Let's Read Intermission: Let's Read... Arkham Asylum

[Vaarna_Aarne]

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

 

[oldmanpaco]

Well that was.. arty.

I remember reading this 20 years ago. Never went back to it.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

I consider the "doll's house" scene to be a masterful example of horror in comic book format. Some of my favourite pages of all time.

 

[oldmanpaco]

I liked the flashback parts much better than the Batman parts but this art style drives me crazy for some reason.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

The artist himself has on several occasions criticized his style in this book. According to him, it obscures storytelling.

Personally, I think the art style enhances the demented and surreal atmosphere of the comic.

 

[oldmanpaco]

Yeah but it is like it was trying to hard to give that feeling. Toning it down a bit or only using it when things get crazy would have been better. What's the point when Batman is talking to Gordon? Makes the art more important than the story.

edit: The art should have changed as Batman entered the asylum and as Dr Arkum slowly got more crazy. Of course what the hell do I know?

 

[Eyeball]

What an unbelievable pile of shit in every single conceivable way.

 

[Quetzacoatl]

What an unbelievable pile of shit in every single conceivable way.

It's Grant Morrison. You either hate his stuff or you love it.

 

[Kosmonaut]

Reported this thread for copyright infringement.

 

[SerratedBiz]

Loved it, myself. It's like having an insider's look at the nightmare of a guy who got told about one story and another story behind it. The Arkham flashbacks were great, as was the Joker imagery.

I mean, that's the kind of image I want burnt in my retina when I go to sleep. Takes me back to being a 10 year old watching The Wall for the very first time, a chunk of mind blown up to make room for all kinds of uptothen unthinkable things.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

A particularly good boon in owning the 15th Anniversary Edition print of the comic is that it comes with the original script with added annotations by Grant Morrison.

Btw, I think it'd be good to point out that this was the comic that made character-specific lettering mainstream standard (though obviously not many comics let the letterer go wild like in this one).

 

[Radisshu]

Yeah but it is like it was trying to hard to give that feeling. Toning it down a bit or only using it when things get crazy would have been better. What's the point when Batman is talking to Gordon? Makes the art more important than the story.

edit: The art should have changed as Batman entered the asylum and as Dr Arkum slowly got more crazy. Of course what the hell do I know?

Yeah, this. I still like this comic, though, although Batman feels too "soft" all the way through, he should go in all Batmanny and then let the vulnerability and fear take over.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

Yeah but it is like it was trying to hard to give that feeling. Toning it down a bit or only using it when things get crazy would have been better. What's the point when Batman is talking to Gordon? Makes the art more important than the story.

edit: The art should have changed as Batman entered the asylum and as Dr Arkum slowly got more crazy. Of course what the hell do I know?

Yeah, this. I still like this comic, though, although Batman feels too "soft" all the way through, he should go in all Batmanny and then let the vulnerability and fear take over.

In the script Morrison exposits this to the artist, like the fact that in any other situation a skinny psychiatrist with a razor wouldn't even register as a threat to Batman, who is a world-class martial artist and athlete who fights superpowered opponents. This time it's just that his head is completely fucked up by that point and he was recently impaled on a rusty metal spear handle by Killer Croc.

 

[Radisshu]

Yeah but it is like it was trying to hard to give that feeling. Toning it down a bit or only using it when things get crazy would have been better. What's the point when Batman is talking to Gordon? Makes the art more important than the story.

edit: The art should have changed as Batman entered the asylum and as Dr Arkum slowly got more crazy. Of course what the hell do I know?

Yeah, this. I still like this comic, though, although Batman feels too "soft" all the way through, he should go in all Batmanny and then let the vulnerability and fear take over.

In the script Morrison exposits this to the artist, like the fact that in any other situation a skinny psychiatrist with a razor wouldn't even register as a threat to Batman, who is a world-class martial artist and athlete who fights superpowered opponents. This time it's just that his head is completely fucked up by that point and he was recently impaled on a rusty metal spear handle by Killer Croc.

Yeah, and by that point I think it makes sense. I just think the biggest problem with Arkham Asylum is that it's complete insanity from frame one, letting it build a bit would've made the comic better. Still a classic though.

 

[abnaxus]

DAT ART

...

is actually pretty fuckin awsome

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

Yea, it's got a nightmarish/demented quality to it that adds to the story.

 

[Occasionally Fatal]

An interesting idea for a comic, but I remember trying to read this on my phone... now that was a nightmare. Still got the general idea, but definitely missed out on a lot of the details.