Subsequent to my writing this piece, this story arc was collected in a TPB -- hmmm, think someone at DC was listening?
Going Sane

(Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #65-68 (1994-1995)

Written by J.M. DeMatteis. Pencils by Joe Staton. Inks by Steve Mitchell.

Make of it what you will, but even in this age of "sophisticated" comics, and "intellectual" critics waxing purple about the profundity of (some) comics, smart stories can still get neglected, even ignored. Sure, maybe it's because said stories aren't as great as a fan might think...or maybe they're a wee bit too smart, too ambitious for their own good.

Case in point is J.M. DeMatteis' "Going Sane" story line. Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight is a comic in which creators are given the creative freedom to tell a self-contained Batman story arc, without having to follow it up with another, and another, and another (as the regular writer of a title is expected to do). In other words, each and every storyline should be something special. Although there have certainly been good stories in LOTDK, occasionally even really good ones, "Going Sane" probably stands as one of the few that actually fulfills the mag's intent.

The story has Batman and the Joker getting into one of their usual life-and-death struggles, only to have the Joker seeming to kill Batman. Faced with the loss of his nemesis -- his "audience" -- the insane Joker can only retreat...into sanity. He adopts a new life, thanks to plastic surgery, and with his mind blocking out his memories of his criminal career. He even falls in love. Meanwhile Batman is recuperating, annonymously, in a small town, ministered by a kindly lady doctor. Both Joker and Batman have retreated from their former existences, faced with the possibility of starting again. But such normalacy proves temporary, and the two ultimately head for a climactic clash.

Alan Moore's Batman: The Killing Joke is generally regarded as the definitive Batman-Joker story, but I'll admit I never "got" it. It struck me as shallow and simple, a fourteen year old's vision of what a "sophisticated" story should be, nothing more. Meanwhile, J.M. DeMatteis had earlier acquired accolades with his Spider-Man saga Kraven's Last Hunt (which, indeed, could be seen to have influenced the Killing Joke -- though was better). There are definite echoes of Kraven's Last Hunt in "Going Sane" (without the two stories being the same) so that one could argue Kraven's Last Hunt was a dry run for this, arguably superior tale.

Ever thought the Joker could elicit sympathy, or could be cast as a tragic figure? Ever thought a Joker story could put a bit of a lump in your throat...without radically altering the character, or diverging from established mythos? If not, "Going Sane" will make you a believer.

The story is amazingly complex, structurally speaking, playing around with character analysis, symbolism, and thematic parallels, as both Batman and the Joker experience similiar life decisions. Some symbolism is, admittedly, heavy handed, but rarely pointless or overly indulgent: the former Joker and his love coming upon a river and she remarking they've reached the end of the road, unaware she speaks of their relationship, or the recurring use of water as a theme and metaphor. Even the very title, "Going Sane", is given a clever twist in the final panel of the saga. DeMatteis makes us believe in the Joker's new identity of Joseph Kerr; a decent man plagued by nightmares, not fully aware of the demon inside. We believe and we care, care enough to want him to triumph, even as we know he won't. Nor is Batman neglected -- this is a Batman story, after all. DeMatteis' handling of the Batman is also surprisingly deft for a man who has written him rarely, if at all, before. He delves into his psyche, and humanizes him, in a way that largely puts to shame Denny O'Neil, Alan Moore, Doug Moench, Frank Miller and others who, over the years, have tried to lay bare the soul of the Dark Knight.

DeMatteis sets out to tell a sophisticated, grown up tale, a tale rife with symbolism and thematic threads -- which alone is unusual for comics writers, though Moore, Miller, Busiek and others have occasionally tried, usually with less finesse. But it's also very much a human tale, where the characters are more than just ciphers, and their experiences more than just intellectual abstractions. And though exciting, with plenty of action and excitement, DeMatteis isn't afraid to slow down, to tell a tale that is as much a drama as it is an adventure. And even the pop references, with the Joker showing a love for old time comedians, show a writer that isn't entirely pandering to the usual, teen audience (will most kids even know who he's referring to?)

Artist Joe Staton, with Steve Mitchell on inks, might seem like an odd choice for a Batman comics, with Staton's cartoony style. But this is a different kind of cartooniness than I've commented is common today, with artists who seem to have learned drawing from saturday morning cartoons, and Japanese anime. Staton's is a rawer, kinetic style. Sometimes crude, but frequently dynamic and expressive, and he draws a dark and spooky Batman better than I expected. And that very cartooniness maybe makes him ideal for tackling the Joker (not the most realistic bone structure in comics).

So why is "Going Sane" largely forgotten even as aging comic fans are constantly looking for those great stories that will vindicate their hobby? Why does Alan Moore, or Kurt Busiek's Astro City get held up as shining lights of sophistication...and this gets relegated to the cheap bins? Well, to be catty, maybe it's just too smart. Maybe it's not as self-reflective as critics like their comics these days -- DeMatteis comes from an older style, which tackled super beings as though they were people first, unlike many modern comics which seem to analyze super heroes as superheroes. Maybe DeMatteis' willingness to create suspense and tension through the characters, rather than just piling on the action scenes (though there are those) had critics reaching for their TV remote controls.

All I can say about "Going Sane" is this: I've got a friend who has been acting as an experimental test subject for me. Not a comic fan, per se, he has been dutifuly reading comics of all stripes and sizes that I give him, looking for that "great" story that will impress him, a non-comics regular (including the works of Moore, Miller, Gaiman, Busiek, Waid, etc.). "Going Sane" is practically the first one which he has, at last, grudgingly, thought was pretty darn good.

Make of it what you will.

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