Managed to snag these 2 comics yesterday. Since i was really bored and decided to purchase a few comics to read something on the train ride home from work.

Arkham Asylum:A Serious House on Series Earth
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Dean McKean's

I decided to pick this up because I've heard such good things about this book and was in the top 20 recommended Batman titles to read.

The book takes a look at Arkham Asylum (AA) and why Batman's deadliest foes are kept here. At the first few pages of the book your given a look into AA from the man that set this place up and how AA came to be. Then flash forward to the present day and it's Batman kicking ass in Gotham we've all known to love where he is called on by Commissioner Gordon as The Joker has overtaken AA and demands Batman to come AA alone if he wishes the lives working at AA to be spared. Once Batman makes it into AA, The Joker starts playing on the mind of Batman and shows him that he isn't that much different from the lunatics kept in here.

Dean McKean's artwork in this book is beautiful as the images are painted. But not in your typical Alex Ross but more of a surrealism way and gives you this feeling that AA is for the really sick and twisted. Batman as a whole is hardly ever shown but more blended in to the background with ears, mouth and bat symbol highlighted given this feeling that batman is nothing more then a ghost. If i had the money i would have loved to have purchase his canvases.

AA story is somewhat weird because it jumps back and forth without giving you anything so it might be a little hard to see what's going on. But the overall book is a nice take on AA and what makes these nuts kept in there by AA. In the book it gives a 3rd eye view of The Joker and a few of Batman's enemies such as Mad Hatter, The Croc and 2Face

If I had to sum it up in one sentence i would say its 'Alice in Wonderland meets Batman and Seven'. Not your canon book for Batman as I found out on wiki that it has only been a vague referenced of Batman's time in AA but its definitely a book to read if you wish to find out about AA and the people that are kept there.
3.5/5

Batman:The Long Halloween
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artist: Time Sale

If your a fan of Batman and Jeph Loeb then this is the definitive book to get. I've seen this book so many times placed on shelves but was always hesitant to getting due to Tim Sale's artwork. But after reading Batman:Hush i had loved what Jeph did with Batman so i decided to give this book a go.

The Long Halloween is believed to take place after Batman:Year 1 and goes into depth about how 2Face came about. It also gives account of the various crime families running Gotham City and its biggest crime family captain by Carmine 'The Roman' Falcone. The story begins with Gordon, Harvey Dent and Batman making a pact to rid Gotham of the criminals and in doing so a new criminal appears nicknamed Holiday, because of the slaying of various members of the criminal family on special holiday events creating a war between the Falcone and his biggest rival Sal Maroni. In the turn of events it pushes Falcone to employs the psychopaths of Gotham such as Poison Ivy, Scarcrow and Mad Hatter.

Tim Sale's artwork in here is brilliant it took time getting used to it since I'm used to today's traditional artwork stylings but here the artwork compliment the writing and vice-verse. Frank Miller's work might have more substance but Tim's work here captures Batman and the mood of the book better. His got some pretty cool iconic images of Batman especially one that pretty much captures the whole book and is this one. I absolutely love that image.

My one complaint would be that it dragged on a little bit but i guess that meant to happen with the title given. But Jeph does a solid job setting up all the key players in the book and showing how 2Face came about.

If the movie The Dark Knight is anything to go by then we are definitely going to see The Long Halloween as a blue print for the new Batman movie. Since Eric Roberts has been recently cast as Sal Malroni and it's a perfect way to introduce Harvey Dent.
4/5