Batman: White Knight is one of the best Batman stories ever. Reason enough to write an english version of the review. This is not a story about Batman but about the Joker and the first comic of the DC Black Label.
The story does not follow Batman, but the Joker, whose real name is Jack Napier, who is put by Batman during a chase in a warehouse for pharmaceutical products. In the face of Nightwing, Batgirl, and the GCPD elite, Batman nearly beats the Joker to death and stuffs dozens of drugs into his throat. Joker dies from this brutal attack but is experiencing a fundamental change. Exempted from his madness, Jack Napier wants to give Gotham City back to its citizens and launch a revolution that outlays Batman, „cleans“ GCPD, and gets Mayor Hill into serious trouble with corruption.
While Batman still stoically fights Jack Napier, a far worse threat grows in the shadows. With the help of Clayface and Mad Hatter, the new super rascal Neo Joker manages to assemble an army of the worst criminals to bully Gotham and revive the old joker. A fight for the future Gotham City is getting ready …
Batman: White Knight is undoubtedly one of the best stories about the old bat that has appeared in recent years. The focus on the Joker is very refreshing and shows thanks to the premise a completely new image of Batman’s archenemy. Here, too, the similarity between the figures is clear, although the methods are completely different. In addition, comes Batman’s fanatical distrust of the Joker and his differences with Dick Grayson aka Nightwing to wear, because even between these two vigilantes is not all right.
Likewise, I have to praise the drawing style. Thanks to many shades, hard contours and a generally gloomy style, the equally gloomy story comes into its own. In addition, the depiction of the characters, both heroes and villains, is very successful and the Dr. Ing. Jackyll / Mr. Hide principle of Jack Napier / Joker was successfully implemented. This complete package is rounded off by a continuously rising voltage curve as well as a balanced mix of dialogue and action.
Finally, I must praise author / illustrator Sean Murphey for his work, as Batman: White Knight is just as intriguing a joker story as Batman’s story. The interplay between the two characters who want to save Gotham is exciting and takes an interesting turn towards the end. Batman: White Knight is clearly one of the best comics of the year 2018 and gets the rating particularly worth reading from me. Every DC / Batman fan should have read this comic!
That’s it from my side. We read in the next post!
DerStigler 