batman the dark knight returns frank miller

In doing so, the work was talked about and passed around as a “gateway comic” – something you gave to someone to show that “comics were just not for kids anymore”. Bringing him back to his darker origins and explore the quasi-fascistic tendencies inherent in the character’s set up. In 1986 DC Comics were financially at an all time low, which seemed to have influenced their openness to let an up and comer like Miller do what he wanted with their beloved franchise character. Batman never kills anyone, rarely uses guns, sticks close to a moral code of doing good and never grows old. With the Dark Knight Returns we see Miller dutifully follow the tropes of action adventure stories, but the reason the work resonates is because of the select few rules he choses to deconstruct.

Instinctually when reading Batman you know when the work is off the mark, and when it’s on the mark. The Batman myth has an interesting construct – he was created by a single individual but through time a broader group (writers, artists, fans) have regulated his makeup. No definitive rules are written anywhere, but there is a core story that has a definitive structure that the collective imagination has moulded throughout the years. Miller’s story stays within the basic superhero parameters, but his shift in tone with the character is unique and has had a deep impact for the medium of action adventure comics. The impact of it all is so strong it’s now impossible to avoid, and even harder to deviate from when dealing with the character. In those two books he’s able to repackage the origin story and also gives the character an end point. Once with The Dark Knight Returns in 1986, and again the following year with Batman Year One. – Frank MillerĬontext: There is only one really good Batman story, and Frank Miller found a way to tell it twice. From that sprung everything about the story”.

And So I figured Batman’s gotta be older than me. “ I got a chance to work on Batman, I was 29 years old at the time and dreading the nightmare of turning 30.

Batman the dark knight returns frank miller