Batman Earth One: rebooting the bat

Batman: Earth One is a reboot of the Batman story written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Gary Frank. It's a timely book, coinciding with the conclusion of the trilogy of Christopher Nolan Batman films, and it offers a very good entry to the series for people who haven't followed it closely until now.

We've seen a lot of remixes and retellings of the Batman origin story, and I think this is my favorite to date. Johns dispenses with some of the less plausible aspects of the Batman myth, and presents us with a Gotham that is out of control, corrupt, dark and glorious. There's a haunted house, there are serial killers, Hollywood phonies, and a mayor named Oswald Cobblepot.

The book moves swiftly, hits all the right emotional notes, and is beautifully made and illustrated. I picked my copy up at Secret Headquarters on a recent trip to LA, on staff recommendation (I've never gotten a bum steer from SHQ). It's got me excited about Batman comics for the first time in 20 years.

Batman: Earth One

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: books • carousel • Comics • gift guide • happy mutants • Reviews

More at Boing Boing

Eurovision 2013: An American in London

The technology that links taxonomy and Star Trek

http://twitter.com/matcatastrophe mat catastrophe

Yay! More of a deranged one-percenter beating up poor people!
- Sean Mangan
  
  Look at the awesome “poor people tuxes” those guys are wearing!
  - https://twitter.com/misterjayem MrJM
    
    Maybe they’re poor people super-villains and those tuxes are their costumes?
    
    The Legion of Smartly-Dressed Urchins!
  - http://twitter.com/matcatastrophe mat catastrophe
    
    I’m sure he’s only going after someone like a Maddoff. You know, a capitalist that got caught.
  - Brainspore
    
    Those guys are just there to serve drinks, silly.
- http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8l1PMVvfjDM
  - http://twitter.com/matcatastrophe mat catastrophe
    
    Exactly.
  - http://disqus.com/Kimmoth/ Kimmo
    
    Gotta pay that…
    
    Fuck Batman.
    
    Still gonna read that comic if I come across it though ; )
- http://codeflow.org/ Florian Bösch
  
  Every minority needs a superhero/villains to identify with, the one percenters just have more choice than most:
  
  - Batman
  - Ironman
  - Professor X
  - Green Hornet
  - Lex Luthor
  - Fantastic Four
  - Daredevil
  
  Though pretty much every super villain is some empire building money bag of some or another sort.
  - Leafworth
    
    Rorschach
    - http://twitter.com/matcatastrophe mat catastrophe
      
      Pretty much all of the Watchmen.
      - Brainspore
        
        The Watchmen actually represented a pretty wide spectrum, income-wise.
        
        Ozymandias: Pretty much the richest guy on the planet.
        
        Night-Owl II: Bruce Wayne on a somewhat tighter budget.
        
        Night-Owl (original): Working class retired beat cop/car mechanic.
        
        Rorschach: Penniless slum-dweller raised by a single mother who worked as a prostitute.
        
        Dr. Manhattan: Gods don’t use money.
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Brian-Huntington/1389561896 Brian Huntington
    
    In the best Daredevil stories (early to mid-80s), he’s pretty broke. Is he rich now?
    - http://profile.yahoo.com/SOEEH5XW2KXSVB7LXPUAYSQ5MU JIMG
      
      you ever see a “poor” lawyer….
      - Antinous / Moderator
        
        Lots. Many lawyers are financial failures.
  - flosofl
    
    Daredevil?
    
    Isn’t his whole origin story about a kid in hell’s kitchen that gets horribly blinded by a toxic spill? His father a run down boxer that throws fights for a living? The same kid that then grows up and runs a law firm that caters to his old neighborhood and is constantly on verge of bankruptcy? That Daredevil?
    
    Yeah, that just SCREAMS 1%.
    
    (unless Marvel’s fucked with his character in recent years, which is possible I suppose)
  - http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/TGZ75URQ6DKTCNXV3RV36ZKALQ Matthew
    
    Green Arrow is the very rich Oliver Queen.
SpaceBeers

I actually really enjoyed this but the current Batman run by Scott Snyder / Greg Capullo is fantastic.
http://profile.yahoo.com/AT3Y7QRDEVJR67B4WUQY4KXWHU Philip

Oh, it’s a Friday; time for another Batman reboot.
- Layne
  
  Yeah, pretty much.
  
  As compelling as the story (and it’s various iterations) is, do we have to read the same fucking thing every 2 years?
  
  We need a term for the reboot-fatigue that’s going to be washing over us after all the movies and books that we get to hear all over again for the first time.
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_ON37BGRH3HB7XU7TFAINESIA6E Aaron Thomas Sherwin
    
    Can I nominate “reboot-fatigue”?
    - http://disqus.com/Kimmoth/ Kimmo
      
      It sure craps all over ‘reset buttonitis’; that’s all I can come up with
http://www.facebook.com/robert.patey Robert T Patey III

I reviewed it on Ain’t It Cool News last month:
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/56768#11
http://evilbobdayjob.blogspot.com/ Deidzoeb

In light of the annoyingly fast reboot of Spider-Man movies, I propose a Universal Reboot Book. The book consists of two reflective silver inner pages. You clip out one or two images of the franchise character that you want to reboot, and set them in the middle of one of the mirrored pages. Hold the pages open 45 degrees or less, and you can see the infinite regression of reboots within this reboot. And maybe this will cure you of ever needing another reboot of that character.

You’re welcome.
- AnonymousViewer
  
  The only reason Sony rebooted Spider-man was to retain film rights (and to hop onto the Marvel gravy train in the same summer as The Avengers). Marvel would love to get the rights back.
http://twitter.com/strugglngwriter strugglngwriter

Is this “elseworlds” or part of regular continuity now?
- http://twitter.com/strugglngwriter strugglngwriter
  
  Okay, it’s a different continuity. Seems New Earth is a literal “new Earth”
- Charles H.
  
  Everything published under the “Earth One” banner is its own continuity. It’s generally compared to Marvel’s Ultimate line in this regards, in that they’re meant to be a series of stories about well-known characters, free of the main universe’s continuity baggage. (The line having been originally announced & published long before DC’s reboot last year.)
  
  The main difference between “Earth One” and “Ultimate” (and DC’s own All-Star line) being that it’s published only as trade-paperbacks, which is meant to potentially make the works more appealing to people who don’t buy monthlies. So far there’s only been one other title released for the line: Superman: Earth One, by J. Michael Straczynski and Shane Davis, which was released in 2010.
  - PlutoniumX
    
    I liked Superman Earth One more than this, but they were both pretty entertaining. I’m a big fan of both JMS and Johns.
    
    Superman Earth One vol 2 is being released November 6, 2012.
Jeremy Mesiano-Crookston

So…….

Exactly the same as regular batman, but gets beaten up slightly more?
mobobo

looks like a corker to me
Brainspore

Who is “Katie,” and why does Batman call her name when he gets punched in the face?
- ophmarketing
  
  He’s calling singer/songwriter KT Tunstall, who portrays Robin in this particular reboot.
- Felton / Moderator
  
  Katie Holmes from Batman Begins?
http://www.jimdraws.com Thorzdad

Is it really a reboot if he’s still a violent psychopath?
charlesq

You haven’t been excited about a Batman comic in 20 years, woof. You should do a little digging my friend, there’s gold in them hills! http://www.amazon.com/25-Greatest-Batman-Graphic-Novels/lm/R2KKOKJAYVZFI1

Also, just this year, the very talented Mr. Scott Snyder has been dishing out quite the tantalizing little Bat-tale. http://www.amazon.com/Batman-Vol-The-Court-Owls/dp/1401235417/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345219722&sr=8-1&keywords=court+of+owls

Enjoy!
Mitchell Glaser

Super Meh.
Brainspore

The last thing to get rebooted this frequently was Windows XP.
Conan Librarian

I never liked DC or Marvel. I prefer the smaller more imaginative shops.
William Joseph Dunn

So far Scott Snyder’s run has been fantastic. I think Snyder is writing some of the best monthly Batman stories since Denny O’ Neil was writing Bats.
http://www.luketemplewalsh.com/ Luke Temple Walsh

“presents us with a Gotham that is out of control, corrupt, dark and glorious.”
Right. So it’s a totally new wrinkle then. I would be more interested in seeing a Batman comic strip that shows the scene where (is it?) Joe Chill kills Bruce’s parents, over and over again for 500 pages, but each one in a different drawing style. Talking of style, I don’t like the style of of the book’s drawing shown here at all. Insipid.
- Brainspore
  
  Maybe someone could do a reboot where Gotham is a small, picturesque midwestern town full of sunshine and rainbows. The Joker regularly performs at birthday parties and Bar Mitzvahs, and Mr. Freeze is just the guy who drives the ice cream truck.
  - http://www.luketemplewalsh.com/ Luke Temple Walsh
    
    Yes. I like the idea. I sort of see Batman still in costume, but like soft material like in the very old black and white serials, and he just walks or drives a black pick up truck, slowly, safely, and he has an office where people come to ask for his help finding their lost kittens, or to work out why the milk didn’t get delivered today. It should be paced like The Straight Story.
    - Brainspore
      
      I like the lost kitten storyline. That’s a good way to work in Selina Kyle’s character.
      - http://www.luketemplewalsh.com/ Luke Temple Walsh
        
        Yes! And the Joker could be his nemesis in really trivial ways, like he parks his car close to the pick up’s bumper blocking it in in a way that stops Batman’s pick up from getting out easily. This is going to be big, I know it.
      - Halloween_Jack
        
        I would read the shit out of that comic. I’d give it to everyone on my Xmas list.
    - TheMudshark
      
      This comic could seriously be freaking hilarious.
- Halloween_Jack
  
  Don’t forget the variations on the murder of Bruce’s parents where it’s not Joe Chill, but the future Joker (as in Tim Burton’s first movie); you could also make the killer Ra’s al Ghul, or a very young Harvey Dent, or maybe even an time-traveling ex-sidekick making sure that Batman exists. The gunshots, the bodies on the pavement, the grim young boy vowing revenge. Over and over and over again.
  - mccrum
    
    Actually, I think that last version is the one I like the most. I’m kind of getting tired of his parents biting it in the first five minutes of every movie. Seriously, in every movie.
- http://profile.yahoo.com/SOEEH5XW2KXSVB7LXPUAYSQ5MU JIMG
  
  i thought that Jack Napier killed his parents!!!!
dolbonner

What I enjoyed most about this was the reboot of the origin of Harvey Bullock (even though it was suspiciously close to a character from one of my favorite movies, but it was an awesome character so I didn’t care).
technogeekagain

If you have to show the gore… (A) it ain’t good writing, and (B) it ain’t Batman.

(Not that I disliked the Dark Knight concept — but that wasn’t Batman either, and I was really annoyed that they didn’t have the courtesy to change the name when they changed the character.)
http://tumblr.breadteam.com breadteam

What is the percentage of comic book readers over 13 that like this terrible style of coloring? This style of coloring where everything is reflective is just awful. I cannot read any comics that look like this because they are visually repulsive.

Is it really just me who feels this way?
eldritch

Why do comic books still exist in this day and age?

Seriously people, you’re all internet savvy. Go read webcomics.

1) There are many thousands of them available in most major languages.
2) They don’t suffer the artistic limitations and constrictions inherent to actual print comics.
3) They’re not reboots of reboots of reboots of cliche characters that are three quarters of a century old to begin with.

…and 4) They don’t cost you a cent!
Halloween_Jack

I totally agree with “reboot fatigue.” If the big twist in this version is that, as is implied by the first page above, young Bruce is somehow responsible for his parents’ murder by leaving out the back of the theater rather than the front, then I’ll pass.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=703527977 Charles Dayton

Cant we all just….. reboot Plastic Man! Now there was a comic book with a great sense of humor, and no one has touched it!
- tsol
  
  Kyle Baker did a a few years ago. He’s no Jack Cole but he did a very creditable job with more humor (real humor) than anyone since Cole.
- http://profile.yahoo.com/SOEEH5XW2KXSVB7LXPUAYSQ5MU JIMG
  
  great idea!!!! i still have my Plastic Man collection, as well as The Metal Men..
http://twitter.com/NoahGK Noah Kuttler

Two things:

“…it offers a very good entry to the series for people who haven’t followed it closely until now.”

With respect, it’s actually a horrible entry point into the series. It’s a good story, but it’s a horrible entry point because it does not align with any of the current monthlies or any of the pre-52 continuity. If you liked this book and walked into a comic book store and wanted more of this Batman, you’re out of luck. Earth One books ship yearly. So you’d have to either purchase new 52 material (different Batman) or older continuity books (different Batman from that different Batman). Not to make this too confusing, but it kinda is.

“It’s got me excited about Batman comics for the first time in 20 years.”

Personally, I’ve found Scott Snyder’s Black Mirror and his current New 52 run quite compelling. And if we go back in time a bit, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s Long Halloween, Batman: Under The Hood by Winick and the entire Grant Morrison run all had plenty of interesting things to say about the character. This is but one of many good bat stories. The great thing about comic books is the number of voices that participate in providing their perspective on the characters.
- http://twitter.com/NoahGK Noah Kuttler
  
  BTW, outside of the main Batman title, I should also have put honorable mentions for Meltzer’s Identity Crisis. Morrison’s JLA and Waid’s JLA. But I figured I’d just stick to the Batman title.
Snig

I liked mac and cheese when I was a kid. I now also like sushi, fresh greens and nice reds, but they don’t interfere with my steady love of mac and cheese. This was a good book, I’d also recommend the Long Halloween.
http://twitter.com/incarnedine_v Dan Hibiki

hmm… The Penguin as mayor, or Rob Ford… i’d vote for big nose.