The artwork and storyline that is followed in this book is amazing, I loved every second of it and couldn't put it down until I was finished with the last page. Great editing and a great addition to the world of The Dark Knight!

I enjoyed reading this graphic novel. It was much longer than a typical graphic novel (probably about twice as long) and had a really interesting chapter-like structure rather than the typical comic break up. I liked that many JL characters were present in the book and found the story interesting.

I've been reading Frank Miller's Dark Knight installments for quite literally most of my life. Batman is my favorite comic figure and comic franchise and Miller's first two installments are some of the most re-readable comics I have ever encountered, especially true of the original Dark Knight. It is truly one of the greatest classics in comic history.

This third installment continues the story of Bruce Wayne, aged and picking back up his crimefighting mantle three years after the deaths of Lex Luthor and Dick Grayson. Miller's noir writing style shines in every issue, from the gripping beginning and a Batman who seems to wreaking havoc rather than helping control it.

Ray Palmer, aka Atom, works to restore the inhabitants of Kandor to full-size after a distress signal is discovered- but their true intentions are quickly revealed upon his success. A cult lead by a maniacal leader, Quar, the Kryptonians set to bend Earth to their will.. Acknowledgment as gods or death.

The story is gripping, with excellent tie-in issues through The Dark Knight Universe. Miller's game is still strong, and while I think it may be impossible to touch the behemoth perfection of the original Dark Knight, this installment ranks above The Dark Knight returns for me.

Miller's writing for me was too dark at times though it the graphic novel held my interest. I will be purchasing this graphic novel for my graphic novel collection as there is a high interest in Batman stories.

Better than DKR 2 (But could anything be worse than that mess?), but not as good as the original. This is almost a World's Finest comic, focusing mainly on Batman and Superman. Some of the characters were very one dimensional, especially all the villains. The text speak drove me nuts. I had to translate each line in my head to English and none of it ultimately matters to the story. Frank Miller's art in the backups is wildly inconsistent. The early issues which weren't inked look like blown up thumbnails. The lack of detail is awful. But once Klaus Jansen comes in to do inks, Miller's art becomes much more palatable. Andy Kubert knocks it out of the park. He's got this nice, concise style and once Klaus Janson inks it, it does remind you of the art in Dark Knight Returns.

Oh I *wanted* to love this...honestly I did, but ruddy hell. What a mess.
I'd get all 'ranty' if I focused on what was wrong with this revisit of hallowed turf, so instead I'll focus on the good.
The relationship between Bats and Carrie is as great as ever, and really is the spine (and balls) of volume 3, and there's also some fun Bats/Supes interplay that manages to just stay on the right side of homo-erotic...just.
The plotting is a shambles, some of the art is disgracefully bad and lazy (how can you make Wonder Woman that ugly ffs?), and the characterisations are weak and nonsensical.
Yes, Miller's The Dark Night has been influential to hundreds of creators. The thing is - many of those creators are now out there making tens times better comics than this balls-up.

Meandering and un focused
are the nicest things I can say about this book.
Miller was once a brilliant
artist on the bleeding edge
of comics innovation.
Now so many years later
of writing what amounts to
the same story over and over again.
This story sadly feels
tired, not sure what
it's really trying to tell
and sadly unoriginal.

Hell, the book collecting the

different variant covers

was more interesting.

This is a must read if you are a Batman fan, I live with the believe that every Batman fan loves "the dark knight" and Frank Miller is one of the greatest authorsof this character so...this rarely will be bad. Isn't the best of Batman, with or without Miller, niether is one of the best Millers jobs. but works good.

ARC from Netgalley.
This graphic novel got so much acclaim, I had to check it out. I went in very hesitant, having found the first two Volumes unreadable due to Miller's horrible art, but the man can certainly write a story!
Batman is dead.... well not quite, but that's how it starts. Superman is gone. The daughter of Wonder Woman and Superman is feeling both alone and curious, so she goes to explore the Fortress of Solitude. Finding the bottle city of Kandor, and enlisting the help of The Atom, a large portion of Kandorians are released and she is no longer alone. But.... they are terrorists.
Batman comes back. Superman comes back. Both Flash and Green Lantern return (though quickly Barry's legs break and Hal gets his hand chopped off) and the war is on.
The story unfolds much like you think it would, but the telling of it is pretty good. And as Bats is not only back, but also young again (thank you convenient Lazarus Pit), the story may continue in the future.
Recommend, but with reservations. Kubert's art saves this one, but there is still some not great character design.

This is more a DC Trinity book rather than straight Batman. It postulates a grim future with Batman believed dead, Superman in seclusion, and Wonder Woman with two kids. Lara, Supe's and Wonder Woman's daughter is bored and frustrated and easily manipulated by Baal from Kandoor. She then manipulates Atom into enlarging the inhabitants who then run wild under the influence of Baal's father Quar and the cult he has initiated. Wanting to be worshiped as gods, Quar and his cult initiate a rain of terror on earth. Superman is roused, but refuses to fight Lara. Batman comes out of hiding when Quar threatened to destroy Gotham City, but orchestrates a take-down instead. Then Superman and Wonder Woman take the fight forward. Plenty of action, plenty of manipulation, plenty of weird DC action with Green Lantern being handed his comeuppance that all gets resolved in the end.

A great story line that was really enjoyable featuring many characters from the DC Universe including some I did not expect. My only criticism would be that the art work at times lacks definition and is a little less well drawn than I would expect.

I tried, but I just couldn't get into this one. The artwork didn't impress me (I guess I'm not a fan of Miller's style), and the stories kept jumping around so much that it just couldn't keep my interest, which is a shame because part of it seemed great, but I didn't care enough to put up with the rest of it to find out where it all went.

This is Batman. Yes it was amazing! I was surprised to see so many Justice League characters as Miller has not really included them in either of the others in the series.

I am a rare breed. I am one of the very few, if not only, person who read Fran Miller's The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel and hated it. I didn't like it so much I never read the follow up book The Dark Knight Strikes again. So you might be asking why on earth am I reviewing this book? I got caught up in the hype. I follow DC Comics on twitter, and I keep up with the DC Comics All Access app and every article and snippet of art wasn't missed when I was nerding out. Now I have been very fortunate to have been approved for books from DC Comics and Netgalley in the past, but I never expect to get anything I request. This was one book that I would have been fine if I got turned down but was still interested enough to want to read this.

Thank you DC Comics for the opportunity to read this book for a review. When I first opened the digital file and saw it was over 300 pages my first thought was what did I get myself into? Now that I have gotten my negativity out of my system you will see there is a reason for it. I couldn't believe how fast I flew through this book. I sat down one evening with my wife and I started this book and finished it in no time. Once I started I couldn't tear myself from this book. I loved every page of this and I was so shocked at how much I was enjoying this.

So this books is set will in the future. Batman has been missing and Superman has hidden himself away in his fortress. Not getting into specifics but The Bottle City of Kandor get released and the Kryptonians are made full size. They want our planet as their own. This story line has a very similar story line to the movie Man of Steel where Zod and the Kryptonians tried to turn Earth into New Krypton. Another similarity to the movies is we get to see Batman in the armored Bat-suit again. Again, I'm not going to give it away as to why, but Batman isn't the only one donning armor this time. Superman gets an upgrade too.

I was so impressed with this story and I might even wait for a deluxe slip cover edition and add this to my collection. I will admit that that I'm not a huge fan of the art work in these books but I can understand that it fits the gritty writing style. All of my little peeves and such I liked this book. I never could believe that I am about to type this next sentence, but I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Batman: The Dark Knight III: The Master Race by Frank Miller is one of the better books out there that stands on its own. Its take on JLA characters and with the dark and twisted view of Miller make it one of the more enjoyable reads to be found.

Frank Miller's The Dark Knight is a classic in comic book lore. Unfortunately, it has made every sequel look like a sad sack sister in comparison. That is too bad because read on its own, The Master Race is an incredibly well developed and thought out piece of comic book writing. It sheds the wrappings of a Batman book and embraces the characters that surround the Batman Universe. Mainly Superman and Wonder Woman and their love child.

It has been years since anyone has seen the Batman alive. Years since he faced down Lex Luthor and saved the world. But now an army of Krptonians has been unleashed, aided by Wonder Woman's and Superman's daughter, and they want to take over the Earth. To cleanse it of humanity and become the Master Race. Now an old and broken Bruce must suit up for one final fight. But he needs his old friends by his side. A forgotten Superman and Wonder Woman who must deal with her rebellious and super daughter.

It has occurred to me that an older, angrier and bitter Batman is such freaking awesome addition to the Batman world that any comic with him in it would be praised. But the great success of the first Dark Knight book has cast a heavily critical lens on the rest of the books. That is too bad because The Master Race is a very good book. Think about it, what if a race of super beings came to Earth and were not enamored with humanity. What if they didn't want to save us but instead, saw us so far down the food chain that our only value was in enslavement or annihilation. Consider this if you will, what if Superman had not landed in Smallville, Kansas but landed in Los Angeles or New York. Could we survive with a Superhero raised by such narcissism and lack of good old American values?

Or worse, a country where human life has no value and only the darkest and most evil of humanity survive. What if a Kryptonian was raised there? This is something that is currently being explored in Action Comics and the Oz Effect which I will talk about at a later blog. Add to that, that it is not one being but an entire city of beings that have been kept hostage in a glass container for decades. When finally released, yeah, they would be a little pissed.

I will admit that my favorite character in this book is not Bats but Wonder Woman and not because of her current run of fame. No, fans of the Wonder Woman movie will not recognize her here. She is an Amazon, intent on protecting her people and her children. Teaching them strength and their heritage and dealing with a rebellious and super strong teenage daughter. All that and fighting monsters with her baby son strapped to her back in a papoose. You do not mess with this single mother. Yeah, she is that kickass.

The Master Race is an awesome Batman book that could have only been told by Frank Miller. It is that simple. A terrific read!

We reviewed this book in detail on the following podcast: http://www.krayzcomix.solitairerose.com/?p=1200

'Batman: The Dark Knight: Master Race'written by Frank Miller and Brian Azzarello with art by Klaus Janson, Andy Kubert and others includes all nine main issues as well as the nine tie-in issue. At 376 pages, it's a lot of comic, but is it any good?

Following up after The two previous Dark Knight series, this time around Carrie (the Robin from the first series) is all grown up and patrolling Gotham dressed as Batman, because apparently Batman is dead, but this feels like a feint. When a group of Kryptonians threatens the planet, it's going to take more than Carrie and an aging Bruce Wayne to stop them.

This is not strictly a Batman story. It includes members of the Justice League and others, but at it's core, it follows the Batman characters.

I own and love the original Dark Knight. I was less crazy about the odd second part. This one loses some of the darkness and hyperviolence and even feels like it ends on a note of hope. It's a different feeling for this series, but I liked it quite a bit.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from DC Entertainment and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

I have always loved Frank Miller's writing. It's been fascinating to see the changes in the Dark Knight books over the years as his personal politics have evolved. The first Dark Knight series was personal, he wrote it because he realized he was older than Batman and wanted to see a book in which Batman's character aged and changed. I think this element is one of the things that elevates his Batman stories. It was also interesting to see the concept of hero turned on its head by mixing in very contemporary issues with police forces and Gotham's finest in this series. The interplay between the police and Batman has always been touch and go, this series takes it to a whole new level. I did feel this wasn't quite as good as the first Dark Knight series but it was still a great read and fans of modern superhero films will surely enjoy it.

Was the world crying out for another visit to Frank Miller's DARK KNIGHT continuity...?


I know I certainly wasn't. Miller's first sequel, DK2: THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN was dreadful....I remember nothing about it, save for how much I hated it. So when DC announced DARK KNIGHT III: THE MASTER RACE, I had a lot of conflicting thoughts:


Cash Grab!!


Brian Azzarello is listed as Miller's co-author, and Miller isn't drawing it. That means DC wanted a sequel (CASH GRAB!!!) with minimal Miller involvement. That means it might be decent. Aside from being a cash grab.....


Seven issues??? (Cash grab!) (It eventually grew to nine issues.)


Softcover AND hardcover formats for each issue...? Cash grab!!! )But those hardcovers do look mighty attractive...)


Around a dozen variant covers for each issue, with some of them incredibly rare...? Cash grab!


This sounds a lot like BEFORE WATCHMEN, and the inclusion of the Moore/Gibbons WATCHMEN characters in DC REBIRTH.....a desperate attempt to further monetize a past success that has been nearly bled dry.


"THE MASTER RACE"....? Really? Frank Miller and a title reminiscent of Nazis......bound to stir up trouble.


With all of that said: I am a sucker, so I dutifully picked up each hardcover issue as they were released, awaiting the day I could house them in the lovely slipcase that was to be included with the third volume. In order to avoid spoilers, I dodged reviews and articles as best I could, but the ones that I did see seemed scornful, mocking, and disdainful. The best I hoped for was a maybe-not-entirely-terrible set of books in an attractive package.


So.....Sitting down to read the nine-book-set exactly one week ago, I was struck by an age-old conundrum: What makes one mindless slugfest book better than another? Because this book is, for the most part, nine issues of mindless action, much like the recent JUSTICE LEAGUE/SUICIDE SQUAD crossover. While the JL/SS book was unbearably awful and unreadable, DARK KNIGHT III: THE MASTER RACE was...dare I say it...? Fun. Mindless, stupid, unnecessary, but...fun.


The "Master Race" referred to in the title are Kryptonians, specifically the citizens imprisoned in The Bottle City of Kandor. Sick of being relegated to bottle living, they dupe Lara, the daughter of Superman and Wonder Woman, into enlisting The Atom's help in regaining their size and their freedom. The Atom enlarges the pissed-off bottle-dwellers, they run amok, and cause all kinds of havoc on Earth.


CUE THE SPOILERS!!!!!!!


The book opens with former Robin Carrie Kelly wearing the mantle of the bat, but Bruce Wayne is alive and well, and the two soon find themselves on a pilgrimage to find Superman, drag him out of his self-imposed exile, and enlist his help against his fellow Kryptonians.


That's pretty much all that there is. It's just fight after fight after fight, occasionally interrupted by some tough talk. And yet......I had a blast reading these books.


The credits list Frank Miller and Brian Azzarello as writers. I have no idea how the work was split, if indeed it was split. Miller initially seemed to be playing an almost negligible role in the creation of the series, but by the time the finished product hit the shelves, he was contributing covers, variants, and illustrating most of the related mini-comics that appeared in each issue. So, either Miller has gone soft, or Azzarello was calling the shots, but the asshole Batman of past DARK KNIGHT books has been replaced by a kinder, gentler, wiser Batman. He respects the opinion of Batgirl. He seeks redemption, and attempts to repair his fractured relationship with Superman. He offers a bit of hope to the citizens of Gotham City, rather than instilling even more fear than they're already feeling. The final pages leave the door open for a sequel, and I'm OK with that, as long as we don't go back to asshole Batman again. I enjoyed the art in the main story, which was supplied by Andy Kubert and Klaus Janson, and had a "Squint and you'll think Miller and Janson did it!" quality to it. The art and colors really popped in these Deluxe editions, and the thick paper looks and feels awesome.


The cons...? Well, it's a big, endless fight scene. Which, as I said earlier, worked wonderfully in this book, while it falls flat in so many others. There's also a complete lack of explanation or context given to anything in this series. If you were a casual fan who got lured in by the advertising and commercials that DC is getting ready to unleash, you would probably have no idea who most of these people were, or what they were doing. Why is Kandor in a jar? Why is Batman so old? Why is Superman frozen in ice? When did Superman and Wonder Woman have two kids? Where are Commissioner Gordon, The Joker, Alfred? Who are Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Green Lantern? Why does Green Lantern's hand live on and fight crime after being severed? I've been reading comics for almost 45 years, so I'm up to speed. Other readers may not be so fortunate. (Or UNfortunate, depending on how you feel about middle-aged men having encyclopedic knowledge of fictional characters and the universes they inhabit.) A perfect example of this "You'd better know what's going on already, because we ain't stopping to explain!" mentality comes after Batman is mortally wounded, and Superman flies him across the world and dumps him into a Lazarus Pit. I know what it is, YOU may know what it is, but a lot of readers, real and potential, will not, and the introduction of it into the story changes the narrative completely. Publishers need to at least try to make these books, especially event books like this one, accessible to new readers, otherwise the industry is just going to cannibalize itself and die as us middle-agers croak, lose interest, or just get fed up and leave.


Each hardcover features a back-up story that expands on a scene or theme in the main story, and I have no idea how these will be treated in the collected edition. (DC sent me a digital copy of the collected edition, but I opted to read my hardcovers instead.) They seem absolutely necessary to collect in the place they are now: Main story, back-up, main story, back-up...but, with DC, you never know. If the back-up stories are collected in a weird way, take my advice, and read each one after the issue it was originally published with. It may break up the flow of the main story, but you'll get more out of the book by reading them this way.


Another pet peeve of mine is when the collected edition doesn't include a complete gallery of covers. I know for a fact that this book doesn't have all of the covers, because DC published them in a separate hardcover, which I was foolish enough to run out and buy, because, as Kris Shaw would say, I hate my money.


Completely unnecessary, but a lot of fun, DARK KNIGHT III: THE MASTER RACE earns eight out of ten bottled cities:

🍾🍾🍾🍾🍾🍾🍾🍾


DC Comics provided a review copy, which I deleted because I already owned the sweet slipcased hardcover set. Totally the way to go.

I loved Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns; I loathed The Dark Knight Strikes Back!

The Dark Knight III: The Master Race falls somewhere in between.

When it works, it works better than most Batman comics DC has published in the last thirty years.

Whether you’ll like it or not depends on how much leeway you’re willing to give it and how curious you are to see how weird things get. It’s not as good as The Dark Knight Returns but it’s way better that The Dark Knight Strikes Again — more importantly than that, it’s more interesting than its immediate predecessor.