Follow the author

Matt Wagner

+ Follow

More books from this author

Batman/Grendel Paperback – April 15, 2008

by Matt Wagner (Author, Artist)

4.1 22 ratings

See all formats and editions

Complete in one volume for the first time, the acclaimed stories that pit Gotham's dark detective against the embodiment of evil, written and drawn by Grendel creator Matt Wagner! Sleepless protector of his troubled but beloved city, Batman uncovers a new threat when Hunter Rose, the original Grendel, arrives in Gotham. It is a battle of might and minds as the Dark Knight faces off against this sophisticated and deadly assassin. Years later, Batman's ceaseless vigil is disturbed once again, this time by the twisted cyborg Grendel-Prime. Seeking an artifact of terrible dimensions, Prime will stop at nothing to achieve his ends!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The scheme to foil Ieyasu’s assassination that Hanzo set in motion in Battle for Power, Part One (2008) plays out successfully, but not without exposing Hanzo’s entire family to new murderous danger that Hanzo puts down just in time for his master Ieyasu’s first military move in the war to control Japan. Ieyasu seizes his first castle, and immediately after, the focus settles back on Hanzo, dispatched to find ultimate enemy Takeda Shingen’s hidden treasure. He unmasks treason and lethal treachery, instead. Clearly, Battle for Power, Part Two concludes little. Warfare barely begins in this sex-laced, bloody, uneasy installment of Koike and Kojima’s historical epic. --Ray Olson

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dark Horse (April 15, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 208 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1593078234
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1593078232
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 0.5 x 10.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #867,626 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,103 in Dark Horse Comics & Graphic Novels
- #12,178 in Superhero Comics & Graphic Novels
- #415,532 in Literature & Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.1 22 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Matt Wagner

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5

22 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

F. Chan

If you love Matt Wagner's Batman, then you'll love this one as well.

Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2008

Verified Purchase

I love Matt Wagner's work on Batman. I have every trade paperback featuring Batman written by this guy. In case you don't know what they are here is the list:

Batman: Faces
Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman: Trinity
Batman and the Monster Men
Batman and the Mad Monk
Batman/Grendel

As you all know by now, Batman/Grendel collects both mini-series of the Batman and Grendel encounters. The first mini-series features Batman and the Hunter Rose incarnation of Grendel. Hunter Rose manages to cleverly and ruthlessly blackmail two women who are close friends/roommates, a man named Leonard Ross, and at the same time fool the police and Batman as well. All the fighting and action doesn't really take place until the second(and final) issue of the mini-series. I won't spoil anything beyond that. The second mini-series features Batman against a cyborg Grendel called Grendel Prime. Grendel Prime has come from the future to steal the bones(specifically the skull) of the now deceased Hunter Rose. The bones were part of a museum exhibit called Gotham City Killers, which was displaying artifacts of Batman's enemies. Unlike the first mini-series, this was an all out fight and Batman gets beat up badly at one point. Robin makes a brief appearance in the final battle and plays a key role in defeating Grendel Prime. Even though Wagner never reveals the identity of this Robin, I'm going to assume that it's Tim Drake because thankfully Robin's costume did not feature short shorts and pixie boots. Tim was the first Robin to have a costume that did not feature shorts and pixie boots(not counting Dick Grayson's Robin costume in Nightwing: Year One). With all that being said I thought this was a very nice collection and I liked the fact that a sketchbook was included at the end of the book as well. If you liked Matt Wagner's other works on Batman, make sure you get this one as well.

13 people found this helpful

Helpful

P. Cunningham

Ddd

Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2021

Verified Purchase

This seller was great! I never write reviews. But this order was the finest quality used book I’ve ever purchased. Exactly how it was described. It also arrived FOUR DAYS before its earliest expected date. Thanks!

Helpful

woodrow locksley

More Hunter Rose No Grendel Prime

Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

If you like Batman and Grendel this volume is for you. This is a good but not great collection of two graphic novels in which Batman confronts two versions of Grendel The first story which features Hunter Rose, the original Grendel is great. The comparison between Grendel and Batman is good but the comparison of Hunter Rose and Bruce Wayne is excellent. The parallel stories of two women onewho gets involved with Rose and onewho gets involved with Bruce Wayne also adds texture to the story This story gets five stars The second story is mostly fight scenes and features Grendel Prime the killer cyborg who is the weakest of the Grendels in being interesting This story gets three stars so four stars for asolic collection Worth buying and owning

Helpful

owen

Cover separated from book on first reading.

Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2019

Verified Purchase

I didn't even get half way thru the book before the cover separated completely from the comic. Bought it for some reference work, so not pissed as a collector, but it's unfortunate.

Helpful

Alexandra Torbycz

Well done 2 story collection of great opposites

Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2008

I'm not familiar with the character of Grendel at all, but am very well read when it comes to Batman. This trade collects two stories, the first being Batman's confrontation with the hunter rose version of Grendel, the second being a Grendel from the future being sent back to present time. The first is more or an intellectual story, less fighting more talking. While the second is more of a straight up Batman fighting Grendel story. So you get a little of each with this one. Definately worth picking up if you're into either character.

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Spartacus

Decent...

Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2012

I'm a fan of both batman and grendel, but I found this to be more or less disappointing. It's definitely got some of Wagner's style, but truly it's unbalanced and uneven.

Helpful

eShu

Wagner plays favorites.

Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2011

Let me start by saying that I'm a fan of Matt Wagner's work, both on Batman and his own "Grendel" series.

This book contains two Grendel encounters with the Batman: the first featuring Hunter Rose and the second featuring Grendel Prime

And the problem in both is that Wagner clearly wants his baby to shine.

In the first story, with Hunter Rose, Grendel is portrayed as the far more brilliant tactician and always seems to be a step ahead. Wagner's Batman, unfortunately, seems devoid of the "World's Greatest Detective" trait that's almost as well honed (if not more so) as his physicality. And here again, Wagner plays favorites. While Grendel is portrayed as more agile and stealthy, Batman seems almost clumsy by comparison.

Even Bruce Wayne suffers, being called an immature teenager by one of the female protagonists. Hunter Rose, on the other hand, gets fawning raves as a sophisticated bon vivant.

Batman fares slightly better in the second story where he seems to have been given back his powers of deductive reasoning. He's able to solve several of the mysteries this new Grendel presents. However, Wagner still spends epic prose on his cybernetic Grendel from the future...portraying him almost as a noble Warrior God. Batman, on the other hand, is treated as almost just another cop but with cool toys.

I was hoping for a story where two darkly similar "vigilantes" matched brain and brawn in an interesting game of "cat and mouse" ("bat and mouse?") unfolding. Instead, Wagner seems to want to use the Batman as a secondary character against which to showcase Grendel.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Xavier Zavala Heras

No exitement for a Batman story

Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2009

I got this book only because of the reviews in this page and for this reason only. Oh man, I should keep searching for reviews out there. I am (after this at least) not a fan of Matt Wagner... not his way to write nor his way to draw Batman. The ilustrations are square and dry as so his way to write; I mean, if you read this you must realize how BORING this is on the first part of the book. The way Hunter Ross gimmick both GCPD and Batman is good though, I'll give him that, but he's more into the secondary characters story that from time to time you can't avoid to flip pages in order to check if Batman is in the story at all.
The book have a couple of good things, but I personally regret of buying this. Of course, I'm not the owner of truth and this might like it to you. Matter of taste!.

Helpful