All Star Batman And Robin The Boy Wonder

It is nigh impossible to know what exactly to make of this title.

There seems to be two divergent states of mind possible. One could believe that Frank Miller is taking the piss out of his own vision of Batman, and how that vision has devolved into the grumbling sad sack Dark Knight Avenger that has dominated the Batman titles for going on two decades.

One could also argue that Frank Miller's just gotten really crappy over the years, and this is his crappiest work yet.

Hard to say, really. When in the right mindset, it is possible to enjoy All-Star Batman and Robin, even love it a little. There are strange laughs to be had here, outlandish parodies of what the DC Universe has become, with Batman thrilling at the criminals who shoot each other trying to kill him and frequent overuse of the expletive "goddamn."

But the book doesn't make it easy to enjoy, for those very reasons why it is so enjoyable. It's hard to swallow this level of harsh parody, because there's absolutely nothing good-natured about it. If Miller is railing against the very image of Batman he's helped create--if he is, in essence, biting the hand that feeds him--then he's drawing blood, and it's spilling everywhere.

Which makes Jim Lee either an instrument of his savage critique, or the unluckiest star in the comics industry. He's doing what he does here--big, bold images of iconic superheroes doing amazing things. Yet it's being conscripted almost against its will into the tapestry of Miller's larger goals here. In utilizing perhaps the most "comic book" of the comic book artists working today, Miller's critique gets even more savage--he's using one of the superhero genre's most potent tools against itself.

Yeah. Either that, or his work has just gotten plain AWFUL, and Lee's unfortunate to have found himself working with a legend well past his prime.

Like I said, nigh impossible, it is.

In order to appreciate All Star Batman at any level in terms of actual story, you have to look at it as a satire, a total comedy. While it’s always a matter of debate whether Frank Miller is making a statement about how Batman’s been characterized in recent years, or if he’s just lost his touch and gone completely insane, you have to admit, unintentional or not, All Star Batman’s characterization is a biting parody and attack on this uber-cold, crazed bastard of a man Batman has been portrayed as the past 15 years or so.

And for that, I think the title succeeds very well. It does really make you laugh, and make you think about just how Batman has been characterized recently, and if it’s really the right type of characterization for the character.

The one big thing that truly is a bad aspect of the righting, is the pacing of the plot. It may be partially due to the book’s delays, but, at times, it truly feels like even though issue after issue has passed, the plot hasn’t moved at all. Which is definite complaint, but when all the issues are read together, it really is a lot less event.

Obviously, the art on the book is spectacular. As good as Lee has ever been. Unfortunately, that’s dampened by the fact it seemingly takes Jim 6 months to a year to pencil a single issue.

All in all, I find it to be a pretty enjoyable read, and really book to look at. Maybe, if I was reading it every month, I would’ve grown tired of it after a while, but considering it costs me 3 bucks twice a year to read, it’s worth it.