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Amazon.com Review
It's refreshing when you find a Batman story that both is epic and
successfully explores the core of a resolutely explored character.
Taking as its catalyst a sub-plot from the seminal Batman: Year One,
the story revolves around murders occurring on national holidays,
the victims connected to Mob boss "The Roman." Dubbed "Holiday," the
killer uses an untraceable handgun and leaves small trinkets at the
scene. Plenty of suspects are available, but the truth is something
the Dark Knight never suspected. This series scores two major coups:
it brilliantly portrays the transfer of Gotham rule to the
supervillains and charts the horrific transformation of Harvey Dent
from hardened D.A. to the psychotic Two-Face. Both orbit around the
sharply portrayed relationship between Dent, Commissioner Gordon,
and Batman: a triumvirate of radically different perceptions of
Justice. It is always great to see the formative incarnation of
Batman, drenched in noir here.
Jeph Loeb's writing is keenly aware that Batman is a detective, and
Tim Sale portrays a Gotham that is a fertile breeding ground for
corruption and madness. Here, Batman is coming to terms with the
potent image he projects and the madness it attracts. There are many
fine Batman stories, but the ones that capture the spirit with
extreme clarity are few. On this alone, The Long Halloween comes
highly recommended. Masterfully executed, this is an excellent
chance to revisit the world of Batman as fresh as in the summer of
1939. --Danny Graydon --This text refers to an out of print or
unavailable edition of this title.
History
Batman: The Long Halloween is a 13-issue comic book limited series
written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale. It was originally
published by DC Comics in 1996 and 1997. It was inspired by the
three Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials by the
same creative team. The entire series has been collected in both
trade paperback, and as part of the DC Comics Absolute Editions. The
series' success led to Loeb and Sale to reteam for the sequel,
Batman: Dark Victory, and Catwoman: When in Rome, which parallels
the events in Dark Victory.
Taking place during Batman's early days of crime fighting, The Long
Halloween tells the story of a mysterious killer named Holiday, who
murders people on holidays, one each month. Working with District
Attorney Harvey Dent and Lieutenant James Gordon, Batman races
against the calendar as he tries to discover who Holiday is before
he claims his next victim each month. The story also ties into the
events that transform Harvey Dent into Batman's enemy, Two-Face.
In continuity terms, The Long Halloween continues the story of
Batman: Year One. It also revolves around the transition of Batman's
rogues gallery from simple mob goons to full-fledged supervillains.
It also tells the origin of Two-Face, adding along to the story in
Batman: Annual #14.
Jeph Loeb has stated that the genesis of the story was influenced by
writer Mark Waid, who, when told that Loeb was working on a story
set in the Year One continuity, suggested focusing on Harvey Dent's
years prior to becoming Two-Face, as that had not been depicted in
depth since the original Year One story.
Critics Review
Critical reaction to The Long Halloween has been mainly
positive.
Hilary Goldstein of IGN Comics praised Loeb's story as "tight,
engrossing, and intelligent writing that never betrays the
characters", adding that he "mixes Batman and Bruce Wayne's lives as
well as anyone has, and brilliantly demonstrates the bond of
brotherhood shared by Batman, Jim Gordon and then District Attorney
Harvey Dent." Goldstein later ranked The Long Halloween #5 on a list
of the 25 best Batman graphic novels.
Yannick Belzil of The 11th Hour said that "Jeph Loeb has crafted a
story that is unique to the characters. It's a complex murder
mystery, but its also a Batman story." Belzil added: "Buoyed by a
film noir-ish plot that features a Gothic twist on the
gangster/murder mystery plot, terrific character-based subplots, and
beautiful, cinematic art, [The Long Halloween is] an addition to
your collection that you won't regret."
Continuity
The Long Halloween begins in June, approximately six months after
Batman: Year One , which ends in December. This six-month gap
accounts for the fact that the villains in Batman's rogues gallery
are already established in The Long Halloween. However, since there
are a multitude of Batman stories set in this time period, The Long
Halloween may possibly begin, not in the following June, but
possibly a year-and-a-half after Batman: Year One. Several stories
definitely take place in between Year One and The Long Halloween,
including Batman and the Monster Men, Batman and the Mad Monk, and
Batman: The Man Who Laughs, the last of which tells of the first
encounter between Batman and the Joker, following up on the events
of Year One.
In other media
The Long Halloween was one of three noted comics that influenced the
2005 feature film Batman Begins, the others being Batman: The Man
Who Falls and Batman: Year One. The film's sequel The Dark Knight
adapted many elements of this story, the setting of Batman, Gordon,
and Harvey Dent talking on the roof of the Gotham City Police
Department is taken from this story and used in The Dark Knight, as
is Gordon's line "he does that" to Dent when Batman disappears from
the conversation in the middle of Dent's sentence. In the comic,
Harvey Dent has acid thrown on his face during court, but in the
film a witness draws a gun on him (though this is not how he becomes
Two-Face in the film). The comic also depicts Dent and Batman
discovering mountains of cash and destroying it, while in the film
it is the Joker who destroys a pile of the mob's cash. Similar to
the scene where the Dents have their house blown asunder, the Joker
is behind setting up explosives for Harvey and his loved one in the
movie, with the role of Gilda replaced by Rachel. Harvey Dent
succumbing into the tragic fate of "Two-Face", his obsession with
the mob, is taken directly from the book and adapted onto screen. In
the book Sal Maroni is responsible for Harvey's facial scars, in the
movie the Joker is responsible. But Maroni is also considered the
culprit as he 'unleashed' the Joker. This is the version Dent
chooses to believe, as he is later seen confronting Maroni, holding
him responsible for the Joker's actions. The scene where Batman
disguises himself as a helmeted bodyguard to ambush Holiday is
mirrored in The Dark Knight, with the decoy bodyguard being Gordon,
the 'transfer' being Harvey instead of Maroni, and the target being
the Joker instead of Holiday.
Related Title
The sequel to Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman Dark Victory
Superherouniverse Batman
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