Monday, March 31, 2008

Shawn likes Ra's Al Ghul



When I was a kid I loved and hated this comic! I remember standing in the newstand in Spring Grove (where as a kid, I got about 90% of my comic collection), looking at this cover and being so sad that they actually killed Robin! How could they do that? He was my favorite hero! But that amazing artwork by Neil Adams MADE me buy it. Most comics are 10 inches in height and 6 1/2 inches wide - THIS book - a treasury edition - was 13 inches high, by 10 inches so it was MASSIVE!


Of course, comics being what they are - this scene doesn't actually appear in the book at all.


This book is a reprint collection of stories featuring Ra's Al Ghul (pronounced Raysh Al Ghoul - which I wish they would have gotten correct when they filmed 'Batman Begins') and his fight against Batman. As a kid - I couldn't really grasp why Ra's was doing what he was doing to Batman and Robin or what his endgoal was, but I knew that he wasn't just some guy who wanted to rob banks.


The ever-incredible 'Batman: The Animated Series' actually adapted this story in a two part episode (The Demon's Quest), and it was GREAT! The animated series didn't do a lot of comic book adaptions, preferring to tell original stories, but they hit a home run with this one!


*Another thing about this comic - I can still remember being really, really fascinated that I could see the upper collar of Robin's tunic, which was usually obscurred by his cape. LOL - yeah, I know - all these years later it makes SO much sense, now!


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