Reviews

Batman: Gothic Deluxe Edition by Klaus Janson, John Costanza, Steve Buccellato, Grant Morrison

vicaaaaaaaaa's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

tawfek's review against another edition

5 stars
Grant morrison is terrifying when he writes something great like this.
i remember the first time i read for him was superman the new 52, and it was really bad since then i have read his batman arkham asylum and now batman gothic and they are both really good.
and its specially amazing reading his idea come to fruition at the end, it always impresses me in a weird way since i see the pencils and i think to my self they look shabby and i skip them but i can never skip the script since i always think its so good.
i have written small bits and pieces on each issue in the single issues version of this.
read this people if you didn't you will gain new respect for batman masterpieces.

jarekko's review against another edition

1.0

This is just plain gibberish. The plot is chaotic and inconsequential, narration often fails miserably even on the most elementary level. How this became a classic and did not spark vigorous debate on whether Morrison could actually do his work - evades me.

doomham's review against another edition

Gothic horror is my jam, but this is an incoherent mess. I couldn't finish it.

bjoernschneider1's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

turret's review against another edition

4.0

+8 A really cool standalone story! Loved how cryptic and poetic the story and villain, Mr. Whisper, was throughout. It helped keep the intriguing nature going till the very last issue. Batman was consistently outsmarted and beaten by Whisper, and showed he was always one step ahead. Just like in other Batman stories, this was fantastic to see as it shows his humanity and how little experience he has with real world situations. I was peeved by the large amount of flashback exposition scenes, with there being five from issues 2 to 4. At least one of them could have been cut and left up to interpretation. There is a lot about Christianity and God here, and that keeps it thematically consistent with Shaman. The exploration of cultures and religious beliefs in action-centred books is so cool. Did like the art, however sometimes it was confusing and didn’t show what was going on or how a particular action happened, which made it rather confusing at times.

[Read and reviewed in June 2022]

daileyxplanet's review against another edition

3.0

One of the most mainstream Morrison stories, ever. This is a good thing. Mr. Whisper is a haunting villain. Janson's art is wonderful as always.

olio's review against another edition

adventurous fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

enzan's review against another edition

4.0

Absolutely strange in the best way. There was some great creep factor here and interesting backstory for Bruce. I wouldn't consider this strictly canon, but it is a very interesting book. The more personal a story is, the more I tend to enjoy it. I think this satisfied the desire I had to read a creepy Batman story after Batman The Cult's less than satisfying ending.

huntercamp's review against another edition

5.0

One of Morrison's first takes on Batman, and he does a fantastic job. One of the better stories I've read from Legends of The Dark Knight