This is one VERY rare comic in that the quality of the writing - not just the story, but the prose could stand alone in any other medium. A better story than even the beloved (by Batfans) 'The Dark Knight Returns', BLIND JUSTICE will change the way you think about this character.

I guess I haven't seen this book in well over ten years and I can still remember its message and its closing words.


It's easy enough to become your enemy...The trick is to remain yourself.   August 29, 2005
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Blind Justice is without a doubt, one of the best Batman stories I've ever read (I've read all the "essentials" and then some). It is written by Sam Hamm (who wrote the screenplay for the 1989 Batman film), and penciled by Denys Cowan (The Question).

To be honest, the artwork wasn't love at first sight. But as read on, I came to admire the jagged, gritty look. The book isn't printed on the highest quality paper around, but it's a good thing that it isn't. The ink would look horrible on high quality paper (go take a look in Daredevil: Love's Labors Lost to see what I mean). The story is the books best feature. I won't write a plot overview because I don't want to spoil a single detail. This is the book that introduces Henri Ducard, but he's nothing like his Batman Begins version. Which is fine, I still loved this book and it didn't change my [very high] opinion of Batman Begins.

This book doesn't carry many refrences to previous Batman continuity, so anyone can pick it up and know just what's going on. The last few pages pack alot of punch and carries a profound message, one that I won't soon forget. If you haven't read this book and are at all a Batman fan, you need to read this. You won't regret it.


Had the potential to be much better than it was   March 3, 2006
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

This trade reprints Detective Comics 598-600 and was written by screenwriter Sam Hamm who wrote the script for the first Tim Burton Batman film. Be sure you read the forward Hamm wrote to get his take on the Batman character.

The gruesome death of a night watchman leads Batman to confront a new villain named Bonecrusher who uses sound as a weapon. Just as Batman is about to capture him he commits suicide. Later Bonecrusher turns up again to commit another crime and again kills himself rather than get caught. All of this leads to a personal crisis for Bruce Wayne as he tries to help a woman find her long lost brother who used to work at Waynetech. Bruce uncovers a member of a covert agency working within his company conducting illegal experiments, but when he tries to expose him he is accused of being a communist spy and arrested. With the help of some fake evidence and a detailed list of people and places Bruce dealt with while training for his war on crime Bruce finds his life on the verge of collapse and his secret identity soon to follow.

This story suffers from characters that never really get developed and in my opinion should have been reworked or discarded in favor of other ideas. The reason this book is worth reading at all is because it introduces the character of Henri Ducard. We learn something about the young Bruce Wayne from Henri's perspective as well as find out why he decided to train Bruce. We also see why Ducard thinks Batman attracts a certain kind of unstable criminal. This story also gives us an interesting take on Batman's relationship with Commissioner Gordon and how much Gordon knows or thinks he knows about Batman. There is also an element of irony involved in Bruce's past as it is implied some of his training was at the hands of criminals.