Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)

by Grant Morrison

book data

1,626 ratings, 4.04 average rating, 148 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		37%
4		35%
3		20%
2		5%
1		1%

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published

November 1st 2005 (first published 1989) by DC Comics

binding

Paperback, 216 pages

isbn

1401204252 (isbn13: 9781401204259)

description

In this groundbreaking, painted graphic novel, the inmates of Arkham Asylum have taken over Gotham's detention center for the criminally insane on Apr...more

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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 1,989)

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01/26/08

madeline rated it:

Read in January, 2008

i think ADHD being a form of higher evolution is an interesting theory. grant morrison thinking he is more highly evolved because he has ADHD is a less interesting theory.

morrison is no genius, in my opinion. i would attribute most of the greatness of the book to mckean, especially after reading the original "script" in the back of this book. morrison says, "According to Len Wein's original WHO'S WHO entry, Arkham died singing "the Battle Hymn of the Republic,"...more

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10/15/07

Marc rated it:

Read in January, 2001

recommends it for: intellectual art lovers

Arkham Asylum is the best graphic novel I've ever read for two reasons: writing, and art.

This isn't your average WHACK! POW! comic book. In fact, there is almost no violence or glammed-out secret weapons. Grant Morrision takes us through a masterful exploration into the psyche of Bruce Wayne, a man who suffered a tragic loss at an early age and formed a very clear alternate identity. Is he a crime fighter, or does he suffer from MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder), and does it even m...more

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02/23/07

MIke rated it:

Forget "...Dark Knight," "The Killing Joke" and "Year One," this is the greatest Batman story ever told. Morrison weaves a tale of symbols that plays out in a crawl from the depth of Hell to the brink of salvation and vice versa. With Dave McKean's brilliant art setting the stage there's nothing to compete.

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08/29/08

Maré Odomo rated it:

(review of isbn 0930289560)

bookshelves: comics

Read in August, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Mostly Batman just ends up looking like kind of a big baby in the book. I've never seen him so vulnerable.

During the word association, he has an emotional breakdown when he starts thinking about his parents.

Towards the end, when he gets jumped by... that guy... he needs that lady doctor to come save him. A lady!

And he's running around in a house, playing hide-and-go-seek... I don't know about all that.

The art was pretty insane. It was an interestin...more

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07/14/08

Andrew Webb rated it:

(review of isbn 3866070861)

I have read many a poor/overrated Batman story in my ten-odd years as a fan, but this much referred to epic may take the cake. As a Batman story, this is a total failure. Batman acts completely out of character almost from the beginning. When walking into a hostage situation masterminded by the Joker, he strikes up a conversation with his archenemy rather than planning how to rescue the innocents involved. When Joker shoots a hostage in the head across the room from Batman (I think-- the bizarre...more

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12/17/07

Werebot rated it:

Read in December, 2007

recommends it for: the one Batman fan in the world who hasn't read it.

I know that a lot of the modern Batman mythos has a lot to do with the whole evil outside vs. darkness within motif, but this is ridiculous. What a pretentious bunch of nonsense. And I've never gotten the attraction to Dave McKean's art. But then, I'm not a goth nerd. I can never tell what's going on, everything's too dark and splotchy and covered in symbols. This is a Batman comic book. Let's not overthink it. When did we let the British take over our comic books anyway? Neil Gaiman and...more

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12/10/08

narajaponesa rated it:

Read in December, 2008

The artistry is GORGEOUS. The script is way dark. A masterpiece, though not one I'd necessarily revisit.

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05/31/09

Tezzle rated it:

bookshelves: graphic-novels

Read in May, 2009

recommended to Tezzle by: My friend Steve
recommends it for: Batman fans...obviously other people like it

I went into this story completely blind. No idea what I was getting myself into. What I was expecting was a Batman story...WOW. Bad idea if you haven't read this, folks. This isn't a Batman story. It's a psychological mind-frack with Batman characters in it.

Half of the time I couldn't even tell who the villains were supposed to be. Scarecrow had something I would consider less than a cameo. He just...walked by. I didn't even get his purpose in that single page he was in until I looke...more I went into this story completely blind. No idea what I was getting myself into. What I was expecting was a Batman story...WOW. Bad idea if you haven't read this, folks. This isn't a Batman story. It's a psychological mind-frack with Batman characters in it.

Half of the time I couldn't even tell who the villains were supposed to be. Scarecrow had something I would consider less than a cameo. He just...walked by. I didn't even get his purpose in that single page he was in until I looked in the back of the book where Morrison was kind enough to provide the SCRIPT. I get that he wanted to show how Arkham was making all the inmates WORSE than they were before, but this was taken to an extremity I was not expecting.

The main thing that clinched my dislike of this book was when a crazed doctor gets his throat cut, Batman retorts with something along the lines of "He got what he deserved." What!? That contradicts Batman's entire moral code! If that random guy deserves to have his throat cut, what the hell is Joker doing breathing? Oh, what, it only counts if Batman doesn't kill? That's the only way he could justify that line. However, I guess that's not the case, since Morrison also had Batman SHOOT DARKSIED WITH A GUN when he wrote Final Crisis. Batman has only ever used a gun& killed when his comic book was first starting out and he hadn't yet become a solid fully-developed character. Nowadays, his stance on killing is completely black & white! Killing = bad. NO exceptions! From what I've seen, if there is one character Grant Morrison just doesn't seem to get, it's Batman. Here's what the man himself said about this book:

"I wanted to approach Batman from the point of view of the dreamlike, emotional and irrational hemisphere, as a response to the very literal, 'realistic', 'left brain' treatment of superheroes which was in vogue at the time, in the wake of The Dark Knight Returns, Watchmen, and others."

Vogue at the time?...At the TIME? Dude, go to a comic shop today. Watchmen and TDKR are still some of the most popular graphic novels around. You're talking like they were just some passing fad, man.

The art was interesting to say the least. I did like that. Really detailed & out-there. Kudos to Dave McKean. However, the Joker's dialogue, while cool, was almost impossible to read at times. They didn't give him bubbles around his speech, and the font was barely legible. It was supposed to be, I get that. Stylistically, it's awesome. Practically, it's lacking.

And that's my take on what some consider to be one of the greatest Batman graphic-novels ever. It's definitely original, and the art is fantastic...I just don't see what makes it so amazing & great. It's definitely different...but personally, that was TOO different for my liking.(less)

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03/24/09

Sophie rated it:

bookshelves: batman, owned

Read in October, 2008

This was my first forray into the huge world of Batman. I'm still not entirely sure whether it was the ideal start, but one has to start somewhere; and after having read "The Dark Knight Returns" I'm really glad I chose this one to start with. And Batman or no Batman, this is an absolutely fantastic piece of art.

First of all, it was good to start with something familiar - I've loved Dave McKean's work ever since I read "Sandman", obviously. And I don't think I've ...more

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01/24/09

Dan rated it:

bookshelves: 2009, comics

Read in January, 2009

I think I'm done with Grant Morrison. I don't like having to require footnotes for my comics. Seven Soldiers, Final Crisis, Doom Patrol, and even going back to this, they're all supposedly genius, or are claimed to be by the fanboys. Woe to the person who doesn't "get-it" but come on, I like my books to be deep, but also understandable and fun (which Morrison does in All-Star Superman).

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03/04/09

Dan Moody rated it:

Read in January, 2006

More of a novelty or gimmick than an actual Batman story.

Morrison writes another of his "Wouldn't it be cool if..." tales, which is yet again hampered by a lack of follow through.

I would have liked to have seen more to the story than just Batman going down the list of all his most famous enemies as he runs into them at Arkham, followed by an abrupt ending that says to me "Welp, there ya go!".

I don't know if it's because Morrison has too ma...more

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05/12/08

Andy rated it:

bookshelves: comics

Read in May, 2008

I've been picking this book up and flipping through it in the bookstore since I was a kid, because the art is so interesting and strange. Now I sit down and read it, and I realize there's no plot. Comic books aren't good without a plot.

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03/17/09

Christa rated it:

Read in March, 2009

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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04/19/09

Barry rated it:

Read in April, 2009

This is a dark and meandering tale, one that starts, then abruptly veers into a different story, then abruptly veers off, then abruptly... to the point where it loses its value as a story. Neat, yes, great, no. Its passable, but lacks meaning and purpose.

Batman means to face and conquer his fears, but when it comes down to it, just listens to rambling meandering ravings and diatribes and then leaves. I'm not really even sure he accomplished what he set out to, and I'm not sure he fai...more

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09/23/08

Bonnie rated it:

Read in November, 2008

To start with, I'm sorry I chose to read this during my lunch break - it's more than a little stomach-turning. I'm still working my way through the script at the back of the book, but I feel I have enough of the book to really review it. For me, this was a book that didn't live up to its description. The inmates at Arkham Asylum have taken over the building and, after a lengthy list of unusual demands, they want Batman in there with them. Batman struggles with his fear that he actually belon...more To start with, I'm sorry I chose to read this during my lunch break - it's more than a little stomach-turning. I'm still working my way through the script at the back of the book, but I feel I have enough of the book to really review it. For me, this was a book that didn't live up to its description. The inmates at Arkham Asylum have taken over the building and, after a lengthy list of unusual demands, they want Batman in there with them. Batman struggles with his fear that he actually belongs in the asylum, while fighting with the criminals he put in Arkham. As the story unfolds, we read passages from Amadeus Arkham's diary, telling the horrific story behind the house and its family.

I appreciated the concept behind this story. Arkham is probably the ultimate haunted house, though Morrison turns the concept of haunter and hauntee (WTF kind of word is that?) on its head. Dave McKean's art has turned Batman into a silhouette, with only a mouth and teeth to express emotions. His style seems appropriate to me for this sort of comic, since so much of it exists in a semi-dream-state. However, it's really easy to miss the incredible amounts of detail Morrison and McKean crammed in. Really, it's almost a requirement to read through Morrison's script and notes. And I don't think it should be - I'd like to read through and not wonder who's talking, what I'm missing plot-wise, etc.

I know that an emphasis of this story was Batman's mental vulnerability... but this really takes him out of character. He's easily overwhelmed by other characters (not even supervillains... gasp!). I didn't think he'd be bothered by invasions of "personal space" and can't handle word association tests. Ummm... I will say, after reading partway through the script, I'm releaved that someone nixed the idea of Joker dressing up as Madonna. Whew!

Okay, so the summary: I liked the concept, was okay with how it was carried out, and overall didn't enjoy the finished product. The high points are learning some of Arkham's history (which I've heard Morrison didn't get right), the discussion of Joker's "super sanity," and the weaning of Two-Face onto a dice and tarot system. (less)

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09/17/08

Vincent Perez rated it:

This was...amazing. This story was supposed to have occurred during Batman's early years, while he was trying to come to grips with who he was and what he was doing. This comic managed to achieve a brilliant portrayal of Batman, vulnerable, open, psychologically distressed. I mean, it's so much more than him being physically vulnerable, it portrays a story of a wounded psyche, trying desperately to undo something that happened so many, many years ago.

Batman is forced to enter the Asyl...more

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09/13/08

Evil_Dead_Junkie rated it:

bookshelves: comics

I'm not what you would call a huge Grant Morrison fan. It's said you either like Alan Moore or Morrison and anyone glancing over my review history can probably guess which I favor.

He's just a bit pants, isn't he? So thunderously self serious, so strenuously post modern, and even IF his stories do work in the moment it's very seldom that I read one without fifteen minutes later going "Well that was a bit silly wasn't it?" And don't even get me started on the whole super sa...more

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08/21/08

Krystal Heath rated it:

Read in July, 2008

recommended to Krystal by: The late Heath Ledger (in an indirect way, obviously)
recommends it for: Anyone who enjoyed The Dark Knight and its Joker

Any story that takes Batman out of the Adam West/Joel Schumacher two-dimensional hyperactive parody of the superhero and bring him down to earth where the hero and his nemises are the consequences of their pasts is the story I like to read. This is that kind of story.

This is one of the two graphic novels Heath Ledger holed himself up with in a hotel room to prepare for his role as the Joker. The other is The Killing Joke.

Morrison uncovers the history behind Arkham Asylum ...more

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03/16/08

Ak rated it:

Read in January, 1996

Stunning and gritty multimedia artwork by McKean accent this look into all types of mental disorders. Grant Morrison brings you to the familiar Arkham with a completely different approach. Various villainous inmates have come together and taken over the madhouse, and to save the remaining hostages and restore order Batman must journey through the halls of Arkham, encountering a cast of favorite baddies. The light that Morrison casts on the psychologies of comicdom's best-known villains forces...more

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01/26/08

Fredstrong rated it:

bookshelves: graphic-novels

So what happens to the bad guys after Batman sweeps them off the streets of Gotham? I mean, they’re not your ordinary criminals, these guys have serious issues, and rather than prison they go to Arkham Asylum. But what of the Batman himself? His sanity has also always been in question, and here Batman’s own madness is somewhat unmasked.

Arkham Asylum begins with Commissioner Gordon informing Batman about a riot at Arkham. The inmates are running the asylum, the Joker is at the hel...more

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