Batman: Broken City...
I'm a Marvel girl through and through, but I've always loved Batman.
Batman: Broken City is a story by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso that appeared in Batman #620-625, back in 2005. I liked the cover of the hardcover version. And I have in the past enjoyed Brian Azzarello's writing, though usually not as much as I'd like to.
I should have read the blurb, which promised a "neo-noir flavor and grimy realism". Or the forward by editor Bob Shreck that said it was inspired by Risso's "love for Batman and respect for Frank Miller". "Inspired" being a euphemism for "Eduardo Risso decided to draw this comic in Frank Miller's style, but he doesn't do it as well as Frank Miller." It makes a person think of the continuum (or perhaps it's just a slippery slope) between a tribute, a copy, a rip-off and a lack of originality on the part of the artist. This isn't the Frank Miller of Batman: Year One either, it's the Batman of Sin City. What, you thought Batman lived in Gotham City? The difference is subtle.
There are two ways of looking at Batman: as the sane man in a mad world, and a heroic, tragic figure; or a crazy man in a crazy world, and a dangerous, tragic figure. I like the first approach. Azzarello follows the second, in which Batman is over-muscled and psychologically troubled. He likes to beat up crooks and brutalize informants. This isn't my Batman. This Batman is way crazier than I like. And though I don't mind a Gotham City full of distorted villains and whorish vamps, I was left feeling that this comic just wasn't written for my demographic.
Not that I entirely disliked it: it had some good lines, especially in the narration. It starts with an extended metaphor of God using rain to piss on Gotham City. (That's why when it rains, it's not so much water, as it's a relief.") And:Dawn. For an optimist, it's the start of a new day.
For a pessimist? Same thing.
Or the femme fatale's line to Batman:Gotham's a big place. It's easy to get lost. You should try it sometime.