BOOK ONE:

This book starts with a young Bruce Wayne entering a mysterious house that appeared on the Wayne grounds. He makes his way down to the basement of the dark, rundown house to meet face to face with the Joker. After a threat of blowing each other up from the Joker, Bruce transforms into Batman and starts to slaughter the Joker…
And immediately snaps out of it to find himself chained upright in the sewers of Gotham. He’s bleeding from the abuse of those around him. Cultists that keep telling him stories about how Deacon Blackfire is the messenger of God and such. Batman keeps back talking, and is hurt for it (via torture-hot pokers and such). The entire book, it’s the Cult’s goal to transfer Batman to their side.
Meanwhile, pimps and mafia members and others that are corrupt end up being slaughtered, because it’s the main goal of the Cult to rid Gotham City of those truly to blame for all the problems. In the middle, Batman remembers how a kid that was trying to steal some money had shot him. The kid was killed, and Batman was dragged into the sewers after he blacked out.
By the end of book one, Gotham City is entering panic-mode, and Batman finally broke after 6 to 8 days (estimated) of torture, no sleep and lack of food. Meanwhile, Robin and Commissioner Gordon try to figure out his whereabouts.

BOOK TWO:

Now deep within the grasps with Blackfire’s cult, Batman finds himself battling hallucinations to the real world, while he tries to figure out exactly how he came to be in the cult. He participates in the slaughters of mobs and such, but can’t seem to find whether he’s gunning down friend or foe. Submissive due to his loyalty to the Deacon and God, Batman is virtually incapable of helping himself.
News travels fast into the media about the possibility of Batman aiding the cult, and it’s up to Robin (Jason Todd) to rescue him.
Batman starts to get his memories back after disobeying direct orders not to eat a lot. The drugs start to wear off and he’s getting back into pace. Once he’s able to think better, he goes to search around the cult’s headquarters. There he is captured and taken for “Hell”, to be punished. By this time, Robin has all ready infiltrated the sewers and has located Batman. Batman is able to get free, but ends up in the sewer currents, and right to “Hell” anyway. Robin follows him after the men clear out and ends up in a gigantic mass grave of all those who the cult slaughtered with a dazed and self-punishing Batman.

BOOK THREE:

Incapable of fighting out on his own, Batman is forced to rely on the wits of Robin to get them out. Meanwhile, the cult’s slaughtering continues.
Up until this book, the curiosity of how Deacon Blackfire supposedly lived as long as he did went unanswered. Batman and Robin find out, however, that he bathes in the blood of humans to stay young. That’s when they’re seen and a huge chase begins in the sewers to catch them.
Around this time, Blackfire starts going off the deepend… He begins to believe his own act of being a “messiah”.
After the two escape, Batman and Robin escape Gotham City when Alfred picks them up. Upon entering the limo, Batman declares that he is abandoning Gotham because it’s the Deacon’s Gotham now.

BOOK FOUR:

After a horrible dream of his parents rising from the dead, disappointed in his abandoning Gotham, Bruce Wayne changes his mind. But this time he orders countless guns and tranquilizers to enter with. Also with a modified Batmobile, Bruce and Jason Todd reenter the city to take on Deacon Blackfire. At this point and time, practically the entire city government has been murdered, Commissioner Gordon in the hospital, and all SANE inhabitants are long gone. Also, Blackfire is counting on Batman’s reentry as the way for him to have a glorious death in his “martyrism” and messiah persona.
After mowing down a lot of people with chain gun tranqs and blowing up a lot of stuff the National Guard wasn’t supposed to, Batman made his way to Blackfire for a final showdown.
Batman realizes it’s a glorious death he wants, and gives him the opposite. Going after Blackfire and hitting every single nerve point he can, Blackfire ends up begging for mercy, showing his followers that he’s nothing special. When they hear him, they come down and… make his day REALLY bad after giving him a slight case of DEATH.

GOOD POINTS:
For those of you really into hard-core violence and blood and stuff, check it out! The story line is also very in depth, and accurately portrays the characters. It’s a long, complete series that has been very well done.

BAD POINTS:
The drawing. It’s freakishly good for the tone of the story, but it’s so sad they didn’t have someone who would draw it more realistic.

Go back to my home