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Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Serious House on Serious Earth (Batman)

by Grant Morrison, Dave McKean (Illustrator)

4.09 · Rating Details · 46,262 Ratings · 1,400 Reviews

In this groundbreaking, painted graphic novel, the inmates of Arkham Asylum have taken over Gotham's detention center for the criminally insane on April Fools Day, demanding Batman in exchange for their hostages. Accepting their demented challenge, Batman is forced to live and endure the personal hells of the Joker, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, Two-Face and many other sworn enem ...more

Paperback, 15th Anniversary Edition, 216 pages

Published January 11th 2005 by DC Comics (first published 1989)

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Dec 07, 2015 Jeff rated it it was ok

Shelves: comix

The Caped Crusader with footnotes!?!

or Art for Art’s Sake.

or Holy Histrionics, Batman, I’d rather have listened to an opera…

Grant Morrison gets “serious” – it’s even mentioned in the title twice in case you need a reminder – and if Carrot Top wants to star in a remake of Death of a Salesman or Billy Joel wants to write a concerto for flugelhorn and triangle, I don’t want to hear about it.

Wait, Jeff, did you say footnotes?

Yes, Goodreader, this is why I love you, because nothing ever gets by you. ...more

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May 28, 2012 Eric rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: No one

Shelves: graphic-novels, batman

What a fucking mess. The painted artwork was appalling, the story-line was incoherent, the dialogue was barely legible, and, most importantly, the portrayal of Batman was all wrong. This felt like a second-rate haunted-house horror that Batman was wedged into, and poorly at that. Batman's encounters with various villains felt thrown-in, in a cheap name-dropping way, his decision-making was baffling to non-existent, and the story's resolution -- hanging on a coin-flip -- was absurd.

The back-stor ...more

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Nov 18, 2011 StoryTellerShannon rated it liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels, fantasy-scifi, books-reviewed

This is not your traditional Batman tale. Some people won't like it. In fact, Batman seems like a normal man when confronted by the horrors within and acts in very non Batman ways. There's a two part story here where we switch back and forth to the founder of Arkham and why he turned his mansion into a facility for the mad and Batman trying to navigate his way through the madness of Arkham.

Batman action is minimal. This is much more of an emotional journey.

There is distinctive lettering for ...more

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Nov 12, 2012 Anne rated it did not like it

Shelves: graphic-novels, comics, i-lost-brain-cells, read-in-2012

Sorry, guys. Didn't like it.

I have a headache and my eyes hurt.
Not joking here.
One of my eyes is actually throbbing.
Yes, only one.
I'm going to take some Tylenol...

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May 24, 2011 Keith rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorites

So after buying this book for the third time in my life today (the first, a hardcover edition that all the pages eventually fell out of; the second, the paperback edition sans script that now sits across the country with the rest of my books) I decided it was worth going on Goodreads to wax poetic about it. Because goddamn I love this book. I got it right after the '89 movie came out, of course, and was absolutely terrified of it -- it sat on my nightstand and gave me nightmares regularly, until So after buying this book for the third time in my life today (the first, a hardcover edition that all the pages eventually fell out of; the second, the paperback edition sans script that now sits across the country with the rest of my books) I decided it was worth going on Goodreads to wax poetic about it. Because goddamn I love this book. I got it right after the '89 movie came out, of course, and was absolutely terrified of it -- it sat on my nightstand and gave me nightmares regularly, until I put it away for years before revisiting it again in my late teens.

But I'd never bothered to wonder what anyone else thought of it. It's so weird and relatively incomprehensible that I wouldn't recommend it to people trying to get into comics, and most people who are into comics have already read it, I imagine (despite, as I said, never having talked about it with anyone).

So yeah! Goodreads! Goodreads kinda hates this book! I mean, not everybody, but a lot of people! And Batman comics are not the kind of thing that generally creates polarized opinions, if ya know what I mean. There's The Bat-Books Fans Like and The Bat-Books Fans Hate, and every so often there's some idiot who goes "I just think Alan Moore over-intellectualizes" and we all beat up that one guy. And sure, everyone argues if Killing Joke or Year One or Dark Knight Returns is the best one, but it's generally assumed that ONE of them is your favorite (and then a couple n00bs in the back start saying that either Hush or Long Halloween is the best, and we throw them out with the Alan Moore whiny guy). But Arkham Asylum? I dunno man. It's a weird friggin' book. It's apparently like the best-selling graphic novel of all time. It rarely comes up in discussion. And Goodreads kinda hates it.

Everyone who complains that Grant Morrison's cleverer-than-thou new age fruitiness is too naked here is right. And that Dave McKean clearly rendered Batman as a black splotch because he couldn't figure out how to draw him, that's also obvious. And that Batman acts completely out-of-character -- he doesn't save anyone, he lets people kill each other, he has no discernible plan, he admits he's just scared and then leaves at the end -- yeah, those folks are right too.

But dammit. People like Batman because we all kind feel like we ARE Batman, I think. Not like we have hero complexes - but like we're alone on the edge of an abyss, either the sanest or the least sane in a strange dark world? You don't have to be thirteen in your bedroom listening to the Cure to grok that, man. And yknow, I'm glad there's a fucked-up scary Bat-book where Batman is just doing all he can to stand upright in the face of muddy horror, you know? With its facile Crowley references and lame-ass anglocentric Tarot-based page layouts or whatever. Cuz good lord, some days your whole world feels like an ominous Tarot reading, no matter how far you get from that little kid who was scared of his own comics twenty years ago. I'm glad there's a book out there where my buddy Batman has a bad day too.

Loves you, booky-book. Loves you. No matter what the little piggies say. ...more

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Mike Alan-Moore-whiny-guy-who-doesn't-happen-to-mind-his-Bat-book here. I'm willing to give the creative team a pass on being out of character/off-model, i ...more
Mar 16, 2014 09:07AM

Keith Is it a good story? I mean, these are Batman comics. I think they function on atmosphere and tone a lot more than story, since the story is usually ". ...more
Mar 18, 2014 07:56AM

Jul 14, 2008 Andrew Webb rated it did not like it · review of another edition

I have read many a poor/overrated Batman story in my ten-odd years as a fan, but this much referred to epic may take the cake. As a Batman story, this is a total failure. Batman acts completely out of character almost from the beginning. When walking into a hostage situation masterminded by the Joker, he strikes up a conversation with his archenemy rather than planning how to rescue the innocents involved. When Joker shoots a hostage in the head across the room from Batman (I think-- the bizarre ...more

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Oct 15, 2007 Marc rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: intellectual art lovers

Arkham Asylum is the best graphic novel I've ever read for two reasons: writing, and art.

This isn't your average WHACK! POW! comic book. In fact, there is almost no violence or glammed-out secret weapons. Grant Morrision takes us through a masterful exploration into the psyche of Bruce Wayne, a man who suffered a tragic loss at an early age and formed a very clear alternate identity. Is he a crime fighter, or does he suffer from MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder), and does it even matter.

Set in ...more

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Jan 26, 2008 Madeline rated it it was ok

Shelves: honors-program, graphic-novels

i think ADHD being a form of higher evolution is an interesting theory. grant morrison thinking he is more highly evolved because he has ADHD is a less interesting theory.

morrison is no genius, in my opinion. i would attribute most of the greatness of the book to mckean, especially after reading the original "script" in the back of this book. morrison says, "According to Len Wein's original WHO'S WHO entry, Arkham died singing "the Battle Hymn of the Republic," but for some reason I got confused ...more

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Oct 16, 2011 Sam Quixote rated it it was ok

Based solely upon his 2006-2013 run, Grant Morrison might be the greatest Batman writer of all time. But he wasn’t always so brilliant as his first Batman book, the mega-selling Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, shows.

The inmates have overrun the asylum and are holding civilians hostage. With Joker running free with a knife, Batman goes into the asylum to stop him and enters a nightmarish netherworld. Meanwhile, the troubled life of the asylum’s founder, Amadeus Arkham, is explor Based solely upon his 2006-2013 run, Grant Morrison might be the greatest Batman writer of all time. But he wasn’t always so brilliant as his first Batman book, the mega-selling Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, shows.

The inmates have overrun the asylum and are holding civilians hostage. With Joker running free with a knife, Batman goes into the asylum to stop him and enters a nightmarish netherworld. Meanwhile, the troubled life of the asylum’s founder, Amadeus Arkham, is explored.

The story is one long rambling mess, which is part of Morrison’s intent. It’s designed to be dream-like and to read like a song and therefore, as a comic, it’s difficult to follow or really understand. I get the impression the symbolism of the tarot is important but the book didn’t make me interested enough to want to pursue a deeper understanding of it. Batman’s characterisation is a bit off too – how was he beaten by a deranged doctor!?

Some readers might scoff that Morrison’s comics are always like this with his drug use, but he actually wrote this before he began using drugs and alcohol – he writes in his afterword that he stayed up for hours on end to achieve the altered state of consciousness he wanted before sitting down to write. So it’s official: with or without drugs, Morrison writes weird comics! Hear that, poseur artists, you don’t need vice to produce art!

Dave McKean’s artwork matches Morrison’s bizarre story well but it still looks a bit too avant-garde for a comic. McKean’s best known for being The Sandman’s cover artist and his art is well suited to that format. But for page after page of interior art? It’s just headache-inducing! And when he does draw distinguishable figures, they look like poor Simon Bisley facsimiles.

I liked Morrison’s idea to have the Arkham doctors try weaning Harvey Dent off of the two-sided coin and onto the I Ching. It seemed like an original and viable means of treatment for Two-Face. But other ideas like the Joker calling the outside world the asylum and the world inside Arkham the real world was just corny, and the Amadeus Arkham storyline just read like a poor man’s Psycho. Morrison’s comics usually have more substance to them but Arkham Asylum is all surface texture with few great ideas.

Arkham Asylum is a visually interesting book but it looks and reads like an art student’s project, ie. a pretentious mish-mash of nonsense, than a good comic. I definitely wouldn’t rank it among Batman’s classics! If you want to read Morrison’s best Batman books, start with Batman and Son and go forwards from there. ...more

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Mar 29, 2016 Andrew rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: comics

Ok. I've heard about this title and I know there is a videogame inspired by this comic, but I never seen nothing, before today. While I was out of home, I stopped to comic book store, searching some good comics and I bought this.

The story start with patients of Arkham Asylum, many of them caught by Batman, that have took possession the building. The Dark Night is forced to enter, giving himself for the hostages, putting himself in the hands of his enemies. I read many favorite comments about thi ...more

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Feb 25, 2016 Roxanne rated it liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels, read-2016

I've read this twice now and i still can't decide whether i like this or not, whether it just leaves me confused or making me feel like an old lady trying to fucking read what the fuck Joker is saying!?

The art is mayhem it sets the story up perfectly and it is beautifully if not hauntingly done so. I do think the artwork is better than the actual story though, and maybe the plot relies on the artwork too much as it's not the strongest plot and the ending is pretty weak too. Saying that i did rea ...more

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Dec 26, 2011 Julian rated it it was amazing

Shelves: graphic-novels

A batman tale at its best, as it reaches unflinchingly deep into the recesses of the human psyche. While the comic may be accused by some as symptomatic of an attempt at at best, pop psychology, I think the authors have done a marvellous job in portraying the differences by which Batman and The Joker are negotiating what are in essence, very similar psychological conflicts.
This is done on a backdrop literally seething with a brooding, menacing perceived threat of total disintegration, which was A batman tale at its best, as it reaches unflinchingly deep into the recesses of the human psyche. While the comic may be accused by some as symptomatic of an attempt at at best, pop psychology, I think the authors have done a marvellous job in portraying the differences by which Batman and The Joker are negotiating what are in essence, very similar psychological conflicts.
This is done on a backdrop literally seething with a brooding, menacing perceived threat of total disintegration, which was in fact embraced by another main character, that of Arkham himself. An analytically minded reader will appreciate how each of Batman's villains in fact, symbolically represent in avatar form each of his specifc fears.
These fears make him human; while also confirming that his mask etc in fact serve as a defensive character armour which keeps the underlying guilt, abandonment rage and fantasies of revenge both at bay. At the same time, the mask also allows for sublimation in his role as a 'dark knight'.
There are nice references to Freudian theories (a connecting theme here is the loss of mother-via murder and imagined/actual matricide- and its associated trauma, annihilation anxiety and subsequent efforts at psychological defence), his structural theory of the mind (illustrated concretely by the architecture of the Asylum itself) Jungian archetypes, an implicit idealizing identification exhibited by Dr Cavendish (enabled by the Asylum again functioning as a container of chaos AND an evocative object), and even the role of 'similarity; in magic as described by James George Frazier in 'The Golden Bough'. This is the way fairy tales should be told (well, especially for adults)! Super-heroes are no longer just an all pervasive, concretely 'good' force dressed in a pretty costume,partaking in a sterile and entirely logical world whereby 'evil' villains are routinely 'defeated'.
No, this is a more realistic (albeit gruesome at times) confrontation of life and its culturally suppressed opposites (or should I say, inseparable shadow): death, chaos and disintegration. ...more

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Oct 08, 2008 Stephen rated it liked it

Shelves: comics-graphic-novels

3.5 stars. Superb art by Dave McKean and a mostly good story by Grant Morrison (with flashes of brilliance) highlight this quality Batman graphic novel. The reason it doesn't rate higher overall is because there were a few "huh?" moments where the story was a bit hard to follow and I think the creators at times sacrificed story at the altar of atmosphere.

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Jul 23, 2015 Ivan rated it did not like it

Shelves: graphic-novels

Worst Batman comic by far.I didn't like it's highly praised painted art style and I hated how Batman is portrayed.Bruce Wayne, man who is mentally and physically trained to perfection, man who's contingency plans have contingency plans just walks in and surrenders to Joker and becomes poor victim in this wannabe horror.

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May 21, 2013 Brandon rated it it was ok

Shelves: comix, fiction, y-u-do-dis, the-dark-knight, 2013, dc

Batman is alerted that the inmates of Arkham Asylum have taken over the premises. If this isn't dangerous enough, they're threatening to murder everyone in the facility unless Batman agrees to a face to face meeting.

I understand that a lot of people can appreciate the style in which both Morrison and McKean approached Batman, however this just wasn't for me. Maybe I like my stuff a little more.. focused? I have no idea if that's the right word. I feel like I'm almost speaking a form of blasphemy ...more

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Dec 17, 2007 Werebot rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: the one Batman fan in the world who hasn't read it.

I know that a lot of the modern Batman mythos has a lot to do with the whole evil outside vs. darkness within motif, but this is ridiculous. What a pretentious bunch of nonsense. And I've never gotten the attraction to Dave McKean's art. But then, I'm not a goth nerd. I can never tell what's going on, everything's too dark and splotchy and covered in symbols. This is a Batman comic book. Let's not overthink it. When did we let the British take over our comic books anyway? Neil Gaiman and co. nee ...more

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Mar 28, 2016 Gianfranco Mancini rated it it was amazing

Shelves: comics-and-graphic-novels, dc-comics

Absolutely not just a graphic-novel.

This is a dream-like lynchian descent into madness.

Best Dark Knight story ever with "The Dark Knight returns" and "The Killing Joke".

A masterwork.

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Nov 10, 2010 Zaki rated it really liked it

I like dark, sinister and menacing stuff. Arkham Asylum threw out the rule book and invented a new one. A darker one. A cruel one.

And it tests the boundaries of your comfort zone.

I adore every twisted page. They have a rich and dark quality. My mind is full of dark thoughts. I only think in black.

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Aug 09, 2014 Danielle The Book Huntress (Back to the Books) rated it it was ok

Recommends it for: no one

Shelves: graphic-novel-comic-book, library-checkout, dangerous-hero-challenge-2014, 2014-cover-to-cover-challenge, 2014-challenge-factory-challenge, 2014-graphic-novel-reading-challeng

My dislike of this book borders on violent. I realize what the author and artist were going for, and I appreciate the foreward and even the screenplay with commentary. I admit I gave up on reading the whole screenplay because I was tired and wasn't feeling well, and felt my time was better spent moving on. However, even gaining insight into their thought processes didn't make me like this book any more.

I am an artist, and I love art. However, I am not a fan of art becoming so all-consuming that My dislike of this book borders on violent. I realize what the author and artist were going for, and I appreciate the foreward and even the screenplay with commentary. I admit I gave up on reading the whole screenplay because I was tired and wasn't feeling well, and felt my time was better spent moving on. However, even gaining insight into their thought processes didn't make me like this book any more.

I am an artist, and I love art. However, I am not a fan of art becoming so all-consuming that it loses meaning to the average person. In other words, I like my art to be accessible. This book wasn't. It was full of social commentary, allusions, and symbolism, which can be good in therapeutic doses. But even medicine can be toxic when overdosed. I think that is a good way to describe my feelings for this book. It was toxic with the statements of the creators, and it killed the overall book.

Some of my individual issues:

*The lettering was nearly incomprehensible, especially the Joker's words and thoughts. I am very near-sighted, and I am getting where small print gives me fits. The Joker's print was in red, and the font was very scribbly. Everyone knows that the Joker is bat*&$# crazy. I understand where Morrison and McKean were trying to go here showing how chaotic his mind was, but it fell on deaf ears since I had trouble reading the lettering. Also obscure symbology dispersed through this volume makes no sense to me. Another place where it falls flat, since it seems to have no purpose in this volume.

*Batman was played as anal-retentive to the extreme. I'm not sure I appreciated this. Admittedly, Batman does have some psychological issues he's working through--he's a control freak and is incredibly uptight and is at times intolerant. I think his portrayal in this book was unpalatable, showing him as pathologically damaged. That isn't the Batman I know and deeply respect.

*The storyline about Arkham, the founder of the Asylum was okay. Although I didn't like what happened to his family, and the view of his relationship with his mother was way too Freudian for my tastes.

*The artwork is nebulous and difficult to cipher and track over the panels. I would almost call it abstract. Does that work for a comic book medium? I'm going to say no. If I can't follow it, it has failed to convey meaning to me.

I know that this is a very highly praised and critically-acclaimed book, but I'm not a fan of it. Art is meaning to me. While art is highly subjective, the viewer has to have a lens through which to take in and process the work. In this book, the lens is cloudy and muddled. There is no avenue to look deeper. ...more

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Aug 18, 2016 Tokio Myers rated it it was ok

Shelves: dc-comics

Once again Grant Morrison proves my theory that he just shouldn't write batman comics. Seriously, Batman just stands there and let's Joker and all them do stuff to him. Yep that's totally the Batman I know, not. Oh and Batman is crazy, thanks for telling me Mr. Morrison; I know how much you like to bring it up since every Batman comic you write about you have to mention it. Talk about beating a horse to death

I did some what enjoy Dave McKean's artwork kind of reminds me of Kingdom Come, but the ...more

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Sep 01, 2011 Sesana rated it liked it

Shelves: superhumans, comics, mental-illness

I admit, I picked this up for a re-read after playing Arkham Asylum. Fantastic game, by the way, well-written, with great action and incredible voice acting. But this is not about that game, about which I could rave for hours.

I remember loving this graphic novel when I first read it, but reading it again I can't exactly remember why. It's still well-written, and the Arkham backstory is interesting enough that it's apparently been kept. But pretty much everybody that shows up feels out of charact ...more

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Aug 31, 2014 Foad rated it really liked it

Shelves: محبوب-ها, کمیک, انگلیسی

یکی از کمیک های به یاد موندنی بتمن.
بذارید اینجوری شروع کنم.

مرد عنکبوتی، خصوصیت اصلیش سرزنده بودنشه. پیوسته طنز میگه و خود شیوه ی حرکتش (تاب خوردن هاش) این سرزنده بودن رو تقویت میکنن.
سوپرمن، خصوصیت اصلیش درستکاری و عدالت جو بودنشه.
کاپیتان آمریکا، خصوصیت اصلیش افتخار و وفاداری و سرباز بودنشه، که از اسم و لباسش هم میباره این خصوصیت.

شخصیت بتمن، با هراس آمیخته شده. خصوصیت اصلی بتمن، بی رحم و جدی بودنشه. این خصوصیت اخلاقی کاملاً با لباس سیاه، با خفاش و نهایتاً با شب گرد بودنش خیلی متناسبه.
طراح های شخص یکی از کمیک های به یاد موندنی بتمن.
بذارید اینجوری شروع کنم.

مرد عنکبوتی، خصوصیت اصلیش سرزنده بودنشه. پیوسته طنز میگه و خود شیوه ی حرکتش (تاب خوردن هاش) این سرزنده بودن رو تقویت میکنن.
سوپرمن، خصوصیت اصلیش درستکاری و عدالت جو بودنشه.
کاپیتان آمریکا، خصوصیت اصلیش افتخار و وفاداری و سرباز بودنشه، که از اسم و لباسش هم میباره این خصوصیت.

شخصیت بتمن، با هراس آمیخته شده. خصوصیت اصلی بتمن، بی رحم و جدی بودنشه. این خصوصیت اخلاقی کاملاً با لباس سیاه، با خفاش و نهایتاً با شب گرد بودنش خیلی متناسبه.
طراح های شخصیت بتمن (باب کین و بیل فینگر) برای طراحی لباسش از یه فیلم ترسناک الهام گرفتن که در اون، یه انسان خفاش نمای قاتل، این ور و اون ور میرفته و مردم رو می ترسونده و می کشته. این نشون میده که ایده ی اولیه ی این طراح ها هم این بوده که بتمن قراره موجودی هراس انگیز باشه.

اما وقتی کمیک های بتمن ادامه پیدا می کنن، کم کم این خصوصیت فراموش میشه و داستان های بتمن به داستان های ابرقهرمانی معمولی (که عنصر اصلیشون اکشنه) تبدیل میشن.

این کمیک، به نظرم بازگشت عالی بتمن به دوران هراسشه. کمیک رسماً در ژانر وحشت تقسیم بندی میشه. فضای وحشت انگیز تیمارستان آرکام، طراحی های وحشت انگیز بتمن و جوکر، داستان وحشت انگیز آمادئوس آرکام (مؤسس تیمارستان آرکام) که به صورت فلاش بک نقل میشه، همه دست به دست هم دادن تا یه داستان گوتیک بتمن داشته باشیم. ...more

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Oct 16, 2016 Jesse A rated it it was ok

Shelves: library-it-up, graphic-novels

Unfortunately one of GMs more out there works. Not a fan of the art either.

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Sep 07, 2016 Kayıp Rıhtım added it · review of another edition

Shelves: Çizgi-roman

Çizgi romanımız, Arkham’da geçen pek çoğu gibi tımarhanedeki mahkumların Joker önderliğinde isyanıyla başlıyor. Rehineleri serbest bırakmak için Batman’in tımarhaneye gelmesini isteyen Joker, her zamanki gibi Kara Şövalye’yi yoldan çıkartmak için kurduğu planı devreye sokuyor.

Çizgi romanın konusu çok klasikmiş gibi görünse de, okudukça olayların gittiği yön hiç de öyle değil. Özellikle Dave McKean’in rahatsız edici derecede enteresan ve muhteşem çizgileri işin içine girince hikaye alıyor götürüy Çizgi romanımız, Arkham’da geçen pek çoğu gibi tımarhanedeki mahkumların Joker önderliğinde isyanıyla başlıyor. Rehineleri serbest bırakmak için Batman’in tımarhaneye gelmesini isteyen Joker, her zamanki gibi Kara Şövalye’yi yoldan çıkartmak için kurduğu planı devreye sokuyor.

Çizgi romanın konusu çok klasikmiş gibi görünse de, okudukça olayların gittiği yön hiç de öyle değil. Özellikle Dave McKean’in rahatsız edici derecede enteresan ve muhteşem çizgileri işin içine girince hikaye alıyor götürüyor.

Batman’in geçmişi ve kendi içindeki mücadelesi, tımarhanenin kurucusu Amadeus Arkham’ın masumca başlayıp gittikçe manyaklaşan günlüğünden alıntılarla birleşince konu iyice derinleşiyor. Grant Morrison’ın harika hikaye örgüsüyle de Batman, Amadeus Arkham, Hz. İsa ve Odin bazen iç içe geçiyor, bazen birbirlerini teğet geçiyor. Çocukluk travmasıyla yüzleşmekten çekinen Batman’i gördükten sonra, çocukluk travmasını derinlere gömüp sonra kendi isteğiyle ortaya çıkartan ve bunu günlüğüne kaydeden Amadeus Arkham’ı da görüyoruz.

Eser, alışık olduğumuz çizgi roman karelerinin dışına taşmayı da ihmal etmiyor. Her sayfası, her sayfadaki her karesi başlı başına sanat eseri olan çizgi romanda sulu boya, fotoğraf ve kolaj gibi tekniklerin bir arada kullanılmasıyla çok güçlü ve bazen de rahatsız edicilik konusunda son derece başarılı görüntüler ortaya çıkarılmış. Eserin ilk yayımlanma tarihinin 1989 olduğu düşünülürse, Dave McKean’in çizgi roman dünyasında nasıl bir devrime imza attığını anlamak da mümkün olur.

Sonuç olarak Batman: Arkham Tımarhanesi, sadece Batman sevenlerin değil, genel olarak çizgi roman seven herkesin okuması, en azından sayfalarını şöyle yavaşça çevirip çizimlerine göz atması gereken bir eser diyebiliriz. Ancak konusunun dışında özellikle çizimlerinin hassas okuyucuları rahatsız etme ihtimali olduğunu söylemeden geçmeyeyim.

- Türker BEŞE

İncelemenin tamamı için: http://kayiprihtim.com/inceleme/batma... ...more

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Mar 17, 2010 Craig Williams rated it it was amazing

I never liked Grant Morrison. Ever since he started to make a splash in the comic book scene, I couldn't figure out why he was such a big damn deal. His work on Batman, especially the R.I.P-arc, was awful. His work on Uncanny X-Men, from what I read, was okay, but nothing incredible.

Then I read Batman: Arkham Asylum.

I have to say - this is really good stuff. I read this in one sitting, it was so good. Morrison weaves a haunting Batman tale, exploring the darker side of Batman's psyche: the part I never liked Grant Morrison. Ever since he started to make a splash in the comic book scene, I couldn't figure out why he was such a big damn deal. His work on Batman, especially the R.I.P-arc, was awful. His work on Uncanny X-Men, from what I read, was okay, but nothing incredible.

Then I read Batman: Arkham Asylum.

I have to say - this is really good stuff. I read this in one sitting, it was so good. Morrison weaves a haunting Batman tale, exploring the darker side of Batman's psyche: the part of him that rationalizes wearing a Bat costume and fighting crime, as if that were perfectly sane. Of course, it's through the Joker that this point is made, but Batman's actions, especially in this story, makes the point more than the Joker ever could. In fact, if I have any gripe with this book it's how imbalanced Batman is portrayed. In one scene, he's being strangled by a madman and, despite his extensive martial arts training and armor, he's helpless. He cries for help from some lady doctor, who slits the throat of the crazy man and kills him. As she goes into shock from having committed murder, Batman's consoles her by saying, "Don't worry about it - he had it coming." WTF? Insane as this guy was, up to this point, he hadn't really personally hurt anyone, except for Batman, who should have been more than capable of handling him in a non-lethal way, as he does with many of his more dangerous foes. The Batman I've always read would have been horrified at the lady doctor's actions, almost to the point of being sanctimonious.

I guess, when you get down to it, my gripe is that Morrison kind of force feeds us the point of Batman being as crazy as the inmates with scenarios like the one above. Aside from that, the writing is really good, if a little scattershot (that's Morrison for you, though). Now the real star of the show, though, is the artwork of Dave McKean - my god, if you're making a book about Arkham Asylum, who better to do the artwork??? McKean has the ability to summon images from the very depths of one's subconscious nightmares. It's why he was a perfect artist for Sandman, and why he's perfect for this story. It's Dave McKean's art that pushes my review to five stars, because it truly is amazing.

On a side note, this book makes me want to play the video game Batman: Arkham Asylum again. My god, that game was amazing... gah, sorry, went off topic for a sec. Anyway, check out this book! ...more

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Jan 30, 2011 William Thomas rated it it was ok

Shelves: graphic-novel, dont-believe-the-hype, bad-asses-doing-bad-ass-things, blah

Grant Morrison has evolved greatly over the course of 20 years, and this less than stellar book from 1989 is the proof of how far he has come. Because this was an absolute abomination on all fronts.

Dis I say abomination? I meant abortion. Because this read like something bot fully developed, the story only half-baked and fairly worthless, not entertaining us, nor teaching us, nor making us believe in it's poetry or beauty. The only thing redeeming were bits of the art by Dave McKean, and even th ...more

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deleted user I think that maybe we're a wee bit too critical of one of the most successful graphic novels of all-time. Judging from your review of Alan Moore I thi ...more
Mar 30, 2011 10:50AM

William Thomas I actually think I went pretty easy on it. I think that the fractured, confused and disjointed style of the book left me feeling the same way. I think ...more
Mar 31, 2011 07:40PM

deleted user Though I would have to agree with you if what you said about Morrison's notes if they were written today, but that's just not the case. It is his fina ...more
updated Apr 01, 2011 08:40AM

Oct 19, 2011 Petertpc rated it it was ok

Shelves: comics

This was a pretty disappointing. I thought the artwork was outstanding and I really liked the dark tone of the stoty. What bothered me was the writing. I know that Grant Morrison is a comic legend, but the plot here seemed dysfunctional and hard to follow. I didn't make for a good read.

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Jun 09, 2015 Lashaan Balasingam (Bookidote) rated it it was amazing

You can find my review of this graphic novel at:

https://bookidote.wordpress.com/2016/...

Yours truly,

Lashaan

Lashaan & Trang | Bloggers and Book Reviewers
Official blog: http://bookidote.wordpress.com

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Jul 31, 2010 Adam rated it really liked it

Shelves: 1970-present, graphic-fiction

McKean's artwork is just staggeringly good. I don't have much else to say about it.

The effect of the thing is very Lynchian more than anything else. I think Lynch doing this as a movie would be utterly awesome. It's very much in that same category where you have to feel and experience it, where a close reading is actually less rewarding (and fuck you Grant Morrison, if you disagree) than just letting it wash over you. It plays on the emotions and is really very dreamlike and atmospheric.

It's rea McKean's artwork is just staggeringly good. I don't have much else to say about it.

The effect of the thing is very Lynchian more than anything else. I think Lynch doing this as a movie would be utterly awesome. It's very much in that same category where you have to feel and experience it, where a close reading is actually less rewarding (and fuck you Grant Morrison, if you disagree) than just letting it wash over you. It plays on the emotions and is really very dreamlike and atmospheric.

It's really hard to write about this book without coming off as sort of pretentious. Grant Morrison himself comes off as sort of pretentious when he writes, introducing the copy of the final draft of the script included at the back of the soft cover, that:

"The story's themes were inspired by Lewis Carroll, quantum physics, Jung and Crowley, its visual style by surrealism, Eastern European creepiness, Cocteau, Artaud, Svankmajer, the Brothers Quay, etc. The intention was to create something that was more like a piece of music or an experimental film than a typical adventure comic book. I wanted to apprroach Batman from the point of view of the dreamlike, emotional and irrational hemisphere, as a response to the very literal, "realistic" "left-brain" treatment of superheroes which was in vogue at the time, in the wake of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, WATCHMEN, and others."

or in the script and footnotes, where he explains a fuckton of the symbolism etc. and occasionally comes off as very clever and occasionally as maybe well read but not all that smart (i.e. inevitably pretentious). That this stuff is in the script is mostly fine, but he uses the footnotes to provide 'insight' to us as well, like when he talks about how the story's construction is based on the architecture of a house, and how the journey of the book is like moving through the floors of a house itself.

Some of the footnotes are useful, however. Morrison's clarification of his characterization of Batman in Arkham Asylum is especially worth noting, considering how often that is used as a criticism of Morrison's writing here.

I would not suggest reading the script/footnotes. It does nothing to enhance the experience and everything to degrade it. Imagine watching a comedic film and being given an annotated copy of the script at the end, a copy that explains every joke in detail.

The effect of Arkham Asylum in itself is exhilirating. It's not in that frustrating 'not your daddy's Batman' category of The Dark Knight or something, it's just unlike any other Batman story. It's not supposed to be like any other Batman story. It does feel more like watching an 'art film' than reading even a very good comic book/'graphic novel.' All that pretentious blabber I quoted from Morrison up there, it's true. All of it. It came out exactly as planned (actually, probably better than planned considering some of the imagery).

It's tremendous and transcendent. ...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Ryan Milbrath rated it really liked it

In the 1980’s the character of Batman became synonymous with violent, almost sociopathic, vigilante. This portrayal of Batman was, no doubt, influenced by Frank Miller’s 1986, opus The Dark Knight Returns, and the storylines developed by Chuck Dixon, and others, in 80’s. Then comes 1989, and a work so divisive, it left Batman fans either waiting for the next work in character evolution, or desperately trying to Listerine away the bad taste of Grant Morrison from their taste buds.

Morrison’s Batma In the 1980’s the character of Batman became synonymous with violent, almost sociopathic, vigilante. This portrayal of Batman was, no doubt, influenced by Frank Miller’s 1986, opus The Dark Knight Returns, and the storylines developed by Chuck Dixon, and others, in 80’s. Then comes 1989, and a work so divisive, it left Batman fans either waiting for the next work in character evolution, or desperately trying to Listerine away the bad taste of Grant Morrison from their taste buds.

Morrison’s Batman: Arkham Asylum, a serious house on serious earth, is, as the introductory page notes, a passion play. Batman willingly allows himself to be taken hostage in Arkham Asylum by the Joker and his cast of villains to prevent the needless deaths of hospital staff and law enforcement officials. Once inside, the Joker challenges Batman to a game of hide and seek, where Batman has the opportunity to escape the asylum before the likes of the Mad Hatter, Killer Croc, Maxie Zeus, and others have an opportunity to kill him. So begins, Batman’s descent into the heart of darkness, his test of morals in the face of extreme cruelty. Parallel to the story of Batman, is that of the Ayslum’s Creator, Amadeus Arkham, who driven insane by the murder of his wife and children by a criminal he was treating, was confined as an inmate in his very own asylum. In his test, Batman, ultimately breaks down the walls of Arkham, freeing the souls he has confined there. Much like Christ freeing the souls from hell after his crucifixion and resurrection, Batman frees souls from the evil of Arkham. Batman, unlike Arkham, battles evil, but never loses his compassion. It is an ending which Morrison uses to subtly raise a middle finger to Frank Miller.

Dave McKean’s artwork is by far the most interesting experimental artwork to come out of DC in the 1980s. His creations are creepy, like Ralph Steadmen trapped in a haunted house, but they work for the story. The artwork isn’t Jim Lee, nor is it Tim Sale, but I feel is the greatest representation of Morrison’s story. It’s not for everyone, but the if the reader can survive Morrison’s literary trip down the rabbit hole, they certainly can survive McKean’s trip.

Batman: Arkham Asylum, a serious house on serious earth is a tough pill to swallow. Its divisiveness is inherent in it’s experimental creation. It’s worth it to read it, for what it is. Treat it as an affront, a contradiction to the 80’s, a rebellion against turning Batman into the villains he challenges.
...more

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About Grant Morrison

Scottish comic book author Grant Morrison is known for culture-jamming and the constant reinvention of his work. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and countercultural leanings in his runs on titles including DC Comics' Animal Man, Batman, JLA, The Invisibles, Action Comics, All-Star Superman, and Doom Patrol, and Marvel Comics' New X-Men and Fantastic Four. Many of these are controversial, ...more

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