WARNING: Late Arrival Spoilers abound for Bloodborne.
The Man who Sold the World
is a multicrossover starring Bloodborne as its core concept.
"What happens after the Hunter transcends the hunt?" is basically the premise of the story. The Hunter, a regular 23-year-old guy, gets thrown into the world of Bloodborne. After dying countless times he finally completes the adventure and ascends to 'godhood'. Fed up with the nightmarish realm of Yharnam he decides to leave... to Gotham. Cue him having a nice friendship with Batman, since they don't see eye to eye on everything.
This story provides examples of:
- Anti-Hero: The Hunter is violent, isn't afraid of slaughtering people and is an Eldritch abomination (just seeing his true form or touching the old blood can turn you insane). Still, he only attacks as self defense and does so with the intent of putting an end to crime.
- Asshole Victim: Black Mask may suffer a horrible death, but considering his background and the fact that he started it himself, it can be somewhat hard to feel compassion. Certainly, no one In-Universe did. His lackeys may be a minor example of this.
- The hunter surrendered and told Batman he would walk free , which is why he surrendered. Batman didn't believe him (seems more like a state of denial than any kind of belief, as it was absurdly obvious that this is exactly what was going to happen since it's just superheroes and maybe a few other legal system fanatics who really care about the good-being of the villains ) . Naturally, despite all of the video footage, etc. and the hunter not even trying to hide or deny what he did, the jury finds him not guilty. Isn't justice great?
- Big Good: The hunter became this for the people of Yharnam, who see him as the incarnation of Oedon the formless due to him transcending the Hunt.
- The Chessmaster: The Doll may hide a few details, otherwise it would be impossible for her to make the assumption the hunters' arcane abilities are 'parlor tricks'. Who knows...
- The Dreaded: The Hunter is starting to develop this reputation, seeing how he single-handedly destroyed one of Gotham's most important criminal bands, slaughtering them all.
- Eldritch Abomination: The Hunter certainly qualifies, being a Great One now. He uses it to great effect in several occasions.
- Grim Reaper: The Hunter is labeled this way before he announced his name to the public. Some still do.
- Holding Back the Phlebotinum: The Hunter is reluctant to use the full power that being a Great One grants him, preferring to fight as he used to when still mortal.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Taking away someone's sanity to the point you drive them to suicide isn't good at all. But for all the brutality of his methods you can't help but agree with him seeing the villains' track record: if they die, they won't go back from prison (which they always do) and harm innocents.
- Improbable Weapon User: The burial blade isn't the most traditional of weapons.
- Lemony Narrator: Just take a look how this begins:"Dreams do come true my ass! This wasn't what it meant! That saying means 'something you have wanted very much for a long time has finally happened'. I did not want my dream of being in the hellish town of Yharnam to come true. I did not want to wake up in Iosefka's Clinic, bound to a gurney and forcefully transfused with blood that would force me down the path of a fucking Hunter! Whoever that blind, wheelchair riding asshole was I hope he finds the longest set of stairs in the whole town and roll off it and die. I did not dream of being mauled by a werewolf or waking up to get a lecture from I'll make a sex doll in your likeness Gehrman. I did not dream of being forced to kill insane townspeople or being killed by the same lunatics!"
- Names to Run Away From: The Grim Reaper for the Hunter.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Lex Luthor invokes this idea on the Hunter: both of them are preoccupied with the rampant crimes and think the league of justice is too lenient, thus they need more... terminating means.
- Person of Mass Destruction: Green Lantern gives this classification to the hunter upon seeing his profile.
- Physical God: They abound in the DC universe, but in this story so far there's only the Amygdala's and the Hunter. Probably because they are only physical gods. The Hunter and Amygdala and the rest of the Great Ones are as beyond them as any Lovecraftian god is beyond everything. DC simply has nothing that can compare to the sheer otherness and vastness of a Great One's existence. Their mere existence changes reality throughout the cosmos.
- Well, except the New Gods. Remember Final Crisis?
- Titled After the Song: The story is named after the song and album by David Bowie.
- Undying Loyalty: The Doll, as per canon, is loyal to the hunter beyond reason.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: The Hunter kills people ruthlessly but he sees it as a way to put an end to Gotham's nightmare — and is very careful not to spread his blood, since it would bring out the scourge of beasts, the last thing he wants — which is what brings him to support (temporarily at least) Lex Luthor as president.
- Wife Husbandry: A reverse example: The Doll is implied to do this, judging her monologue midway of chapter 7.
