Batman - The Dark Knight Returns (Frank Miller)

Sorry guys - I think it's a girl thing - I can't get excited about a comic.

I've read good Batman stuff - I've read Batman stuff and to be honest I'd have to say that DKR falls closer to the bad end. I know you can be burnt at the stake for saying that these days but I guess deep at heart I'm a bit of a batman traditionalist. Frank Miller has a knack for trying to recreate legends in his own image which he generally does very successfully but for me trying to "finish" a legend in his own style just hasn't worked. Of course there are a lot of things to be grateful for - without this book there wouldn't really be as many titles as there is today as it did bring the comics industry back to life but that doesn't mean that it's lasted the course of time. My advice - if it's a great batman saga you want then stick to cataclysm and no-man's land. If it's a good frank Miller you're looking for then go for "300" his retelling of the fall of Leonides. If you must have both then go for "Batman: Year One" but if it's aged superheroes then I'd go for "Kingdom Come". Plus he killed off the Joker - bastard.

This is to most comics what Nikos Kazantzakes is to Jackie Collins. It has everything, great characters/story/art, satire (gotta love those whingin lefties) and of course the ultimate mano-e-mano showdown.

Your also able to read it over-and-over each time picking up hidden gems. The quintessential comic and well worth the money.

This vies for position with Alan Moore's "Watchmen" for the position of "Best Comic I've Ever Read". Everything about it is superlative. The artwork perfectly reflects the grim, crime ridden streets of Gotham City and the writing is laden with dark humour. This was the classic re-invention of Batman which paved the way for Tim Burton's 1989 film and flew in the face of most peoples’ perception of Batman defined by the camp '60s TV series.

In this book Batman (now an old man battling the ravages of time and a heart that is not as strong as it used to be, as well as Gotham City's criminal fraternity) skates the line between crime fighter and vigilante and a large part of the focus of the book is on the media reaction to his actions which seem remarkably relevant in today’s world (the psychiatrist blaming Batman for a string of copy cat attacks whilst simultaneously petitioning for the release of the self proclaimed mass murderer, The Joker). This book pokes fun at right wing reactionism and lefty liberalism in equal measure and is packed with enough characters and humour to keep anybody happy.

A work of true Genius, taking the concept of the superhero into the gritty modern day world of political correctness and lawsuit culture. A wonderful satire, this is one of the seminal graphic novels of all time.

Don't like the new cover tho ;)