Customer Reviews
My first graphic novel. 
2008-03-31
A fantastic read, I wasn't sure which batman book I would read first but I eventually came to the conclusion that The Long Halloween was the choice for me. A great murder mystery with the villains of Batman you've come to known well.
There are better Battales 
2008-03-25
This book's elevated stature among all of the Battales is perplexing. The story has many flaws. It is a very sparse script. There is nothing to it. Many pages have so few words on them that your focus and time is spent on turning pages moreso than actually reading them. The rogue cameos are pointless and add very little to the plot, especially Catwoman, who is seen hanging around throughout the entire story for no apparent reason, for which we don't find out the reason until the end of Dark Victory. Plus Batman doesn't even play a big role in the discovery of the killer, whose identity at the end of the story is still in doubt. This is easily Jeph Loeb's weakest Batman tale, Dark Victory and especially Catwoman When in Rome are far superior, and Hush has the huge unfair advantage of Jim Lee's great artwork. A novel, like many other works of art, needs to have a rhythm and flow to it, and that is entirely missing when a story reads as fast as this one. It's lack of substance leaves the reader with an empty feeling of squandered opportunity and wasted time. Loeb is certainly a talented writer, but he needs to show that by adding some depth and material essence to the story and not just by producing a book that reads like a series of flash cards.
Batman as He Should Be 2008-03-09
The Long Halloween is a masterpiece. The premise of the story is that a serial killer is taking down the mob, one gangster at a time. This killer has a unique method, killing on holidays, therefore the killer is called Holiday. Batman, Gordon and Harvey Dent make a pact to discover the identity of Holiday and to stop the killing. However, the identity of the killer is not so easily discovered, and many gangsters die.
The tone of this story arc is dark, which suits Batman very well, without being overbearing. Batman spends more time trying to figure out the identity of Holiday than punching out villains, so you really get a sense of Batman as a detective. However, there are various chances for Batman to show his skills--the best of which is a midair battle with Joker. This is recommended for all Batman fans and is a must have.
Great Batman Graphic Novel 2008-02-13
This is one of the best Batman stories out there today. Revolving around the relationship between Gordon, Dent, and Batman, the Gotham Triumvirate is what I came to think of the group as, the story is pushed on by the threes desire to rid Gotham of crime and what lengths each will go to to produce results. The art is very nice Tim Sale does justice to the story with his art. Definitely worth a read and highly recommended for first time Batman readers.
Noir Style Batman 
2008-01-03
I really enjoyed Batman: The Long Halloween. It was a really refreshing Batman story. Not quite as good as DKR or Year One, but not that much worse. The artwork was very reminiscent of old film noir movies, and the story itself payed a lot of homage to the Godfather. It gets a tad repetitive though. Nevertheless, Long Halloween is an original Dark Knight story which if you're a fan of Batman, you will not want to miss out on.
The Birth of Two-Face 2008-07-23
Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale penned a dark, noirish tale that sent the Dark Knight on a year-long crusade to stop the mob killing done by a villain known as Holiday. It features appearances by the most infamous characters in Batman's Rogues Gallery (Joker, Penquin, Riddler, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, and Mad Hatter, as well as the unfamiliar to me Calendar Man). Catwoman appears to be connected to the killings in a big way. What drew me to the book (it WAS first published periodically beginning in 1995) was the portrayal of Harvey Dent. The rise and fall of the DA was surely the basis for the character's portrayal in the movie The Dark Knight.
Trick or treat 2008-07-21
Jeph Loeb's and Tim Sale's maxiseries about the origins of Two-Face and Batman's attempts to solve the identity of a mystery of serial killer named "Holiday," who kills people affiliated with a Gotham City crime family on the year's major holidays, was something of a revelation when it was brought off in 1996-97. Loeb and Sale had successfully added to the story and mood begun in Frank Miller's and Dave Mazzuchelli's wonderful BATMAN: YEAR ONE, but had somehow also managed to bring in the more colorful members of Batman's rogues gallery (the Joker, the Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, the Mad Hatter--even Solomon Grundy) into this very noirish and moody world, and somehow they all fit right in. The result is not only one of the most beloved Batman graphic novels ever, but it was also a major influence on Christopher Nolan's extremely successful 2008 movie THE DARK KNIGHT. (There's even a later fine sequel in Loeb's and Sale's later graphic novel BATMAN: DARK VICTORY.) Pay attention here particularly to Sale's moody compositions and to the stunning use of muted color: this is really film noir translated to the medium of comics in a manner even more successful than Frank Miller's over-the-top SIN CITY works.
Halloween is now my favorite holiday 2008-07-18
This was my first graphic novel and I have to say that it was awesome! The story is great and Tim Sale's art is just as great. Every chapter gets more and more interesting as the book progresses. It's just really good.
Heir to Dark Knight 2008-07-14
Frank Miller might have all the kudos, but Jeff Loeb's story and the artwork by Sale in this graphic novel deserve a place in the Comic Book Hall of Fame. The story takes place shortly after Batman: Year One ends, and Gotham and Batman are still getting used to each other. Selena Kyle is featured prominently in this novel, and though Batman is the main character the driving force behind this story is Harvey Dent's war on crime.
I will be rereading this for years to come (not repeatedly, but once every six months or so). Strongly recommended.
The Best of the Loeb/Sale Graphic Novels 2008-04-15
Batman Long Halloween is by far the best batman graphic novel from Loeb and Sale. Kept me on the edge the entire time and its one of those books you can pick up over and over. If you love batman, you'll for sure love this.
