Batman: The Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight
by DK Publishing
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Book Summary Information
Author: DK PublishingEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2005-02-28
ISBN: 0756611210
Number of pages: 144
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Publisher: DK CHILDREN
Book Reviews of Batman: The Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight
Book Review: A good starting point for new Bat fans.
Summary: 3 Stars
As pointed out above, this is not a critical analysis of Batman, but a reasonable primer on the modern comicbooks featuring the character and his supporting cast. Very little account of the creation of Batman is given and virtually no mention of the various writers and artists who have developed his fiction is made. Unlike some other books in this series (the volume on the X-Men for example), no page-space is given to television or film adaptations of Batman. The standard of illustrations is generally high, Scott Beatty's text is clear and nicely written and the book is largely free of the weird annotations that blight other DK books (their Star Wars Visual Guides especially).
Les Daniels' "Complete History" remains the definitive book on Batman as whole. Those seeking a perspective on the character as a pop culture brand would be well served by Chip Kidd's "Batman Collected", and he and Paul Dini collaborated on "Batman: Animated", possibly the best art book about a single cartoon series ever printed, and certainly the best account of the greatest non-comics Batman ever.
Summary of Batman: The Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight
With unparalleled access to the archives of DC Comics, Batman: the Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight provides spectacular illustrations reveal the secret workings of key installations and equipment such as the Batcave, the Batmobile, Batman's suit, and the weaponry contained in his Utility Belt. Panoramic views of Gotham City and Arkham Asylum with its villainous inmates, allow readers to enter into Batman's world. Crucial events and characters of the Batman legend are illustrated with drawings from the original DC comic books.If you're already well versed in Bat-trivia, you probably won't find The Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight anywhere near ultimate enough. But as a broad history of Batman's friends, foes, and high-tech hardware and hideouts, this oversized, illustration-filled DK guide just can't be beat.
Just as DK did with the people and paraphernalia of Star Wars in Star Wars: Episode I: Incredible Cross-Sections and Star Wars: Episode I: Visual Dictionary, this guide pulls apart and pokes at the many gadgets and backdrops found in the Dark Knight's world. Exploded diagrams reveal the innards of the new and old Batcaves, and stat-packed tags and captions spell out everything from how the Bat-Signal works to where Catwoman stashes her bullwhip. Batman scholar Scott Beatty has compiled hundreds of excellent panels and covers from the original comic, and he displays commanding knowledge cataloging Gotham's most colorful characters in big, splashy spreads. (And no doubt future historians will appreciate his capsulized, 1939-on Batman timeline as an uncanny window into American pop consciousness.)
Die-hard fans will find much lacking here, though, like the near-omission of Frank Miller's genius Dark Knight Returns series and not even a passing reference to Batman's poignant love-hate relationship with the Man of Steel. But what DK's Ultimate Guide does, it does well--examining neat Bat-minutiae and providing a primer on the post-no-man's-land comic continuity. --Paul Hughes
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