Batman Noir: Eduardo Risso, The Deluxe Edition
The Creative Team
Eduardo Risso - Artist and Cover
Brian Azzarello - Writer
Clem Robins with John Workman - Letterers
The Stories
As a huge fan of DC comics in general and Batman tales in particular, I am delighted to see the large amount of graphic novel collections that hit the market every week. It is always nostalgic to pick up a volume that collects stories that I read years ago. Batman Noir is nostalgia in comic form.
This volume is not new. It was released several months ago. But due to the massive volume of collections that publishers produce today, it took me a while to get to this one. It was a case of "save the best for last," if you will.
Batman #'s 620-625 (published in 2003-4); Batman:Gotham Knights #8 (2000); Flashpoint: Batman-Knight of Vengeance #'s 1-3 (2011); and parts of Wednesday Comics #'s 1-12 (2009) are collected in this book. They all feature the art of Eduardo Risso and the storytelling of Brian Azzarello. The stories are all reproduced in black and white.
The tale from the Flashpoint chapter is most memorable to me. It takes place in an alternate reality where Bruce Wayne's father, Thomas Wayne, is Batman, and the roles of other characters prominent in the Bat-verse are quite surprising and delightful as the story unfolds.
I also recall reading the "Broken City" story from Batman #'s 620-625 several years ago. It is a very good story from Azzarello. Two new villains were introduced in this tale, and the takes on Killer Kroc and the Ventriloquist are interesting. This was my first reading of the tales from Gotham Knights and Wednesday Comics.
Batman Noir: Eduardo Risso, The Deluxe Edition
Risso has been working with Azzarello on the Vertigo title 100 Bullets since 1999, and has won four Eisner Awards for his work on that title. Born in Argentina, his art was known more in his home country and in Europe before he began working with Azzarello on the long-term 100 Bullets. Their Batman team-up began with the "Scars" story in the Gotham Knights title.
Azzarello, from Cleveland, now writes the New 52 title, Wonder Woman, on an ongoing basis. He has written other Batman tales in the past, such as Joker, Deathblow, and After the Fire. He has also written Superman, Before Watchmen, and Hellblazer stories for DC/Vertigo.