History ComicBook / ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth

* ElectroconvulsiveTherapyIsTorture: Dr Amadeus Arkham really does use the ECT machine for torture and murder, subjecting Mad Dog Hawkins to "treatment" that slowly fries him alive as revenge for what Hawkins did to his wife and daughter. This being a) the 1920s and b) Arkham Asylum, it's dismissed as an unfortunate accident. Meanwhile, Maxie Zeus is subject to electroconvulsive, but [[AvertedTrope doesn't find it torturous]], in fact, it feeds into his delusions of being the god of lightning.

* TranquilFury: Amadeus Arkham enters this when he is charged with dealing with his family's killer, ultimately leading him to electrocute him to death several months later.

A 1989 Franchise/{{Batman}} graphic novel written by Creator/GrantMorrison and beautifully, creepily illustrated by Creator/DaveMcKean.

** Much like in ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', Dr. Destiny had his original rational for his SkullForAHead (the JLA ridding him off the ability to dream shriveling up his face) extended to affecting his whole body, becoming an emaciated figure in a wheelchair. In their notes in collected editions, Morrison even notes they never bought that Dee would've only had a skull-looking face because of what happened.

* RealityWarper: Doctor Destiny gets portrayed this way here, although he's actually ''less'' scary than in ''ComicBook/TheSandman''.

* TheUnfought: Lots and lots. Batman only fights Killer Croc, and assaults both Clayface and Dr. Destiny. But the rest of the rogue gallery goes completely unfought - Joker, Two Face, Black Mask, Mad Hatter, Maxie Zeus, Scarecrow...

* TheCameo: Lots of classic Batman villains make background cameos, like Black Mask and Tweedledee & Tweedledum, some in a blink-and-you'll-miss-them kind of way. Then there's Scarecrow, whose presence takes up several panels, but does little more than walk from one end of the corridor to the other end.

* PlayedForHorror: The comic takes many of the [[RoguesGallery recurring villains]], strips them of any kind of silliness, and plays their most notorious traits for horror: For example, Dr. Destiny is no longer a creepy but somewhat cartoonish man in a cloak and a skull face, but [[spoiler:an emaciated, withered man trapped in a wheelchair. It's implied that he still possesses his terrifying dream powers as well]], the Mad Hatter is hinted at being a pedophile, etc.

* PaedoHunt: Mad Hatter is reinvented as a pedophile here. Also, Amadeus and his wife are hinted to have sexually abused their young daughter and Mad Dog definitely raped her

* AGodAmI: Maxie Zeus, to rather disturbing effect. He considers himself [[GenderBender both man and woman]] and bids Batman to eat of his body and drink his blood... or maybe he's referencing the result of losing control of his sphincter due to electroshocks.

* AGodAmI: Maxie Zeus, to rather disturbing effect. He considers himself [[GenderBender both man and woman]] and bids Batman to eat of his body and drink his blood... or maybe he means the result of loosing control of his sphincters due to the electroshocks.

* CreepyCrossdresser: Amadeus dresses up in his mother's wedding dress after discovering the corpses of his wife and daughter. Dr. Cavendish wears a bridal gown during the climax. Finally, the Joker a more downplayed case as he is seen wearing high heels. Although, in the original script, Joker was supposed to dress similar to Madonna in her "Open up your heart" music video.

* AGodAmI: Maxie Zeus, to rather disturbing effect. He considers himself [[GenderBender both man and woman]] and bids Batman to eat of his body and drink his blood... or maybe he means the result of loosing control of his sphincters due to the electroshocks.

* ElectroconvulsiveTherapyIsTorture: Dr Amadeus Arkham really does use the ECT machine for torture and murder, subjecting Mad Dog Hawkins to "treatment" that slowly fries him alive as revenge for what Hawkins did to his wife and daughter. This being a) the 1920s and b) Arkham Asylum, it's dismissed as an unfortunate accident.

* ElectroconvulsiveTherapyIsTorture: Dr Amadeus Arkham really does use the ECT machine for torture and murder, subjecting Mad Dog Hawkins to "treatment" that slowly fries him alive [[spoiler:as revenge for his wife and daughter]]. This being a) the 1920s and b) Arkham Asylum, it's dismissed as an unfortunate accident.

* ElectroconvulsiveTherapyIsTorture: Dr Amadeus Arkham really does use the ECT machine for torture and murder, subjecting Mad Dog Hawkins to "treatment" that slowly fries him alive. This being a) the 1920s and b) Arkham Asylum, it's dismissed as an unfortunate accident.

[[LiteraryTitleAllusion The title is taken from]] Creator/PhilipLarkin's poem "Church Going".

The title is taken from Creator/PhilipLarkin's poem "Church Going".

** It's 20 years later, but in his ''[[ComicBook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Batman and Robin]]'' series Morrison has Joker admit to the new Robin, Damian Wayne, that he isn't really crazy ("just different sane") and affirms Damian's accusations that he really isn't as crazy as he lets everyone think he is, confirming that these doctors are not meant to be taken seriously and ComicBook/TheJoker is supposed to be nothing more than a sophisticated ManipulativeBastard . Again, this is ''20 years later'', so its not exactly the best authority on the subject, even if it is the same author.

--> '''Batman''': Take your filthy hands off me!
--> '''Joker''': What's the matter? Have I touched a nerve? How is the Boy Wonder (Jason Todd)?[[note]]This took place before ''A Death in the Family'' but the latter was published after this[[/note]] Started shaving yet?
--> '''Batman''': Filthy degenerate!
--> '''Joker''': Flattery will get you nowhere.

* CharacterDevelopment: The whole point of the plot is Batman overcoming his own personal demons and issues to become a true hero. Grant Morrison notes in the annotated script that the ending is meant to symbolize Batman's transformation from a hurt little boy obsessing over the death of his parents to the brilliant detective hero of [[Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Morrison's Batman epic]]. Essentially it's the death of one interpretation and the birth of another.

* CreepyDollhouse: Amadeus Arkham returns home to find [[spoiler: an escaped mental patient has killed his wife and daughter.]] During the scene, Arkham focuses on his daughter's dollhouse, where he sees [[spoiler: his daughter's head through one of the windows.]]
* {{Deconstruction}}: The comic dives into the psychological issues surrounding the mentalities of the Caped Crusader and his rogues' gallery. Batman's rigid and stoic demeanor is just his way of covering his severe emotional issues and sexual repression, Mad Hatter's love of blond little girls is taken to [[PaedoHunt outright pedophilia]], and Maxie Zeus is a weak skeletal man with [[AGodAmI a huge messiah complex]] and who has developed an addiction to electroshock therapy.

* TheCameo: Lots of classic Batman villains make background cameos, like Black Mask and Tweedledee & Tweedledum, some in a blink-and-you'll-miss-them kind of way. Then there's Scarecrow, whose presence takes up several panels, but does little more than walk from one end a the corridor to the other end.

* TakeThat: In the 15th Anniversary edition, in the beginning of the script, Morrison writes that the script was passed around to many others before the project was completed, and that they all laughed at his attempts to integrate serious psychological symbols into a comic. Look at him now, "@$$holes!".

A 1989 Franchise/{{Batman}} graphic novel written by Creator/GrantMorrison [[MushroomSamba at their crackiest]] and beautifully, creepily illustrated by Creator/DaveMcKean.

** Like, for instance, one little inscription that's scratched into the doorway of Maxie Zeus' electroshock chamber ''[[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign in Greek]]'', which is significant to the scene, and it translates to "Discover thyself." Again, the artwork is very loosely defined (and in some cases [[WhatCouldHaveBeen bypasses the original script)]].

* CreepyCrossdresser: Amadeus dresses up in his mother's wedding dress after discovering the corpses of his wife and daughter. Dr. Cavendish wears a bridal gown during the climax. Finally, the Joker a more downplayed case as he is seen wearing high heels. [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Although, in the original script, Joker was supposed to dress similar to Madonna in her "Open up your heart" music video.]]

* HollywoodPsychology: The brilliant idea that ComicBook/TheJoker reinvents himself every day because he finds reality so overwhelming, so that he might be a harmless prankster one moment and a homicidal maniac the next. Amongst other things, this reconciles the wildly different versions of the character that have appeared since the 40's. The problem is the doctors call this "Super Sanity" and imply that perhaps he is perfectly sensible to live this way, maybe more so than the rest, and that this "Super Sanity" is unprecedented. Apart from not knowing what sanity means, the doctors are actually describing a very much precedented condition, namely dissociation or a psychotic break from reality, albeit an extreme case. Maybe {{justified|Trope}}[=/=]{{subverted|Trope}} since the doctors are obviously quacks, but the term has become popular in the Joker's fandom.

* LiteraryAllusionTitle: That is line 65 from Phillip Larkin's poem [[http://www.artofeurope.com/larkin/lar5.htm "Church Going"]], that describes the fascination Larkin, an agnostic, feels for churches, recognizing that even when humanity will lose all faith in gods, it will always need churches as a place to reflect about life, death, marriage, etc... then you realize that the comic is about a BedlamHouse, and [[FridgeHorror humanity will always need a place like that...]]

* WorldOfSymbolism: Morrison's script was chock full of pop psychology, Tarot, the occult, medieval Christian mythology, and more. [=McKean=]'s creepy-ass surreal artwork just takes Morrison's three-layers-deep mythology and turns it into swirling horror. [[ThrowItIn Morrison didn't mind.]]

* TheComicallySerious : The Batman here is intentionally depicted at his most humorless, as a commentary on his borderline psychotic 1980s incarnations.
* ComingOfAgeStory: The late bloomer variant; in the comic, Batman is mentally a child as he's sexually repressed and possesses a cocktail of emotional issues. [[BreakingTheBadass The arc of the story is breaking Batman's immaturity by forcing him to confront his childhood trauma]] so he can mentally reset as the caped crusader who will defend Gotham with his life.

A 1989 Franchise/{{Batman}} graphic novel written by Creator/GrantMorrison [[MushroomSamba at his crackiest]] and beautifully, creepily illustrated by Creator/DaveMcKean.

A 1989 Franchise/{{Batman}} graphic novel written by Creator/GrantMorrison [[MushroomSamba at their crackiest]] and beautifully, creepily illustrated by Creator/DaveMcKean.

* AllThereInTheScript: The only way to really understand the sheer amount of symbolism and imagery stuffed in this story is by buying the 15th Anniversary Edition, which includes the annotated script. It explains the use of some images, some of the stuff that was cut out, and (not to diss Mr [=McKean=] or anything) helps to clarify what's happening in some of the more abstractly illustrated scenes.

** Much like in ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', Dr. Destiny had his original rational for his SkullForAHead (the JLA ridding him off the ability to dream shriveling up his face) extended to affecting his whole body, becoming an emaciated figure in a wheelchair.

* TakeThat: In the 15th Anniversary edition, in the beginning of the script, Morrison writes that the script was passed around to many others before the project was completed, and that they all laughed at their attempts to integrate serious psychological symbols into a comic. Look at them now, "@$$holes!".