Customer Reviews

Batman: The Cult

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A harrowing 80s tale from the Dark Knight. When the enigmatic Deacon Frost moves into Gotham with an eye on the poor and downcast, the Caped Crusader is but one of many to wish the "good" Deacon success. But Frost's motives prove far from altruistic, and when he shows his true colors even Batman cannot escape his sadistic grasp. Foreshadows some of the basic story elements from "Knightfall" and "No Man's Land," but Jim Starlin's tight, moving script is a far cry from many of the overblown, maze-like plots of today. The inner conflict Starlin's "broken" Batman must overcome is handled adroitley, and Berni Wrightson's visual depiction of the Dark Night Detective is quite powerful as well. Jason Todd is still Robin in this story, and Batman can't make it without him. The Deacon himself is the kind of wolf-in-the-fold that we see everyday on TV and in the newspaper--and sometimes even in our pulpits--a false prophet whose own Messiah Complex makes him capable of feats even a Bin Laden might applaud. It's going to take everything Batman has to bring him down, and the over-the-top climax does not disappoint. Out of print, but look for it in your comic shop's back-issue section (it was originally published as a 4-issue mini-series) or order it used from Amazon and add it to your own Batcave today.

It's definitely a take I'm not used to for the Dark Knight, I'll say that much. Be ready to see him as weak and unable to help some people. Also, do not expect any classic villains, there just not in there. The ending was a bit disappointing, not very "exciting". Finally, the paperback cover is kind of cheap, it unglued easily and now it won't stick back on...(which is why I'm giving it 3 stars and not 4)

batman:the cult is unlike the batman stories most are used to.Extaordinary story-telling that is not for the squeamish!!A good buy if you can get ahold of one.

The various graphic novels I've read on Batman vary wildly in quality and artistic style. The Cult happened to be exactly the style I enjoy with Gotham depicted as a twisted nightmare of a city. I was only able to leaf through this leisurely in a bookstore but even with that limited impression I was literally left quesy by how dark this was. The story itself was definitely plausible with the massive cult residing in the catacomb-like sewers of gotham.