Reviews

Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb

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trying_to_swim2710's review against another edition

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dark lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

jakelovesbooks1000's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

5.0

First comic book

magnetgrrl's review against another edition

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4.0

This is one of the better Batman stories out there, and very worth checking out. The story continues in two more trades, Dark Victory and Haunted Knight, but even if you only read this one that's fine; you won't really be left hanging. This plot is a great mix of classic detective batman with the newer super-villain type stories. The transitions allows for an interesting nascent examination of the setting of Gotham and the characters that reside there. Building off the Frank Miller reboot of Batman it really sets up much of hte newer, darker Batman of today. And it's a thrilling pot-boiler to read.

josh0_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

sonofatreus's review against another edition

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5.0

I went into this book thinking it would be kind of hokey, even for Batman. The premise is an unknown killer who takes a victim coordinating to a holiday (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.). Over the course of the book, Batman runs into almost every major member of his Rogue's Gallery, making this one of the widest-ranging Batman books out there. I was skeptical for both of these reasons, but after probably two murders, I was fully on-board. The writing is exquisite. The art is nearly perfect (I'll never love the depiction of Catwoman used here, but my distaste softened greatly).
The mystery of who the killer is becomes secondary over time. Instead, I was wrapped up in the characterization of each player. The usual Batman/Bruce is, of course, played out well, but so too are the other characters neatly woven into Batman's/Bruce's life. Never have I read a book where each character, villain and ally, seemed essential to Batman's being. Everyone had their own intimacy with him, and he is clearly being pulled by everyone else.
I saw a few reviews that said they preferred this to TDKR; I fully agree. Despite being Batman, and despite its grisly premise, this book is less pessimistic and brighter, without losing the core of Batman's character. In many ways, this reminded me of the Batman from the Animated Series.