Batman the Dark Knight 1: Golden Dawn Hardcover – January 10, 2012

Great book if you collect or enjoy Batman this is a must. This is a Hard cover with some of the best Black n White Art I have ever seen of batman if you love batman then this is a must for any collector or collecting it will not disappoint

Nerdgasm!

I agree with the other reviewers, the art is fantastic, beautifully drawn and colored. While the story starts out strong and wavers at the middle it totally falls apart in the 5th chapter. It also didn't wrap up any sub plots that was going on and I would have liked to have seen a totally self contained story since DC rebooted. But really its not bad until the 4th chapter then the wheels come off and it totally crashes in the 5th. It's really not even the ending that I have a problem with, the conclusion may surprise some people, but thats not my issue, my issue is there are so many plot holes and things don't' make sense, or come together. I had to go back a few pages to make sure that I didn't miss anything the first time through because the plot jumps around too much. Pretty sure that this thing was rushed, maybe not so much the art, but the story could sure use some work. Wish I could give it more stars.... I love David Finch's art!

As a title "The Dark Knight" conjures up two classic Batman tales - Frank Miller's superb Dark Knight Returns (one of the finest comic books ever) and Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight, which would be the greatest comic book movie if Nolan had actually made it in a comic book style (instead, he made a "real movie" in the vein of Heat and Blade Runner that only happens to be about a character featured in comic books - a movie that stands as one of the best of the last 20 years). So, when DC Comics filled the spot of the "other Batman book that's not Detective or Batman" (previously filled by Shadow Of The Bat, Gotham Knights, and Streets Of Gotham) with a book titled Batman: The Dark Knight, expectations among a number of fans were high. When it was announced the book would be drawn by David Finch, buzz increased as well. Finch has a well-deserved reputation as one of the best and brightest of the rockstar artists to come out of Image and start drawing for the "Big Two." Unfortunately, the result is a huge disappointment that lives up to neither its title or expectations. So, what went wrong?Golden Dawn begins with a strong set up, introducing us to the kidnapping of Dawn Golden, a gorgeous socialite who grew up with Bruce and who is now infamous for her club activities that usually end up in the newspaper gossip columns. The case is grabbing a lot of attention and bringing down pressure on the GCPD, who is being portrayed as incompetent by the media for their inability to find Dawn. Eventually, the whole affair takes a turn to the supernatural and becomes twisted and overly complicated, before ending in what feels like unneccessary bloodshed. A tangental storyline concerns the efforts of a young girl to assist her father, who is in lethal debt to a group of gangsters, by stealing the Batmobile. This storyline feels like tacked on filler.So, where did it all go wrong? The first clue for most fans that this series might not live up to the promise of its artwork is when Finch was announced as writer as well as artist. While Finch's art is excellent overall (though I am still a bit skeptical to the design rationale of the Bat symbol on Bruce Wayne's chest being attached to a small light), his writing falls into the weaknesses suffered by so many Image books in the 90s - it feels like the story was plotted by the artist saying "wouldn't be cool if we___________" and then filling in the "bones" of the story afterwards. This results in a story that seems poorly paced. The supernatural elements are introduced suddenly and in a slipshod fashion, so the whole affair ends up feeling more like a Witchblade story (pre Ron Marz) than a Batman one. Also, as mentioned, the storyline with the mysterious girl who is trying to get her father out of a jam with a (apparently) dangerous criminal comes out of nowhere and adds nothing at all to the story. Finally, a ridiculous plot in which Commissioner Gordon is walked all over on and replaced by one of his underlings (a new transfer to the department of all things) is unbelieveably written, annoying, and is never actually resolved.What makes matters worse is the story attached to the end of this hardcover collection - Batman: The Return #1, drawn by Finch and written by Bat-writer extraordinare Grant Morrison. Set just after Bruce Wayne's return to Gotham after his "resurrection" and sowing the seeds that would be filled in later by Batman Incorporated, this 24 page issue is well-paced, with spot on characterization and fine use of both Batman and his supporting cast. It's basically a "right way" that further exposes how Finch's writing did it the "wrong way."This hardcover is an excellent buy for those interested in Finch's artwork; as usual, it's a quality RR Donnelly-printed book along the lines of DC's standard releases with glossy paper and an attractive dust jacket. The hardcover is oversized, the size of the beautiful (and better-written) Batman: Noel release of a couple months ago. Definitely an attractive package.I read this right after re-reading the wonderful Batman: The Black Mirror (a story that will likely, and should, come to stand among the best Batman stories, as well as the best Dick Grayson Batman story), and it was truly an example of "right way, wrong way." I hate rating a book that looks this good with such a low rating, but the story certainly doesn't warrant a good rating. Fortunately, the New 52 Dark Knight relaunch is being written by Paul Jenkins (a longtime Hellblazer writer and Marvel's excellent maxiseries The Inhumans), so hopefully the stories will come to live up to the artwork. But for now, I recommend waiting for the paperback.

As the title says, the art in this graphic novel is absolutely amazing. The characters are beautifully drawn and very detailed. My only qualm with this novel is how the story incorporates the 'supernatural'. I don't want to give away too much of what happens but to me, Batman has always been framed in a very material world where even the seemingly supernatural turns out to be natural at the end (except for the weird alien period of Batman history). Though, given its premise, the story does fuse together all its elements pretty well by the end making it just plausible enough for us to suspend our disbelief. While I wouldn't say that this is a must-have for Batman fans, it definitely was worth the read and as I said, the art is just absolutely amazing.

Ive been repealed from buying this book because of the bad reviews, but when I finally did get it, its not that bad. The artwork is great with no doubt, and the storyline is not spectacular but it is OK. You will see a lot of characters and the story is realistic with no happy ending (maybe that is what everyone else disliked). I would give it a try if I you are having doubts.

Stick to art and not to writing. The are is great. But keep it for an art book but forget reading it. More holes in this story than Swiss cheese.

ok, nice graphics but story didn't convince me after all. it's my first batman comic collection, it could be better.

Good read

I love reading comics books. The drawing/story line should be almost very good. You can immediately see if the artist is very good in his job. All these characteristics you can find in this book. I would recommend this book for every comic fan

before you ask, no two face is not in this story.so let's do this. Batman's back. after a tiring journey in time bruce has decided to make the batman legacy into a world wide organization. however, while Dick is looking after Gotham, Bruce has decided to go back after hearing new's of his childhood sweetheart being kidnapped. then some thing about demons and hell follow along with a few stories that just don't make any sense.okay let's just start with the plot...It's awful. just awful. it starts of intresting, I mean hey a tale of bruce trying to find somebody who is one of the last links to his past makes him feel more human and makes you think what will happen to bruce when all links to his childhood are gone. then it suddenly turns into a story about demons and sacrifice for immortality, which inevitbly lead to you simply paying attention to the art, as the story feels completly out of place. to put it simply, finch is not a good writer. he started off fantasticly, but then let the quality slip to a very low level. he also includes a story of bruce trying to work with damian, but then telling him he's awful and essentially going from an okay father into a terrible one. and then a final tale of an older daiminan wayne who now has taken the mantle of batman and is talking with superman about their dead fathers. and after two pages, just as you think it's starting to lead somewhere, it ends. like somebody switching off a light. in fact, I felt like most elements in this story where quickly finished. and by finished I mean unresolved (probably should have just said that)so yeah, just an awful set of stories that don't lead anywhere. plus his characters are awful. everything feels out of place, from an almost teenage batman to a stupid killer croc (he is to me diffrent from his incarnation in hush, due to the fact that he is no longer a creature you can pity)his dialouge is also terrible at times, particuly words from bruce's lost love and the demons themselves.so now it's time for the art. I'll be honest david finch is a great artist...but it's bland. to be honest, it's very similar to jim lee, with nothing unique really popping out to me. his reprsentation of th epenguin is also, to me, awful. it looks like danny divito with an awful punk haricut.the colouring is also medicore. it looks good in some pages, but at other times feels quite sickening to look at. the style also seems to change from realistic to colourful...which doesn't mix.I actually had high hopes for this when I first heard of the plotline. I expected a story about how difficult it was for bruce to let go of the past and his home. instead I get some garbage about demons and cults alonside batman once again moaning about his terrible love life.if you like david finchs art, then I'd wait for the price to drop. if you like batman when he fights off against demons, then go ahead and buy it, though like I siad, this book is just awful and wouldn't be able to satisfy your needs.

"Batman: The Dark Knight - Golden Dawn" ist ein Comic, der stark beginnt und dann stark nachlässt. Im Grunde kann man den Comic als Mischung aus Batman und Hellblazer beschreiben, allerdings mit dem Makel, dass Autor David Finch weder die Stärken des einen noch des anderen Comics umsetzen kann.Batman ist auf der Suche nach einer alten Freundin aus längst vergangenen Kindertagen, die entführt wurde. Die Spur führt ihn zunächst zu Killer Croc und dem Pinguin. Bis hierhin ist die Geschichte - wenn auch nicht originell - spannend umgesetzt, und der Leser erlebt einen vor Wut rasenden und kompromisslosen Batman. Im weiteren Verlauf verflacht die Story allerdings. Batman entdeckt ein dunkles Geheimnis und muss sich plötzlich Heerscharen von Dämonen aus der Hölle stellen. Spätestens ab diesem Punkt fragt man sich, ob man tatsächlich noch einen Batman-Comic liest. Die Geschichte ist abstrus, und das Ende ist ideenlos.Zudem beginnt David Finch noch überflüssige Handlungsstränge. Commissioner Gordon muss sich mit einem aufmüpfigen neuen Kollegen auf Seifenopern-Niveau herumschlagen und ein unbekannter Dieb entführt nebenbei das Batmobil. Zumindest zum letztgenannte Handlungsstrang gibt es einen (nicht unbedingt neugierig machenden) Cliffhanger am Ende des Bandes.Der Band beinhaltet zudem noch die Geschichte "Batman: The Return" von Grant Morrison, die bereits in Morrisons Band "Batman and Robin, Vol. 3: Batman & Robin Must Die!" abgedruckt ist, und die zweiseitige Kurzgeschichte "Eternal" von David Finch, in der ein zukünftiger Batman (Damian Wayne) und Superman über ihre berühmten Vorgänger reden, was pathetisch erscheinen soll, aber ob der Kürze ziemlich hölzern wirkt.Der Band bekommt noch drei Sterne, weil die Zeichnungen gut gelungen sind, auch wenn sie nicht an die Qualität des Covers heran reichen können. Unterm Strich bekommt man eine durchschnittliche Geschichte geboten, die man schnell gelesen hat.