Doug Mahnke

So this one has two stories in it: "The Man Who Laughs" and "Made of Wood." The first story is aptly named as it is the story of Gotham's first experiences with the Joker. I really enjoyed this one and already, it sets up this strange relationship between Batman and the Joker where he really wants him to pay for all the lives he has taken, yet has an understanding for what the Joker sees (literally due to the venom). "Made of Wood" was neat because we got to see Alan Scott as Green Lantern coming back to a Gotham which he used to protect and which still haunts him. Seeing the stark differences between these two heroes who have each served as protectors to this dark city is interesting. While Green Lantern is a more traditional "super hero," Batman is just a man and must use more elusive and violent means to achieve similar ends. However different their techniques may be, the mutual respect only grows as they work together to take down a serial killer that seems to have come back from the past.… (meer)