The Psychotic Perspective: The Dark Knight #13
The Undead Past
I have not yet formed a solid opinion of Batman: The Dark Knight. My initial impression has been positive but mixed. I did greatly enjoy the zero issue, but some have accused it of being predictable and implausible, and I would not fight anybody with much vigor on those points. Issue twelve featured a Scarecrow story which was somewhat interesting for delving into the psychology of Bruce and Crane, but cliché for its use of the “Scarecrow tortures Batman with fear toxin” gimmick. Will this continuation of the Scarecrow story find some originality, or is it yet another paint by numbers story?
In this issue, Scarecrow continues to play with Batman’s mind.
New Numbers, Same Story
I’m not sure I’ve ever been as torn about an issue as I was on this one. There are many elements I liked, but overall, I think this issue is significantly worse than the last.
Scarecrow implied in the last issue that he had something new in his fear toxin, and in this issue, we find out that the key difference is that this is a…supertoxin. Wow. Really? You just put the word super in front of toxin, and you act like it is some worthwhile innovation. Sad.
There are many more elements that failed in this issue. Scarecrow’s child victim showing a moment of tenderness to Crane is beyond unlikely. Crane’s entire back story is at times interesting and at times confusing. To be fair, his story might take more shape in the next issue, but at the moment, I find it more frustrating than fulfilling. Batman’s dream escape sequence was completely transparent. The line, “It’s Hell on Earth,” is strictly B movie material. Finally,
Batman Exposed!
The element of this issue I did greatly enjoy was Crane’s analysis of Batman. Throughout Scarecrow’s interrogation, he makes observations which are actually fascinating and demonstrate a good interpretation of Batman’s neuroses. I would rather have seen this element expanded and Scarecrow’s story abandoned.
Very Good Art
This is probably my favorite visual interpretation of the Scarecrow. I think his costume does a wonderful job of being plausible while remaining very creepy. I even love Crane’s deadly looking bone scythe. The two page panel of Crane’s father’s torture chamber was also quite good, and I spent a long time admiring it.
Conclusion
I hate that this issue with so much to love also had so much to hate. If you are a hardcore fan of Scarecrow of have already bought the previous issues of this series, then you might as well buy this one too, but it is not a great Batman story.