This month marks 20 years since the publication of Batman: The Long Halloween. Printed in monthly issues between October
1996 and 1997, it’s a murder mystery entwined with the transformation of
District Attorney Harvey Dent into the villain Two-face.
Nominally a sequel to Batman:
Year One, albeit one differing greatly in style, TLH returns us to a Gotham City controlled by mafia boss Carmine
“the Roman” Falcone. Batman, Jim Gordon and
Dent join forces against Falcone but things are complicated when a serial
killer, known as “Holiday”, starts murdering criminals on special dates of the
year. Alongside this, Batman must deal
with the costumed criminals that have appeared in Gotham, as well a certain cat
burglar with a particular interest in Falcone.
In shaping Harvey Dent’s downfall in The Dark Knight (2008), Christopher Nolan took inspiration from TLH.
From the mob boss who’s above the law, to Dent, Gordon and Batman uniting
against the mafia, even Gordon dismissing Harvey’s surprise at Batman’s
disappearing trick (“He does that.”) there’s clear influences. Even Harvey Dent’s campaign slogan in the
film comes from TLH; I believe in
Harvey Dent.
TLH was written by Jeph Loeb and illustrated by Tim Sale,
with colours by Gregory Wright. They
also created Superman for All Seasons
and the Marvel ‘colours’ series. Loeb’s
script is framed by narration from Bruce Wayne which, aside from voicing to his
concerns and suspicions, explains the story’s concept at the start of each chapter. While this could feel monotonous when reading
the collected volume, the repetition of key phrases (“Carmine Falcone, Gotham
City’s untouchable crime-lord…”) gives proceedings a sense of passing time, as
events unfold over a year, as well as a certain poetry.
Each issue/ chapter draws us further into the story as we
see each twist of the plot, each piece of treachery and wait to discover who
Holiday will hit next. However, the
appearances by some of the costumed villains (10 in total) feel a little unnecessary. It might’ve been better to have fewer and
spend a more time developing Catwoman’s character beyond the usual saucy
bat-tease. During the course of TLH, suspicion for the Holiday murders
falls on numerous characters, maintaining the mystery to the finale. As a story that is, in part, a who-dun-it, it
would benefit from a more concrete resolution.
As it is we’re left with limited evidence and contradictory confessions.
Tim Sale’s style, exaggerated from much of his other
work, could be called “gothic” or “grotesque” and may not satisfy everyone - Batman
is a giant with a philtrum you could ski down and the Joker looks like he’s
choking on a piano. But the muted palette and the deep blocks of shadows and
harsh highlights render Gotham City a melodramatic world of contrasting light
and dark, whilst the story tells us things aren’t that simple.
The Long Halloween remains a classic because at its core
it’s the story of the fall Harvey Dent.
Although the notion had been explored before (in Eye of the Beholder, by
Andrew Helfer, Chris Sprouse et al, 1990) we see the seeds of his madness were
there long before the facial scars. His
evident pleasure at the mob’s misfortunes and the things he may or may not have
done clearly indicate he was always a little… two-faced. Opposite this, Batman’s creeping sense of distrust and then
betrayal, prove that in the right hands Dent is one of the most interesting
characters in the rogues gallery.
I believe in Harvey Dent.
