Batman: Year One

I like the first cover, but why is there a sun behind Batman in the second?

No batman on the third cover, and a shot that never happens in the fourth. 

Frank Miller is one of those figures who is super controversial within the comics community. While much of his work has been credited to creating the modern age of comics, and several of his works have been received with massive acclaim, he also has created some of my least favorite comics, such as All-Star Batman and Robin(Link is to ATFW, which has an excellent review), which was universally panned, and stories like The Dark Knight Returns, which I dislike intensely. Miller has left a huge mark on Batman, for better or for worse and wrote stories that are considered classics. He was tapped in 1986 to write the new modern age story to introduce Batman. He did so, taking over the writing duties for Batman: Year One, with David Mazzucchelli doing the illustrations. This comic tells of the first year of Batman, even though Bruce Wayne only becomes Batman in April, so it would really be Batman Year 2/3rds, but that makes a crappy title.

Take that tree!

We open up on a shot of a train speeding towards Gotham, with yellow text boxes proclaiming how crappy Gotham is. We learn this from Jim Gordon, who you will remember is the police commissioner in the very first Batman story ever. Here however he has just joined the GCPD after some kind of problem in another city. At the same time we get a shot of Bruce Wayne returning to Gotham, after his long sojourn across the world. This plays out for awhile, but the noirish feel of Gotham is very Millar. The cops are all crooked, their is tons of crime, and only a few people are willing to do much about it. We see Gordon pissing off his partner, not willing to let the corruption slide and Bruce ... well beating up a tree. Its awesome. It is the first glimpse of the skills that
Bruce Wayne has acquired in his years abroad.

Sin City ... oh wait, that is Miller's Gotham. 

We learn that Jim Gordon has pissed off the wrong people, so Flass his partner and some of his buddies beat Gordon with baseball bats. He is able to defend himself at first, but is brought low and then beaten upon. Simultaneously Bruce is scouting "enemy territory." He is hit on by a little girl, and when her pimp intercedes Bruce beats him up. The girl who we learn is Holly Kyle stabs him in the leg and Bruce hits her. Her sister Selina Kyle jumps down and fights batman. If that name sounds familiar it should. That's right Selina Kyle is Catwoman, Batman's primary love interest. And she starts as a hooker. This is something that has occurred a few times but only when Mark Miller is writing. I personally think the idea is stupid. It denigrates  women, places an assertive female character in the worst possible light, and just feels plain wrong. Most adaptions have Catwoman as a cat burglar and master thief, and I vastly prefer that stance. Catwoman is supposed to be suave and sophisticated not ...  well this.

That's Catwoman? Sure. 

Bat Wrath!

Yah, not really a fan of Selina Kyle being a dominatrix hooker. Bruce proceeds to beat her up before being shot by corrupt cops. He passes Jim Gordon on the way back, nearly crashing repeatedly due to a knife in his calf, a gunshot, and a car crash that ends in a fireball. He manages to crawl back to the manor,  Gordon is driving to Flass's poker game, where he waits for him. He then runs Flass of off the road and then does the most amazing thing Jim Gordon will do in any comic ever. He gives Flass a baseball bat, and then proceeds to beat him like a rented mule. Gordon generally doesn't get much action, with the actual work being done by the Dark Knight, so it's nice to see him kick ass and be a hero. This is pretty good depiction of Gordon, although we do get some fairly shocking information a bit later in the comic.

The making of Batman in 4 panels

While Bruce is home, he thinks about the night his parent were killed. He was watching the Mark of Zorro, a character who inspired Batman and dealt with corrupt officials, which is a very nice parallel to the rest of the comic. He then gets the inspiration to become the Batman, when asking for his father's help, a bat flies through the window. The first part ends. The next part picks up with Gordon saving some children from a madman singlehandedly, angering the SWAT commander and the corrupt police commissioner. Gordon continues to protect and serve, but is worried about his wife, Barbara who is currently pregnant with their child. Gordon continues to comment on how terrible Gotham City is, and then we see our first appearance of Batman.

Batman's first appearance in the comic

Batman beats them up, saving the life of the one who is about to fall, and rests. We then cut to Gordon briefing GCPD along with a new character, Sarah Essen, as he discusses this so called Batman. Flass was beaten to a pulp in the middle of skimming of off a drug operation. The batarang is seen, as he disables the entire ring. The entire mob, and the rich families of Gotham are at a banquet. The commissioner supports this Batman, for making the people feel safe, even though the mobsters are concerned about the loss of profits. Batman disables the guards, then enters the room, looking like a vision from hell. He warns them he is taking Gotham back from them. Commissioner Loeb tells Gordon to catch Batman. Batman proves to be an elusive target as he avoids the traps the cops set up. Gordon guesses that Assistant District Attorney Harvey Dent may be the Batman, after finding some weightlifting equipment in his office. Batman is actually hiding under the desk?! Batman then saves Essen and Gordon from a runaway truck. Batman manages to escape and runs into an abandoned tenemant. Loeb calls in a helicopter airstrike on the tenement, which somehow happens in under a minute, even though I doubt that the Police Commissioner has huge bombs ready to drop. Batman escapes that, cuz he's well Batman, and so they send in the SWAT teams, and Selina and her sister hear the explosions. Gordon has a tough time dealing with the fact that the Batman is saving people, while the corrupt attack him. The SWAT team eventually goes down to where Batman is hiding, and Selina and Holly come to watch. Cornered Batman pulls out the ultimate Bat gadget, a frequency transmitter that attracts a huge swarm of bats.

Batman is a hero for standing up to the corrupt police force, and as they are taken out by Batman. Batman escapes pretty much scot free, having frustrated everyone pursuing him. Everyone has to be given the rabies vaccine. Essen and Gordon figure out that Bruce Wayne might be Batman, but are unable to prove it at the time. We cut to Bruce skiing, which is random as hell. He comments on the need to get Gordon on his side, and then we have another quick cut to Selina punching out her pimp and leaving. We then cut for the fourth time in two panels, and see Gordon getting into trouble with Essen. Gordon and Essen kiss, so Gordon is now basically cheating on his wife. We then get a shot of Selina putting on her Catwoman outfit.

Catwoman meet Batman, Batman be pissed at Catwoman

So Catwoman is not a prostitue anymore, which is just wonderful. She leaps out the window, out to steal things. We then get a monologue from Gordon about how everything is not ok, with his relationship with Barbara deteriorating, his relationship with Essen complicating his life, a city full of villains and a persecuted hero.  The issue ends, with a shot of Gordon staring at his gun as he sits on the bed. The next issue opens with Gordon breaking up with Essen, but then we learn psych! Gordon is going to continue to make out with Essen. Batman learns of a drug dealer named Skeever who is working for the mob, and Batman breaks into his house and tells him that he know pain, and is able to share it with others. Skeever turns himself into Gordon in exchange for squealing on Flass. Gordon is confronted by Loeb who shows him a picture of Gordon kissing Essen. The Gordon's go to Wayne Manor a few days later, and Gordon sort of rules him out, before confessing to his wife of the affair. Flass threatens Skeever's life, and Gordon and Barbara continue to fight, as Flass's conviction leads to Loeb releasing the blackmail. Skeever survives an assassination attempt, and Barbara has the baby.

Insert jumping of bride joke here

Later Batman learns about several mobsters, and tries to listen in, but Catwoman arrives and disrupts the meeting. Catwoman claws the elder mobster's face off, and leaves his son Johnny to deal with the families business. Catwoman is called Batman's assistant which pisses him off. In revenge Johnny is told to get Gordon, by taking his family. Gordon is called to work, and during that time his wife and baby are grabbed. Gordon manages to save Barbara, and a mysterious man chase after Gordon and his baby. Gordon is able to stop Johnny from just killing his child, but in the struggle, the baby is knocked off the bridge. The mysterious man jumps off the bridge, and manages to save the baby, as both he and Gordon fall of the bridge into the waters below. The baby is saved, but Gordon's glasses have fallen off and he is unable to recognize the man. As the cops come to investigate, the man who of course is Bruce Wayne flees. We learn that Flass takes a few weeks to give up the notes of his meetings with Loeb, and Loeb is tried, but is resigning. Gordon is promoted to Commissiomer and we see Gordon standing waiting for Batman on top of the police building

The beginning of the legend

So basically, I like parts of this issue, and despise other parts. I like the Zorro connections, the importance of Jim Gordon, and that Batman has to get to know his enemy. These all add to the mythology, and flesh out important connections. I however despise the idea of Catwoman as a prostitute, dislike the fact that the death of Thomas and Martha Wayne is given all of one page, and that we don't really see Bruce's training, or even that he is trained in more than punching people. I think that this is one of the better Frank Miller batman stories, but it's really not that great of an origin. It doesn't tell us much about why Batman is who he is, and what he is like both as Batman and Bruce Wayne. It kind of does, but I just feel like I don't know Batman as well as Gordon.

This is not the origin story I would personally recommend, but then again, I am having a tough time finding a good one. It is the most recent origin story for Batman, aside from the new 52, so for right now this is the Origin I would use to get into comics. I got my copy in the trade paper back Batman: Year One. It was also faithfully adapted in the DC animated feature Batman: Year One, which is almost page for page the same as the comic. Next week I will look at another very important modern comic The Killing Joke, while I continue to hunt down a good origin.