Arkham Asylum: Living Hell

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #1-6

by Dan Slott, Ryan Sook (Illustrator), Wade Von Grawbadger (Illustrator)

From one of the comics business' brightest new creative teams comes a Batman tale with a twist - a giant, gut-wrenching, soul-crushing twist! Arkham Asylum: Batman's dustbin where he dumps the worst of the garbage. A melting pot brimming with the curdled milk of human madness, where the warders are as ensnared by the insanity as the inmates. And where a killer has tapped into all that maniacal energy and is channelling it to his own demonic ends! With cameos from Batman, Batgirl and a dark host of famous - and notorious - super villains, including the Joker and Two-Face, Arkham Asylum: Living Hell is living proof of the old adage - you don't have to be mad to work here, but it helps!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Batman, Dc Comics, Horror, Superheroes, Comic Book

144 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2004

About the author

Dan Slott is an American comic book writer, the current writer on Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, and is best known for his work on books such as Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, The Superior Spider-Man, and Ren & Stimpy.

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 1 out of 5]

A crooked banker (is there any other kind?) thinks he’s being clever by having his trial moved to Gotham where he’s found not guilty by way of insanity. Except in Gotham? The crazies go to a place called Arkham Asylum, a Living Hell that makes Federal prison look like a cakewalk!

I’m familiar with Dan Slott’s work on books like Superior Spider-Man and Silver Surfer so I was curious to see if his Batman was as good – n to the ope! He definitely did far better after moving to Marvel than he ever did during his short time at DC.

Living Hell is a meandering, unfocused mess of boring nothing. The banker storyline – which wasn’t anything more than a punchline to start with - gets sidelined almost immediately as Slott jumps from one C-list Batman rogue like Jane Doe and Humpty Dumpty to another. Jane’s schtick is to murder people and wear their skins which is apparently so convincing that everyone’s fooled. Hmm. Not that I’ve ever met anyone wearing a skin suit but I’m pretty sure anyone could tell that something’s up. I know, I know, suspension of disbelief, yadda yadda yadda…

Humpty Dumpty? A dull fat guy who likes putting stuff together again. How imaginative. Get ready to nearly die of boredom during Slott’s telling of that dude’s tedious origin! An artist who paints in blood, Killer Croc biting guards, Aaron Cash the guard doing guard duty – I just do not care about the day-to-day goings-on of Arkham Asylum. Batman and Joker cameo a couple times to remind you this is a pseudo-Batman comic and Jason Blood/Etrigan shows up for a garbage finale involving zombies/ghouls/who cares, that’s awkwardly rammed in to give the semblance of a story arc. I think I hate Etrigan – I can’t stand his annoying rhyming!

Eric Powell’s covers are cool but everything else about this comic stinks. Arkham Asylum books are never good and unfortunately Living Hell continues to prove that rule. You want to experience a living hell? Read this crap!

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story was strong enough on its own, introducing Etrigan and other Demons actually undermined it.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent art but nothing special, the story got all the wrong turns for me after issue #4. Expected something else from the noir feeling of the first three, not this supernatural stuff that feel way off in the gotham setting. Cool and all as an idea, just not for Batman (who actually appeared in 3 panels all together).

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Far better than Slott's run on Spidey!
And Dr Arkham with the face and manners of Bill Nighy made me laugh a lot! XD

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this. I mostly know Slott from his Spider-man and other Marvel stuff, so seeing him do something creepy and in the Batman-verse was cool.

[Katherine (Kat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 Stars

Individual issues rated below -

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #1: 3.5/5
Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #2: 4/5
Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #3: 3/5
Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #4: 4/5
Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #5: 3.5/5
Arkham Asylum: Living Hell #6: 3/5

[Ann DVine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore this book. I think it's important to flush your mind of preconceptions, though. For one, it's very much not a Batman book - he makes the briefest of cameos, and though Arkham is littered with familiar faces from his rogues gallery, it very much focused more on original characters and their voices than any existing ones. Secondly, it has little, if anything, to do with the Grant Morrison story, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, save for the location and title (though, if you've read my thoughts on the Morrison book, you'll understand that this is wholly a positive attribute, for my tastes). This is very much a standalone arc about a single character in a tiny corner of Batman's established mythos - and it's all the better for it, in my opinion.

The biggest chunk of the plot follows Warren White, the man who will come to be known as the Great White Shark. He is, as his nickname suggests, something of a shark - rigging finances, hunting loans, and basically being the kind of criminal that can ruin lives without lifting a finger. And when he is admitted to Arkham Asylum (by his own, somewhat selfish choice), the characters inside recognize him as even scummier than they are. It might seem a little hypocritical that the Joker, of all people, considers a loan shark to be a bigger evil than himself, but the hatred is palpable, and White needs to find allies on the inside if he hopes to survive against the menagerie of varied and powerful Batman villains.

That's the hook of the plot, anyway. The underlying elements, which form the somewhat psychedelic conclusion, are wildly different from pretty much any representation of Arkham Asylum seen before. And, if I'm totally honest, it's a huge part of the reason I love this tale. Ignoring that it's a unique, fresh spin on an established fictional institution, I'm always slightly dismayed (in varying degrees, depending on the story) by the representation of mental health in the Batman series. Arkham Asylum is painted as being either a dumping ground for actual psychotics, or an unfortunate mainstay of Gotham City's criminal element, or anything in between or outside of it. The worst of it, for my tastes, is in Morrison's aforementioned Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, which vilified actual mental health (and perceived as mental health) issues to the point of being incredulous and disgusting.

Arkham Asylum: Living Hell seems to make the most strides, for my money, towards justifying the needlessness of a mental asylum in a modern-day environment. Not to spoil, because a lot of the surprise is in the reveal, but it's a very old-fashioned (and by that I mean old-fashioned literature) approach to insanity and horror, which, pleasingly, seems to absolve the blame for the human element. Arkham Asylum as an institution that breeds monsters rather than curing them is remarkably justified, in that the people inside are relatively blameless...! I don't think it's ever touched upon again, but that's a shame, because it's almost Lovecraftian in its romantic simplicity of externalized "insanity," and I like it a lot.

Dan Slott is on writing duties here, and a lot of his trademark wit is recognizable. Interactions between Warren White and Batman's rogues are almost always fascinating, if not outright funny. There's a dark undertone to everything (helped by Ryan Sook's pulpish, almost two-tone, slightly exaggerated, cartoonish artwork), but in many ways it raises the material from the murky depths. It's much more enjoyable to read than a book subtitled "Living Hell" might appear to me, and Warren White's transformation from a naive, thuggish criminal to a full-on Batman mainstay is bittersweet without being overtly tragic. Which isn't to say there aren't horrific elements to a story ostensibly about a haunted mental asylum, it's just it's so much softer and subdued than they could have been - making Arkham Asylum: Living Hell a more entertaining read than it could have been, had it been handled by a different creative team.

I as much admire this book for what it doesn't do as for what it does, but then, that's the treasure of having a character and universe and dense as Batman's; Gotham, Arkham, and their populace are deeply entrenched into most all of our minds. When stories like Living Hell come along, that challenge our preconceptions and re-arrange the deck, I tend to swoon - it's everything I appreciate about comic books and their place in popular culture, y'know? It helps, though, that Arkham Asylum: Living Hell is a prison thriller with horror elements that just works, thanks to a creative team that knows what they're doing. It's crammed with inventiveness, a ton of great cameos by recognizable faces, as well as original faces that have gone on to become beloved mainstays (Aaron Cash and Humpty Dumpty in particular), and is overall just a great story that is assisted fully by the fun it's having in the sandbox that is the Batman mythos. It sure ain't for everyone, but I love the hell out of it.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

To call the main characters of Living Hell even "third-string" Batman villains would be generous, but Dan Slott reminds us that characters don't have to be popular to be interesting. Across six issues he builds a compelling tale of the world's worst nuthouse.

If you dislike supernatural elements creeping into Batman stories or require the Dark Knight himself as the focus, this won't be for you. It's also extremely creepy in tone and fairly graphic - I would normally expect something like this to be under the Vertigo imprint. Even with the title "Living Hell" I wasn't expecting something this dark (especially from Slott, who is more well known for his comedic ability).

But those who can handle the elements mentioned above will find Living Hell well worth the read. Things tie together surprisingly but reasonably, horrific events tie directly to the plot and character arcs, and it was all engrossing enough that I couldn't stop reading until I was finished.

3/2012

[Dr Rashmit Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

first up , let's make this clear , this is not a Batman story . If anything Batman is just here to make a few cameo appearances . That said this was a fascinating read , as we read about few low-key Members of Batman Rogue Gallery and their lives inside of the Arkham Asylum and it all surrounds the life of one in mate who in his ignorance tried to get away from his crimes by pleading insanity but at Gotham that doesn't help you go Scott free it lands you in a place worse than Jail , in Arkham Asylum

As stated this was very unique and fascinating read , even the lives of such 3rd string rogues was interesting and dark to read , the art however was a buzzkill and the ending was a bit too melodramatic for me .

worth spending an hour on reading if u can find this at a library or borrow it from someone , don't necessarily would recommend people to buy this

[Emmie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Let me first say this: although I liked the book, things just got a little too freaky for me.

One of the things I've admired Gotham-verse for is it's tight grip on reality--excluding elements of characters like Poison Ivy and Clayface. This comic seemed to destroy a little bit of that for me, what with all this summoning people from Hell and ghosts running around Arkham, dealing out vengeance to the inmates.

Honestly? Even if that whole plot was only Scarecrow's fear toxin, an opinion it seemed like some of the guards at Arkham were halfheartedly convincing themselves of, it wouldn't have been all too wonderfully great. This comic gets more respect from me for its reveal of how a few of the Arkham inmates (mostly Humpty Dumpty and Shark) were created, not what they did when they were actually in the asylum. The lack of a certain clown was a bit irritating, too, and though his brief appearances were pretty decent, didn't have much of anything to do with the plot at all.

All in all, three stars. I don't think I'd read it again though.

[Wisdom Wasp · Rating 2 out of 5]

Crap moralising, mediocre art (or at least not my style) and silly twist at the end

Although I enjoy Dan Slotts writing this story was a swing and a miss. Mostly because of the fact that horrendous serial killers like the Joker tell a Wall Street banker, non-ironically that he’s the “worst person they ever met”. I mean seriously? That makes it a joke. The silly ending with hell opening up is also ridiculous and the story is quite dark at times. Although the ending *kind of* brings everything together. Better things to do with your life than read this- I decided to recycle this book rather than sell it on EBay for $40… that says it all I reckon

[Anya · Rating 1 out of 5]

The most contrived origin stories possible for two lesser known villains, Great White Shark/Warren White and Humpty Dumpty/Humphry Dumpler. More about the horrors of Arkham and a game of "how many body parts can we fit into this story?" than a story about Batman, who is hardly in it except at the end. Also, the demons and zombies and ghosts? Not sure what they were going for there, but it doesn't make the story any better.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just making my way through the Batman catalogue... this is one that is less about Batman than this place.. and not as brutal or scary as Grant Morrison's version but better than I expected it would be...

[Danny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was exactly what I always wanted...in concept. A book about arkham asylum told like Oz. You get prison guards, therapists, the warden, all of their perspectives to tell the tale of a literal hell on earth. It's execution, however, only mostly works. I guess I was disappointed by the overabundance of c list villains towards the climax of the story. It kind of felt like a missed opportunity for something grander. Also I was kind of thrown in for a loop with an occult third act that kind of came out of nowhere. As much as I love Etrigan the demon, I feel kinda let down by the whole ghost aspect in this tale. But loved how it began as a super villain origin tale about how a place like this changes people. Honestly, had it kept a more grounded tale, it would have been remembered as one of the all time best.

[Cosmin Leucuța · Rating 3 out of 5]

povestea a fost interesantă, poate mai intrigantă decât majoritatea romanelor grafice cu Batman. problema e că personajul titular nu apare decât fugitiv, de vreo 2 sau 3 ori. e mai mult o poveste despre azilul Arkham și personajele din el.
grafica nu m-a impresionat atât de tare, cam minimalistă pentru gustul meu din 2020. dar merită aruncată o privire.

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those books that I expected more from. It started off really strong but by the end it had lost its cleverness. Slott is a great writer and is doing amazing things with Spider-man. This book is all about Arkham Asylum, a new inmate who basically swindled people out of their retirements and decided an insanity plea would save him hard time - but it gets him sent to Arkham instead. And an ordinary sleaze like him won't survive long there. The cover has a big picture of Batman but be warned - Batman appears in about 15 panels of the entire graphic novel.But I didn't mind that part since the Asylum itself is an interesting place to set a story like this. And it does start out very interesting but then it gets confusing and ends up to be very muddled as The Demon comes in to help solve some demonic hi-jinx that an inmate gets up to.

If you look at the story notes (included at the end) Batman was supposed to play a bigger role in the story and I think that may have helped to ground the story better. Throwing The Demon into the mix doesn't help since he is so poorly defined in this novel and in the DC Universe in general. And the fact he is so ineffective doesn't help.

The artwork is good in the quiet moments but the artist is overwhelmed when it comes to the action scenes - muddling everyone up and not doing a good job making each character distinctive.

Still, a creative effort that comes close to genius but frustratingly fails. I almost wish a Gaiman or Moore could have helped give it some polish.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living Hell lives up to its name—its characters are at once repulsive and grotesque, intriguing and damaged. Batman is hardly anywhere to be seen, and while that might put some readers off, the inmates' antics are enough to hold your undivided attention, although I confess I got kind of lost by the end. Funnily enough it makes less sense to me than Grant Morrison's take on Arkham Asylum.

[Matt Reid · Rating 4 out of 5]

In all honesty I wasn’t really expecting much from this book, it’s rare you hear about it and seems like Grant Morrison’s better known entry will cover what you want. This book however was great, Batman is hardly in it, more about the prisoners an staff at Arkham and the effects it has on those that go in. The best thing about this book is that there’s a whole range of new characters that feel as if they’ve existed in Gotham for years. If you’re interested in Gotham or Arkham this is a great entry in the city’s history.

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent story. Great art!

[Ramón S. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I will not read more Arkham titles. What a waste of time

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this for the Unintentional comedy it is and you’ll love it.

[Salah Salam]

I wish this could be a series

this was a LOT better than I thought it would be

Please make a series HBO!The riding is excellent and so is the pacing

[Pinkerton · Rating 5 out of 5]

L’Arkham Asylum mi piace da matti :D
In particolare questo volume, fra quelli incentrati sull’istituto, è quello che rispolvero più volentieri. Il motivo principale è la storia di Aaron Cash, capo della sicurezza e oramai per me icona dell’Arkham. Molto più di una semplice guardia dall’aspetto peculiare che lo faccia spiccare sulle altre, è un autentico personaggio nel vero senso della parola, dotato quindi di profondità e - come ogni gentiluomo che si rispetti nei comics - con tanto di nemesi:

E che nemesi! La menomazione subita induce un perenne, montante, senso di angoscia ogniqualvolta vediamo Cash nelle vignette… a gironzolare per lo stesso edificio in cui è rinchiuso Croc. È come se inconsciamente durante la lettura continuassi a controllarmi dietro le spalle per conto suo, nel timore di incrociare il coccodrillone che spunta fuori all’improvviso. Una sensazione mozzafiato regalata da queste pagine claustrofobiche. E poi detto francamente, il guardiano con l’uncino fa figo.
Ma abbandoniamo Cash con una stretta di mano (la destra :P), dopo esserci complimentati con lui per lo stupendo portafogli, e passiamo al Dottor Jeremiah Arkham. Non c’è molto da dire in realtà, in questo caso il direttore, figura ambigua dell’universo batmaniano, ha una connotazione positiva. L’arzillo vecchietto si vede di rado ma le sue comparsate sono sempre accompagnate da qualche bella battuta ad effetto che strappa un sorriso; insomma quel poco che fa comunque lo fa bene.

Passiamo però ora ai pazienti, e anche qui Slott ha svolto un lavoro lodevole, mi ero dimenticato di dire: accompagnato da disegni eccellenti ed una colorazione che si confà perfettamente a tutta la situazione. Limitando l’impiego dei nomi più illustri, che comunque fungono da ottimo quadretto a questo spaccato sulla vita degli “estroversi” reclusi, lascia spazio a gente che non siamo abituati a vedere all’opera ma che tiene alto il famigerato nome del posto. Un esempio su tutti, Humpty Dumpty.

Quest’energumeno dalla testa d’uovo e il fare bonaccione è pazzia allo stato puro. La sua ingenuità unita alla maniacale ossessione di aggiustare le cose (amorevolmente inculcatagli dalla nonnina) con esiti alquanto dubbi, ne fanno un elemento tanto docile quanto pericoloso a cui stare vicino. E infatti andrà a far comunella con quello che per certi versi è il protagonista di questa storia, o quantomeno l’uomo che dette origine a tutto; uno squalo dell'alta finanza che cercando di eludere la legge si ritrova a fare il pesce fuor d’acqua nel manicomio criminale di Gotham. Certi luoghi però cambiano le persone… e dato il clima che si respira non stento a crederlo. Questi sono i due più in vista ma altri ce ne sono che si impegnano per arricchire l’ambiente di sfaccettature, e con successo.

Ora, dico io, hai questa meraviglia… PERCHÉ CASPITA CI VAI AD INFILARE DIVAOLACCI ZOZZI CONTRO UN DEMONE CHE PARLA IN RIMA?! Che tra l’altro usa Bullock come lasciapassare facendogli fare la figura del tontolone. Ok, quest’ultima cosa ci sta… però davvero non vedo la necessità di questo sanguinario rito sovrannaturale in un volume che per 5 capitoli su 6 è stato praticamente perfetto - scaxxando proprio in quello finale!
Ciò non toglie che ne consiglio vivamente la lettura, quale memorabile affresco sull’ordinaria (e ahimè, malauguratamente anche straordinaria T_T) follia all’interno delle mura dell’Arkham Asylum. Per conto mio poi merita comunque il massimo dei voti, nonostante quella "certa faccenda", perché è davvero troppo bello per dargli un voto scaturito da un ragionamento razionale - ancor più considerata la località ;)


Ehe, sa, a pensarci bene lei ha fatto un passo falso.
Il cambio di giurisdizione.
Vede, in questa città probabilmente è meglio essere colpevoli che matti.
La condanno a un periodo di osservazione ad Arkham.
A termine indefinito e con effetto immediato.

[Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arkham Asylum by Dan Slott is another of those graphic novels that exist within the Batman Universe and proves that a good Batman story doesn't necessarily need Batman in it. This, instead, is a tale about Arkham and the evil that exists there. It is Noir and it is Horror and in its most darkest depths, terribly human.

Crooked Banker, Warren White, has swindled millions from the savings and various accounts of the populace of Gotham. Targeting the weakest and the elderly. White is a privileged man and believes he will skate past this verdict with nothing more than having his hands slapped. What he doesn't get, until it is too late, is that his crime has landed him on hell on Earth. Gotham's own, Arkham Asylum. Here, White will come into contact with a host of characters, some famous, some even more infamous as he tries to buy his way back to freedom.

But Arkham is a place with secrets all its own and the currency of the Asylum is not cash, it is blood.

With appearances by the Joker, Two-Face, Batman and Batgirl; Arkham Asylum Living Hell is a terrific read. As dark and horrifying as you would think Arkham would be when the lights go out and the things that slither in the dark come out.

This six issue arc was suppose to be the beginning of a new series and its too bad that DC didn't take it any further than six books. Hopefully they will pick this up sometime in the future. But if they do, they need to find a way to capture the lightning in the bottle that this book is.

A terrific fun read for all fans of Batman and Gotham.

[Kimberlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing story, especially since Batman only puts in a rare appearance or two. Essentially a series of shorts following several of the inmates at Arkham. The stories are tied together by following a new character who thinks he's tricked the system by being found not guilty by reason of insanity, but is receives a sentence worse than life in prison: yep, Arkham. What goes on there is everyone's worst nightmare, and then some. I started wondering why Batman didn't get involved to help this - while not innocent - definitely not insane guy. There's a definitely quality of "well, he asked for it" at play here, and I couldn't read it fast enough!

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though this is in the Batman Universe, Batman plays little to no role in this book. However, this is one of the most interesting non-Batman titles in his realm. It's about Warren Wilson (The Great White Shark) and his time in Arkham and his relations with all the personalities in the Asylum. It's great for giving info on lesser members of the Rogues Gallery as well as some back stories. Also gives some good character development of Jeremiah Arkham and Aaron Hill, guard. Features a ton of peripheral Batman characters, and is a very well written story with lots of info. Well worth reading, one of the more psychological Batman books, but entertaining for sure.

[Blindzider · Rating 4 out of 5]

Totally surprised by this. I wasn't expecting much at all and it turned out to be a fantastic read. First, be aware that Batman is barely in it. Normally this would bother me but the story really engaging. It's basically about some of the C and D Batman villains and is more of a horror story. I give credit to Slott for showing that he can write something other than the fun/entertaining stories and do something not only a little darker but with a slightly more complex story because many of the story threads come together in the end.

Definitely worth checking out.

[Nicolas Bateman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Amazing and Superior Dan Slott carves a tale out of the flesh of Arkham's inmates. His creation is both frightening and scaringly easy to relate to. Some of the characters introduced in this story have now developed a life of their own in the main Batman title and it is not particularly difficult to understand why when seeing the roundness of such characters as Fish and Jane Doe

[Malli (Chapter Malliumpkin) · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who is a HUGE Batman nerd, this was definitely one Batman comic that had my blood boiling and heart beat racing. The suspense and the build of each chapter in this comic leaves you on edge and racing to find out what will happen next. This comic is definitely a must read for any Batman lover.

[Cailyn L · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first 2 or 3 parts of this book. They explored the dynamics of Arkham inmates and staff in interesting ways. After that point, the supernatural element took precedent and feel unnecessarily jammed into the story.