Showing posts with label Dave McKean. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dave McKean. Show all posts

December 25, 2013

November Comic Books / cómics de noviembre

It’s time to say Merry Christmas. There’s an old saying that goes “the more the merrier”, and that applies perfectly to comics! I read two wonderful Young Avengers issues, and I was nicely surprised by Jason Aaron’s high level of quality (Wolverine & X-Men, Thor God of Thunder and Thanos Rising have been very good). Velvet # 1 was such an extraordinary comic (and it had some of the most beautiful Epting pages I've ever seen). This month we say goodbye to Unwritten, Vertigo's finest ongoing series (there will be one final miniseries next year, though). And I loved Guardians of the Galaxy. Kick-Ass was amazing but if I had to choose my two favorite books of the month they would be Sandman Overture and Alex + Ada (both first issues). And now, without further ado, here are November comics as per solicitations:

AGE OF ULTRON #2 (OF 10) 
(W) Brian Michael Bendis (A/CA) Bryan Hitch For years the heroes of the Marvel Universe have lived in fear that the artificial intelligence known as Ultron would one day evolve to fulfill its desire to wipe out all organic life and take over the Earth -- that day has arrived. This massive 10-part Marvel Universe-spanning event is brought to you by Eisner award-winning writer Brian Michael Bendis and comics legend Bryan Hitch. 

ALEX + ADA #1
(W) Jonathan Luna, Sarah Vaughn (A/CA) Jonathan Luna From JONATHAN LUNA (GIRLS, THE SWORD, Spider-Woman, ULTRA) and SARAH VAUGHN (Sparkshooter) comes ALEX + ADA, a sci-fi drama set in the near future. The last thing in the world Alex wanted was an X5, the latest in realistic androids. But when Ada is dropped into his life, will Alex keep her® This will be JONATHAN LUNA's return to comics after three years off since the end of THE SWORD! 

AMAZING X-MEN #1 
(W) Jason Aaron (A/CA) Ed McGuinness An AMAZING new era for the X-Men starts here! Ever since his Nightcrawler's death in X-MEN MESSIAH COMPLEX, the X-Men have been without their heart and soul. After learning that their friend may not be gone after all, it's up to WOLVERINE, STORM, BEAST, ICEMAN, NORTHSTAR and FIRESTAR to find and bring back the fan favorite fuzzy blue elf! Super star artist ED MCGUINNESS (HULK) joins master X-Writer JASON AARON (WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN, X-MEN: SCHISM) to bring you the most exciting comic on the stands! 

CABLE AND X-FORCE #8 NOW 
(W) Dennis Hopeless (A/CA) Salvador Larroca • Cable and his team go into space facing down an armada! • Will this put them face-to-face with the UNCANNY AVENGERS, who are still hot in pursuit? 

DCE ESSENTIALS THE SANDMAN #1 (MR) 
(W) Neil Gaiman (A) Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg (CA) Dave McKean. A chapter from the issue that launched the most acclaimed comics series ever is reprinted! Morpheus is introduced when the Order of Ancient Mysteries attempts to summon Death but instead seizes Dream. Freed after 70 years of confinement, Morpheus emerges in the present day and exacts a terrifying vengeance upon his captor… 

DCE ESSENTIALS V FOR VENDETTA # 1 (MR) 
(W) Alan Moore (A/CA) David Lloyd. In a dystopian future London, young Evey Hammond is rescued from officers of the law called Fingerman by a mysterious, Guy Fawkes mask-wearing man called V. And while the government tightens its grip on the people of London, V wages a one-man war against its reign. Reprinting a chapter of the groundbreaking first issue.  

GUARDIANS OF GALAXY #0.1 NOW 
(W) Brian Michael Bendis (A/CA) Steve McNiven. Move over Avengers…the Guardians got this. Star-Lord. Gamora. Drax. Rocket Raccoon. Groot. …and the Invincible Iron Man?! The Marvel Universe just got bigger as the legendary cosmic epic returns in the hands of superstar creators Brian Michael Bendis (Avengers, All-New X-Men) and Steve McNiven (Civil War; Old Man Logan). In this special prelude issue meet the man behind the Guardians: Star-Lord… and discover how this child of Earth became the leader of the rag-taggiest of teams in all the Galaxy. All setting the stage for next month's historic Guardians of the Galaxy #1. This is the start of something big, Marvel fans. 

HAWKEYE HC Deluxe Edition
Matt Fraction (W), David Aja (A/CA). Includes Hawkeye 1-11.

JUDGE DREDD CLASSICS #5 
(W) John Wagner, Alan Grant (A) Carlos Ezquerra (CA) Jim Fern. 'Apocalypse War' rages on in vibrant new color! Will East-Meg One release the citizens of Mega-City One from the clutches of Block Mania? And will Dredd be able to cut the Sovs off in time to keep them from infiltrating the south?  

KICK-ASS 3 #4 (OF 8) (MR) 
(W) Mark Millar (A/CA) John Romita. Dissension in the ranks! Kick-Ass has had it up to HERE with the newest (and laziest) member of Justice Forever. But when he finally takes a stand…will the rest of the team back him up? Also, the super-villain formerly known as Red Mist faces an education from the most terrifying crime boss in the Genovese family. 

KIRBY GENESIS #5 
Covers: Alex Ross (main), Ryan Sook (1-in-10) Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist and Painter: Jack Herbert, Alex Ross Colorist: Vinicius Andrade. The stakes are already high in a battle royale pitting Silver Star, Captain Victory and the Glory Knights versus Darius Drumm, the Lightning Lady and Roag over the Proto-Seed -- and when Sigurd Dragonsbane and the Mythics join in, the results will shake he heavens themselves. Meanwhile, Kirby's only hope for survival on the Phantom Continent lies in the Primals, whose secrets are rooted deep in the history of mankind itself. 

SANDMAN OVERTURE #1 (OF 6) CVR A (MR) 
(W) Neil Gaiman (A/CA) J. H. Williams. Twenty-five years since THE SANDMAN changed the landscape of modern comics, Neil Gaiman's legendary series is back! THE SANDMAN: OVERTURE heralds New York Times best-selling writer Neil Gaiman's return to the art form that made him famous, ably abetted by artistic luminary JH Williams III (BATWOMAN, PROMETHEA), whose lush, widescreen images provide an epic scope to The Sandman's origin story. From the birth of a galaxy to the moment that Morpheus is captured, THE SANDMAN: OVERTURE will feature cameo appearances by fan-favorite characters such as The Corinthian, Merv Pumpkinhead and, of course, the Dream King's siblings: Death, Desire, Despair, Delirium, Destruction and Destiny. 'People have often asked me what happened to Morpheus to make it possible for him to be captured in THE SANDMAN #1,' Gaiman said. 'And now they get to find out. And finding out, they get to learn secrets of the Endless that I've kept to myself for 25 years. Family secrets. And I should warn you: one of the Endless dies on page five.' The first issue of this 6-issue, bimonthly miniseries features a stunning double-page interior foldout. 

SCARLET #7 (MR) 
THE REVOLUTION IS HAPPENING NOW. SCARLET TAKES CITY HALL WITH HER LIST OF DEMANDS, AND THE CITY'S REACTION WILL SURPRISE YOU. THE CREATOR-OWNED HIT OF THE YEAR IS BACK AND BOLDER THAN EVER! FROM THE EISNER AWARD-WINNING TEAM OF MALEEV AND BENDIS! 

SECRET AVENGERS #4 NOW 
(W) Nick Spencer (A) Luke Ross (CA) Tomm Coker 'Tehran' • The Scientist Supreme and the new High Council of AIM ignite global war! • The Secret Avengers welcome their newest recruit: The Indestructible Hulk! 

SNAPSHOT #4 (OF 4) 
(W) Andy Diggle (A/CA) Jock script ANDY DIGGLE art / cover JOCK MINISERIES CONCLUSION! It all ends here as the awful truth behind a multi-million dollar conspiracy is revealed, with deadly consequences. If young Jake is to survive , what kind of man must he become? And is it worth the price? 

THANOS RISING #3 (OF 5) 
(W) Jason Aaron (A/CA) Simone Bianchi • The Mad Titan flees his home in search of true love. • But how many lives will he have to take to find it? • The book so blood-soaked you'll be glad it's a mini-series. 

THREE #2 
(W) Kieron Gillen (A) Ryan Kelly, Jordie Bellaire (CA) Jordie Bellaire, Ryan Kelly. Three slaughter survivors race towards the free city of Messene. Pursuing them are 300 Spartans. Why? What makes Sparta think that unleashing this isn't massive overkill? What makes a Spartan king agree to lead them? And what secrets do the Helot workers hold that changes everything... 

UNWRITTEN #54 (MR) 
(W) Mike Carey, Bill Willingham (A) Peter Gross, Mark Buckingham (CA) Yuko Shimizu. The big finale of 'The Unwritten Fables' is here! The survivors of Fabletown have launched their final assault on Castle Dark-and been broken. Their king is dead and their champions defeated. But the battle's not over until the wicked witch says it is, and Frau Totenkinder still has plans for Tom Taylor and Boy Blue. Unfortunately, the cure she has in mind is even worse than the disease... 

VELVET #1 (MR) 
(W) Ed Brubaker (A) Steve Epting, Bettie Breitweiser (CA) Steve Epting. ED BRUBAKER and STEVE EPTING redefined Captain America with the 'Winter Soldier' saga... and everything they've done so far has been leading to VELVET!  When the world's best secret agent is killed, Velvet Templeton, the Personal Assistant to the Director of the Agency, is drawn off her desk and back into the field for the first time in nearly 20 years... and is immediately caught in a web of mystery, murder and hi-octane action.  Sexy and provocative, with a dark twist on the spy genre, this EXTRA-LENGTH first issue by two of the industry's best-selling creators will knock you out! 

VERTIGO ESSENTIALS FABLES #1 (MR) 
(W) Bill Willingham (A) Lan Medina, Steve Leialoha (CA) James Jean. The first issue of Bill Willingham's Eisner Award-winning series is reprinted in this new edition. Don't miss the issue that introduced the Fables of legend into New York City-and asked the question 'Who killed Rose Red?' 

WOLVERINE #4 
(W) Paul Cornell (A/CA) Alan Davis • The conclusion of Hunting Season! • New York City is under biological attack. Can Wolverine save it before it's too late? • Guest starring Nick Fury! 

WOLVERINE AND X-MEN #31
(W) Jason Aaron (A/CA) Nick Bradshaw HELLFIRE SAGA PART 1! • Welcome to the Hellfire Academy, there's little chance you'll survive the experience. • The most villainous school you've ever seen has its grand opening. With teachers like Mystique, Sauron, Mojo, Wendigo and Master Pandemonium there's no limit to the terrible things you'll learn. • Can Wolverine and the X-Men find the school before their kidnapped students are turned into villains? 

X-MEN #1 NOW 
(W) Brian Wood (A/CA) Olivier Coipel. Because you demanded it! The X-Women finally get their own book, from critically acclaimed superstars Brian Wood (X-MEN, ULTIMATE X-MEN, DMZ, The Massive) and Olivier Coipel (AVX, HOUSE OF M, THOR)! An old enemy shows up at the X-Men's door, seeking asylum from an ancient evil come back to earth. Meanwhile, Jubilee has come home, and she's brought with her an orphaned baby who might hold the key to the earth's survival…or its destruction. Against a backdrop of what seems like an alien invasion and an eons-spanning war between brother and sister, Storm steps up and puts together a team to protect the child and stop a new threat that could destroy all life on earth! 

YOUNG AVENGERS #11 
(W) Kieron Gillen (A/CA) Jamie McKelvie • They say you can never go home. For the Young Avengers, it's not true. They can go home. It's just that if they do, the universe may end. Better not go home then, eh® • WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOUNG AVENGERS? YOU'VE DECIDED TO GO HOME? GAHHKKH! YOU GUYS!  • Is Kate Bishop an enemy in waiting? Is this the last we see of the loveable/strangle-able Kid Loki? • Are rhetorical questions a cheap device when writing solicits? All answers revealed, except the last one, which you'll  have to work out by yourselves.  

YOUNG AVENGERS #12 
(W) Kieron Gillen (A/CA) Jamie McKelvie • The Young Avengers versus 'The Young Avengers'. The stakes? What have you got? • Loki's scheme reaches its final twist. Expect the team's jaws to just hit the floor and lie there, twitching for the rest of the comic. • A tempting offer for Noh-Varr may get an arrow through his head. Other romance based drama too, as kissing is the new planetary extinction event. 
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Es hora de decir feliz navidad. Y además de buena compañía también he tenido muchos buenos cómics. Leí dos maravillosos números de “Young Avengers” y Jason Aaron me sorprendió favorablemente con un alto nivel de calidad (“Wolverine & X-Men”, “Thor God of Thunder” y “Thanos Rising” han sido muy buenos). Velvet # 1 fue un cómic extraordinario (con las más hermosas páginas de Epting que he visto). Este mes decimos adiós a Unwritten, la mejor serie continua de Vertigo (aunque habrá una miniserie final el próximo año). Y me encantó Guardians of the Galaxy. Kick-Ass fue asombroso pero si tuviera que elegir mis dos títulos favoritos del mes serían “Sandman Overture” y “Alex + Ada” (ambos primeros números). Y ahora sin más preámbulos, aquí van los cómics de noviembre.

AGE OF ULTRON #2 (OF 10)
Durante años, los héroes han vivido con el temor de que la inteligencia artificial conocida como ULTRON evolucionaría hasta exterminar toda la vida orgánica y conquistar la Tierra… ese día ha llegado. 

ALEX + ADA #1
Lo que Alex no quiere es una X5, lo más reciente en androides realísticos. Pero cuando Ada entra a su vida, Alex decidirá quedarse con ella.

AMAZING X-MEN #1
Cuando NIGHTCRAWLER murió, fue como si los X-MEN perdieran su corazón y alma. Pero al enterarse de que quizás no esté muerto, dependerá de WOLVERINE, STORM, BEAST, ICEMAN, NORTHSTAR and FIRESTAR encontrar y rescatar al elfo azulino al que tanto aprecian. 

CABLE AND X-FORCE #8 NOW
Cable y su equipo van al espacio y enfrentan a una armada. 

DCE ESSENTIALS THE SANDMAN #1 (MR)
Cuando la Orden de los Antiguos Misterios intentan invocar a la Muerte terminan atrapando al Sueño. Liberado luego de 70 años de confinamiento, Morfeo emerge en el presente y se venga de sus captores.

DCE ESSENTIALS V FOR VENDETTA # 1 (MR)
V de Vendetta se enfrenta a un gobierno totalitario.

GUARDIANS OF GALAXY #0.1 NOW
¿STAR-LORD, GAMORA, DRAX, ROCKET RACCOON, GROOT y el invencible IRON MAN? En este preludio especial podéis conocer a STAR-LORD, el hombre detrás de los Guardianes y descubrir cómo este hijo de la Tierra se convirtió en el líder de la pandilla más extraña de la galaxia. 

HAWKEYE HC 

Matt Fraction & David Aja.

JUDGE DREDD CLASSICS #5
Mega-City del Este versus Mega-City Uno.

KICK-ASS 3 #4 (OF 8) (MR)
Disensión en las filas. KICK-ASS está harto del más nuevo (y más flojo) miembro del equipo, pero ¿el resto del grupo lo apoyará?  

KIRBY GENESIS #5
La batalla continúa. Mientras tanto, la única esperanza de Kirby para sobrevivir en el continente fantasma yace en los primates.

SANDMAN OVERTURE #1 (OF 6) CVR A (MR)
Desde el nacimiento de una galaxia hasta el momento en que Morfeo es capturado, ‘Obertura’ traerá de regreso al Corintio y a los hermanos de Sueño: Muerte, Deseo, Desesperación, Delirio, Destrucción y Destino.  

SCARLET #7 (MR)
La revolución es ahora. SCARLET se apodera del ayuntamiento y hace sus demandas. Y la reacción de la ciudad será sorpresiva.
I drew this in 2011 (page 1 of 7) / dibujé esto el 2011 (página 1 de 7)

SECRET AVENGERS #4 NOW
El Científico Supremo y el nuevo Alto Consejo de AIM promuevan una guerra global. Y los Vengadores Secretos reciben a un nuevo recluta.

SNAPSHOT #4 (OF 4)
Se revela la verdad detrás de una millonaria conspiración, con fatales consecuencias. ¿Podrá sobrevivir el joven Jake? ¿Y a qué precio?

THANOS RISING #3 (OF 5)
El Titán loco huye de su hogar en busca de un amor verdadero. ¿Pero cuántas vidas extinguirá para poder encontrarlo? 

THREE #2
Tres sobrevivientes de la masacre huyan a la ciudad libre de Mesina. Los persiguen 300 espartanos. ¿Qué secretos guardan los ilotas?

UNWRITTEN #54 (MR)
El gran final de las Fábulas No Escritas está aquí. Los sobrevivientes del pueblo de fábulas han lanzado su ataque final al Castillo Oscuro. Su rey está muerto y sus campeones derrotados.

VELVET #1 (MR)
Cuando el mejor agente secreto del mundo es asesinado, VELVET, la asistenta del director de la Agencia Secreta, saldrá de su despacho al campo de batalla por primera vez en años… y de inmediato quedará capturada en una red de misterios y asesinatos. 

VERTIGO ESSENTIALS FABLES #1 (MR)
Las Fábulas están en New York. 

WOLVERINE #4
La conclusión de temporada de caza. New York está bajo ataque. 

WOLVERINE AND X-MEN #31
Bienvenidos a la Academia Fuego Infernal. Aunque hay pocas probabilidades de que sobrevivan. La más villanesca escuela abre sus puertas. Con profesores como MYSTIQUE, SAURON, MOJO, WENDIGO y MASTER PANDEMONIUM no hay límites para el aprendizaje de la maldad. 

X-MEN #1 NOW
Porque lo habéis demandado, las Mujeres X finalmente tienen su propio título. Un viejo enemigo aparece, buscando asilo de un mal antiguo que ha regresado a la Tierra. Ahora Storm deberá liderar un nuevo equipo.

YOUNG AVENGERS #11
Dicen que no puedes ir a casa. Para los Jóvenes Vengadores eso no es cierto. Ellos pueden ir a casa. Pero si lo hacen el universo podría llegar a su fin. Entonces, lo mejor es no ir a casa. ¿Qué están haciendo? ¿Han decidido ir a casa? ¿Veremos por última vez al adorable-entrañable LOKI? ¿Son estas preguntas retóricas un recurso barato? Pronto lo sabrán.

YOUNG AVENGERS #12
Los Jóvenes Vengadores versus los Jóvenes Vengadores. ¿Qué está en riesgo? La estratagema de LOKI se retuerce. Esperen a que las mandíbulas del equipo se caigan hasta el piso, retorciéndose por lo que queda del cómic. Una tentadora oferta para MARVEL BOY pondrá una flecha en su cabeza. Besarse será el nuevo evento de extinción planetaria.

November 14, 2011

Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? - Gaiman & Kubert

But the most fascinating and surprising confession comes from Alfred Pennyworth, the loyal butler of the Wayne family. “He was moving away from me, away from the world”, explains Alfred. Bruce Wayne is, indeed, an improvised masked vigilante that has found failure in his nocturne missions. Alfred’s loyalty goes beyond everything imaginable, and he devises a method to keep his master in check and also providing him with the satisfaction he so eagerly yearns for.
Robin

Alfred convinces his friends, all actors, to disguise themselves eccentrically and carry out crimes of the utmost extravagancy: that’s how the Riddler, the Penguin, the Scarecrow and so many others are born. Isn’t it ironic, that the villains we as readers consider a normal part of Batman’s life are here nothing else but vaudeville actors? By undermining the verisimilitude of the most classic and absurd villains, Gaiman recreates them and actually makes them more real than one could hope for.

But the moment of true genius comes later, as Alfred admits “what master Bruce needed was a Moby Dick to his Ahab, a Moriarty to his Holmes. And so, regretfully, I did what needed to be done”. The one and only trusted man in Wayne’s manor becomes the urgently needed nemesis: the Joker. The whimsical fights between the Dark Knight and the Prince of Clowns become a regular, habitual activity. Until Bruce Wayne discovers who the Joker is. When the narrator’s voice from the first pages comes to the conclusion that something doesn’t add up in Alfred’s recount, he becomes aware of another presence, a woman he thinks is the personification of death. Anyone who has read Neil Gaiman’s Sandman will easily detect the references to Dream’s sister, Death.
Funeral

Frank Miller, Kelley Jones & Joe Quesada
How did Batman die? That’s irrelevant. The only thing that matters is that we differentiate between what Jacques Lacan used to call the real death and the symbolic death. The burial place is the first symbol in which humanity can reorganize itself. Animals live and die anonymously, so to speak. For humans, unity and irreplaceability must be protected and remembered through language, through the inscription of words in a tombstone, that's why we speak of the dead, why we erect monuments and cemeteries, thus creating what Lacan called "a second death" that pertains to the order of the symbolic. Whenever people remember our names, remember our deeds and so on we continue to exist in the Symbolic even though we have died in the Real. Therefore, Batman is not truly dead as long as friends and fiends continue to remember him. A masterpiece in just two issues, there is really no excuse for skipping this one.

Andy Kubert’s art deserves a especial analysis. Many readers will remember him from X-Men in the 90s, when he was still struggling to find his own style; luckily for us, he got better. Much better. And this is simply his best work to date. There’s so much thought in each page, so much planning and love for details that it makes me feel enamored of his lines. Gaiman had many requirements in his script, as he had planned to recreate specific versions of Batman’s classic characters. So Kubert had to recreate the artistic styles of dozens of legendary creators. The page that shows Batman’s coffin in three panels is a good example: first we have Frank Miller’s Batman from The Dark Knight Returns; and then Kelley Jones’ magnificent vampire-like rendering of the hero (first seen in Batman Versus Dracula); of course, we also have the striking first version of Azrael, as designed by now Marvel’s Chief Creative Officer Joe Quesada. The Joker panels are a clear nod to Brian Bolland’s genius work in The Killing Joke (in others we see Bruce Timm’s influence). The penultimate page I’ve posted shows a number of crucial scenes from Batman’s lore: Year One, with art by David Mazzucchelli; the origin of Man-Bat, art by Jim Aparo; Knightfall, more exactly the sequence in which Bane breaks Batman’s spine; Arkham Asylum, art by Dave McKean, and in the center Batman kissing Talia, daughter of Rah’s Al Ghul, following into the footsteps of one of the most popular Batman artists: Neal Adams. And Andy Kubert draws so brilliantly that you can immediately recognize the artists that have inspired him. Excellent!
The Joker
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Gotham

Pero la más fascinante y sorprendente confesión viene de Alfred Pennyworth, el leal mayordomo de la familia Wayne. "Él se alejaba de mí, del mundo" explica Alfred. Bruce Wayne es, de hecho, un enmascarado improvisado que fracasa en sus misiones nocturnas. La lealtad de Alfred va más allá de todo lo imaginable, e inventa un método para mantener a su amo bajo control y darle la satisfacción que tanto anhela.
David Mazzucchelli, Jim Aparo, Dave McKean & Neal Adams 

Alfred convence a sus amigos, todos actores, para que se disfracen excéntricamente y lleven a cabo crímenes de la más absoluta extravagancia: así es como nacen the Riddler, the Penguin, the Scarecrow y muchos más. ¿No es irónico que los villanos que los lectores consideramos como parte normal de la vida de Batman no son aquí más que actores de vodevil? Al socavar la verosimilitud de los más clásicos y absurdos villanos, Gaiman los recrea y los hace más reales de lo que uno podría esperar.
The end and the beginning / el fin y el principio

Pero el momento de genialidad llega luego, cuando Alfred admite que "el amo Bruce necesitaba un Moby Dick para su Ahab, un Moriarty para su Holmes. Y por lo tanto, con arrepentimiento, hice lo que necesitaba hacerse". El único hombre de confianza de la mansión Wayne se convierte en ese némesis urgentemente necesitado: The Joker. Las disparatadas peleas entre el Caballero de la Noche y el Príncipe del Crimen pasan a ser una actividad habitual. Hasta que Bruce Wayne descubre quién es el Joker. Cuando la voz del narrador de las primeras páginas llega a la conclusión de que algo falta en el relato de Alfred, advierte otra presencia, una mujer que imagina como a la personificación de la muerte. Cualquiera que haya leído Sandman de Neil Gaiman detectará fácilmente las referencias a la hermana de Sueño, Muerte.

¿Cómo murió Batman? Eso es irrelevante. Lo único que importa es que diferenciemos entre lo que Jacques Lacan solía llamar la muerte real y la muerte simbólica. El sepulcro es el primer símbolo en torno al cual la humanidad se reorganiza. Los animales viven y mueren anónimamente, por así decirlo. Para los humanos, la unidad y lo irreemplazable deben ser protegidos y recordados a través del lenguaje, a través de la inscripción de palabras en una lápida, es por eso que hablamos de los muertos, es por eso que erigimos monumentos y cementerios, creando así lo que Lacan llamaba la "segunda muerte" que pertenece al orden de lo simbólico. Cuando la gente recuerda quiénes éramos, así como nuestros actos, continuamos existiendo en lo Simbólico incluso cuando hayamos muerto en lo Real. Por lo tanto, Batman no está verdaderamente muerto mientras que sus amigos y enemigos continúen recordándolo. Una obra maestra en sólo dos números, realmente no hay excusa para perdérselos.

El arte de Andy Kubert merece un análisis aparte. Muchos lectores recordarán sus páginas de X-Men en los 90, cuando todavía buscaba su propio estilo; afortunadamente para nosotros, mejoró. Y mucho. Y este es simplemente el mejor trabajo de su carrera. Hay tanto pensamiento en cada página, tanto planeamiento y amor por los detalles que uno se enamora de sus líneas. Gaiman tenía muchas exigencias en su guión, ya que había planeado recrear versiones específicas de los personajes clásicos de Batman. Así, Kubert tuvo que recrear los estilos artísticos de docenas de creadores legendarios. La página que muestra a Batman en el ataúd en tres viñetas es un buen ejemplo: primero tenemos al Batman de Frank Miller de The Dark Knight Returns; y luego la magnífica interpretación vampírica de Kelley Jones (vista por primera vez en Batman Versus Dracula); por supuesto también tenemos el espectacular diseño del primer traje de Azrael, creación del ex editor en jefe de Marvel Comics, Joe Quesada. Las viñetas del Joker son un claro guiño al genial trabajo de Brian Bolland en The Killing Joke (en otras escenas veremos la influencia de Bruce Timm). La penúltima página que he colocado muestra escenas cruciales: Year One, con arte de David Mazzucchelli; el origen de Man-Bat, arte de Jim Aparo; Knightfall, o más exactamente el momento en el que Bane le rompe la columna vertebral a Batman; Arkham Asylum, arte de Dave McKean; y en el centro Batman besando a Talia, la hija de Rah’s Al Ghul, reproduciendo el estilo de uno de los más populares artistas de Batman: Neal Adams. Y Andy Kubert hace un trabajo tan brillante que podemos reconocer de inmediato a los artistas que lo han inspirado. ¡Excelente!