Nick Roberts ( Geek Syndicate) thought the characters seemed believable, [14] and comics historian Matthew K. Mazzucchelli's art was noted as a standout by many, praising the minimalistic, noir-influenced and realistic art-work. Two years before the relaunch, Batman had all-time low sales of 75,000 copies per month; "Year One" sold an average of 193,000 copies an issue, numbers not seen since the early 1970s.

His multi-award-winning graphic novel 300 was brought to full-blooded life in the 2007 motion picture of the same name, and in 2008 he directed the feature film Will Eisner's THE SPIRIT. There’s no Joker, no Penguin, no Riddler, not even a mention of any of the Rogue’s gallery, except for focusing on Gotjam’s crime families and a cool reference to a certain villain on the very last page. The team also consisted of Mazzucchelli's wife Richmond Lewis who was in charge of coloring, Todd Klein as the story's letterer, and O'Neil editing the overall story.In May 2023, IDW Publishing announced that Year One will be getting the Artist's Edition ( ISBN 9798887240039) treatment, the publishing date will be in July 2024.

It’s dark, gritty, contains copious amounts of monologue and centres around a detective (or two, in this case, as the story prominently featured Jim Gordon, everyone’s faviroute non-corrupt GCPD lieutenant, and Batman, the world’s Greatest Detective).From what I had read this was a good place to start for someone just getting into comics/graphic novels. In November 2014, to celebrate Batman's 75th anniversary, DC released a sample of Year One as a part of its DC Comics Essentials line of promotional comics. but i also feel that it is not crucial to the quality of the graphic novel as a whole, because it allows you to concentrate on the storyline; sometimes, beautifully drawn graphic novels lack the story behind them, and i would prefer weaker artwork and a stronger story. Frank Miller began his career in comics in the late 1970s and rose to fame while first drawing, and then writing, Daredevil for Marvel Comics. Melding Miller's noir sensibilities, realistic characterization, and gritty action with Mazzucchelli's brilliant iconic imagery, "Year One" thrilled readers and critics alike.

Jason Serafino ( Complex) wrote that by ignoring many of Batman's trademark gadgets and villains and focusing in the core essentials of the titular character, Miller managed to present Batman in a relatable and thrilling way, which felt both fresh, unique and reinvigorating, while still being faithful to the spirit of the character. Several years ago, DC asked me if I'd help put together a deluxe edition of Batman: Year One, and Dale Crain and I worked for months to try to make a definitive version. Launched in 1989, following the success of the film Batman, the title Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight examines crime-fighting exploits primarily, not exclusively, from the first four to five years of Batman's career.Mazzucchelli personally supplies the artworks for scanning with Chip Kidd serving as the designer of the book. For those of you who are big fans of the Christian Bale Batman films, you can definitely see where segments of this book has been adapted to the Batman Begins reboot - and that shows how much quality this graphic novel has. Now, this is probably because the story is so good and i was left wanting more, so i wouldn't mark it down for that. By styling Bruce Wayne after Gregory Peck, he anchors the story in the golden age of cinema, where men were good or bad with no shades of grey and the hero could be depended on to save the day.

The story recounts Batman's first year as a crime-fighter as well as exploring the life of recently transferred Gotham police detective Jim Gordon – eventually building towards their first encounter and their eventual alliance against Gotham's criminal underworld. Warner Books, USA, 1988, softcover, good/acceptable book with some shelf wear, unmarked, not remaindered, carefully wrapped and shipped. That is one facet of the story, but the other side of this is the introduction and development of one Lieutenant Gordon. Goldstein found every moment memorable, writing "Miller does not waste a single panel" in presenting a gritty and dark story. Unfortunately, the villains get evidence that Gordon has had an affair – and they seek to use this against him.He has moral dilemmas, just like Bruce Wayne and it is interesting to see the different ways they deal with their problems.