History ComicBook / BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns

** Corto Maltese is a shout out to an Italian comic book by that name. Strangely, the name was used in the 1989 ''Film/{{Batman}}'' movie as an apparent ShoutOut to ''The Dark Knight Returns'' without recognizing that it was already a ShoutOut.

TDKR is a seminal comic book work, with a gritty, unique style that's draped in the best of FilmNoir techniques. It is often considered as influential as ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'' in demonstrating the possible "[[TrueArtIsAngsty maturity]]" of the comic book medium, and, along with ''Watchmen'', it ushered in TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks (for good or bad). It was also highly influential in the DCU's recasting of Batman and Superman's relationship: no longer are they perfect friends, The World's Finest, but rather somewhat distant and distrusting (if respectful) of each other.

* TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks: Along with ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', TDKR is considered one of the co-creators of this era.

* FatGirl: [[spoiler:'''Lana Lang.''']] IWasQuiteALooker is averted, though, as her usual depiction is never addressed.

-> ''There are seven working defenses from this position. Three of them disarm with minimal contact. Three of them kill. The other - [KRAKK] - hurts.''
-->'''--Batman'''

* Determinater: Bruce/Batman. Despite being [[spoiler: stabbed multiple times by the Joker and shot several times the Police and once by the Joker, Batman still manages to elude them by getting to the Bat-Copter.]]

* BronzeAge

A couple of elements from this story were borrowed by Creator/ChristopherNolan for the conclusion to Film/TheDarkKnightSaga, ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises''. Even more are said to be utilized in the Film/DCCinematicUniverse as far as that version of Batman is concerned, with ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' serving as partially as a PragmaticAdaptation in addition to telling an original story.

A couple of elements from this story were borrowed by Creator/ChristopherNolan for the conclusion to Film/TheDarkKnightSaga, ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises''.

** The scene with the pimp in the cab is basically right out of the Creator/ClintEastwood film ''MagnumForce''.

* OneSceneWonder: The tech in the space station, who appears for a grand total of ''ten'' panels, and in doing so gives important exposition regarding the Coldbringer nuke that wipes out power on the Eastern Seaboard and prompts the plot of the final act, is used to demonstrate the apathy of the news media on "technical details" and also delivers arguably the most poignant lines regarding nuclear fears of the era.
-->'''Dan''': Still, my last thoughts will be a prayer for you, for humanity...and for the planet Earth. Nothing could stop the Russians from emptying their silos at us now. We'd have no defense, no way to retaliate. '''The one hope we have is that the decision to murder billions has to be made by a human being.''' (emphasis added)

* ParentalObliviousness: Carrie Kelley's parents.

* NeckSnap: [[spoiler:Batman]] snaps [[spoiler:the Joker]]'s neck at first, but it only paralyzes him. [[spoiler:The Joker finishes the job for him.]]

* DoesntLikeGuns: Both played straight and subverted. In issue 4, Batman invokes the trope in his speech to the Sons of the Batman:

* OlderHeroVsYoungerVillain: The mid-50s Batman vs. the late-teens-to-early-20s[[note]]not revealed, but Batman describes him as "young [...] in his physical prime"[[/note]] Mutant leader.

* FakingTheDead: Batman fakes his death in the final chapter. It fools everyone...''almost''.

[[folder:Plot Tropes]]

[[folder:Narrative Tropes]]

[[folder:Setting Tropes]]

[[folder:Characterization Tropes]]

* TooDumbToLive: Dr. Wolper. And the entire studio audience/host for that matter. At one point, Joker even states that he's going to kill everyone in the room, but [[GenreBlindness Wolper dismisses it as a simple joke]].

[[folder:Meta Tropes]]

* TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks: Along with ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', TDKR is considered the co-creators of this era.

* TakeThat: The Mutants can be seen as a TakeThat to "angsty", rebellious teen superheroes made popular by MarvelComics. Fittingly, they're named "The Mutants" (StanLee's working title for ''Comicbook/XMen''), they wear red shades that look a lot like [[Comicbook/XMen Cyclops']] visor, and they despise adult authority figures. They form a perfect contrast to Batman, who's the epitome of the "traditional" DC superhero--an adult hero who's driven and fearless, and has zero tolerance for crime.

::What makes this scene even more powerful is that Two-Face is the only one of Batman's enemies in the story that he is sympathetic to, as he funded Harvey's surgery and rehabilitation efforts and knows what it's like to be living a dichotomy (Bruce Wayne/Batman vs. Harvey Dent/Two-Face). For bonus points, in ''Batman:Year One'' which occupies the same universe as this book, it's made clear that Harvey Dent was one of Batman's closest allies and friends early in his career.

** That being said, he will use them when they're necessary. In the first issue, he uses a rifle to shoot a grappling line between the Gotham Towers to [[spoiler: confront Two-Face and his henchmen]]. In the fourth issue, he uses [[spoiler:Commissioner Yindel's]] gun to shoot some plastic explosive. He also gets pushed into using one when taking on [[spoiler:three Mutant kidnappers who have a toddler as a hostage]]. The confrontation culminates with [[spoiler:Batman pointing one of the Mutant's guns (a frigging [[{{BFG}} M60 GPMG]]) at the last kidnapper, who is holding the hostage at gunpoint.]]

::That being said, he will use them when they're necessary. In the first issue, he uses a rifle to shoot a grappling line between the Gotham Towers to [[spoiler: confront Two-Face and his henchmen]]. In the fourth issue, he uses [[spoiler:Commissioner Yindel's]] gun to shoot some plastic explosive. He also gets pushed into using one when taking on [[spoiler:three Mutant kidnappers who have a toddler as a hostage]]. The confrontation culminates with [[spoiler:Batman pointing one of the Mutant's guns (a frigging [[{{BFG}} M60 GPMG]]) at the last kidnapper, who is holding the hostage at gunpoint.]]

* RobotKid: One of the Joker's mooks builds them...to spray poison gas everywhere, then explode.

** EliteMooks: Bobby & Mary

::That being said, he will use them when they're necessary. In the first issue, he uses a rifle to shoot a grappling line between the Gotham Towers to [[spoiler:confront Two-Face and his henchmen]]. In the fourth issue, he uses [[spoiler:Commissioner Yindel's]] gun to shoot some plastic explosive. He also gets pushed into using one when taking on [[spoiler:three Mutant kidnappers who have a toddler as a hostage]]. The confrontation culminates with [[spoiler:Batman pointing one of the Mutant's guns (a frigging [[{{BFG}} M60 GPMG]]) at the last kidnapper, who is holding the hostage at gunpoint.]]

* AirVentPassageway: The gigantic leader of the Mutant gang is behind bars awaiting trial. Batman knows that being in prison won't hurt his gang cred one bit (it helps that the Mutant leader spends his free time annoying the prison guards and bragging about what kind of havoc he will make when he gets out, instead of showing remorse) -- to break the Mutant gang, you must ''break'' its leader. Thus, he and Gordon arrange for the leader to escape via the prison air vents and meet Batman for a mud pit duel.
* BatmanGambit: Bruce uses quite a few over the series. Even his final trick relies on [[spoiler:knowing Clark will let him go]].
* CurbStompBattle: Batman's second fight with the Mutant leader. He uses his brains instead of pure brawn, and while he doesn't come away unscathed, he does win.

* FunWithAcronyms: Sons Of the Batman = [=SOBs=]

* OstentatiousSecret: As [[GreenArrow Ollie]] points out to Bruce:
--> ''Sure, you like to play it mysterious, but it's a '''loud''' kind of mysterious. Especially lately.''
* PoweredArmor: Used (among other things) to fight {{Superman}}.
* PreMortemOneLiner: Inverted, in that it's the '''winner''' of the climactic battle that delivers it just before he dies.
-->"I want you to '''remember'''... the one man who '''beat''' you..."
* RecurringExtra:
** The... ill-tempered ([[TheSociopath to put it mildly]]) Byron Brassballs, who both encounters Superman (who saved the handicapped man Byron had ''knocked onto the train tracks'') and later plays a role in the Gotham riots... [[spoiler: and in a nice bit of Karmic retribution, gets his ass profoundly kicked by Batman.]]
** Rob and Don too. They keep running into Batman but hardly play a significant role in the story.
* RedemptionInTheRain: The shot of fifty-five-year-old Bruce Wayne appearing as Batman for the first time in ten years, during a thunderstorm.
* {{Retirony}}: Inverted, Commissioner Gordon proves he is still a {{Badass}} by living till his planned retirement
* RevengeOfTheSequel
* RightOutOfMyClothes: A serious version. When Superman hears [[spoiler:the nuclear missile headed toward Corto Maltese]], he takes to the air so fast that he leaves his civilian clothes and ''glasses'' hanging exactly where he left them--''while sitting in a Jeep''.
* RobotKid: One of the Joker's mooks builds them...to spray poison gas everywhere, then explode.
* RuleOfThree: Batman tells Robin that if she disobeys, she'll be fired. She disobeys three times, but the third time, she saves his life.
* SeeYouInHell: [[spoiler:Joker]] says this to Batman [[spoiler:[[DrivenToSuicide before breaking]] [[NeckSnap his own neck]].]]
* ShootTheHostageTaker: Batman solves a hostage situation by ''[[InvokedTrope threatening]]'' to do this. It probably helped that the thug was new meat who didn't know about Bats' "no killing" rule.
* SilentScapegoat
* SmokingIsCool: {{Averted|Trope}}. Gordon's cigar smoking has apparently started to cause health problems, and his internal dialogue when this is made evident shows his mortality is weighing on his mind.
* SpitefulSpit: After [[spoiler:the Joker's death]], Batman pauses just long enough to spit in the face of his corpse before making his getaway.
-->I waste one second...with a goodbye.
* SplitPersonalityTakeover: Happens to [[spoiler:Two-Face after getting reconstructive surgery]].
* {{Squee}}: Most of Carrie's scenes with Batman.
* StandingBetweenTheEnemies: Batman does this with a BigNo that occupies a panel.
* AStormIsComing: Invoked in the weatherman's report on the storm that accompanies Bruce's return as Batman.
--> '''Weatherman''': ... like the wrath of God, it's headed for Gotham.
* TheStrategist: Batman of course, especially in his fight against Superman.
* StrawmanPolitical: Features vapidly meaningless strawmen for all parts of the political spectrum because [[GoldenMeanFallacy that's how you make a valid point, right?]]
* SubordinateExcuse: Carrie has a crush on Batman that would do TheJoker proud, and in the comics she dearly loves him. She dresses as Robin and fights crime, hears the Mutants are gathering at the dump and follows Batman there, because she loves him and wants to be close to him.
* SuperRegistrationAct: Superman gets strong-armed into working for the government.
* TankGoodness: This version of the Batmobile, which would go on to be an inspiration for the Tumbler in Film/TheDarkKnightSaga. It's got treads. It's got armor strong enough that "the only thing I know of that can cut through its hide isn't from this planet." [[note]]He's referring to Superman, who proves the point in short order in the fourth issue[[/note]]. It's got machine guns. [[spoiler:"Rubber bullets. Honest."]] It's got at least two decent-sized artillery pieces. It takes up three lanes on the highway. It even has a gyro-stabilized medical bed and can be piloted home by Alfred. It's a god-damned Bat-Tank.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill:
** The Sons of the Batman, who have turned their over-the-top violence as former Mutants to fighting crime instead of creating it. At one point, it's mentioned that they used napalm to break up a three card monte game. One SOB, after killing the aforementioned Nixon mask robbers, took a pair of wire-cutters and sliced off the store owner's fingers on one hand because, as he put it, "you did nothing to stop them."
** The nuke that nearly [[spoiler:killed Superman]] was ''designed'' to create a "nuclear winter" scenario.
* ThouShaltNotKill: Also behind Batman's dislike of guns.
** WordOfGod says that Batman didn't kill [[spoiler:the aforementioned Mutant who held the baby at gunpoint when he shot her with another Mutant's M-60, stating he shot her shoulder]]. The animated adaptation completely changes this sequence to remove the issue.
** Gruesomely played with when [[spoiler:Batman has the perfect chance to kill the Joker]] but still refuses to. [[spoiler:The Joker notices... and kills himself just to screw with Batman.]]
* TotallyRadical: See FutureSlang, above.
** Played for laughs when Carrie reprograms the Bat-Copter to accept verbal commands from her. In ''slang''.
--->'''Batman:''' [''to Bat-Copter''] Boosters! [''nothing happens''] '''Boosters!''' [''nothing happens''] What in the--?\\
'''Carrie:''' Peel.\\
[''cue Boosters'']
* TruthInTelevision: At the beginning two Mutants try and mug Bruce Wayne. They turn out to be {{Dirty Coward}}s when he sees them, they take into account his size, and run off when he stands his ground and is prepared to fight. It's common in RealLife for thugs like the Mutants to only target those who cannot defend themselves, and want nothing to do with those who can.
* UnwittingPawn: [[spoiler:Two-Face to the Joker.]]
* UtilityBelt: Prominently featured in the first issue. Batman uses items from it to [[spoiler:defuse one of Two-Face's bombs]], and does a mental run-through of its items in boredom while he's waiting for [[spoiler:Two-Face to make his move on Gotham's Twin Towers]].
* WorfHadTheFlu:
** Despite having been catatonic for a decade and his injuries, Joker has a distinct edge over Batman. The same Batman that fought his way through the a police SWAT team and stopped at Batcave only to get supplies to investigate Joker's plan for the county fair before finally catching up to Joker in one night. Not only is Bats on his second wind for their final battle, but he's making the same mistake he did with the Mutant Leader: he's letting his feelings cloud his judgement against a much calmer opponent.
** This also applies to Superman when he fights Batman. He's not at 100% after the nuclear missile, as Batman notes the missiles he shoots at Superman wouldn't have been able to hit him otherwise.
* VomitingCop: Alluded to. After [[spoiler:SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker kills everyone at the TV studio]], somebody tells the commissioner that one of the rookies got sick and had to go home.
* YouAreTheNewTrend: Rather than ignoring the Sons of the Batman, he recruits them as his own personal army after disarming them and all but calling them out for being fools in their old tactics. Admittedly, he had stopped them from following their previous leader who was proclaiming "This is our chance to [[KillItWithFire raze Gotham]]... to '''purge''' Gotham."
* WhatTheHellHero: From Alfred after Bruce waxes on about Carrie's qualities as Robin:
--> '''Alfred''': Very well, sir, I shall come right out and say it. Have you forgotten what happened to Jason?

* GoodNewsBadNews: The President has a very cheerful way of telling the American People about the dangers of nuclear fallout.
-->Well folks, I've got good news and bad news. Heh... The good news is that the Soviets have withdrawn their forces from the island of Corto Maltese.... And the bad news, well... It looks like those Soviets are pretty bad losers, yes they are...
* GoOutWithASmile: [[spoiler:Joker]] laughs the entire time [[spoiler:he's twisting his head around to finish breaking his neck]], leaving a grin on his face as he dies.
* GrandfatherClause: The Bat-signal is discussed here.
* GroinAttack: Happens to Batman at the foot of the Mutant leader during their first fight.
--> He shows me what a fast kick is. Something explodes in my midsection. Sunlight behind my eyes as the pain rises.
* HallOfMirrors: Batman chases the Joker into one at the fair. [[spoiler:The Joker gut-shoots him after he gives himself away trying to come through a mirror.]]
* AHandfulForAnEye: During their second fight, Batman cuts the Mutant leader over the eyes to blind him with the blood, then compounds that by throwing mud in his face.
* HandicappedBadass: See ImprobableAimingSkills below.
* HannibalLecture: [[spoiler:The Joker, paralyzed from the neck down,]] hits Batman with one just before [[spoiler:killing himself]].
* HeatWave: Gotham has been stuck in one for a while at the start of the series.
* HeroicBSOD: In the first issue, Bruce, lost in thought, wanders to the spot where his parents were killed and is confronted by Mutants. Their dialogue (casually referring to killing Bruce, having a ''quota'' for murders, and then dismissing Bruce as their target because he's "into it") shakes Bruce to his core, as he's been equating them to his parents' killer up to that point.
--> '''Bruce''': No. Not him. Not him. He flinched when he pulled the trigger. He was sick and guilty over what he did. [...] These... These are his children. A purer breed. And this world is '''theirs'''.
* HesBack:
** Batman, after 10 years in retirement.
---> '''Reporter''': Police phone lines are jammed with citizens describing what appears to be a siege on Gotham's underworld... [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome by the Batman]].
** And Joker in a twisted inverse version.
* HonorBeforeReason: Batman knows that it's best if [[spoiler:he just shoots the Mutant leader in the dump]], but he can't bring himself to cross that line... and it nearly gets him killed.
* HumanShield: As Batman's chasing the Joker through the fair, the Joker tries this with one of Carrie's friends. Batman promptly tags him with a handful of batarangs.
* HumanWeapon: Franchise/{{Superman}} here is nothing but an icon who reports directly to the President, who gives him orders that include waging a one-man war in a BananaRepublic, [[spoiler:stopping the nuclear strike that follows (he fails)]], and [[spoiler:assassinating Batman]], all of which he does without question.
* IAmTheNoun: This is the climax of the "breaking the shotgun" sequence mentioned above.
-->'''Batman''': Tonight, ''we'' are the law. Tonight, ''I'' am the law. ''Let's ride.''
* IFightForTheStrongestSide: Once the Mutant leader is defeated, the gang disintegrates into a number of splinter groups that define themselves by whatever figurehead they're following; the only thing that remains consistent is their use of violence.
* TheInsomniac: The Joker's insomnia is addressed here.
* IWasQuiteALooker: Selina Kyle didn't age well. [[spoiler:The Joker]] notices.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: {{Subverted|Trope}}. Batman doesn't have to actually get violent with perps to get info. Instead, he lets their fear of him do his work for him, although in some cases a bit of setup is needed.
** In one instance, Batman scares a perp (the one who had the page quote applied to him earlier on) into talking simply by [[spoiler:walking toward him; the perp falls through a window trying to get away, injuring himself, and talks after Batman tells him that he's the only person who can save him from bleeding to death]].
** In another instance, he [[spoiler:hangs an unconscious Mutant upside-down from a gargoyle at the top of a skyscraper, puts a hand over the Mutant's face, and slowly moves his hand away when the Mutant wakes up and tries to cut a deal]]. What makes this even more effective is that the reader doesn't realize all this until it's all said and done; the sequence is drawn from the Mutant's perspective.
--->'''Batman (internal)''': It was tough work carrying two hundred and twenty pounds of sociopath to the top of one of Gotham's Twin Towers. The scream alone is worth it.
* JekyllAndHyde: Averted. Recent breakthroughs in plastic surgery restore Two-Face's appearance, but at the unforeseen cost of [[spoiler:forever destroying the good-natured "Harvey" half of the personality and leaving the criminal "Face" in complete control]].
--> '''Two-Face''': Got them all to keep their lunches down when they saw my face... saying I was cured... saying I was fixed. I'm fixed all right... at least both sides match now! Go ahead, have your laugh! Take a look... take a look... \\
'''Batman (internal)''': The scars go deep... too deep. Not fooled by sight, I see him... as he ''is''. (''the panel shows Dent with his entire head a monstrous ruin'')\\
'''Batman''': I see... a reflection, Harvey. A reflection. (''the next panel shows a bat's snarling face'')
::What makes this scene even more powerful is that Two-Face is the only one of Batman's enemies in the story that he is sympathetic to, as he funded Harvey's surgery and rehabilitation efforts and knows what it's like to be living a dichotomy (Bruce Wayne/Batman vs. Harvey Dent/Two-Face). For bonus points, in ''Batman:Year One'' which occupies the same universe as this book, it's made clear that Harvey Dent was one of Batman's closest allies and friends early in his career.
* KryptoniteIsEverywhere: Averted. Kryptonite doesn't show up until the very end of Batman's battle with Superman, when Bruce specifically says that he had to spend years (and millions of dollars) synthesizing it, implying that the naturally occurring stuff is too rare to be a practical weapon. And despite having days to prepare for the showdown, Superman seems genuinely surprised that Bruce was able to get his hands on any at all.
* LetThePastBurn: At almost-not-quite the end, Alfred burns down Wayne Manor so that nobody can look through it for evidence or clues after Batman's identity as Bruce Wayne is revealed to the public while [[spoiler:faking his death]].
* LiteralMetaphor: The governor is almost strangled by actual [[ObstructiveBureaucrat red tape]].
* MadeOfIron: Subverted here.
* ManBitesMan: The Mutant leader puts his filed teeth to good use against Batman [[spoiler:and the mayor]].
* MediaWatchdog: The public broadcast of the Mutant Leader's video after his capture is cut off after a few sentences... with good reason.
-->'''Mutant leader''': ... and then I'll find your new cop - your ''woman'' cop - and I will-\\
'''Newscaster''': The rest of the Mutant leader's statement is unfit for broadcast.
* MisBlamed: {{In-universe}} example - Batman is accused by the media of inspiring a number of incidents, from a mentally-ill mob enforcer putting on a Batman costume and turning on his boss, to a very disturbed man's religiously-motivated shooting up of a porn theater. Meanwhile, a shop owner who actually WAS inspired by Batman chases off a purse-snatcher attacking an old lady. No one is hurt enough for this to make the news.
* MistimedRevival
* NeckSnap: [[spoiler:Batman]] snaps [[spoiler:the Joker]]'s neck at first, but it only paralyzes him. [[spoiler:The Joker finishes the job for him.]]
* NeverForgottenSkill:
** The story starts off with Bruce Wayne retired for ten years and an alcoholic. However, once he puts the Batsuit back on, he demonstrates that ten years of retirement and alcohol have not caused him to forget his skills at all.
** Even more impressive, the Joker has been straitjacketed in a padded cell for over a decade when he learns of Batman's return [[spoiler:and can barely speak, "b...b...b...b...BATMAN! ... Darling!"]], but returns to the world [[InstantWakingSkills ready for action.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: While Batman's return helps save Gotham from the CrapsackWorld it has become in his absence, it also causes the Joker to snap out of his 10 years of catatonia and gives him a motive to return to crime.
* NixonMask: Used by a group of convenience-store robbers in a throwaway gag.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Two of the Joker's victims were David Endochrine and Ruth Weisenheimer, who were clearly based on DavidLetterman and Dr. Ruth Westheimer.
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Batman's first fight with the Mutant Leader. [[spoiler:Robin's intervention]] is the only thing that saves him from getting killed. Fortunately, he learns his lesson, and their second fight ends with the tables completely turned.
* NotListeningToMeAreYou: Alfred persuades Bruce to donate to:
-->'''Alfred:''' ...the Committee for the Prevention of Obsessive Behaviour in Middle-Aged Men.
-->'''Bruce:''' Write them a check.
* OhCrap:
** The Joker realizes Batman isn't screwing around this time when [[spoiler:he gets a batarang [[EyeScream in the eye]].]]
---> [=*Joker grabs one of Carrie's friends and puts his gun to her head*=]\\
'''Batman (internal monologue)''': No, Joker. You're playing the wrong game. The ''old'' game. Tonight you're taking no hostages. Tonight I'm taking no prisoners.\\
[[spoiler:[=*cue batarangs*=]]]\\
'''Joker''' (''runs away shooting wildly''): Out of your ''mind''--
** When the Mayor tries to negotiate with the Mutant Leader, Gordon has one just before [[spoiler:the Mutant tears out the Mayor's throat. With his teeth.]]
* OlderHeroVsYoungerVillain: The mid-50s Batman vs. the late-teens-to-early-20s[[note]]not revealed, but Batman describes him as "young [...] in his physical prime"[[/note]] Mutant leader.
* OldSuperhero: Batman is older here.

* TheAlcoholic: Dialogue from Gordon and Alfred at the start of the series suggests that Bruce is dangerously close to becoming one, if he's not there already.
* AnimeHair: [[CoincidentalBroadcast TV reporter]] Lola Wong. See FashionableAsymmetry.
* AntiHero:
** Batman is an UnscrupulousHero or PragmaticHero, being more ruthless than his original DC counterpart.
** The Sons Of Batman are more or less {{Nominal Hero}}es.
* AntiVillain: Franchise/{{Superman}} is a PunchClockVillain overlapping with HeroAntagonist in this miniseries. He only reluctantly fights against Batman under orders from the US government.

* AwesomeMcCoolName: Byron Brassballs.

* AxCrazy:
** The Mutants, especially their leader, and The Sons of the Batman once The Mutants are no more.
** The Joker is depicted as having a love/hate fixation on Batman that he feeds with his indiscriminate killing.
---> '''Joker (inner dialogue)''': They could put me in a helicopter and fly me up into the air and line up the bodies head to toe on the ground in delightful geometric patterns like an endless June Taylor dancers routine -- and it would never be enough. No, I don't keep count. But you do. And I love you for it.
* BadassBoast:
-->'''Mutant Leader:''' "Batman! Face me, fool! I kill you! I eat [[HulkSpeak you heart]]! I show you who rules Gotham City!"
** [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Which is quickly answered in kind]]:
--->'''Batman:''' "Okay, boy... [[BringIt Show me.]]"

* BadassNormal: [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Do you need to ask?]]
* BadFuture: Batman is gone for ten years and ''everything'' goes to hell.
* BananaRepublic: Corto Maltese.
* BatmanGambit: Bruce uses quite a few over the series. Even his final trick relies on [[spoiler:knowing Clark will let him go]].

--> (at the opening, as Bruce's racecar crashes) ''This would be a good death, but not good enough.''
--> [[spoiler:(at the finale, as he begins his life in the shadows, training his army) ''This will be a good life. Good enough.'']]
* BrassBalls: One character has this as a last name, but is an inversion.

* BronzeAge

* CivilianVillain: Happens twice, when the same psychiatrist [[WhatAnIdiot declares Two-Face legally sane and recommends the Joker make a talk show appearance as part of his rehabilitation]].

* CombatPragmatist:
** The Mutant leader puts his claw-like fingernails and filed teeth to good use in the first fight against Batman.
** Batman becomes one in his second fight with the Mutant leader, since brute force failed spectacularly the first time.

* CoolOldGuy: C'mon now. Batman, Alfred for being so up in the years, still serving ''and'' snarky, Jim Gordon, Green Arrow, Superman (despite being arguably on the wrong side), and even the Joker in a dark and nasty way.
* CrapsackWorld: Between the Mutants, the heat wave, and general decay, Gotham has become a rather nasty place to live.
* CrazyPrepared: You do know who this comic is about, right?
* CurbStompBattle:
** Batman's second fight with the Mutant leader. He uses his brains instead of pure brawn, and while he doesn't come away unscathed, he does win.
* DarkAge
* DarkerAndEdgier: Robin kills. Batman mutilates. SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker's massacres are graphically portrayed. Creator/FrankMiller lays out his [[StrawmanPolitical grim feelings]] of [[{{Eagleland}} America]] for all to see.

* DeadpanSnarker: The Joker.

* DeathSeeker:
** Bruce has become one by the start of the story, and after he becomes Batman again, he frequently remarks on how certain things would be good or bad deaths as the story progresses.
** Batman suspects that [[spoiler:Harvey Dent]] has become one due to what's happened to him, and by the time his arc is complete, it's proven to be correct.
* {{Deconstruction}}: Batman's tactics spur debates on toughness on crime, while Superman's idealism makes him an ideal government cat's paw. The story also deconstructs many elements of Batman's mythos, particularly Batman's potential craziness, as well as showing what kind of [[CrapsackWorld world]] would make Batman not only possible, but necessary.

* DependingOnTheWriter: Happens to Batman and Superman a lot but Batman's X-Ray seeking missiles wouldn't be able to tell Superman from anyone else normally because Superman's X-Ray Vision doesn't actually emit X-Rays [[note]]not since the GoldenAge when they pulled double duty as his EyeBeam attack.[[/note]]
* DespairEventHorizon: Batman suspects that [[spoiler:Harvey Dent]] has been pushed across this. In their final confrontation, it's confirmed by his dialogue and emotional breakdown.
* DistaffCounterpart: Carrie to Robin, and hanging on Bruce's every word she becomes more and more like him.

* TheEighties: A lot of the action and political commentary stems from real-world politics of the period, in particular [[spoiler:the U.S.-Soviet arms race]], which comes to a head in part four.
* ElectraComplex: 13 year old Carrie is utterly in love with Batman, in his fifties.

* EyesAlwaysShut: The reporter Lola Wong.

* FakingTheDead: Batman fakes his death in the final chapter. It fools everyone...''almost''.
* FashionableAsymmetry: The newscaster Lola Wong always wears asymmetrical earrings, plus her [[AnimeHair hair]] is higher on one side.
* FatGirl: [[spoiler:'''Lana Lang.''']] IWasQuiteALooker is averted, though, as her usual depiction is never addressed.
* FiveBadBand: Joker's gang
** BigBad: Joker
** TheDragon & EvilGenius: Abner
** TheBrute & DarkChick: Bruno
** EliteMooks: Bobby & Mary
* FollowTheLeader: This miniseries singlehandedly ushered in the new age of Cranky Batman.
* FlatlinePlotline: Batman's ultimate plot in the fourth issue is to [[spoiler:remove himself from the public spotlight]] by faking his death. Being Batman, [[spoiler:he kills himself for a while using a special drug, using the fight with Superman both as a cover and as an excuse to work out his anger and frustration with Superman.]]

* FunWithAcronyms: Sons Of the Batman = [=SOBs=]
* FutureSlang: The Mutants are all over this one. "Balls nasty!", "spud" vs. "slicer-dicer", "chicken legs", and many others.
* GangOfHats: The Mutants and their various splinter groups.

* GoodNewsBadNews: The President has a very cheerful way of telling the American People about the dangers of nuclear fallout.
-->Well folks, I've got good news and bad news. Heh... The good news is that the Soviets have withdrawn their forces from the island of Corto Maltese.... And the bad news, well... It looks like those Soviets are pretty bad losers, yes they are...
* GoOutWithASmile: [[spoiler:Joker]] laughs the entire time [[spoiler:he's twisting his head around to finish breaking his neck]], leaving a grin on his face as he dies.
* GrandfatherClause: The Bat-signal is discussed here.
* GroinAttack: Happens to Batman at the foot of the Mutant leader during their first fight.
--> He shows me what a fast kick is. Something explodes in my midsection. Sunlight behind my eyes as the pain rises.
* HallOfMirrors: Batman chases the Joker into one at the fair. [[spoiler:The Joker gut-shoots him after he gives himself away trying to come through a mirror.]]
* AHandfulForAnEye: During their second fight, Batman cuts the Mutant leader over the eyes to blind him with the blood, then compounds that by throwing mud in his face.
* HandicappedBadass: See ImprobableAimingSkills below.
* HannibalLecture: [[spoiler:The Joker, paralyzed from the neck down,]] hits Batman with one just before [[spoiler:killing himself]].
* HeatWave: Gotham has been stuck in one for a while at the start of the series.
* HeroicBSOD: In the first issue, Bruce, lost in thought, wanders to the spot where his parents were killed and is confronted by Mutants. Their dialogue (casually referring to killing Bruce, having a ''quota'' for murders, and then dismissing Bruce as their target because he's "into it") shakes Bruce to his core, as he's been equating them to his parents' killer up to that point.
--> '''Bruce''': No. Not him. Not him. He flinched when he pulled the trigger. He was sick and guilty over what he did. [...] These... These are his children. A purer breed. And this world is '''theirs'''.
* HesBack:
** Batman, after 10 years in retirement.
---> '''Reporter''': Police phone lines are jammed with citizens describing what appears to be a siege on Gotham's underworld... [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome by the Batman]].
** And Joker in a twisted inverse version.
* HonorBeforeReason: Batman knows that it's best if [[spoiler:he just shoots the Mutant leader in the dump]], but he can't bring himself to cross that line... and it nearly gets him killed.

* HumanShield: As Batman's chasing the Joker through the fair, the Joker tries this with one of Carrie's friends. Batman promptly tags him with a handful of batarangs.
* HumanWeapon: Franchise/{{Superman}} here is nothing but an icon who reports directly to the President, who gives him orders that include waging a one-man war in a BananaRepublic, [[spoiler:stopping the nuclear strike that follows (he fails)]], and [[spoiler:assassinating Batman]], all of which he does without question.
* IAmTheNoun: This is the climax of the "breaking the shotgun" sequence mentioned above.
-->'''Batman''': Tonight, ''we'' are the law. Tonight, ''I'' am the law. ''Let's ride.''
* IFightForTheStrongestSide: Once the Mutant leader is defeated, the gang disintegrates into a number of splinter groups that define themselves by whatever figurehead they're following; the only thing that remains consistent is their use of violence.
* ImAHumanitarian: One of the Mutant leader's {{Catchphrase}}s is his boasts that he will eat Batman's heart.

* TheInsomniac: The Joker's insomnia is addressed here.
* IWasQuiteALooker: Selina Kyle didn't age well. [[spoiler:The Joker]] notices.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: {{Subverted|Trope}}. Batman doesn't have to actually get violent with perps to get info. Instead, he lets their fear of him do his work for him, although in some cases a bit of setup is needed.
** In one instance, Batman scares a perp (the one who had the page quote applied to him earlier on) into talking simply by [[spoiler:walking toward him; the perp falls through a window trying to get away, injuring himself, and talks after Batman tells him that he's the only person who can save him from bleeding to death]].
** In another instance, he [[spoiler:hangs an unconscious Mutant upside-down from a gargoyle at the top of a skyscraper, puts a hand over the Mutant's face, and slowly moves his hand away when the Mutant wakes up and tries to cut a deal]]. What makes this even more effective is that the reader doesn't realize all this until it's all said and done; the sequence is drawn from the Mutant's perspective.
--->'''Batman (internal)''': It was tough work carrying two hundred and twenty pounds of sociopath to the top of one of Gotham's Twin Towers. The scream alone is worth it.
* JekyllAndHyde: Averted. Recent breakthroughs in plastic surgery restore Two-Face's appearance, but at the unforeseen cost of [[spoiler:forever destroying the good-natured "Harvey" half of the personality and leaving the criminal "Face" in complete control]].
--> '''Two-Face''': Got them all to keep their lunches down when they saw my face... saying I was cured... saying I was fixed. I'm fixed all right... at least both sides match now! Go ahead, have your laugh! Take a look... take a look... \\
'''Batman (internal)''': The scars go deep... too deep. Not fooled by sight, I see him... as he ''is''. (''the panel shows Dent with his entire head a monstrous ruin'')\\
'''Batman''': I see... a reflection, Harvey. A reflection. (''the next panel shows a bat's snarling face'')
::What makes this scene even more powerful is that Two-Face is the only one of Batman's enemies in the story that he is sympathetic to, as he funded Harvey's surgery and rehabilitation efforts and knows what it's like to be living a dichotomy (Bruce Wayne/Batman vs. Harvey Dent/Two-Face). For bonus points, in ''Batman:Year One'' which occupies the same universe as this book, it's made clear that Harvey Dent was one of Batman's closest allies and friends early in his career.

* KryptoniteIsEverywhere: Averted. Kryptonite doesn't show up until the very end of Batman's battle with Superman, when Bruce specifically says that he had to spend years (and millions of dollars) synthesizing it, implying that the naturally occurring stuff is too rare to be a practical weapon. And despite having days to prepare for the showdown, Superman seems genuinely surprised that Bruce was able to get his hands on any at all.
* LetThePastBurn: At almost-not-quite the end, Alfred burns down Wayne Manor so that nobody can look through it for evidence or clues after Batman's identity as Bruce Wayne is revealed to the public while [[spoiler:faking his death]].
* LiteralMetaphor: The governor is almost strangled by actual [[ObstructiveBureaucrat red tape]].
* MadeOfIron: Subverted here.
* ManBitesMan: The Mutant leader puts his filed teeth to good use against Batman [[spoiler:and the mayor]].
* MediaWatchdog: The public broadcast of the Mutant Leader's video after his capture is cut off after a few sentences... with good reason.
-->'''Mutant leader''': ... and then I'll find your new cop - your ''woman'' cop - and I will-\\
'''Newscaster''': The rest of the Mutant leader's statement is unfit for broadcast.
* MisBlamed: {{In-universe}} example - Batman is accused by the media of inspiring a number of incidents, from a mentally-ill mob enforcer putting on a Batman costume and turning on his boss, to a very disturbed man's religiously-motivated shooting up of a porn theater. Meanwhile, a shop owner who actually WAS inspired by Batman chases off a purse-snatcher attacking an old lady. No one is hurt enough for this to make the news.
* MistimedRevival
* MonsterClown: It should be [[SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker obvious]] at this point.
* NeckSnap: [[spoiler:Batman]] snaps [[spoiler:the Joker]]'s neck at first, but it only paralyzes him. [[spoiler:The Joker finishes the job for him.]]
* NeverForgottenSkill:
** The story starts off with Bruce Wayne retired for ten years and an alcoholic. However, once he puts the Batsuit back on, he demonstrates that ten years of retirement and alcohol have not caused him to forget his skills at all.
** Even more impressive, the Joker has been straitjacketed in a padded cell for over a decade when he learns of Batman's return [[spoiler:and can barely speak, "b...b...b...b...BATMAN! ... Darling!"]], but returns to the world [[InstantWakingSkills ready for action.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: While Batman's return helps save Gotham from the CrapsackWorld it has become in his absence, it also causes the Joker to snap out of his 10 years of catatonia and gives him a motive to return to crime.
* NixonMask: Used by a group of convenience-store robbers in a throwaway gag.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Two of the Joker's victims were David Endochrine and Ruth Weisenheimer, who were clearly based on DavidLetterman and Dr. Ruth Westheimer.
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Batman's first fight with the Mutant Leader. [[spoiler:Robin's intervention]] is the only thing that saves him from getting killed. Fortunately, he learns his lesson, and their second fight ends with the tables completely turned.
* NotListeningToMeAreYou: Alfred persuades Bruce to donate to:
-->'''Alfred:''' ...the Committee for the Prevention of Obsessive Behaviour in Middle-Aged Men.
-->'''Bruce:''' Write them a check.
* OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo: This one is followed by a sequel called ''The Dark Knight Strikes Again''.
* OhCrap:
** The Joker realizes Batman isn't screwing around this time when [[spoiler:he gets a batarang [[EyeScream in the eye]].]]
---> [=*Joker grabs one of Carrie's friends and puts his gun to her head*=]\\
'''Batman (internal monologue)''': No, Joker. You're playing the wrong game. The ''old'' game. Tonight you're taking no hostages. Tonight I'm taking no prisoners.\\
[[spoiler:[=*cue batarangs*=]]]\\
'''Joker''' (''runs away shooting wildly''): Out of your ''mind''--
** When the Mayor tries to negotiate with the Mutant Leader, Gordon has one just before [[spoiler:the Mutant tears out the Mayor's throat. With his teeth.]]
* OlderHeroVsYoungerVillain: The mid-50s Batman vs. the late-teens-to-early-20s[[note]]not revealed, but Batman describes him as "young [...] in his physical prime"[[/note]] Mutant leader.
* OldSuperhero: Batman is older here.
* OstentatiousSecret: As [[GreenArrow Ollie]] points out to Bruce:
--> ''Sure, you like to play it mysterious, but it's a '''loud''' kind of mysterious. Especially lately.''

* PoweredArmor: Used (among other things) to fight {{Superman}}.
* PreMortemOneLiner: Inverted, in that it's the '''winner''' of the climactic battle that delivers it just before he dies.
-->"I want you to '''remember'''... the one man who '''beat''' you..."
* RecurringExtra:
** The... ill-tempered ([[TheSociopath to put it mildly]]) Byron Brassballs, who both encounters Superman (who saved the handicapped man Byron had ''knocked onto the train tracks'') and later plays a role in the Gotham riots... [[spoiler: and in a nice bit of Karmic retribution, gets his ass profoundly kicked by Batman.]]
** Rob and Don too. They keep running into Batman but hardly play a significant role in the story.
* RedemptionInTheRain: The shot of fifty-five-year-old Bruce Wayne appearing as Batman for the first time in ten years, during a thunderstorm.
* {{Retirony}}: Inverted, Commissioner Gordon proves he is still a {{Badass}} by living till his planned retirement
* RevengeOfTheSequel
* RightOutOfMyClothes: A serious version. When Superman hears [[spoiler:the nuclear missile headed toward Corto Maltese]], he takes to the air so fast that he leaves his civilian clothes and ''glasses'' hanging exactly where he left them--''while sitting in a Jeep''.
* RobotKid: One of the Joker's mooks builds them...to spray poison gas everywhere, then explode.
* RonaldReagan: Better described here as Evil Dead Ronnie.
* RuleOfThree: Batman tells Robin that if she disobeys, she'll be fired. She disobeys three times, but the third time, she saves his life.
* SeeYouInHell: [[spoiler:Joker]] says this to Batman [[spoiler:[[DrivenToSuicide before breaking]] [[NeckSnap his own neck]].]]
* ServileSnarker: Alfred has always been this, but in TDKR he takes it UpToEleven.
* SettingUpdate: In the original stories the version of ''The Mark of Zorro'' that Bruce saw as a child was the 1920 version. Miller updated it to the 1940 version, putting Bruce's birth date in 1932 and making him a man in his mid-50s by the time of the story.
* ShootTheHostageTaker: Batman solves a hostage situation by ''[[InvokedTrope threatening]]'' to do this. It probably helped that the thug was new meat who didn't know about Bats' "no killing" rule.
* ShoutOut:
** To an inept crook who was a running gag in Miller's ''ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}'' days:
---> '''Thug 1''': Can't be Batman. Turk say he killed Batman.\\
'''Thug 2''': Turk says lots.
** Two-Face [[Film/AClockworkOrange was fixed, all right]].
** Corto Maltese is a shout out to an Italian comic book by that name. Strangely, the name was used in the 1989 ''Film/{{Batman}}'' movie as an apparent ShoutOut to ''The Dark Knight Returns'' without recognizing that it was already a ShoutOut.
** There is also a reference to a porn star named "Hot Gates". In Greek, "Hot Gates" is translated "Thermopylae," the setting of [[Film/ThreeHundred another]] of Frank Miller's creations. However, since ''300'' wasn't released for another twelve years, the reference ''here'' is to both the literal translation of Thermopylae and William Golding's (now out of print) collection of essays 'The Hot Gates and other occasional places'.
** Batman's sarcastic internal monologue describing Superman quotes ''Film/MontyPythonsTheMeaningOfLife''.
** The scene with the pimp in the cab is basically right out of the Creator/ClintEastwood film ''MagnumForce''.
* SilentScapegoat
* SmokingIsCool: {{Averted|Trope}}. Gordon's cigar smoking has apparently started to cause health problems, and his internal dialogue when this is made evident shows his mortality is weighing on his mind.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: It's officially Carrie Kell'''e'''y, not Kelly.
* SpitefulSpit: After [[spoiler:the Joker's death]], Batman pauses just long enough to spit in the face of his corpse before making his getaway.
-->I waste one second...with a goodbye.
* SplitPersonalityTakeover: Happens to [[spoiler:Two-Face after getting reconstructive surgery]].
* SpotlightStealingTitle: ''The Dark Knight Returns'' was originally released as ''Batman: The Dark Knight'', with "The Dark Knight Returns" being the first issue's title.
* {{Squee}}: Most of Carrie's scenes with Batman.
* StandingBetweenTheEnemies: Batman does this with a BigNo that occupies a panel.
* StockSubtitle: "Returns."
* AStormIsComing: Invoked in the weatherman's report on the storm that accompanies Bruce's return as Batman.
--> '''Weatherman''': ... like the wrath of God, it's headed for Gotham.
* TheStrategist: Batman of course, especially in his fight against Superman.
* StrawmanPolitical: Features vapidly meaningless strawmen for all parts of the political spectrum because [[GoldenMeanFallacy that's how you make a valid point, right?]]
* SubordinateExcuse: Carrie has a crush on Batman that would do TheJoker proud, and in the comics she dearly loves him. She dresses as Robin and fights crime, hears the Mutants are gathering at the dump and follows Batman there, because she loves him and wants to be close to him.
* SuperRegistrationAct: Superman gets strong-armed into working for the government.
* TakeThat: The Mutants can be seen as a TakeThat to "angsty", rebellious teen superheroes made popular by MarvelComics. Fittingly, they're named "The Mutants" (StanLee's working title for ''Comicbook/XMen''), they wear red shades that look a lot like [[Comicbook/XMen Cyclops']] visor, and they despise adult authority figures. They form a perfect contrast to Batman, who's the epitome of the "traditional" DC superhero--an adult hero who's driven and fearless, and has zero tolerance for crime.
* TankGoodness: This version of the Batmobile, which would go on to be an inspiration for the Tumbler in Film/TheDarkKnightSaga. It's got treads. It's got armor strong enough that "the only thing I know of that can cut through its hide isn't from this planet." [[note]]He's referring to Superman, who proves the point in short order in the fourth issue[[/note]]. It's got machine guns. [[spoiler:"Rubber bullets. Honest."]] It's got at least two decent-sized artillery pieces. It takes up three lanes on the highway. It even has a gyro-stabilized medical bed and can be piloted home by Alfred. It's a god-damned Bat-Tank.

* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill:
** The Sons of the Batman, who have turned their over-the-top violence as former Mutants to fighting crime instead of creating it. At one point, it's mentioned that they used napalm to break up a three card monte game. One SOB, after killing the aforementioned Nixon mask robbers, took a pair of wire-cutters and sliced off the store owner's fingers on one hand because, as he put it, "you did nothing to stop them."
** The nuke that nearly [[spoiler:killed Superman]] was ''designed'' to create a "nuclear winter" scenario.

* ThouShaltNotKill: Also behind Batman's dislike of guns.
** WordOfGod says that Batman didn't kill [[spoiler:the aforementioned Mutant who held the baby at gunpoint when he shot her with another Mutant's M-60, stating he shot her shoulder]]. The animated adaptation completely changes this sequence to remove the issue.
** Gruesomely played with when [[spoiler:Batman has the perfect chance to kill the Joker]] but still refuses to. [[spoiler:The Joker notices... and kills himself just to screw with Batman.]]

* TotallyRadical: See FutureSlang, above.
** Played for laughs when Carrie reprograms the Bat-Copter to accept verbal commands from her. In ''slang''.
--->'''Batman:''' [''to Bat-Copter''] Boosters! [''nothing happens''] '''Boosters!''' [''nothing happens''] What in the--?\\
'''Carrie:''' Peel.\\
[''cue Boosters'']
* TruthInTelevision: At the beginning two Mutants try and mug Bruce Wayne. They turn out to be {{Dirty Coward}}s when he sees them, they take into account his size, and run off when he stands his ground and is prepared to fight. It's common in RealLife for thugs like the Mutants to only target those who cannot defend themselves, and want nothing to do with those who can.
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture
* UnwittingPawn: [[spoiler:Two-Face to the Joker.]]
* UtilityBelt: Prominently featured in the first issue. Batman uses items from it to [[spoiler:defuse one of Two-Face's bombs]], and does a mental run-through of its items in boredom while he's waiting for [[spoiler:Two-Face to make his move on Gotham's Twin Towers]].
* WorfHadTheFlu:
** Despite having been catatonic for a decade and his injuries, Joker has a distinct edge over Batman. The same Batman that fought his way through the a police SWAT team and stopped at Batcave only to get supplies to investigate Joker's plan for the county fair before finally catching up to Joker in one night. Not only is Bats on his second wind for their final battle, but he's making the same mistake he did with the Mutant Leader: he's letting his feelings cloud his judgement against a much calmer opponent.
** This also applies to Superman when he fights Batman. He's not at 100% after the nuclear missile, as Batman notes the missiles he shoots at Superman wouldn't have been able to hit him otherwise.

* VomitingCop: Alluded to. After [[spoiler:SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker kills everyone at the TV studio]], somebody tells the commissioner that one of the rookies got sick and had to go home.
* YouAreTheNewTrend: Rather than ignoring the Sons of the Batman, he recruits them as his own personal army after disarming them and all but calling them out for being fools in their old tactics. Admittedly, he had stopped them from following their previous leader who was proclaiming "This is our chance to [[KillItWithFire raze Gotham]]... to '''purge''' Gotham."
* WhatTheHellHero: From Alfred after Bruce waxes on about Carrie's qualities as Robin:
--> '''Alfred''': Very well, sir, I shall come right out and say it. Have you forgotten what happened to Jason?

--> '''Batman''': (breaks a shotgun in two with his hands) This loud, clumsy, ''stupid'' thing... this is the weapon of the enemy. We do not need it. We will not use it.
** That being said, he will use them when they're necessary. In the first issue, he uses a rifle to shoot a grappling line between the Gotham Towers to [[spoiler: confront Two-Face and his henchmen]]. In the fourth issue, he uses [[spoiler:Commissioner Yindel's]] gun to shoot some plastic explosive. He also gets pushed into using one when taking on [[spoiler:three Mutant kidnappers who have a toddler as a hostage]]. The confrontation culminates with [[spoiler:Batman pointing one of the Mutant's guns (a frigging [[{{BFG}} M60 GPMG]]) at the last kidnapper, who is holding the hostage at gunpoint.]]

[[spoiler:'''Batman''': (Shoots the wall behind him and rescues the child) I believe you.]]
* DontMakeMeDestroyYou: Throughout the fight between [[spoiler:Batman and Superman]], Supes makes it clear from the start that [[spoiler:he doesn't want to kill Bats and practically begs him throughout to just give up so he doesn't have to.]]

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Of a sort. At the start of the story, Bruce has a mustache, but after a sleepwalk into the Batcave, Alfred notices that he's shaved it off... and he didn't realize he'd done it.

* FakingTheDead

* GodzillaThreshold: Discussed at length. During Commissioner Gordon and his replacement Yindel's first conversation, she asks him why he's allowed a vigilante like Batman to operate in Gotham. Gordon talks about the first time he heard the UrbanLegend that UsefulNotes/FranklinDRoosevelt let [[WorldWarII Pearl Harbor]] happen in order to get the US into WWII and stop the greater evil of the Axis. He went back and forth on whether it was morally acceptable if true, until he realized the whole thing was "too big" for him to judge. Issues later, after Batman [[spoiler:rallies the Sons of Batman and the Mutants to quell the mass riots]], Yindel finally realizes the same. When asked by an officer if they should do something, she can only respond "No. No. He's too big."

--> "Well folks, I've got good news and bad news. Heh... The good news is that the Soviets have withdrawn their forces from the island of Corto Maltese.... And the bad news, well... It looks like those Soviets are pretty bad losers, yes they are..."