Batman Black & White: A Black and White World

Batman: Black and White (1996) (Single Issues) #1

by Neil Gaiman, Simon Bisley (Artist)

Acclaimed author Neil Gaiman (THE SANDMAN, American Gods) and eye-popping artist Simon Bisley (LOBO) deliver a make-believe story spotlighting the struggle between Batman and The Joker - only this time, they're re-cast as actors starring in a film-like, comic book production!

Genres: Comics, Batman, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Ebooks, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics

11 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 23, 2010

Reviews

[Nicolo]

A couple of Brits imagine Batman and Joker as actors, and the world of Gotham their stage. It's the kind of dark humor both authors do so well.

[Richard Dominguez]

In this Neil Gaiman vision of Batman, the caped crusader and the Joker are actors preparing for their roles in a movie.
Quite original and funny it makes for a quick and fun read.

[Christine]

Gaiman's take on the Bat sets him as a character in a comic ala filming. It's an interesting take and a quick read.

[Doctor Morbid]

I loved this. What a unique take on Batman and Joker. It was a very one-of-a-kind read, it was short but sweet.

Five stars :D

[Monika]

Good

My man enjoyed to read it - big fan of Lobo :) From me - nice short story from not different point of view ;)

[Omprasad Mahapatra]

Funny on the whole

The black and white colour scheme, the whole reimagining of the characters, it took a little getting used to. For the first 3 pages I wasn't really sure what I was reading. But once the realisation set in about the characters playing themselves as their own characters, it turned out to be quite funny and amusing really. The whole confusion in the beginning was worth enduring for the ending.

[Rafael Jovine]

fun comic

I should’ve not read this before going to bed. Now I’ll have nightmares with the joker here.

Overall solid and entertaining meta comic with some great drawings.

[Katie]

I struggled through this collection. It was disjointed and hard to follow. The black and white illustrations made it hard to distinguish what was going on.

[Chris Presta-Valachovic]

I love Neil Gaiman's comic work.

The story here is fun: Batman & Joker behind the scenes, waiting for their moment in front of the comic-book camera, just a couple ordinary joes hanging around in the break room. Batman reading Newsweek as Joker does a crossword; they do a quick non-chalant run-thru of the script, talk about kids and colleagues, they "film" the scene, and afterwards walk off to the studio commissary for lunch -- the Joker bitching about how the bit-part extras get all the good food is just gold. Gaiman's writing is on-point & sharp...but the artwork, not so much.

Don't get me wrong: Simon Bisley is a damn fine artist. The splash page of Batman bursting thru a window is GLORIOUS, the drawings themselves excellent...if they'd been for a regular color comic. But the black-&-white part is a major problem; it muddles everything into a chaotic, muddy mess. It might be that I'm older & my eyesight's never been good to begin with, but the B&W made this comic hard to follow, hard to read, hard to tell what was going on.

Black & white is difficult to do well, especially in our modern world of colorized media, and especially in comics (double-especially in this age of tablets & computer screens & wanky resolutions). You can't just de-saturate & call it done. Black & white is best when it's kept simple, focused, and sparing of details. Here, there's too much going on in every panel, and things get lost in the mess; the Joker in particular gets lost in every busy, over-detailed panel. This would've worked much better as a color comic -- or at least made it easier on the eyes.

Still, this comic is definitely worth hunting down.

[Adrian]

Hey, that splash panel where you came through the window, that was just the coolest. I never get panels like that

I've never been a big fan of Batman but when I see that Neil Gaiman is involved and it is free on Amazon, I thought I'd give it a go.

I was not disappointed. This isn't your usual superhero or Batman comic. This is Batman and the Joker reimagined as actors in a film-style comic book production. Set mostly in the Green Room we find Batman and the Joker running through their lines before going out to deliver them.

A short but clever comic and very typical of Neil Gaiman. As the title suggests the comic is completely done in black and white.

[Storm]

An alternate reality take where Batman and The Joker are both actors working on their TV show. There are some really nice touches - Batman being smart is able to help The Joker with crossword puzzles, as they wait around for the call to film their scene. Their banter to relieve the tedium is witty and refreshing. I would have rated this higher but I seriously did NOT like the art which was, in parts, too much "black ink blob" and not enough negative space, also it's rare where the details of a character's hair (the Joker) end up being horribly distracting when interposed with huge black blobs.

[Jamie Uribe]

I liked this one it was really good and funny.

I love the look of the book. It is different and something that I was not expecting coming from a Batman book. I really did love this book, and I cant wait to read more of them.

"Call that the trail of the century? Two people dead? I kill two people before I have my breakfast cereal -- and that's on a good day." I love that line it is so good.

Very different that lobo is making a movie of Batman and the Joker. Really good quick read I had fun reading it. 5 out of 5 stars. I would recommend this book to anyone.

[im_just_vidu]

Black and white

To be honest, I don't like black and white graphic novels. And this is the wrong choice of mine. When the arts are too hard to understand because of the color combination, I feel frustrated.
It looked like bat man and joker were acting on some kind of movie or something. For me it felt like it doesn't suits for the image of the bat man or the joker. Personally I didn't like this. And I think it's because my personal preference.

[Christian]

Awesome short story with fitting and really cool art to go with it. This one is actually funny, which is rare. While it certainly isn’t canon by any means, I still feel it’s recommended reading for anyone who appreciates Batman and/or Joker, or really anyone that wants a comedic spin on super heroes in general. This is way above anything else Gaiman did for the black knight.
Read as part of Whatever happened to the Caped crusader Deluxe edition

[Dan]

Batman arrives at the (television? movie? Unclear) set.

Commissioner Gordon’s scene is running over its allotted time; Batman waits with The Joker.

The two two run through their lines together—attempts at humor…

Gaiman’s illustrations are good; I’m just not really feeling them for Batman/this universe.

Batman and The Joker are quite amicable.

But the jokes don’t land.

It’s a bizarre storyline; so seemingly random.

[Terry]

Well, this was funny and different. I can't believe I haven't read it until now. Batman and the Joker are actors doing a movie, but not really. There still doing comicbook panels, but imagine if comicbooks were made like movies. That's the gist. I laughed.

[Netanella]

Batman and the Joker, as told by writer Neil Gaiman and artist Simon Bisley, in a short black and white comic that was over much too soon for me. It's an interesting take: what if Batman and the Joker were actors in a play that depicts their adventures? I loved the cameo by Lobo, also.

[Eric]

Hee.

And at least the authors don’t make the mistake of asserting that that joke was Mark Twain’s. He made it famous, but even when he used it he credited it to an earlier if lesser wit…

[James]

This comic series consists of short stories, mainly of very mundane scenarios in Gotham City. In this story, Batman and Joker are talking about their upcoming scene because they are filming a TV show. They then film it and socialise after work. That is all.

[Philmore Olazo]

In this one we have a pair of actors that are preparing to shoot a scene, and then proceed to do so, for what I guess is a Batman show or movie perhaps?

They also comment on their feelings about their jobs. To the point really.

Although not really good, and the art is pretty bad.

[Katja Vartiainen]

Well it's quite funny, this one. A satire of batman and the gang. I love the drawing style. It's great it's black &white. There are amazing panels, like batman splashing through the window.

[Pato Myers]

Cool idea, it just didn't really do anything for me.

[Adrian Bloxham]

Both writer and artist are excellent and the story is as good as you expect

[John]

An amusing 5-minute read by author Neil Gaiman. What if Batman and Joker were paid actors in their own adventures?

[Layth Salah]

Quick read!

[Wendy Matchen]

Funny.

Reads very quickly. They’re just a couple dudes. Funny take on their relationship and their dynamic. Read it. You won’t regret it. :)

[Vinicius]

Too short to be noticed, but the design and perspective are stunning

[Tacitus]

Postmodern classic a la Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog.

[Vitaliy Hristyuk]

Hilarious!

That... That was oh so great. To look on the familiar heroes in a non-familiar way... That a treat, for sure.

[Ellie Hope]

52/100