Well, it’s that time of the year again. As the clocks turn back, the night sky grows darker, and a bitter chill in the air indicates the arrival of Halloween, what better way is there to celebrate than exploring a festive classic or two. When it comes to spooky stories, there aren’t many better characters to use in such grimness than Batman. Over the years, several Halloween tales have incorporated the Dark Knight as he takes on the evil of Gotham during its darkest hours. Famously, Doug Moench and Kelley Jones wrote a trio of brilliant Elseworlds stories where Batman transformed into a vampire, a trilogy which grew darker and bloodier with each one. I covered that on the blog three Halloweens ago, but this time, I think it’s time to look at something deeper, perhaps even more psychologically scary…
Batman: Choices was published as Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special 1. Released in 1993, it was written by two creative greats who would forever be associated with some of the greatest Batman stories. I am – of course – talking about Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale.
As far as comic book talent goes, Loeb and Sale easily stand out as the most unique and creatively interesting pair I can think of in modern times. A partnership which produced some of the greatest comics from the 1990s, Loeb and Sale have played a huge part in modern comic book storytelling. They followed a line of creators like Alan Moore and Frank Miller which heavily dramatized comics, allowing the visuals to tell a story while the plot itself would be darker than anything a creative team would have produced in the decades before. However, Loeb and Sale’s true imprint on the medium has to come with their Batman works. Today, Loeb and Sale are famous for their ground-breaking Batman stories – most notably the two epic miniseries The Long Halloween and Dark Victory. These two gothic crime tales are lengthy and display the magic of the golden age reconveyed with modern storytelling. But to me, my favourite of their Dark Knight works has to be their three Halloween specials. The first of three, Choices is a story that manages somehow to be both long in terms of plot, but breezy in terms of readability.
As you’d expect, it begins on Halloween. In the grimness of Gotham City, one of the most feared criminals is on the loose – Jonathan Crane, better known as the Scarecrow. What better villain is there to pick? Batman is on the search for his foe, finding him through his links to the criminal underworld. He hunts down his opponent on the rainy rooftops, capturing him before more damage can be done. Already, the pacing is exceptional. Loeb sets the scene immediately and without any pretentiousness or fuss. Everything appears simple, but Sale’s gothic layouts and an impressive visual style that fits right at home in the Batman universe just hooks the reader immediately. In essence, it begins flawlessly and while the Scarecrow may be placed into custody right from the start, you just know that he has something bigger planned.
With Batman’s job done for now, it’s time for Bruce Wayne to re-emerge. At his annual Halloween party, Bruce Wayne welcomes guests and rich friends, but one woman in particular intrigues him. Enter Jillian Maxwell, a rich woman with a love of rich men (who also just so happens to own two very clumsy dogs who – for some reason – she has decided to bring along). She dances with Bruce, who is unaware of her identity. But when he wakes up the next morning to find her still with him, the two begin a relationship. Yes, this is all very predictable, but Loeb approaches this relationship differently. I’m sure most Batman fans will remember Julie Madison, Bruce Wayne’s original girlfriend from Batman’s early antics in Detective Comics. Her relationship with Bruce was incredibly two-dimensional and hugely stereotyped both genders. While some writers manged to move away from that boringly usual relationship, Loeb’s writing here is interesting as Bruce begins to open up slightly. It feels like Bruce is faced with a choice. You must remember that this Halloween Special is a feature from the Legends of the Dark Knight title, a comic book series which focused on the tales of Batman in his early years. While we are gifted with the usual Year One-like qualities here – such as Batman failing to land a few punches and falling prey to his own amateur-ness, Loeb branches out with a psychological take here. The clearer it becomes that Jillian likes Bruce romantically, he begins to think about Batman and whether he should abandon his plans and settle down to a more peaceful life. This is an idea which has been explored countless times since, but less so beforehand. But even then, there is some mystery surrounding Jillian, who sort of appeared out of nowhere in an attempt to claim Bruce’s heart. In the meantime, Batman has bigger fish to fry. His battle with the Scarecrow throughout this special is done with brilliant pacing and drama. Sale’s talent shines here as his use of silhouettes and dark lightning adds much excitement to the action. The brilliant chase scene at the end of the book’s second act (yes, there are three acts which splits up the story nicely) shows Batman at his lowest point as the Scarecrow tricks the Dark Knight into a poisonous maze where he is seemingly left for dead. As a villain for this special, the Scarecrow appears just as amateur as Batman, but that is surely how it should be. While he does use some of the gimmicks with which the villain would later become known for, such as poison gas and a bizarre ability to control crows, it’s his own fear which lands him in trouble with the Dark Knight. He cannot overcome his fear of Batman, and this is what leads to his defeat in the final act. But before that however, a brutally damaged Batman arrives home and Alfred attends to his wounds. The focus then shifts back to Jillian as Alfred has been investigating her background, but a tired Bruce is angry at his friend for seemingly invading his privacy. Loeb tells a deeper, more father-son relationship, between Batman and Alfred. While the older man is looking out for his naïve young adopted son, his job to keep him safe seems endless. In the end, Batman defeats the Scarecrow and rescues Gotham from… something. It seems throughout that the Scarecrow’s primary goal is to just kill Batman. Sure, that makes sure, but there isn’t really much else to go on. Regardless, since Sale gives Crane such a chilling appearance and Loeb writes him as such a relentlessly evil foe, it feels refreshing that the Scarecrow isn’t just depicted as a mad man with a love of scaring crows. That may still be present, but it’s interesting to see a more determined villain who is – like Batman – still learning the ropes. This may end the plot of the villain, but what of the romance? Alfred confronts Jillian and reveals to her his knowledge that she is essentially a gold digger.
Yes, she loves the money, but doesn’t care about love. She tried to get with Bruce for his money, which in turn leads to him becoming a more determined Batman. That is the message of Choices. The world is never as black and white as it seems. Bruce had to choose between fake love and money, or a brutal life protecting Gotham in the name of his parents. In the end, the choice was obvious. What makes it interesting is that Loeb shows Bruce trying to balance an eventful life and the long road he takes before deciding what path to go on. From here on out, you can expect Batman to spend less time on his Bruce persona. Regardless, Choices is great not just because of the great story and excellently gothic mood. It benefits hugely from being a Legends of the Dark Knight story. Most of the fantastic tales in that run take advantage of how inexperienced Bruce is. Whether it be Shaman and his hunt for knowledge, Venom and his hunt for strength, or Faces and his hunt for allies like Harvey Dent, these stories are all possible because Batman is still developing into the character we know in the mainstream titles. His lack of experience and knowledge about himself and his goals makes Choices a more interesting and dramatic story than it would have been were it written for a title like Batman or Detective Comics.
Tim Sale’s art meshes flawlessly with Jeph Loeb’s writing. Loeb is not one for verbose scenes of dialogue and exposition, meaning that the story depends much on a visual element. Sale entertains and intrigues readers with his unique style of art and his heavily cinematic style of storytelling – literally, it’s like a movie storyboard drawn by a noir genius. If you’ve read Superman for All Seasons, you would have noticed that besides the fantastic storytelling, Sale’s details and finishes are a bit ugly. That still applies here, but the dark lighting actually turns an apparent flaw into a huge asset. The strange appearance of Batman and the Scarecrow look amazingly spooky in the heavily inked art provided by Sale. It all plays into the Halloween theme which Loeb writes. Overall, the two go together hand-in-hand.
VERDICT
Overall, Batman: Choices may be a breeze to read, but Loeb manages to incorporate so much interesting plot and character development that this 70-page special turns out to be a solid story. Telling such a psychological story about Batman and Bruce Wayne works well in the backdrop of the Scarecrow’s early antics and a love interest with a hidden agenda. The spooky mood and realistic writing of Loeb is aided admirably by Sale’s brilliant and stylised art. Without him, this story would be lacking the tone which makes it outstanding. But this is only the first Halloween Special. With two more to go, don’t expect Loeb and Sale to explore the same topics as seen in Choices. With Madness, we’re treated to something very different…
Story: 9/10
Art: 9.5/10
Next Week: Batman: Madness (Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special 2). Written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale.
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