I've always found the character "Batman" to be rather unique in a sea of cheesey superheroes and their ludicrous storylines and abilities that are found in every day comic books. Some people enjoy the absurdity of these characters while others shun them as silly children's tales that one cannot take seriously. This is where the Dark Knight comes in and eliminates the void that separates the two audiences. Unlike other superpowered beings from Krypton or victims from a radioactive spider bite, Batman is just an ordinary man with an obsession of stopping crime and a painful past. Audiences tend to drift towards Batman thanks to his more believable character and his darker tone, a contrast to the other characters in the same market who have much more over the top nature. The Batman character is able to balance the light hearted schlock of comic books while also showing off the darker side of criminals, delving into their gritty psyches and making them much more believable and terrifying villains. It's this edgy believability and darker tone that makes Batman a vastly superior and more intriguing character than the others you'd find in a comic book shop, and the only one that could ever have a chance of carrying a novel, let alone a good one.
The premise of No Man's Land is very brilliant, putting the Dark Knight in a position that seems hopeless even for him. After a devastating earthquake annihilates Gotham City, the U.S. government deems the criminal haven a No Man's Land and seals the remaining inhabitants off from the rest of the world. Immediately after the government pulls out, human nature kicks in. Without a sense of order and law, anarchy rules all. Soon gangs and notorious supervillains begin roaming the streets and claiming territory, and it's up to Batman and the remnants of the Gotham police to establish order in a world that has none. It's essentially Batman's worst nightmare come to fruition, his home overrun by the criminal vermin he's spent a lifetime cleansing. What follows is the longest year of Batman's life.
With the book being deceptively long, author Greg Rucka successfully keeps the pace and interest level at an all time high by adding new characters and situations at a very well thought out pace, I never felt like the story dragged at any point. Greg Rucka or the original author of the comics utilized the DC licence to great effect by adding an insane amount of characters that have affiliation with Batman. I'm talking about Joker, Two-Face, Penguin, Black Mask, Poison Ivy (barely), Commissioner Gordon, Bane, Nightwing, Robin, David Cain, Oracle, Batgirl and unexpectedly Huntress. I unfortunatly had to look up information on a few characters due to my lack of knowledge on the source material. But any large or casual Batman fan will be pleasantly satisfied with the overall package.
Greg Rucka handles the characterization of many of the major characters extremely well. Writing and technique that I don't believe is possible to convey in comic book form. It's interesting to see very well known and established characters that we've come to know and love and then completely shatter their world, leaving them to develop in a completely alien yet familiar environment. We're given intriguing insight at Batman's burning passion of preventing crimes and making sure no one feels the pain he bares ever again, truely fleshing out his character and reminding us that there is a man behind that mask. We also get to witness Two-Face's split personality, blurring the line that separates the man of honor he once was and the monster he had become. Finally we see the Joker's absolute insanity unfold before us like never before in a truly frightening manner, making No Man's Land one of Joker's darkest and most violent moments. There's so much more involved that it would take all day to cover: Huntress's personal code of vigiliantism, the degrading ethics of the GCPD, and the violent yet honorable rivalry between Batman and his most lethal adversary Bane.
Being a story based on desolation and destruction, the atmosphere of No Man's Land is very immersible due to a sense of loss and survival that permeats the majority of the story. The denizens of Gotham are just trying to survive and rebuild their destroyed lives, gangs are marking their territory like warlords and the remaining police officers and Batman are among the few remaining sources of hope in the remnants of the cataclysm. It has a very Mad Max meets Batman vibe, it's unique and very captivating.
No Man's Land is a must read for any fan of the Dark Knight. It's not just a good Batman story, it's a very well realized survival story of mankind and a terrifying look at the insanity of the criminal mind when all the rules are removed.
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Reviews with images
No Mans Land
As far the the story and No Mans Land and the issues in the Omnibus they are very high quality. However I have a problem with the way that the issues are sorted. It seems like they are sometimes out of order and unless my copy is just really messed up it hurts the reading experience.
Top reviews from other countries
Benjamin Ziegler
ein verdammt guter Batman Roman
Reviewed in Germany on January 20, 2010
Mr. ANTHONY GRAHAM SMITH
FANTASTIC BOOK!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2009