Customer Reviews
Not that special if you aren't a huge fan of crime fiction - By: Bob Grist, 07 Oct 2008 
I have to state that I'm not a great lover of the noir graphic novel, & I sometimes think that Batman's enemies are more interesting than the man himself. I did approach this title with an open mind, though, as I had enjoyed Batman booksin the past, such as Alan Moore's superb Batman: The Killing Joke & Frank Miller's take on the Dark Knight.
However, I have two problems with this book. Firstly, I didn't like Tim Sale's artwork very much - so already I'm on to a loser. I found it flat & dark & uninspiring. I much prefer a more detailed & bright artwork, such as that by the likes of Gary Frank, John Cassaday or Frank Quiteley. Secondly, well, the story itself was ever so simplistic & there was littlein the way of true introspection from any of the characters, particularly Batman himself. The regular rogues gallery - the likes of The Riddler & The Joker et al. - seemed shoe-horned into the story, & their inclusion didn't quite gel with what was going on. Worst of all was the fact that the fears of the gangsters, who are being picked off on various public holidays, were never shownin anyway, so we had victims who we felt absolutely no connection with; just faceless individuals who became faceless corpses. If Mr Loeb had concentrated more on their plight, picked out a few individuals amongst them, shown their backgrounds & family lives, then allowed us to feel a strong & palpable sense of their dread over what was happening to their peers & what could happen to them, then I would have been far more intrigued.
So, not for me, no, but seeing as, for example, this book has garnered 77 five star reviews on Amazon.com alone, I am obviously the exception which proves the rule.
Batman for the fan who is...slightly older now - By: least toughest in the infants, 01 Feb 2008 
If like me, you have fond memories of being young & pouring over those 70s Batman comics & getting lostin the wonder of them, this book is very good news. Since we're all a bit older now & less easliy drawn into super hero tales, this book was a total delight & surprise. Intelligently written & well drawn, it's a joy to sit & read.
Little homages & references to things we've all seen (e.g. 'the Godfather')plus a cast of the usual baddies but all thoughfully & cleverely written, make it a great read. And something that you can go to as an older reader & not come away nostaglic but disappointed: Batman can be written well for an 'older' readership - it made me feel 11 again, but, kind ofin a way that's still OK when you'rein your thirties!
Well done Leob & Sale.
Thumbs up! - By: Mrs. T. J. Mcevoy, 23 Sep 2007 This is, by far, one of the most enjoyable Batman stories ever published. It brutally surpasses "Year One"in every department. Story, character development, twists, action, art-work, dialogue: "The Long Halloween" is an absolute joy.
After the events of "Year One", Batman & Commissioner Gordon form an alliance with Gotham City District Attorney Harvey Dent. They attempt to round up all of the crimein Gotham, & hopefully bring an end to the injustice that once plagued the city. However, an un-identified serial killer emerges who has a knack for committing his murders on popular Holiday nights.
The transformation of Harvey Dent into Two Face is one of the greatest story-arcs I have ever read.
Amazing - By: M. J. SEVERN, 18 Jan 2007 In my opinion this book distills the character of Batman more perfectly than any other comic ever. Once you read this it makes a lot of DC's regular Batman output look cheesy & simplistic, whichin comparison to this haunting murder mystery/early years story, it is.
The plot concerns the hunt for a murderer who is picking off members of Gotham's mafia underworld, into which Batman, the Joker & others are drawn. It also serves as an amazing origin story for Two-Face.
Jeph Loeb's (Superman for All Seasons) writing is superb & Tim Sale's noiresque visuals stunning.
The sequel is Dark Victory, which also comes highly recommended.
I should also mention Hush, also written by Jeph Loeb, & Batman: Year One by Frank Miller, which Loeb draws upon for this book.
A great book! - By: Kurt A. Johnson, 03 Dec 2003 The Falcone crime family has been used to running Gotham City for a long time, but they now find themselvesin a state of siege. Somebody is killing Falcone operatives, a murderer who kills on holidays, the Holiday Killer. District Attorney Harvey Dent wants Falcone's power broken, Salvatore Maroni wants his syndicate to move from number two to number one, a number of super-villains have been broken out of Arkham Asylum, & Catwoman is running her own game. Batman wants the Holiday Killer, but there are too many suspects. This is going to take some real work to unravel!
This is a great graphic novel! I found the story to be gripping, & thought that the characters are quite interesting. The "normal" characters are well done, & the super-villains (Joker, Riddler, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, Mad Hatter, Solomon Grundy, & (introducing) Two-Face) are used excellently, with Catwoman being quite fascinating. This is a great book, with a great story & excellent illustrations. I highly recommend this book to all Batman fans!
