Batman Chronicles: Volume Four

Batman Chronicles: Volume Four

ISBN: 9781401214623

Writer: Bill Finger

Art: Bob Kane, Jerry Robinson & Others

Collects material from: Detective Comics #51-56, Batman #6-7 & World’s Finest Comics #2-3, from 1941

Ahh…The Bat-Man.

He holds a very special place in my heart. My absolulte, favourite, number one, top comic book character of all time, forever. The most versatile of all the masked avengers. Ol’ Pointy Ears was the first American character I read (see the Intro Post of this blog) and the only one that I’ve read consistently. So easy to get wrong, but when a writer/artist team get it right, the results are spectacular. A couple of favourite pairing that springs to mind are Doug Moench /Gene Colan and Alan Grant/Norm Breyfogle. But the comics we’re discussing now pre-date those creators by generations, we’re talking Golden Age here, ladies and Gentlemen, 1941.

So, why am I writing about The Batman Chronicles: Volume Four when I haven’t previously mentioned one, two or three. Easy. The first three volumes were read before I started this blog and I feel it would be unfair to review them without being entirely familiar with their contents. So I’ll start with Four and continue through the later volumes as I read them, when I do re-read the earlier collections, I’m sure they’ll get a mention.

For anyone unfamiliar with DC’s Chronicles, they are a paperback printing very similar to the hardback Archives, obviously cheaper (I’ll get back to that later), but the most significant difference is the ordering of the material. In the Archive volumes the Batman and Detective Comics issues are printed in separate collections, whereas the Chronicles reprint all the Batman stories from Detective Comics, Batman and World’s Finest in chronlogical order, allowing, in my opinion, a seamless progression in the readers mind of the growth of all involved with the creation of the strips.

Yes, yes. Thanks for that, but what about the strips, I hear you cry.

By 1941 Bill finger had been writing practically every appearance of Batman since his creation. I’ve got a lot of time for pretty much anything that Finger wrote, but by 1941 things were getting a little bit formulaic, that being said, it was a very good formula and at no point does it get boring, it’s just that nothing is really being added to what would become the Batman Legend. These are solid, readable and entertaining stories, they just aren’t the best stories that Finger has written. There’s a considerable amount of time spent outside of Gotham (Dick and Bruce do seem to spend a lot of time on vacation, but they’re millionaires, so why not?) so whilst the backdrops are fresh, the stories are at least partially recycled from earlier strips. There are however several memorable moments, one in particular being a great return of the Joker, with his Practical Joke Gang. In all fairness to Finger, even when he’s not on top form, he’s still better than most and he manages to tell complete and succinct tales in what would now be considered as a very low page count.

There are a few disappointments with this volume and the Chronicles in general. Firstly, specific to this volume, is the cover. Jerry Robinson, despite his infuriating lack of credit, was the driving visual force behind the early Batman strips, so I have no idea why the terrible cover, pencilled and inked entirely by Bob Kane, was chosen for this volume. I don’t want to sound bitchy (but I’ll say it anyway) Rob Liefeld could have done a better job at rendering Batman’s extremities than Bob Kane did on this cover. For some unaccountable reason, our heroes have been drawn with the malformed hands of toddlers.

More generally, concerning the Chronicle editions is the noticable ink spread. In many places the text is difficult to read, I assume this is due to the low quality of paper, this also has an impact on the art which can appear to be in soft focus at times.

To end on a positive note, there is one small but wonderful element that is rarely mentioned in connection with Batman- Fred Ray. This volume offers two covers from Ray, World’s Finest Comics #2 & 3. Ray is better known for drawing Superman, so with me not being a great reader of Supes, he’s not an artist I’ve had a great deal of exposure to. I’d like to change that. On the strength of the covers that I’ve seen in this and previous volumes I’ve really come to appeciate his clear line style, which seems a generation ahead of it’s time. A pleasant surprise and I look forward to seeing more Ray in future volumes.
My recommendation concering the Batman Chronicles really depends on the monetary aspect. If you can afford to buy the Batman and Dark Knight Archive Editions you will certainly be getting a better quality product. But you’ll pay considerably more for the privelige. If however, you’re on a budget, the Chronicles offer you a chance to read some fine (and not so fine) Golden Age Batman stories at a very affordable price.

Mad Thinker