Customer Rating:  
Summary: Thank goodness it's in TPB!
Comment: I came across 2 pages of this about two years ago online, and spent over a year tracking down the 4 issues from 3 different online comic book stores. So of course, NOW it's in trade paperback. ;)
Essentially, the Joker thinks he's killed Batman, and without Batman, there can be no Joker, so he (somehow, conveniently) forgets who he was, creates a whole new, fairly normal, yet haunted, identity for himself, and builds a life, complete with a job in an office and a girl.
It really brings out the theme that without Batman, there can be no Joker, and the idea that (as discussed in Batman Begins, for example) perhaps Batman is just exacerbating the crime problem by existing, rather than helping it.
The art is really the weakness of it, but the story is engaging and unique, and this really should be listed as one of the essential Joker stories, along with The Killing Joke and Devil's Advocate. And now that it's in TPB instead of scattered across different stores, maybe it will be.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Another Gem From the "Legends of the Dark Knight" Series
Comment: "Going Sane" is an enjoyable take on the Joker by J.M. DeMatteis and Joe Staton, and is collected here for the first time in an apparent attempt to cash in on the "Dark Knight" movie. Even though the artwork and the Joker characterization are a little cartoonish (it's a comic book, after all), DeMatteis writes a brilliant Joker and Batman. In fact, reading this story makes me wish that the current Grant Morrison "Batman: RIP" series was as coherent in its grasp of Batman on the brink of losing his sanity. The backup story, by Eddie Campbell and Bart Sears, is also from the "Legends" series. It appears that, instead of reprinting the entire "Legends" series in paperback or hardcovers, DC is releasing different story arcs as trade paperbacks. I'll take whatever I can get--it was one of the higher quality Batman titles in recent years.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Intriguing look at the relationship of Batman and the Joker
Comment: Batman: Going Sane is a not too well-known Batman tale that should give any comic fan food for thought. Going Sane finds the Joker thinking that Batman is finally dead and gone, but what is a criminal psychopath to do? Clean up, that's what! Written by J.M. DeMatteis (Formerly Known as the Justice League, Spider-Man: Kraven's Last Hunt), Batman: Going Sane finds the Joker attempting to lead a normal life, and even finding love, as he thinks Batman is dead. Naturally though, Batman is still alive and kicking, and once he heals and comes back, well, what do you think happens? While Batman: Going Sane is an intriguing look at the relationship between Batman and the Joker, it is sadly predictable. That aside, Going Sane is nevertheless enjoyable, and there's enough here to hold your interest as well. All in all, Batman: Going Sane is worth your time, as long as you don't expect too much out of it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Love Hurts
Comment: What would the Joker do if Batman no longer existed? Would he actually do the unimaginable, go straight, or as the title alludes to, go sane? According to J. M. DeMatteis, he would do exactly that. While under the assumption that he had killed the Dark Knight, thus losing his muse, mojo, and mirth combined in one fateful evening, he indeed joins the ranks of the everyday masses and in the process finds love. Meanwhile Batman, having suffered near fatal injuries due to the aforementioned incident, is under the care of a female doctor at her personal residence outside of Gotham and experiencing his own pangs of affection. At this point the message becomes abundantly clear. Since the appearance of Batman on the scene initially created the Joker, can his presumed permanent disappearance therefore uncreate him? An intriguing if not necessarily original premise, but other questions do arise. If the Joker can let go of Batman, can Batman let go of the Joker, and can they both find normalcy and happiness apart and leave their troubled alter egos behind? For Batman at least, the answer is no, with his obsession over the Joker, or any villain for that matter, being stronger than any love of a woman. His return to health and Gotham subsequently triggers the return of the equal obsession that the Joker has for him, thus ending his romance as well. They both need each other and their kinky kinship above all else. Certainly a scary thought, and one psychiatrists would love to analyze, but make room on that couch, since we are just as guilty of savoring the perverse pleasure of wanting their sordid situation to continue. As far as the two lovelorn ladies forsaken by these recidivist rascals, classify them under star crossed lovers, because anybody involved in a relationship with these two never stood a chance. No one said love was easy.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Promising Story, Ruined by Terrible artwork!
Comment: A great premise is ruined by some of the worst artwork ever produced by Joe Staton. Don't get me wrong, I have all the repect in the world for Mr. Staton. I enjoyed his work on Two-Face strikes twice, where he mimics a Golden Age art style, but his work does not scream psychlogical thriller.
DeMattis writes a script which tries to shed some light on the Joker's past self, and he does a fine job, but the art is just completely inappropriate for the story. Joe Staton's cartoony visuals just don't fit the story being told and what we have here is the biggest misfire from the fine Legend of the Dark Knight series from the 90s.
What a shame! If the editor of this book has not apologized to Mr. DeMattis for the bad creative decisions on the art, then he should do so. He should also say sorry to the rest of us who were robbed of a potential classic.
The other story is one from Legends of the Dark Knight #200, which features some good artwork from Bart Sears, but the story of the Joker's assualt on a hospital ER seemed not to be fully developed and felt rushed and ill conceived. Skip it.
Story: 4 stars, Art: 0 stars.
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