Tony Daniel clearly has a soft spot in his heart for Frank Millers Dark Knight Returns (but then don’t we all) and Detective Comics heart beats in rhythm to the 1986 Miller masterpiece. Daniel gives Batman’s inner dialog a hard edged, direct style that echos DKR – but only echos mind you, this is no Dark Knight but it’s still a good read and steeped in shadows. Earth tones dominate the pages which in turn shrouds the story and characters here in a foreboding gloom.

The beauty of a character like Batman is that he is open to interpretation. He is mailable. More then any other comic book character, Batman has changed from year to year – from creator to creator – from book to book.

Let’s look at the many faces of Batman in the DC Universe at the moment….

BATMAN: by Scott Snyder and Greg Cappulo – here we are given a swift and angular Batman in design, and a smart and caring one in the writing.

BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT: David Finch – This Batman punches to solve crime rather then any sort of detective work. Big and hulking, the character here in Finch’s hands is a wrecking ball.

JUSTICE LEAGUE: by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee – This book currently shows the earliest exploits of Batman in the DCnU. He is cocky, head-strong, and that is pretty much all we have been given besides awesome looking two page spreads with him jumping and swinging from the rooftops. All style here, no substance.

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL: By Dan Jurgens – Batman as the wise old father figure. Jurgens is perfectly writing that role for Batman in JLI.

CATWOMAN: By Judd Winick – Batman as a porn star