Batman: Knight and Squire

After receiving much exposure from Grant Morrison’s “Batman” run, the Dark Knight and Boy Wonder’s English counterparts get their own mini-series.  Now, the thing you have to understand about their England is that it’s a place that never quite left what we Americans regard as comics’ “Silver Age.”  You’ve got goofy heroes like Salt of the Earth and The Milkman mixing it up with the likes of villain such as the Death Dinosaur and Dark Druid (I’m also sure the alliteration is intentional), cornball plots like the Knight’s armor gaining sentience and attacking his owner, and the actual Richard III being resurrected and plotting to take over the country.

This could’ve been quite painful in other hands, but Paul Cornell is in the writer’s seat here and he actually makes it all somewhat endearing and actually funny.  He also has the genius idea of after setting up the rules and style of the DC Universe’s England, to bring in the Joker to turn it all on its head.  However, the enjoyment you’ll get out of this series depends on two things:  whether or not you’re put off by extreme British-ness (no-really, Cornell includes welcome text pieces at the end of each chapter to explain all of the jokes), or have already read the man’s “Wisdom” mini-series for Marvel.  I mention the latter because it actually does a better job of mixing super-hero action with British culture with far less in-jokes.  This is still an entertaining series, with some highly appropriate art from Jimmy Broxton, but it’s still of a niche appeal.