AAAAHHHHH the infamous Batman: Death of the Family !!! As you can see from the cover of this hardbound collection, this is one intense and disgusting ride. It has a dust-cover of a mask of the Joker’s face, covering the actual cover revealing all the viscera because, in case you didn’t know, the Joker has recently cut his own face off.
CUT HIS OWN FACE OFF.
Okay, you’re up to speed. That’s where we begin. Possible minor spoilers ahead.
So as we join the story, the Joker breaks into the evidence room to steal his excised face back. And re-attach it. To his own face. Again. It’s like Face/Off, minus the entire point of Face/Off. He’s the Joker, he doesn’t really use a lot of logic here. But he does like cutting people’s faces off now. That’s one of my favourite points of the story and my new favourite pickup line: I love you like Joker loves cutting people’s faces off.
Unfortunately, the other thing Joker loves is long, rambling verbal battles. Some that go on for PAGES and PAGES. PAGES and PAGES! Now, this is a collection of serialized stories meant to be read individually spread out over time, I’ll grant you that. But in each one, there seems to be a long, moralizing dialogue between Batman and the Joker, so if I had to give you a con for this story, it would be that there’s a little too much of THIS:
(long romantic speeches on bridges)
And not quite enough of THIS:
(cuttin’ people’s faces off yeeeeeeaaaaahhhhh!)
But when you get down to it, there is a LOT of action and a LOT of deaths. Like, a lot. The title “Death of the Family” promises death, don’t it? But who dies? You’ll have to read to the end to find out! See! No spoilers after all! I’m such a tease!
Ha
Ha
