Arkham Asylum: Madness/Sam Keith

Arkham Asylum: Madness, by Sam Kieth; graphic novel, horror; 112 pages

As I'm winding down from my annual Batman frenzy, I thought this might be a good transitional read, since it's set in Batman's world, but the Dark Knight never makes an appearance. The author describes this as a haunted house story, and while nothing supernatural occurs, I definitely got that feeling while reading. This short, atmospheric book follows one nurse at the infamous Arkham through a single day (though she works a double shift, so we get to see the dramatic change between the day and the night). Like all good haunted house stories, the house becomes its own character, expressing itself through groaning pipes, shattered windows, and a broken clock. The inmates only add to the building tension, and I was constantly waiting for the next breakout. A great read for Halloween, but a very dark take on the Batman universe.

An aside on the art: When I opened this, my immediate thought was "This reminds me of Sandman." I LOVED the art here (a blend of watercolor, photography, and digital manipulation). It fits the tone of the book perfectly, and made it a delicious read. The strange thing is that I looked up Kieth and, yes, he did work on Sandman, producing some of my less favorite art in that series. Of course, his style has had almost 20 years to evolve, but I thought it was funny that I could still recognize it, and now like it.