Batman Knightfall 3: Knightsend Paperback – Illustrated, September 11, 2012

After all of the build up and attention it received, THE DARK KNIGHT RISES finally hit the movie theaters this past summer, which I'm sure just about everyone has gone and seen for themselves by now. And how fitting that the wait finally came to an end, that the last new volume of Knighfall--or more appropriately Knightsend--has finally come out after this long. We waited and read the exquisite first volume Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 1, and then the hate-it-or-love-it affair with Jean Paul Valley in the follow up Batman: Knightfall, Vol. 2: Knightquest as advertisements for the film. While Knightfall got the entire story arc and vengeance of Bane collected, Knightsquest was the first time ever was collected (though not complete). Knightsend is a big deal, not because it has been collected in other trades before, but the big payoff in this new 2012 edition is the inclusion of the rare and pricey "Prodigal" trade. Is this new 2012 trade perfect? Close. Real close.BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL VOL.3, KNIGHTSEND collects:BATMAN 509-510 and 512-514BATMAN: SHADOW OF THE BAT 29-30 and 32-34DETECTIVE COMICS 676-677 and 679-681BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT 62-63ROBIN 8-9 and 11-13CATWOMAN 12-13SHOWCASE 94 #10 (thanks to reviewer P.Soliman for the correction)[All of the collected issues can be reviewed and found on Batman: Knightfall, Part Three: KnightsEnd and Batman: Prodigal. Please click and review each link for further detail. I won't go into as much information, since the links do it far better.]Batman Knightsend picks up where vol.2 left off where Bruce has returned to Gotham and seen at his replacement, Jean Paul-Valley has gone overboard with the Batman persona and taking over Gotham with his form of justice. Bruce can't stand for Valley's rule, but is no match for him since he has forgotten much of his training, so he's in no position to fight Valley for title of Batman again. So Bruce decides to retrain under one of the most deadliest assassins in the DC Universe, Lady Shiva. After extensive training, Bruce returns to Gotham to take back the mantle of Batman. After Valley's defeat, Bruce suffers from his back problems again and reluctantly ask Dick Grayson to take up being Batman while Bruce heals.After so much time out of the spot light, Bruce finally coming back is a breath of fresh air. If you read Knightsquest, you get so tired of Valley after awhile that you really want Bruce back, and it makes the build-up finally seeing it happen flawlessly. Seeing Bruce retrain himself and to the point of perfection again, as well as it clashing with his ideology of not killing is fascinating. It's all a huge buildup for the main event, with Bruce and Valley fighting in the Batcave. Unlike Knightsquest where so much focus was on Valley, it didn't have the same impact or enthusiasm like Knightfall had, and that's where Knightsend succeeds. It's all about the buildup and Knightsend is a fitting bookend.Then there is the crème de la crème of this collection: Prodigal. If your one who read, enjoyed, and thought Batman: The Black Mirror was the first and ultimate Dick Grayson tale about taking on the mantle of Batman, you'll want to check this out. This is not only the first time Dick Grayson becomes Batman, but it does a couple of things to make it worth it's while. The first one is the connection of Bruce and Dick being father and son. The other is that this arc clears up many of the loose plots left over throughout the entire Knightfall saga. And thirdly, are the differences between Valley as Batman and Dick Grayson as Batman. For example; whereas Valley was arrogant and serious, Dick is more sincere and light-hearted. And yet, both characters openly admit just how difficult being Batman really is. Great read overall.As for complaints, the first one is this: THIS IS NOT COMPLETE. Just like volume 2, this isn't complete, which is what every person wanted out of these new editions. What issues are missing are Batman #515, Shadow of the Bat #35, Detective Comics #682, and Robin #14. All four of these missing issues make up the "Troika" arc, where Bruce becomes Batman again with a new suit, new bat-mobile and overall better working relationship Dick Grayson and Tim Drake. Missing these last four issues not only are important and good, but without them, "Prodigal" ends on a cliffhanger because of it. Like volume 2, we all hoped these new editions would be complete, but the lack of a mere four issues to properly end the entire saga is let down. It overall keeps this collection from perfect.Art is out of 1994 and 1995, so be prepared for this type of older art, as well as the same type of paper used from the other volumes. I grew up with this type of art and paper, so I don't mind it all. But if you've got volumes 1 & 2, then you'll know what to expect.BATMAN VOL 3, KNIGHTSEND is not complete, so it doesn't quite get it perfect. But overall the massive amount of content for the money, added with great material, and the inclusion of the pricy and rare Prodigal makes this collection a saving grace. I'll give it an 4 ½ score review, just close to perfect. Overall, I'm very happy with all three new 2012 Knightfall editions, even if there is missing some of the content from volumes 2 & 3. I only ask that DC please reprint the remaining missing issues (and maybe lead-up issues to Knightfall) in another trade collection in the future. Once all the issues are collected, then the readers may have your permission to die. Happy reading, Bat-fans.

This conclusion to the Knightfall collection is probably the best of the bunch for three reasons. First, the way Batman reclaims his mantle is interesting and unexpected. Without spoilers, it has less to do with Batman beating Jean-Paul Valley head on, but getting Valley to see how far he has fallen. There is even a kind of metaphorical beauty to how the victory is executed, using Bruce's own trauma and past and working backwards to show Valley a new path.Second, I like this volume because it's actually a stealth Dick Grayson story. The Prodigal story arc is a large chunk of the book, and it involves Batman calling in Dick as his replacement Batman while he reconsiders everything that just happened. At first, this seems odd--Bruce just got the mantle back, why give it up and disappear again? But it becomes evident over the course of the Prodigal issues that this is in many ways a redo of Batman's succession plan, but this time choosing the right successor, the first Robin, his ward, his iconic side kick, his surrogate son. Like Jean-Paul Valley, Dick struggles in the role of the Bat, and he does things differently than Bruce would. Because of course, no one can be Bruce. But Dick adheres to Batman's higher principles while doing things his own way. It's great to see Dick in some ways get out from his dad's shadow, while still staying the course of good and stepping into his rightful role.Third and finally, I love this volume for the very last issue of Prodigal and the familial themes that play out when Bruce returns and he and Dick argue about everything that happened in Knightfall.It's not one of the bigger moments in Batman history, but it's certainly one of the most poignant, for Bruce to admit what is evident but rarely articulated early on in his history: that Dick is his son and his true successor, and that because he respects and loves his son so much, he would go to great lengths to avoid being a burden on his child. There is a lot to unpack in just that issue, and for a series run with outlandish 90s villians and over the top robotic costumes, it's one of Knightfall's more real, human moments. For that issue alone, I think the journey through the Knightfall saga is well worth it for Batman fans.

A great conclusion to an iconic moment in the Batman series and ending Knightfall. It shows the feats of Jean-Paul Valley or Azrael as he aims to continue the Batman legacy. But his methods are far more brutal and he himself is unhinged and delusional. The story covers a bit as we see a bit into Azrael's unstable mind since he was a human experiment of the Order of Saint Dumas and as such he is incredibly skilled as a fighter and yet is unhinged and unstable. Bane's part in the story wraps up really quickly as he is defeated and horribly beaten by Azrael. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne comes back and challenges Jean-Paul to face him and prove that there can be only one Batman, and he isn't it.It's pulpy, action packed and filled with a great ending that leaves many interesting questions open as Batman moves forward.A great read for Dark Knight fans and those who just love Batman in general