Batman: Broken City [BATMAN BROKEN CITY] [Paperback]

Brian(Author) ; Risso, Eduardo(Illustrator) Azzarello (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics (July 31, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401202144
• ISBN-13: 978-1401202149
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.2 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #522,509 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Broken City, Dark and Menacing, December 28, 2006

By 

CV Rick (Minneapolis, MN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Batman: Broken City (Hardcover)

I view Batman as the darkest of the DC heroes - a man who can be hurt, who deals in the grime and filth of humanity and whose mission is to help not just the innocent, but the not-as-guilty. It's Batman and Daredevil who are the greatest triumphs for human stories in the line.

Broken City, written by Brian Azzerello reaches to those roots of the man behind the mask. He's no friend of the establishment in this book because establishments are cesspools for corruption whether criminal or city. He's on a mission to find truths about himself and to rescue the mind of a little boy in shock after the brutal murders of his parents. The artwork, illustrated by Eduardo Risso isn't the focus, but instead the atmosphere of a well-told story. It's dark and angry and dangerous.

The traditional villians come back to earth in this story, running criminal organizations with very personal effects - drugs, theft, murder, prostitution, etc. It's a story where the detective works his way up to the truth by beating the streets, turning informants and taking wrong trails. Noir, gritty and real. I loved seeing Batman making mistakes and feeling slighted by it, taking it personally, then working new angles. He's alone, and lonely, and can't trust anyone else with the information he's got because the trail might grow as cold as the next victim he stumbles upon in a rain-drenched alley.

For my taste there are too many loose ends, but it's comics and perhaps there are stories to be told later from each thread left dangling. The dialogue is intentionally simplistic and some of it could have been chopped. One of the villians had too much build-up for too simple a fight. Those are my nits. I still recommend it.

- CV Rick

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best (and most highly underrated) Batman stories.., December 2, 2008

By 

Jason Bean (Iowa City, IA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Batman: Broken City (Hardcover)

Very few Batman stories these days really get underneath Batman's skin. I think the last time I felt Batman was fleshed out was Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns and Year One. It seems most writers are just concerned with his flashy villians and resurecting his side-kicks. I mean, I like the Joker and Robin as much as anyone but how many versions of these characters can there be before they all start to blend together? Also, Batman keeps getting portrayed as some cold-hearted lunatic who keeps questioning his sanity and being just as bad as his villans. Granted that wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't that EVERY other author keeps trying the same formula.

Finally there's Azzarello's Batman which, while keeping with some general criteria from past incarnations, makes Batman his OWN character.

Now along with this story being completely from Batman's first person perspective, the case he works on is a VERY personal one. A child's parents are murdered in front of him in a subtly similar way Bruce's own parents were taken. Sounds kinda obvious, but I was completely hooked into Batman's actions as he investigates.

The story is VERY much an Azzarello detective story in a world more like 100 bullets than Gotham. There's Batman but no Robin, Alfred, Nightwing or any other detracting side-kicks. The villans are around and are portrayed in Azzarello's own unique/quasi-realistic twist on them (but not quite as extreme as they were in his "The Joker").

I think my only complaint with this comic is the art. It's a bit TOO much like 100 bullets and doesn't quite draw you in like "the Joker" did. It's a minor complaint but I can see the art disappointing some people.

Like I said, I'm NOT a fan of mainstream Batman. But if you like a change and love a good detective story, this (along with Paul Popes brilliant "Batman Year 100") show there's a lot of room for unique visions of this familiar hero.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Noir Batman, September 2, 2004

By 

Walter B. Conger "Solopreneur" (California central coast) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Batman: Broken City (Hardcover)

Being a big fan of film noir, of the dark, brooding Frank Miller Batman, and of the wonderfully grim "Batman: The Animated Series," I adore BROKEN CITY. Granted, there are many, many different interpretations of Batman...but this manages to be one of the best, I think. Take Miller's "Batman: Year One," then add about 10-15 years to the character, and you've got this thrilling graphic crime novel. The story is riviting, the artwork is fabulous. HIGHLY recommended for fans of the Dark(er) Knight!