The Long Halloween

[Arkham Resident]

Finally, got hold of my copy. Since in this part of the globe where i live .. old books like this come once in a blue moon.Its not a regular in any comic book shops here and if you're lucky to find one ,it wont stay in the shelves for an hour. So grab ,i did ,when i saw it before the weekend.

Anyway, i'm not sure if this has been tackled in the past threads but i really liked the story, art and the way Batman was portrayed here. The world's greatest detective and the Dark Knight traits fused beautifully in a story by Loeb that was i think better than his take on the Hush title. Tim Sale's art is just dark and provided the right flavor for an arc that involves murders left and right.

I think its better than Year One. But then you cant compare really because Year One was all about developing Batman's origins.

You're thoughts and how would this measure up with Batman's other titles.. :rolleyes:

[Hellcow]

I loved The Long Halloween, as well as Dark Victory. Tim Sales artwork is perfect for this. I'm hoping we'll see Absolute editions of both (or combined).

Certainly there is a great atmosphere in both those works. What is strange for me though, is a realisation, that I would like this type of batman book even more if it didn't have a cast of kooky villians, and instead was just batman dealing with run of the mill gangsters, thieves and killers who didn't go by nutty names and nerdy outfits. I really liked the crime family side of it much more than seeing the likes of the joker in action.

[dancj]

I thought the art was fantastic. The story is decent, but slight and a bit too riddled with unnecesary guest villains.

The art though.... I love that big spread of the courtroom

[Lubichev]

The art though.... I love that big spread of the courtroom

Word to the 3rd on that one! One of the best spreads in comics IMO.

[Voncaster]

I love Sale's artwork and most of Loeb's writing, but I find the ending increasingly unsatifying. It seems no one definitively knows what combination of Gilda, Harvey, and Alberto the Holiday killer is comprised of.

[literally exaggerated]

I loved it and thought it was fantastic. Great art. Sale may be my favorite Bat-artist ever, except for how he draws Joker.

The story was, for the most part, top notch. lots of Batman as the detective, lots of good Harvey Dent, lots of Jim Gordon, all of which worked very well.

Dark Victory was too much a re-hash for my tastes. The gimmick worked once, but it got old fast, and Loeb just loves those cameos doesn't he.

[The Shadow]

i really liked the story, art and the way Batman was portrayed here. The world's greatest detective and the Dark Knight traits fused beautifully
That's how I feel as well. That is how Batman should be written IMO

[Charagon]

Amazing


CTL

[Lord Grog]

I thought The Long Halloween was one of the better comic book stories I've read. It had a great mix of mystery and action, "normal" criminals and Bat's rogues, and I personally loved the uncertainty of the Holiday killer, and who killed whom.

LG

[Arkham Resident]

I loved The Long Halloween, as well as Dark Victory. Tim Sales artwork is perfect for this. I'm hoping we'll see Absolute editions of both (or combined).

Certainly there is a great atmosphere in both those works. What is strange for me though, is a realisation, that I would like this type of batman book even more if it didn't have a cast of kooky villians, and instead was just batman dealing with run of the mill gangsters, thieves and killers who didn't go by nutty names and nerdy outfits. I really liked the crime family side of it much more than seeing the likes of the joker in action.

I understand. but i think Loeb meant to capture the mobster era in his arc. Thats why the villains have wiseguys names or mafia monickers. Come to think of it if i'm the bad guy in that era,i'd also think its weird to have a Caped Detective with a cowl named 'Batman' running around gotham. :)

[Arkham Resident]

I love Sale's artwork and most of Loeb's writing, but I find the ending increasingly unsatifying. It seems no one definitively knows what combination of Gilda, Harvey, and Alberto the Holiday killer is comprised of.

Well, Loeb has the penchant for doing endings like that in his mystery stories. Just like what he did in Hush. But you're right... between Gilda, Harvey and Alberto as Holiday, who killed who?

[Arkham Resident]

Dark Victory was too much a re-hash for my tastes. The gimmick worked once, but it got old fast, and Loeb just loves those cameos doesn't he.

Would you still recommend, Dark Victory? how about Sale's art in DV is it as good?

[Arkham Resident]

That is how Batman should be written IMO

couldnt agree less with you. I hope they'll have more of this for the Bats after IC. :o

[The Shadow]

couldnt agree less with you. I hope they'll have more of this for the Bats after IC. :o
So you don't like the Long Halloween version?

[ExoKnight]

Long Halloween is one of my favorite story arcs. The art and writing are top-notched. Loeb has a knack for writing Batman really well. Dark Victory and Haunted Knight are great companion pieces. I liked Hush, although the ending has a bit to be desired, it is written well.

[azrapse]

I agree - Loeb's simplistic writing style emphasizing mystery and Sale's simplistic art style emphasizing shadow created a beautiful piece of work, and when set in the year one era, it was a home run for me - I enjoy the younger, solo, and darker Batman in a darker Gotham full of gangsters and corruption. To me that is the environment Bats is most at home- back to his detective roots.

Now, take out a few of the ingredients - I found Loeb without Sale creating a Batman out of his natural element - Hush only garnered my attention for 20 pages or so before I admitted I couldn't go on. Although Lee is a great artist, his and Loeb's Batworld I found too glamour filled and not dark enough...the glitz reminded me of Motley Crue's Theater of Pain years - an idea on paper not meant to surface and not intended to stand the test of time - very out of character. My Bats is defintely the Too Fast For Love and Shout at the Devil version - dirty, gritty, dark, and dingy.

Long Halloween led me to find more of this Batman - Dark Victory and the Haunted Night are good companion pieces, as is the Azzarello/ Risso Broken City run. Moore's Batman Annual #11, The Killing Joke, and Miller's Year One are musts, whereas Brubaker's The Man Who Laughs is closing in to be a classic as well. I ended up purchasing the entire run of Legends of the Dark Knight and have so far only found the Gothic arc to be incredible; while the rest have yet to live up to my expectations, I still have quite a few issues to sift through. Then there is Arkham Asylum, nuff said there, great. And I'm finding Gotham Central very, very good.

[pseudo]

I love the Sale/Loeb team ups on Batman. I was wondering though, for Haunted Knight did that come out like the other two in comic book form, or was it just 3 stories in tpb only?

[azrapse]

It came out originally in three seperate issues over the course of three years as Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials:

1993 Halloween Special
1994 "Madness"
1995 "Ghosts"

http://www.comicspriceguide.com/p-issues.asp?t_ID=332&p=3

[pseudo]

ah, ok, thanks for that.

[CURSD BLADE]

Maybe I am the minority, but I thought that the amazingly atmospheric yet beautiful art of Tim Sale was matched thoroughly by the noirish scripts of Jeph Loeb.

The Long Halloween is a quiet epic to say the least and definetly in my top five favorite Batman stories ever. This mini cemented Jeph Loeb, at least in my humble opinion, as one of the greatest Bat-writers ever as he truly gets the character, as well as one of the elite writers in the field today.

As for the ending, I loved the suspense. Sure, one can argue there was no closure, but I feel the ending was haunting and really left a cloud of mystery over what you thought you knew and the following sequel.

[Lorendiac]

Well, Loeb has the penchant for doing endings like that in his mystery stories. Just like what he did in Hush. But you're right... between Gilda, Harvey and Alberto as Holiday, who killed who?

Some months ago, someone said that Loeb gave an interview to Wizard way back when in which he apparently confirmed that the "confession" in the final pages of "The Long Halloween" should be taken at face value. Anyone know for sure if that happened, and if so, which issue of Wizard it was in?

[SdotCopp]

i love 'halloween' and 'victory'....awesome...awesome bat-stories, and IMO the definitive takes on year one/two (following miller's year one)

[Arkham Resident]

So you don't like the Long Halloween version?

I meant i totally agree with you. and i like the Long Halloween version. :rolleyes:

[Kieralinn]

I JUST finally bought this and can't wait to read it. Although I did just read JLA: The Obsidian Age first. This is my next read though!

[Arkham Resident]

The Long Halloween is a quiet epic to say the least and definetly in my top five favorite Batman stories ever. [/QUOTE]

a quiet epic... I liked that description. :)

[Ruthless_Pryde]

Well, Loeb has the penchant for doing endings like that in his mystery stories. Just like what he did in Hush. But you're right... between Gilda, Harvey and Alberto as Holiday, who killed who?

IMHO trhat is what made the story, even whne it ended it really wasn't over.
Your right, even at the end , it leaves you with questions about who did what. or me that is really what made the book. It was not the just harvey was a killer, that was to obvious, it ot the Alberto wasn the killer, that was cool, but the fact that gilda was in on it to. THAT made t worth reading. If you stop and thing about it, she loved Harvey so much that she went out and killed people so that her husband would be home more and pay her more attention.I know that sounds crazy, but this is Gotham after all.

"I believe in Harvey Dent"

Dude, it don't get better than that.

[Arkham Resident]

If you stop and thing about it, she loved Harvey so much that she went out and killed people so that her husband would be home more and pay her more attention.

Point noted.

Kinda like what Jean Loring did for to get the attention of her ex-husband the Atom in Identity Crisis. But my point ,was it necessary to include Gilda without further muddling the ending? Alberto and Dent would have carried the arc. But then like Loeb said the ending should be taken at face value. :)