“Batman: The Official Coloring Book”
Published by Simon and Schuster / Insight Editions
Art by Ze Carlos
Review by Steve J. Ray
One of the most joyous things a person who runs a Batman website can experience; bleary-eyed, half-awake, and desperate for their morning coffee, is opening up their email to find a new message from Insight Editions. This wonderful publisher has provided fans with such amazing tomes as The Batman Advent Calendar, Exploring Gotham City, and the legendary Batman: The Definitive History Of The Dark Knight. All these gorgeous volumes are reading books, so receiving an email about the possibility of reviewing Batman: The Official Coloring Book came as a bit of a surprise!
This is a book that’s, quite literally, all pictures… but, never let it be said that I’m not up for a challenge!
The artist, Ze Carlos, has managed to create detailed, stunning images of the Dark Knight, his associates, enemies, friends, and lovers, that are detailed and very comic-book inspired, but without using shadows or any patches of blacks or greys whatsoever. That, dear reader, is where we come in.
One of the greatest aspects of Batman: The Official Coloring Book is the fact that, while it’s quite clearly aimed at an adult audience, I know that there are a ton of parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents who would have a blast spending hours coloring in with the children in their lives.
My absolute favorite feature of this book is the price point… it’s just $11.99!* This means that I can keep my review copy fresh but would be quite happy to buy three or four more copies, rip the pages out and sit on the floor with friends, their kids, and my own nieces, and nephews, to bring color to the violent streets of Gotham City. While this may seem sacrilegious to some, I can’t think of anything more worthwhile!
I have to admit that I’ve already ordered a second copy and that this one will have its pages removed from their binding so that I can scan them in, and attempt to color them digitally, with ProCreate, or PhotoShop. The possibilities are endless!
Conclusion
While I am a fan of books I can read, Batman: The Official Coloring Book is a lovely release that will provide tons of fun in a completely different way. Buy one for yourself, the children, or the big kid in your life. Fill their day with a rainbow of Gotham City gorgeousness.
It’s available to buy from Tuesday, March 22nd.
ISBN: 9781647225520
Images and review copy courtesy of Insight Editions / Simon and Schuster
*$15.99 in Canada