From The Comic Room No. 1

And yes, I do have a comic room. In one of the few things achieved this vacation, the comic room has been put in some form of order, and now makes sense to archivists who aren't me. It's down to Cher--it took her an entire day to move everything, pile the long and short boxes, and set up a...what do you call it?...a system. So now I can do something I've always wanted to do here: dig through the collection and review one of the thousands of comics that have ruined my life. And first up is....



This was an Elseworlds book from 1999, back when DC didn't want to say the world 'parallel earth' because it was apparently akin to having dogshit in one's mouth. (Now, of course, you don't see that many Elseworlds anymore, since DC now fully embraces alternate Earths because it will sell crap series like Infinite Crisis. Oh, my bitterness is showing, isn't it?)

This is by the always dependable Doug Moench, with pencils by the equally trustworthy Barry Kitson (unless he's drawing the current Legion of Super-Heroes--oh, that bitterness again!). The story deals with an alternate origin for Batman--instead of having Bruce Wayne's parents shot dead by an anonymous crook in Crime Alley, this time they're murdered because they're archaeologists who have found something that could mean 'a complete revision of accepted Egyptology'. It's a cartouche of a heretofore unknown Egyptian god called Nekhrun--a god of darkness who dresses like a bat.

Bruce then uses the symbol on the cartouche as his own as he becomes Batman. In an odd choice, Moench also tells the story from waaaay back when the Egyptian gods walked the earth, and of their own politics and influence on humankind. We see the machinations of Set against those of Osiris and Isis--the latter want the best for Man in light of an upcoming disaster, and Set doesn't. This is very much Chariots of the God stuff, so if you find that laughable, you won't buy the premise.I admit it does seem out of place in a Batman story, but Moench does make it work.

In the present day, Bruce Wayne becomes involved with a new threat to humanity, which has ties to his mysterious cartouche and Egyptology. Moench has done his research, with some nice bits about the Great Pyramid and the traps and puzzles hidden within (all based on true fact.) Batman: Book of The Dead does come across as Moench indulging himself in a favourite pastime--conspriacy theories and Egyptology, which since I share the same interests, made this book very enjoyable. It probably could have done without the Batman connection, but back then, as now, anything with the Dark Knight on it sells, so there you go. An interesting remix on what can be called a tired theme.