It’s hard to explain the impact Frank Miller’s THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS had on the comics industry when it hit the stands in 1986. Seen through the prism of today it doesn’t seem all that special, but believe me, it was.
Frank Miller had taken the comic book world by storm, after years of rejection by all of the major companies and even Neal Adams telling him to “go back to Vermont” Miller stuck with it and eventually landed some small assignments here and there. Shortly after that he was given the penciling assignment on DAREDEVIL, a Marvel Comics title that was selling so poorly it was reduced to Bi-Monthly status and put on cancellation notice.
Miller instantly brought a Noir-like atmosphere to the title with heavy inspiration from Will Eisner’s THE SPIRIT of which he was a huge fan. Writer Roger McKenzie eventually enlisted him as co-plotter on the title and when the two of them disagreed on a storyline editor Denny O’Neil fired McKenzie and gave the writing duties to Miller.
And that’s when DAREDEVIL went into orbit. Miller, not a fan of superheroes, had long wanted to do hard boiled detective stories in the spirit of Raymond Chandler and Mickey Spillane, but the industry wouldn’t support it in the late 1970s so Miller did the next best thing and brought those properties to DAREDEVIL.
The book went from near cancellation to one of Marvel’s top sellers and DC Comics publisher Jeannette Kahn took note. Inviting Frank Miller to lunch one afternoon she offered him a lucrative contract with DC Comics which would give him creator control not only over the property he would develop, but a say in the production values assigned as well. Miller and Kahn were both very familiar with the “graphic novels” that were being created in Europe with prestige format paper and square bindings and both wanted to bring that to American audiences.
Keep in mind, this was at a time when trade paperback collections, or hardcover editions of previously printed comics did not exist but for a few scant editions here and there usually by main stream book publishers who did things like BATMAN FROM THE 30s to the 70s which showcased old Batman stories under a hardcover edition.
Miller’s first project with DC was RONIN, a six issue sci fi samurai graphic novel series that was visually stunning but with a somewhat convoluted and complex plot. Printed on the new gorgeous baxter paper and square bound the book won critical acclaim and awards but was not a commercial blockbuster, but Kahn had faith in Frank and supported him on wherever he wanted to go next.
Miller had always been a Batman fan, and the character was approaching his 50th anniversary, and as he himself had just turned 30 he speculated what it would be like for the character if he was fifty and created a story finding a long retired Bruce Wayne being forced to don the Batsuit again and get his creaky bones out there to stop crime which had become rampant in his absence in his beloved Gotham City which led to THE DARK KNIGHT a four issue mini series which began in 1986. Subsequent printings of the trade paperback have come to be called BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, but the original printings featured four titles;
Book 1 – The Dark Knight Returns
Book 2 – Dark Knight Triumphant
Book 3 – Hunt the Dark Knight
Book 4 – The Dark Knight Falls
Miller’s version of Batman was equal parts Dirty Harry with elements of the Adam West Batman (fatherly figure, adverse to foul language, etc) but so far away from the camp elements of that popular 60s show that it came across as completely new. The series is often wrongfully accused of depicting a deranged Batman, when nothing could be further from the truth, this is a Batman that believes in Justice and recognizes that sometimes that means breaking the law.
To the general public, including the mainstream press, Batman was still Adam West in 1985, even though DC Comics had by this time made the character more of a return to his darker noir roots but important to note nowhere near the dark character he has since become, so when ROLLING STONE reviewed it, it was with and eye opening level of shock over the direction Miller had taken, when in reality he’d simply gone back closer still to the 1939 version of the character, while maintaining elements that would even fit the Adam West version if he had indeed fought crime in the real world and dealt with the guilt of something happening to his boy wonder.
The Miller version of Batman spurred interest in a movie version of Batman, which had been languishing since its first announcement in 1979– but now this new darker version along with the amazing visuals and fabulous coloring of his collaborator Lynne Varley gave Hollywood something to visually inspire them and it was this version that got Tim Burton on board to make his blockbuster film in 1989.
We’ll look closer at the plot and storyline of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS and ROBIN in other posts.
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