It’s safe to say Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns is one of the most iconic comics ever. It’s revered in pop culture, with DC and Warner Bros. Animation churning out an animated two-part movie. Not to mention, Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan used elements of Miller’s older, grizzled Bruce Wayne in their films.

However, DC had a prequel to this 1986 four-issue miniseries. It came out in 2016, titled The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade. Surprisingly, as tall an order as it was, this precursor tale was actually better than what Miller charted later on.

The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade Addressed Child Soldiers Better

This Prequel Dissected a Major Batman Flaw

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The sequel, set 10 years prior, had Bruce reluctant to use Carrie Kelley as his new Robin. He tried to tell her why a Girl Wonder was a problem — he had lost many sidekicks before. Eventually, he hired her, and along with the Sons of Batman, they set out to form an underground movement to fix Gotham. Carrie knew this was the only way to avoid further tragedy in her family. She grew on Bruce, so he brought her into the team. She became his second-in-command as they plotted the revolution in their secret lair.

However, that finale felt rushed and cheap. Bruce went back on his own words, at a time it felt right to nix the idea of juniors, especially children. Miller did a much better job as co-writer, alongside Brian Azzarello, as they dialed down deeper and with more nuance into the idea of endangering kids. This prequel had the media pressuring Bruce and the Caped Crusader, realizing Jason was too aggressive, bloodthirsty, and violent. He even told Alfred that while Dick as Robin was a mistake, Jason was a liability. Dick could still be tamed, taught and controlled, but Jason didn’t like being tempered. He wanted to be a deadly weapon — i.e., the one-man army that Bruce had trained him for so long.

Bruce didn’t blame Jason, though. He blamed himself, ergo why he sidelined the kid. Unfortunately, it led to Jason going alone to find Joker, and the Clown Prince of Crime’s gang killing him. It informed why Bruce would stew in the next decade, put away the cowl and cape, and want to stay off the grid. He blamed himself, so all the guilt built up to the point he became reclusive and let Gotham burn. This prequel showed why he lost faith. The exchanges with Jason painted a much better picture of a broken Bat and why he felt like their mission would never reap any benefit. Bruce couldn’t escape his own flaws in judgment and how he sentenced Jason to death — even if the teenager acted of his own volition and broke the rules to hunt Joker.

The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade Added More Layers to Jason Todd

The Second Robin Was a Tragically Hopeful Character

• Jason Todd was created by Gerry Conway (writer) and Don Newton (artist).
• Jason debuted in Batman #357 in 1983.
• Jason debuted as Robin in Batman #366 in 1983.
• Jason debuted as Red Hood in Batman #635 in 2005.

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While TDKR would just suggest Jason was hot-headed, little reason was given. Here, fans see Jason actively trying to hurt men who abuse women. It’s due to his own traumatic childhood pre-Bruce: one filled with abuse of him and his mother. Different Jason stories touched on this when he became an orphan, but this story had Jason trying to fix his past by tending to other victims. As for Jason breaking the rules to protect Gotham City, he had more reason to do so than Carrie.

He was trained to be a better soldier and knew that the Joker would commit more terrorist acts. Thus, this was his duty, a higher calling, and a lifelong purpose. The fact the Dark Knight placed him on ice angered Jason. He overheard the conversation with Alfred about how Bruce felt he wasn’t ready. But rather than argue and defend his name, he headed off without addressing it. He understood and respected Bruce, so he wanted to show him he could cut it. Plus, he wanted to take the burden off Bruce and show he was responsible enough to roll solo and take the mantle someday.

This was way more emotional than Carrie pestering Bruce to train. Jason’s story was real and relatable, not idealistic. Part of it was due to rage being his engine as years went by, crafting more of a connection point to reconcile with the main DC stories and continuity. But he had an ambition that even surpassed Carrie’s desire to save her city. Jason wanted to save Bruce and paid the ultimate price.

The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade Had a More Cerebral Joker

The Clown Prince of Crime Was More Pensive & Contemplative

• Joker was created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson.
• Joker debuted in Batman #1 in 1940.
• Joker has been in groups such as Injustice League, Legion of Doom and the Injustice Gang.

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TDKR’s Joker was maniacal. He tortured Wonder Woman and even Commissioner Gordon. He also tricked Batman into killing him, knowing the broadcast would turn the public against Batman. In time, the government would send Superman to hunt Bruce down. But hiring the Man of Steel and seeding out the media footage felt too plot-convenient. These were angles Bruce should have seen coming. Plus, it reverted the Joker to his usual basic self, showing Gotham that the Bat was bad. Many stories across many mediums over the decade touched on this direction.

But the prequel Joker was a bigger puppet master. He kept tricking Arkham Asylum into riots. It was calculated chaos as he laid the trap to bait Jason in. There was no cackling, intricate scheme of loquacious speech. His energy was subtle and sinister, as he sensed Batman was getting tired of this war on crime. Bruce was injured a lot, and his mind was fatigued, so the Bat was of a lower quality in Joker’s eyes. That was why Joker lowered his energy and played quieter games. It was more about him than the Bat. He looked inward and realized, was he meant to do this dance without his ‘soulmate’? If Batman wasn’t going to be high-energy and make their feud worthwhile, Joker wanted to reciprocate. He just couldn’t feel life, fizz and pop in this feud anymore.

He still came off very diabolical as he did his thing. He didn’t even join the gang as they smashed Jason to death. That was the mark of an overlord, trusting and feeling like he was above Robin. But you could tell his heart and soul wasn’t in it. It felt like a more thought-provoking depiction than the future Joker, who would use bait to bring Bruce out. That one wanted spectacle and noise at an amusement park; this one had his men do his dirty work while he watched TV.

That’s a different kind of narcissism, riffing on how sad Joker can be without the Bat around to ‘play.’ TDKR would have this Joker locked up in due time, but his origin in the prequel felt better and had more riveting context for a clown who felt like a god back then. That is, before Batman waned. In that sense, this prequel gave a more dynamic character portrait of the clown rather than someone who fell into the typical, predictable mode in the sequel

The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade Revealed Bruce’s True Views on Love and Humanity

Batman Was Broken Mentally & Spiritually Like Never Before

• Batman was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger.
• Batman debuted in Detective Comics #27 in 1939.
• Miller’s TDKR came out in 1986.
• Miller wrote and penciled it with inks by Klaus Janson, letters by John Costanza, and colors by Lynn Varley.

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Miller’s future story had Bruce cold and despondent. Even then, that didn’t mean he shouldn’t have had a perspective on love and humanity. He might have been hiding it, but Miller didn’t translate it well. That’s the problem of painting a story in a vacuum without the prologue. Bruce just came off like a grouch. Granted, more backstory would have helped frame this. In this prequel Batman story, those holes were padded.

Bruce had more conversations with Selina about why he was addicted to the costume, why he was scared of pain pills, and why he was punishing himself. This painted a better picture of a defeated Caped Crusader than someone complaining to his butler. Selina moved on, started a brothel, and used her Catwoman suit in their fetish and kinky sessions. Yet Bruce feared a healthy life and possibly, marrying Selina. That brought out his fears and insecurities more. This way, fans see Bruce baring his soul and understand why he grew bitter.

It dealt more with the man, as in the scared little boy than the philanthropist faking his identity. Ultimately, Miller’s team knocked it out of the park with amazing art, powerful dialogue, and a poignant dissertation on Batman hiring a vigilante family. It was low-key equipped to surpass TDKR as the greatest Batman story of all time due to how well it balanced Bruce’s motivations and his personal and professional lives with those around him. Miller’s sequel was more a sprawl, but this prequel was a visceral character portrait with more meat on the creative bones. Each character felt like a sum of their parts, got whole arcs, and provided the proper backdrop to understand Bruce’s nihilism and disillusionment with his team, himself, and the world at large.

The Dark Knight Returns

Alongside The Killing Joke, Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns is one of the most influential Batman comics of all time. It was one of the comics that turned the character away from the camp of the 1960s and 70s and kicked off the dark and gritty stories that would proliferate the comics industry. However, even retrospectively the comic is still incredible. It lacks a cohesive story structure, but its depiction of older and jaded Batman makes for some great meta analysis, and Miller’s iconic artwork is still something to behold.

The Dark Knight Returns follows Batman as he returns to vigilante work. However, in his fifties and out of form, he quickly starts to doubt his ability to overcome the problems facing Gotham. In particular, he is motivated to deal with crimes of a gang calling themselves the Mutants. From there, the arc becomes episodic with Batman facing multiple foes (old and new). It all culminates in a final battle with Superman – which largely became the influence for the film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

If you’re looking for one of the foundational stories of modern Batman, The Dark Knight Returns is exactly what you’re looking for. It’s dark, moody, introspective, and packed with action. It’s still one of the best Batman comics around.

Genre

Graphic novel

Number of Pages

224

Publication Date

198600-00

Publisher

DC Comics