Apparently I don't like graphic novels. I have nothing to compare this to, and I found the plot kind of hard to follow, since it had the dialogue all over the page; nor was it particularly scary to me. Give me a good old Hannibal Lecter any day. ( )

First, what I need to say upfront: this is one of those books about peripheral characters in a series. It is the kind of story that you may or not like, and it is often a book just made to milk a franchise. With that out of the way, overall, it is a fairly good book, even though it does start very slow at first. However, once the pace picks up, it does hold on to you until the very end. In addition, the author does provide a pretty nice afterword with a dedication that is a bit of a twist. Worth a look for that.

The real strength in this book is the art. That is why I tagged it for my "art and photography" shelf as well as for my "graphic novels and comics shelf." Sure, there is a story in here: the story of one of the nurses working at Arkham Asylum, but you know the real interesting stuff are the inmates, and we do get a pretty good look at some of them. The nurse's story is kind of so-so. Now, the Joker as always steals the show and delivers a few twists and turns. However, as I said, the strength is really in the art and images of the book. The book is a pleasure to just look at and linger over. Definitely worth reading just for that. ( )

2/2.5
The art style inconsistency took me out of the story SO hard, and while this was a “day in the life of xyz at the asylum,” type of read it did not go ANYWHERE. There was no strong conclusion for the inmates or the people employed at Arkham, and the only things I found enjoyable were the bits about the Joker’s obsession with the Antique’s Road Show and his own antiques/way of using them. Sabine was very unlikeable/annoying to me, the story was hard to follow at times as well. Horror/superhero/villain/day in the life stories are usually a hit for me so this was a disappointing one! And I am aware that the artist was intentionally using different mediums, I just don’t believe it worked. ( )

Tick, tick, tock, it didn't walk the walk. ( )

I bought this way back in March I think, but read it on Sunday during a power outage. How appropriate.

Sabine is a nurse who works at Arkham Asylum and picks up a 24 hour shift. Will the stifling madness get to her? Will the Joker? Or is it just another 24 hours?

It's refreshing to have a Batman book without Batman in it. Seriously, he's mentioned maybe once. By a child. This certainly isn't a Batman story. This is an Arkham Asylum story. It's what it says on the label.

So, you all know I'm a huge Sam Kieth fan, I've read some of his other Batman books, Scratch, Batman: Secrets, Batman/Lobo (Mental note: Read more Lobo, I always enjoy Lobo when I read him.), Batman: Through the Looking Glass, along with myriad of his original works, so I know what to expect when it comes to Kieth.

This was sort of a mixed bag. The story is full of Sam Kieth tropes. Troubled women, troubled lesbians, weak women who aren't really weak, animal death, onomatopoeia that symbolize insanity and so forth.

I found myself comparing AA:M Joker to Batman: Secrets Joker and in all ways, I prefer Secrets when it comes to The Joker. The way Kieth wrote and rendered Mister J in Secrets was off-the-wall, sadistic, freaky, creepy, and wacky. This Joker is just ugly. I mean that in the nicest way possible. But he's too...subtle, too beefy. There were no real interesting puns or turns of phrase, opting instead for an Antiques Roadshow call out. And his big revelation? I've seen it done better in HBO's OZ.

By contrast, Harley was written really, really well. She was dark, strong, snarky, and tough. Also, I liked her design. Kieth did it before the New 52, and Kieth did it better.

Speaking of, the art was also sort of hit-and-miss. You could see the framework of Kieth's figures, errant pencil lines that were meant to be erased but never were. Character design choices were also a little questionable. Scarecrow and Two-Face were just...odd. You're drawing Arkham, go crazy! Literally!

On the other hand, there are some positively amazing painted works, Killer Croc is breath-taking in scope and weight but there's also a sort of grace. And there's a cute panel of Harley cuddling Ivy.

After having time to reflect on the ending, I think I liked it. It has a sort of ominous feeling that leaves me wondering how long Sabine will live with her choices before she regrets it.

Good things, not so good things, but it looks good on my shelf, so that's something. ( )