Batman: Hush

"Deep down, Clark's essentially a good person... and deep down, I'm not." - The God-damned Batman

Really, really good. Loeb has outdone himself again, I'd say Hush ranks up there with Year One, Arkham Asylum and/or The Long Halloween. Killing Joke still takes the throne, of course, but Hush gives it a run for it's money.

Strongest Impressions: What Hush does really well is weave an excellent tale of Intrigue. And what would Batman be without a mystery?

As such, here we see Batman as the modern-day Sherlock, and this essentially is an epic battle, both physical and of the wits, between him and his 'Moriarty'.

Admittedly, Holmes is still slightly better. Slightly.

Art: Jim Lee. Jim Motherfucking Lee. It is by my admission that I am not of fine enough taste to fully appreciate abstract art, which explains my lack of love towards most comics with unrealistic drawings (exceptions abound of course, Sandman, which thrives on madness, and Morrison's Arkham Asylum, even more so). Jim Lee creates a world where I am able to fully appreciate the 'realism' while still am able to inject my own abstract thoughts of shadows and ghosts into the pages. And his portrayal of Batman is pretty much perfect in my eyes.

Batman - Not really being that stealthy

Writing: Beautiful. The scene where Batman almost gives into rage, and strangles the Joker? Or "He Fell?" Here, we see Batman as a human, at his most intense, and we feel a cocktail of emotions. Joy, sadness, pity for the man in the cape. The ending was sublime, subtle without giving way to a moral story. The portrayal of Catwoman - sexy as hell. The relationship between Batman and Superman? Really well done.

Criticisms: Not many, but there are a few. A couple of plot lines end abruptly, a couple of questions are left cold, but that's how it is in the Batman world I guess. Catwoman was a bit too feminist, smacks of the "fat black woman" syndrome, (I don't need no man etc.)

Conclusion: Definitely worth the read.

Disclaimer: I really don't want to give scores, but it's hard to use any other method to quantify my views towards the work. So take this with a pinch of salt, it's a score taking into account my own tastes and my own opinions, NOT a score stating how good this is in a critical fashion.

87/100

Next: Fables vol3 - Storybook Love