Batman : Secrets #4 - DC

Sam Kieth writes and draws this. I've liked Sam's work for a long time. This, this is probably some of the best stuff I've seen from him ever! His panels are a huge mixture of styles. Of coarse some are cartoony, but then, he has some panels in this book that are just mastery. Maybe he's trying that painted style like so many other artists are doing right now, but whatever it is, it is incredible. There are so many panels in this book that I would love to blow up and frame. Then there's his writing talent. I love the humor that he puts into his stories. Batman's pummeling him, while he dressed in an astronaut uniform, don't ask, and the Joker is whining, "Hey . . . . this suit cost me $300!" To which Batman says, "This ends now. I won't let you hurt those two innocent - -", to which Joker replys, "Now, who's a joker?" Great stuff. Basically this book is about the Joker framing the Batman, because on one of his jaunts, a passerby took a picture of their altercation, and from the angle and lighting and everything, it really looks like Batman is taking a sadistic liking to the thrashing he is handing out. So he gets this picture out there everywhere, and trys to use it to turn public opinion against the Batman, and in favor of the Joker, through sympathy. That lasts for about a day and a half. But in that time, Joker thinks that he has stumbled across some secret that Batman has that, for the Joker, will just solve the whole mystery. Of course he's wrong. But, his attempts at trying to push the Batman are hysterical. There's an interlude in the middle, where, basically Batman and Joker are sitting in the shadows side by side staring out at us. Joker says, "So?" . . . . "Are you going to tell me?" . . . . . a couple frames of silence . . . . . "Pretty please?" . . . . a couple more frames of silence . . . . . "You're so serious all the time. Lighten up." . . . . . . . . . . . "You know to much stress can kill you." His capture of the characters is just right on the button. This story ends with the woman Joker's holding captive, holding a gun to his head, cocking the trigger and says, "I want you to think very carefully before answering this question. Do you love me?" End of story. Obviously this book will be out in trade paperback soon. But whether you want to get the originals, or the reprint, you should check out this story. This is one of the best Batman mini-series I've seen in a long time.