Morrison's Batman and Robin getting an extended run

[Colin YNWA]

MORRISON'S BATMAN AND ROBIN GETTING AN EXTENDED RUN THREAD WILL NEVER DIE!

Get that for an excuse to necropost. ANYWAY over the last few weeks I've read Morrison's Batman run start to finish. Aside from the bloody awful, Resurrection of Ra Al Ghul its quite simply brilliant. Evidenced as such by the fact, like most Morrison stuff the momemt I finished I wanted to back and read it again, digging deeper and finding more, as I'm quite sure there's stuff I missed and its already back on my re-read list. Grant Morrison really is the type of writer that you wished had been around as a kid when you had time (and lack of other good comics) to go back to stuff time and again as with GMozz each time you do you pull out more.

Love the way the structure, a number of seperate runs each telling a seperate story, each with its only world breaking conclusion, echos the main theme of the run as a whole. All of Batman's stories have happened before and it will all happen again. Love that each can be read on their own but together then become a big mind melting meta-epic of quite glorious... in fact God like seems appropriate given GMozz's view of superheroes... magnitude and scale. And yet at their heart are simply a tale a boy who lost his parents through the quite cosmic magnifying lens of superheroes (even that theme is in a loop here!)

It really feels like its the summation of his superhero work and when you look at Zenith, Animal Man and JLA, all of which quite glorious on their own, you see how they feel like a training ground for this.

Its quite the best Batman run ever... well okay I need to read Grant and Breyfogle's again as that its probably as good and has Breyfogle's art which tops all... but really with those two runs you simply don't need more Batman they are absolutely all there needs to be.

Go on treat yourself, read all again.

[Apestrife]

Colin_YNWA, which books did you read?

Last time, I read Batman and son, Black glove, RIP, Time and the Batman, Batman and Robin, Return of Bruce Wayne, Batman Inc. I left out Final Crisis since I rather read it on it's own, and I'm thinking Batman and son up to RIP takes place Batman's head (in the machine).

RIP is my fav. part. Especially the the bit where he fries the evil factory lump and clones, using his memories as a weapon. What I consider to be the core of Batman, similarly why I enjoy DKR as much as I do. Bruce finding ways of using his pain to push on, and become better.

The black case book is also really cool. To think that Batman writing down silver age crazy stories in a book. Cases he can't explain, perhaps hallucinated. Brilliance. As is the time travel bat-god-loop thingy.

My least favorite bit of the run is some of the violence and stuff. While not Millar-esque, still felt a bit too nihilistic at times. For example the brute-batman (Batman and son) killing prostitutes, faces getting eaten or all the lobotomy bits and what not. Not that I mind the inclusion, lobotomy feels quite apt given the goth feel, but I wish there was a bit more finesse to it. Something in the lines of Damian constantly getting organs replaced due to the physical toll of being Batman's little helper. Perhaps I missed it, or can't remember. But I have similar "problems" (nothing big) with some other of Morrison's books as well.

All and all, not my fav. book/books of Morrison (those are DP, Flex and Multiversity, and sometimes Action Comics), but still very good and a testament to what kind of stories the medium can achieve.

[Colin YNWA]

There a great online reading list for the run, which I hadn't seen prior to my re-read but has informed my next one when, in the distant future I get to it. Bit of a pain that the writer puts all the variant covers up there, just makes it a little fussier to sort through... but then he did take the effort to do it so I've no right to whine!

http://comicsastonish.com/2012/01/04/a-readers-guide-to-grant-morrisons-batman/

This time I read trades of Batman and Son, Black Glove, Resurrection of Ra Al Ghul (I've since bought the individual GMozz issues to see if they do as I don't fancy reading it again as its a bit of a mess), R.I.P a few of the individual issues 700 - 702 (I think). Then onto my individual issues of Batman and Robin, Return of Bruce Wayne (which needs really to be interweaved a little with BaR for best effect, for next time!) Batman: The Return finally all the Batman Inc stuff. I think its worth removing issue 11 from the second volume from that and reading that at the end with the Batman Inc Special as it is a glaring road bump in the read!

I too skipped Final Crisis as that kinda stands on its own and has too much other stuff going on to distract from the Batman stuff and isn't really needed to understand this run. Its getting a reread soon anyhoo. I do have the 52 issues that foreshadow all this too so they will be added next time.

I know what you mean about all the violence but it does lend itself scale of things, emphasizes the horror and changing landscape from the Blackcase Files stuff (I've bought the Blackcase Files trade which reprints those old 50s stories as a warm up for next time as a treat). It also lends itself to the little loops in the run itself. The big events adding crescendo to each of the big arcs in the overall story. But yeah it does seem to delight in it all a little too much.   

[Apestrife]

I also skipped the Batman INC not written by Morrison. Same way I read his Action Comics run, only his issues. Shame that the INC-thing hasn't gotten much use outside Morrison's story, other -correct me if I'm wrong- a couple of mentions here and there? Similar to Azzarello's Wonder Woman becoming the God of War. It's mentioned now and then, and in the current main book she's loosing her shit over the "burden" a page now and then...

I agree on Final Crisis. I rather read that on it's own. While I love it's "Old Man passes like a dream. Like smoke. But the fire burns forever." (Don't be surprised if you see that on my grave one day), both works --works better that way. The goings in the evil factory is perfectly summed up in the batman book, and I think it's supposed to feel a bit "loose", with Bruce's memories being transferred over to the clones and lump. Haven't really touched 52 as of yet, will perhaps give it a chance with the new collection next year. Would be cool to read followed by Seven Soldiers, Final Crisis and Multiversity (I almost want a TPB to stand next to my tbps of 7S and FC)

Morrison seem to have calmed down a bit. I even remembering him saying in an interview it hit him as well while writing The Filth (which I read today, 3rd time and no wiser). I think both Multiversity, Annihilator and Nameless managed to do much (Nameless especially) without it becoming too much. Can't wait to read his upcoming weird tales Batman

[Colin YNWA]

There's only two issues of 52 that relate to his Batman run specifically. Its great but not something I'd say is in anyway essentially Morrison, although some of his stuff does shine through. Its basically a nice explore of the DC Universe and seems to revel in its choatic creation.

His "upcoming weird tales Batman" have I missed something or am I being daft here?

[Apestrife]

I quite liked the Futures end weekly, and I'v heard good stuff about 52. Is easy to jump in, or do I need to know more about Infinite Crisis (eyed it a bit, but didn't quite like it) other than the big 3 have put their tights down? Are there some fun and inspiring Morrison stuff/stories in it? Or is it just superheroes doing superhero stuff?

I actually think Futures end had some really cool stuff going on (even if it wasn't a perfectly told story.).

The new Batman of his is called Batman Black and White. Hasn't been that much word on it, and the little he's said was overshadowed by Multiversity at the time. Seem's written some really weird Batman with some artsy L.A-based talent on art.

This is the only art I know of, as of yet. A woman -according to Morrison- who got trained till she got a six pack in order to portray Batman.


Outside the woman-Batman, Morrison has -if I remember correctly- hinted something about Batman's girlfriends sitting down and discussing him, as a Batmite story and one about a moon faced woman who's either happy or pissed depending on which day of month it is.

A bit more here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUf3e34ZO3A

[Colin YNWA]

Wow intriguing and wonderful GMozz.

As for 52 I'd say its all there, but be mindful I often say that when people say otherwise but it kinda leads off something (Infinite Crisis as you say) and so starts from a good point. By and large the team who produced it (GMozz, Rucka, Johns and Waid) do their thing so its a wonderful hodgepodge of stuff and styles that kinda beautifully gells somehow. Its superheroy on occasion, brilliantly different on others (which I'd say dominates).