at times he just wouldn't flip the coin. The dramatic pathos of his character is riveting to me. The writers don't always catch that (there's plenty of 2-centric capers that don't delve into his psychology) but when they do, it's storytelling gold.

Recommended, highly if you are a Two-Face fan like me.

[TrashKat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good set of comics! I'd already read some of the classics that were in here, but I liked the grouping here. This is really an amalgamation of Two-Face's incarnations. You've got that classic Two-Face from the 40s/50s era and then the we get to see the stranger, darker version from #527 and #528 with that nice Knightfall-esque styling. I also really enjoyed the short bonus at the back of the book that had a comic rendition of one of the Animated Series stories. This show has always been one of my favorites so seeing it in a black and white, moody comic panel setup was a treat.
This is a solid addition to anyone's collection if they enjoy Batman comics and especially if they like Two-Face's story.

[Aleigha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely a fun little read for anyone who's a fan of Two-Face. Does not add anything to the story, just a collection of some of his greatest moments.

Before reading I did not know his original last name was Kent, or that they have restarted his story so many times. I mean come on decide is he going to be good or evil.

[Luis Dion-Dussault · Rating 4 out of 5]

La série Némésis est vraiment intéressante pour les superfans de Batman.

Ici, j’ai appris que le personnage d’Harvey Dent se nommait Harvey Kent!

Ça vous rappelle quelqu’un??

Très belle sélection d’histoires!

[Wes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two-Face is hardly my favorite Batman villain but this collection of Two-Face tales is kind of nice to have. I consider myself a bit of a comics historian and you get a really nice taste of time periods that allow you to see not just how Two-Face has evolved over time, but Batman and the comic tone as well. If you're not into anything other than "modern age" comics, then this collection is going to largely be a waste to you as you'll only enjoy 2 or maybe 3 stories from the collection.

That being said, if you're curious about the Golden and Silver age Bats, or the various incarnations of Two-Face, then this is a great little collection for you.

Personal favorite tale from this collection - Two of a Kind by Bruce Timm

[Joseph · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two Face has never really been my favorite villain for Batman. The guy is not really a mastermind, is not strong per se in a fight against Batman, even though in this book they seem to battle it out a bit. For the most part the story lines were great, which has 10 stories to them. I actually thought the 1971 book had the best art work of them all.

Overall blah just because it was Two-Face.

[David López · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good reference to understand the evolution of one of the greatest batman enemies. If you are not a fan of Two-face already probably you are not going to enjoy this one a lot, but if you are you are going to read a lot of interesting things, like the first apparition of this villain, and how this villain sometimes appears by chance, by Harvey Dent doing the right or by H.D. choosing to be.

[Hillingdon Libraries]

Find this book at Hillingdon Libraries

[Kirk H · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was good. My favorite part was when there is a imposter two-face.

[Ryan Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was pretty good