Review by Frank Plowright

An all-ages graphic novel set around Arkham Asylum and its inhabitants is on the face of it a morbidly unsuitable idea, but Art Baltazar and Franco (Aureliani) are a proven quality act on series aimed at young audiences, and that sure is a cheerful bunch on the cover. Only the young Bruce Wayne hasn’t caught the mood.

In this world Arkham is a residential tower owned by the Wayne business empire, and home to some cheery and extremely individual individuals. As seen on Baltazar’s sample art, the Joker believes the building talks to him, and he then takes us on a tour of the other folk living there, who’re beanie baby cute versions of Batman’s villains. The plot has the young Bruce, whose parents are still alive, being drawn to the freedom over in Arkham Apartments. The folk there are so wild they don’t even have set bedtimes!

As well as drawing adorable recreations of the villains, these with a digital brightness, Baltazar produces a great contrast in the young Bruce, always stiff in his old fashioned clothes. He also throws in some funny jokes, such as Bruce forever getting lost in Wayne Manor because it’s so vast.

Given the age group ArkhaManiacs is aimed at, the villains are playful, and at worst irritating rather than in any way threatening, but despite the fun, the concept remains problematical. It makes sound commercial sense to capture readers when young and have them progress through the assorted age appropriate iterations of their characters. However, are Batman’s sometimes terrifying villains the right choice, no matter how cheerful they are here? There’s also a slight presumption that readers will already be aware of Killer Croc, Poison Ivy and the Scarecrow.

Putting all that to one side, Baltazar and Franco’s trip to Arkham is joyous fun reinforcing the power of imagination. Older readers will find plenty of sneaky little jokes that will pass over children’s heads, like a great Bane gag, and the kids will love the anarchy.