Movie Review: "Batman: The Killing Joke" - Almost Perfect (SPOILERS)

When it comes to adapting an acclaimed and well-known book into film, there's always the responsibility of being faithful to the source, and if there is the need to change something, it has to work in the flow of the overall narrative. The fans of the source can also be hyper critical of the adaptation. I've done that myself with my reviews of the Justice League animated films, "The Flashpoint Paradox" and "War". But while those films were based on more recent stories, "Batman: The Killing Joke" is almost 30 years old and is considered an overall classic, and to adapt it into an animated film is a big deal. Does it succeed? For the most part yes, but there is something bringing the overall project down.

Since the original story is too short to adapt into film on its own, a prequel story centered around Barbara Gordon/Batgirl would also be part of the film. The film even begins in a very meta way with Barbara narrating that this probably isn't how the audience thought the story would begin. Her story is centered around Batgirl dealing with a criminal that has become obsessed with her. In context of the overall film, it serves as a parallel between Batman and Joker's relationship, while also acting as the catalyst for Batman's urge to want to talk to Joker about trying to end their rivalry peacefully.
But let's discuss the controversial aspect of the film that's had everybody talking: Barbara is infatuated with Bruce, she ends up kissing him, he reciprocates, and it leads to them having rooftop sex (with a gargoyle above them apparently watching very intently).
Let's backtrack a bit though. I may be the wrong, but the idea of a Batman/Batgirl relationship seemed to start in an episode of the 90's animated series, "Batgirl Returns", where in a dream sequence, Batgirl almost kisses Batman but is awoken before it happens. The stronger hints of a romance between the two came later on in the "Batman Beyond" animated series, apparently happening during the "New Adventures" era where she more or less became Batman's main partner after Dick quit being Robin. But the furthest things ever showed to get between the two was in the "Batman Beyond" follow-up comic from 2010-2014, where it was revealed that at one point, Barbara was pregnant with Bruce's child, but lost it early on while fighting off a group of muggers.
Personally, I'm indifferent to the idea of a Bruce/Barbara relationship. I see how it's weird in the way that it's like a non-biological uncle and niece getting together, but I really don't bent out of shape about it like others do.

The film is strongest when it finally reaches the actual story its based on. It's almost a word for word adaptation of the original story, with some dialogue changes. I actually did expect that to happen, because even reading the original story, Alan Moore has a certain style with his dialogue that sometimes felt off when reading it in Batman and Joker's voices. In the film, some things were changed but what I expected to be changed remained the same.
Aside from being a superhero film, if this were to be placed in another genre, it would be a psychological thriller. That being said, it's very light on the action. It's to be expected though since the original story was as well. But there still is some action, not only in the prequel story, but with Batman actually fighting off the sideshow henchmen Joker has at the carnival. On that note, I like that those henchmen bring more to the film than they did in the book, since they were really just there to add more surrealism to the situation. Back to the action though, it's not as over the top as the other recent DC animated films. I think that can be attributed to the Bruce Timm's animation style, which is mixed here with Brian Bolland's look from the original story. It's a very back to basics approach.

For some, the main draw of this movie is the return of Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprising their iconic roles of Batman and Joker. Honestly though, it would have been a crime to do "The Killing Joke" and not have either of them be a part of it. Conroy is in top form as usual, but it's Hamill that really shines in this film. Not only is it great to hear him speak the lines from the original story, but he brings quite a distinction between his Joker voice and during the flashback scenes where he was still a down-on-his-luck comedian, sounding a lot more timid. Something I noticed was how after the comedian emerged from the chemicals and became the Joker, his voice became a lot more raspy. You could say that in addition, to the chemicals bleaching his skin and hair, his voice was altered as well.
As for the rest of the voice cast, we have Tara Strong again playing Barbara with Ray Wise voicing the Commissioner, both delivering good performances. If there's one voice I wasn't feeling though, it was Robert Atikin Downes playing Harvey Bullock, though I may just be spoiled by Robert Costanzo.

The film's biggest highlight was Joker's big musical number, "I Go Looney". While Alan Moore contributed the lyrics in the book, it was up to the film makers to put together a melody that would work with the lyrics. They did an excellent job and it was pretty damn entertaining. Personally, I found the song's style to be reminiscent of Danny Elfman, making me think of his songs from "Nightmare Before Christmas", which really fits because Elfman's Batman theme is so iconic and served as inspiration for the scores heard on the Animated Series, where Conroy and Hamill made their debuts as the characters.

There are two controversial plotpoints in the original story that has had readers debating for years, evoking such discussion because how subtle they were executed. I actually wondered how the film would handle them.
The first implication is that Joker raped Barbara after shooting her pointblank and paralyzing her. While I could see how that can be perceived, I never got that impression from the comic. The film, however, gives a stronger hint. In his search for the Joker, Batman questions a group of prostitutes that Joker usually visits right after he breaks out of Arkham. However, they haven't seen him and believe that he probably found someone else to, shall we say, get his jollies. It's not stated right out, but I feel one could be able to put things together. It adds more horror to the situation as well since it's hinted at more in the film than in the graphic novel.
The second implication is that in the end of the story, Batman actually kills the Joker. After Joker tells his joke as the two share in a laugh, Batman places his hands on Joker's shoulders (or possibly neck) as it pans down to a puddle being hit by rain drops. Initially, "The Killing Joke" was meant to be non-continuity story, and some believe that due to one of the main points of the book being Batman believing that he'll end up killing the Joker or vice versa, Batman laughing and killing his nemesis could be a plausible ending, signifying that he gave into Joker's worldview. In the film, the two laugh, the camera pans down to the puddle, and the credits roll. There's no sign of Batman finishing Joker, and the interpretation I got is that because they know how their relationship works, it's a twisted version of a laugh between old friends, and that Batman's laugh is his resignation to that fact.

While I won't spoil the specifics, there is a mid-credits scene that brings about a silver lining to the otherwise dark ending and wraps up Barbara's story from the prequel.

All this said, the film is damn near perfect adaptation of "The Killing Joke" when it gets to the actual story. However, the prequel portion of the film hurts the overall product. The story there is fine, but it has very little bearing when it gets to the story everyone is there to see. Let's think back to Ron Howard's live action adaptation of the Grinch. There was A LOT of original material added to the film, but it was all building up to the main story people are familiar with. But with the "Killing Joke" film, it feels like two separate stories.

Overall, "Batman: The Killing Joke" is sure to please many fans of the book and the voice actors, making it a worthy addition to their film collections.

RATING: 7.5/10

Thoughts on the 'Batman v Superman' Ultimate Edition

Before 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' was released in theaters, it was revealed that an R-rated director's cut would be released when the film came to home video. Since then, the theatrical cut has divided fans and critics on whether it was a good film. Now the extended 'Ultimate Edition' has been released, and for some, the extra scenes really helped flesh out some plot points that were found to be confusing. As someone who had already enjoyed the film from its theatrical cut, I have to agree that the 'Ultimate Edition' does indeed help the film flow better. Personally though, I was able to follow along during the theatrical cut, even if we were just getting the gist of things.

While there were some scenes that were really just extensions of what was already in the film, there were two aspects of the 'Ultimate' cut that I thought expanded the overall story for the better.
The first is the Superman incident in Africa. We're actually shown what happened, and the specifics as to why Superman is blamed for the terrorists' deaths. I won't spoil the specifics, but there's a lot in this scene that would have been better left in the theatrical cut.
The second thing that the 'Ultimate' cut really approves on is the build-up and motivation for Superman's animosity towards Batman. You get the basic idea in the theatrical cut, but here, we're given a good parallel to Batman's own feelings toward Superman, specifically 'what gives this person the right to do what he does?' This is actually something I pointed out in my original review that Clark is projecting the feelings some have about Superman onto Batman.

Besides that, the 'Ultimate' cut is a bit more violent than the theatrical one, which was the main reason for its R-rating. I just thought it would be extended fight scenes and that it wouldn't be that noticeable, but it was, from gun-splatter coming from gun-shots to Batman slamming a thug's head so hard into a wall that he leaves a pretty big blood smear as he slides down to the floor. That part kind of reopened my uneasiness about how brutal this Batman could be. I still stick to my reasoning that Bruce isn't setting out to kill anyone directly, thinking once again of the Arkham games. That big blood streak doesn't help things though, and I'm glad that it wasn't in the theatrical version.

A couple more sidenotes:
* While it wasn't stated specifically before in the theatrical cut, Jimmy Olsen is indeed the undercover photographer CIA agent in the Africa scene, and he does gets shot. Before, I just thought, 'hey, maybe they just decided to call him Jimmy since he was paired with Lois.' Well, I'd like to give people some hope. Considering he was a CIA agent, it's possible that maybe he's not really THE Jimmy Olsen. When agents go undercover, sometimes they'll go under a false identity, or use someone else's credentials to get access to some place. I know this would kind of be a cop out, but hey, Marvel's teasing a REAL Mandarin coming to the MCU after the version from Iron Man 3 got a lot of criticism. Will we see the real Jimmy arrive in the DCEU? Who knows?
* In one of the extra scenes, someone is watching Jon Stewart on the Daily Show talking about Superman renouncing his U.S. citizenship. Okay, 1) While the movie features a lot of news commentators, they're from current shows. At the time of both cuts' releases, Jon Stewart had retired from the Daily Show at the end of Summer 2015. 2) Superman makes no declaration in this film. 3) They obviously just used that clip from a 2011 show talking about where in the comics, Superman had decided to renounce his U.S. citizenship (a storyline that really didn't go anywhere because DC rebooted with the New 52 soon afterwards). My point is, using this Jon Stewart clip just really took me out of the movie for a moment.

Overall, it seems that the 'Ultimate' cut is winning people over who didn't like the original version. Which brings me to my next topic: studio involvement affecting a film's quality. There have been two recent examples of this: Sony using 'Amazing Spider-Man 2' to try and launch their own Spider-Man cinematic universe, which backfired and ultimately led to Spider-Man coming to the MCU; Fox hating Josh Trank's cut of 'Fant4stic' and demanding reshoots (although when you get down to it, that film was going to fail no matter what cut). It seems 'Batman v Superman' is another victim though, because having to cut it down to a 2 hour 30 minute film affected the quality for some.
I honestly believe that some of what was cut could have stayed in the film, specifically more details on the Africa incident and Clark's motivations for going after Batman. The violence would still be scaled back and the scenes that had extensions could still be shortened. Plus, Jena Malone's scenes really had no bearing on the overall film (and unfortunately, she did not play Barbara Gordon). If anything, the film could have clocked in at 2 hours 45 minutes (the same length of 'The Dark Knight Rises') and may have gotten an overall better reception (aside from the people who already had their mind up to hate this movie no matter what).

While I enjoy that the 'Ultimate Cut' enhances the film's viewing experiences, my personal feelings for the film are no different from the theatrical version. I stand by my original score of 9.5/10

Rebirth Reviews Part 1: 'Batman' and 'The Flash'

Welcome to what will sure to be a long running series on this blog for who knows how long.
At the time of this post, DC's Rebirth initiative has wrapped up its first month of relaunches and things seem to be going well with mostly good reviews and issues sell-outs resulting in second printings. If you were ever interested in getting into DC, this would be the best time.
Everyone has their processes when it comes to reading comics, especially when it comes to line-wide relaunches like Rebirth. Some may decide to get the Rebirth one-shots and decide whether to get the new series following it. As for myself, I am mostly re-adding titles I was reading before but are starting over. However, I have decided to get the DC Universe Omnibus hardcover being released in December, so I'll have all the Rebirth one-shots in one place.
So when it comes to my Rebirth Review series, here's my projected guideline and time frame:
* I will only be reviewing the Rebirth one-shots that correspond with each new series, as those are meant to be a sampling for what's to come from that series while not being necessary.
* At first, I'll only be reviewing Rebirth one-shots for the books I buy regularly.
* Once the Rebirth omnibus is out, I'll be doing a whole month of reviews for the remaining Rebirth one-shots I have not read (and I've been doing my best to avoid spoilers for those).
* While I haven't totally committed to the idea, I might actually buy the first collected volumes of each new series and review those as well, or in the case of the books I'm currently reading, the first story arcs.

In my reviews of the one-shots, I'll be critiquing the writing, art, how it serves as a good jumping on point for new readers, and how it works to bring back some aspects of the pre-Flashpoint DC universe to the New 52 timeline.

So without further ado, let's begin out first Rebirth review with...

Written by Scott Snyder and Tom King

Art by Mikel Janin

After a nearly five year run on the book, Scott Snyder helps pass the torch to the new 'Batman' writer Tom King. The one-shot is a pretty straightforward issue with Batman dealing with a plan set in motion by the Calendar Man to poison Gotham, while also beginning to train new protege Duke Thomas, a character created by Synder during his run.

Well, maybe straightforward isn't the best word to describe this comic. While Calendar Man's plan is to poison Gotham with spores he created, it can only happen during Spring-like weather, so he had created a mechanism that speeds up the weather in Gotham to where all the seasons happen within one week, which is basically like living in Illinois. But aside from that, a new aspect has been added to the Calendar Man's character, where his body also ages with the seasons, where he eventually sheds his old skin and becomes young again every Spring. While the scene happens for only one page, the art is pretty good showing Calendar Man coming out of his old skin almost like he was a new born.

Moving on to Duke Thomas, he has been a supporting character in 'Batman' while also leading a street team of kids who all take on the Robin identity in the now finished "We Are Robin" series (which I haven't read but heard good things). Going into this issue though, Bruce has decided not to bring in Duke as his official new Robin (that role remains with his son, Damian), but gives him a mostly yellow and black costume that has more of bat-motif. While he hasn't gotten the name officially, many have presumed to call him 'Lark' based on a post-apocalyptic vision Bruce had during the 'Endgame' arc where Bruce was fighting alongside with Duke/Lark and Harper Row/Bluebird (another character created by Snyder early on in his run). Probably worth mentioning as well that it was during 'Endgame' that Duke's parents were poisoned with Joker's latest toxin and have been left comatose since then. While I like Duke's costume, I'm not too crazy about the name 'Lark' if that is what they go with. But I'm sure I'll get used to it and I like that it gives Duke his own identity straightforward, even if he was unofficially a Robin. My only complaint though is that Duke doesn't really do much but act as support, but we do see him training with Bruce in the end, so I'm sure at some point we'll see the two back-to-back while in combat with enemies.

But as for the star himself, Batman. There's not much to say other than it is Batman being Batman as we know him. I won't spoil how, but there are a couple instances where Batman puts himself on the line and even pulls off impossible situations where you'd think he wouldn't make it. Even Duke/Lark is surprised at Bruce's feats. I get the feeling this is something we'll see a lot with King's run on the book: Batman doing the impossible. Why? BECAUSE HE'S BATMAN! (Sorry, had to do it.)

The art of the one-shot is pretty damn good too, and it makes me wish Janin was going to be the main artist on the book. Nothing against David Finch, but I'd just like someone new to show off.

It's worth mentioning that while Scott Snyder is leaving 'Batman', he'll be starting a new series 'All Star Batman' with a rotating team of artists that will mostly focus on the villains. I think we got a sampling of that with this interpretation of Calendar Man. Snyder's created new villains like the Court of Owls and Mr. Bloom, used Joker for 'Death of the Family' and 'Endgame', Riddler for 'Zero Year', and gave Mr. Freeze an updated (though pointless in my opinion) origin, but it'll be cool to see what he does with the other rogues of Batman's gallery.

While I think this is a good jumping on point, giving us what to expect from a Batman comic while signifying a new direction for the title, it doesn't really do much in restoring elements lost from 'Flashpoint' because not that much was lost. If anything, it continues to build on what was previously established in the New 52 continuity, particularly Duke's progress, though I think new readers may be lost as to who he is without reading anything prior to this one-shot.

Overall, a good start that probably goes a little too fast and may leave some with questions, but still a good start.

Written by Joshua Williamson

Art by Carmine Di Giandomenico

In contrast, 'The Flash: Rebirth' is a clear starting point with a new writer and artist beginning here. I'll start by praising the art. I talked about Carmine's art before in my Spider-Man Noir review, and I have to say he is a really good fit for the Flash, creating a real sense of movement, which is important for a character with super speed.

The comic starts with Barry working a case with a dead wife and mother, a father in custody and suspect of murder, with a child as a witness, very similar to how Barry's own mother was killed. As he waits for test results in his lab, Barry does what he does best by helping others around the city as the Flash. Eventually, Barry is confronted by the pre-Flashpoint Wally West/Kid Flash. Now those who read the main DC Universe Rebirth special know that Wally had been trying to find someone in the DCU who remembered and knew him, only to be met with confusion as the Speed Force continues to erase him. Wally goes to Barry last, believing that even if Barry doesn't remember him, he could at least thank him for giving him a great life before he dies. Of course, Barry remembers and is able to pull Wally out of the Speed Force and save his life. While it is a bit of a condensed replay of the same scene from the main Rebirth one-shot from Barry's perspective, I felt the same emotional pull as before. We do get a little more interaction between the two, as Wally lets Barry know that he's going to go find and reunite with the Titans as Barry gives Wally his blessing to use the Flash identity as well. We'll get to Wally more whenever we get to the Titans Rebirth special, and I'm indeed planning to read the Titans series in trades.

So besides that, we get a little more follow-up to the mystery of the force Wally talked about that manipulated the DCU's history, with Barry going to the Batcave and compare notes with Bruce (who Wally had tried to contact before without success) about what may be going on, but decide to keep it to themselves for now since they don't have any concrete evidence.

Wally West's return to the main DCU is probably the most prominent pre-Flashpoint element being reintroduced in this one-shot (as well as the main Rebirth one-shot), but I noticed another one. Prior to 'Flashpoint', Barry and Iris were married and had a family, but that was erased once the New 52 began, and the two had remained friend. In one snippet, Barry had plans with Iris to go to the movie, but those plans were actually for the next day. It's kind of clever to make a 'Barry showed up early' joke rather than the usual 'Barry showed up late even though he has super-speed' gag. The point is, I think this is a clear sign that they're planning to reunite Barry and Iris as a couple, much like they're doing with Green Arrow and Black Canary in the Green Arrow book (which will also be covered later).

As much as I liked this book, I would have preferred it had more focus on the Flash. The case Barry is working on in the beginning is moved to the wayside to focus on Wally, and it ends up being written off with the husband confessing to the murder. It might have been better if it was Barry working to solve a murder, but not having a supervillain involved, showing how good he is in and out of the suit. However, I do like that we get a little more follow up from the main Rebirth one-shot. I don't know how many of the Rebirth one-shots will do something similar, but it could be a problematic. It's good to link things together, but it could take away focus from the new book you're trying to promote. Still, I think you could still read the Flash Rebirth issue on its own without having read the main Rebirth one-shot, but might want to check that out to see what was going on with Wally before he met up with Barry.

My minor criticisms aside, I enjoyed both these one-shots and felt they succeeded in what they set out to do: creating a jumping on point while reaffirming the continuity that came before them.

When the Rebirth Reviews series returns, we'll be taking a look at the Rebirth one-shots for Justice League, featuring the pre-Flashpoint Superman joining the familiar but different team, and Nightwing, with Dick Grayson back in black and blue.

Comics Review: "The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade" - Good Concept, Missed Opportunities (SPOILERS?)

In my personal opinion, Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" is the best Batman story of all time. Not only did it help define who Batman is even to this day, but when you start to think about it, much of what the comic book genre and everything related to it (movies, TV, and games) owes some credit to DKR. Between that and "Year One", these were the stories that made Frank Miller synonymous with Batman. Those stories were from the 80's though. By the time Miller returned to Batman for his "Dark Knight Strikes Again" sequel, something clearly happened to him that made him, well, bat-shit crazy. A theory many of had that when he began his work on "Sin City", he never left "Sin City". For starters, the simplistic style he took with "Sin City" has stuck. Seriously, just do a Google image search on both stories and compare them yourself. It's insane how far down Miller's once detailed style has fallen. His writing has suffered as well. "Strikes Again" was poorly received, but it was with "All Star Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder" where we saw just how far gone his mind was. His depiction of Batman of that story, who I'd like to refer to as "Bat-Marv", shows Batman taking delight in torturing criminals, belittling other superheroes and feeling cooler and smarter than them, and of course, this infamous meme:

Personally, I see "All Star Batman and Robin" as better than "Strikes Again" with Jim Lee's art alone. Story wise, it's so ridiculous that you just can't take it seriously, which makes it still somewhat entertaining. I mean, there was one issue where he painted himself, Robin, and a whole room yellow to mess with Green Lantern (who's ring doesn't work against yellow).

My point is, Frank Miller is way past his prime. So when it was announced that a third "Dark Knight" story was coming out, many people were worried. But if there was any hope, it was that Brian Azzarello was co-writing with Andy Kubert on art. From what I've heard, the still at this point ongoing "Dark Knight III: The Master Race" is an improvement over "Strikes Again", but it's mostly due to Azzarello, who is pretty much running the show with Miller more in a consultant role. We should all be worried though if Miller does a Dark Knight IV on his own like he wants to though.
But aside from the new miniseries, I had more interest in a one-shot that was also announced with "Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade", a prequel set 10 years before DKR that would show Jason Todd's death and Bruce's retirement (though has nothing to do with finding the holy grail). Azzarello and Miller would write while John Romita Jr. would be on art. Having read it, I can say that it is a good companion story to DKR but stops just short of being perfect...literally.

To start with the art, John Romita Jr. is in top form and brings probably his best work since his years on the Spider-Man books. It fits so well with Miller's style (which makes sense since they have worked together before), that I feel like this may have actually came out alongside DKR.
As for the writing, I felt it was on par with Miller's previous good work. While I'm sure much of the credit can go to Azzarello, it did kind of feel like 1980's Frank Miller went through a time-warp to the present and helped put this story together. A nice touch is that the thought and speech bubbles keep the same style from DKR. I think something that benefits this story is that this is solely focused on Batman and his world. Since after "Year One", Miller's other Batman stories (even currently with DKIII) have branched out to focus on the rest of the DC Universe, which has mostly resulted badly. Here, it's a clear and cut Batman story.

The characters are also written well that it seems natural that they end up where they do in DKR.
At this point, Bruce is 45 years old, middle aged and hair starting to gray. He knows he's getting old and that his body's failing him, but being Batman isn't something he can just stop doing. Bruce's struggle here is a good contrast to where he is later on in DKR, especially in his bloody and brutal encounters with Killer Croc. In DKR, we see an older Bruce returning to the role of Batman and trying to prove to himself that he can still be as good as when he was, which leads to him nearly being killed by the Mutant gang leader in their first battle. In "Last Crusade", Bruce has been Batman for years and is in denial that he's past his prime while still trying to do what he's always done.

Jason Todd is most well known as the Robin who died. What some may not know is that before his death in the mainstream continutiy, Miller is the one who killed Jason first with his death being referenced in DKR. In "Last Crusade", this is the first time we're actually shown Jason in one of Miller's Batman stories, and it's really interesting. First off, during a news report, some anchors talk about how Batman is pretty much guilty of child endangerment by bringing a young sidekick into dangerous situations, asking what kind of man does that and what kind of impact it has on the child. In turn, Bruce is worried about how Jason seems to take some joy in harming criminals. This does kind of have to make you think when it comes to adolescent heroes. In a world of good vs. evil and superpowers, what kind of impact does that have on a young person? With Bruce, he had years to prepare and train. Jason, and Dick before that, got their start early. In some ways, fighting and hurting bad people is an outlet for their aggression, which probably peaks once they enter puberty.
Bruce's worries about Jason is one of the reasons that's keeping him from retiring as Batman, while he can act as mentor and Jason takes on the role, but doesn't believe either of them are ready for that. This is really interesting. Most people see Dick, Tim, and even Damian being worthy of becoming Batman, but Jason Todd? First off, I'm not sure how old Jason is at this point, but I'm going to guess mid-teens given how he's drawn. Now, given Jason did try to usurp the role after Bruce's "death" during the "Battle for the Cowl" miniseries as a gun-toting Batman...

...but at this point, Jason had been killed, resurrected, and acted as anti-hero vigilante Red Hood. But Jason Todd becoming Batman with Bruce's blessing? That could be an interesting concept to look into.

The other prominent character in this story is the Joker. Given, he's mostly in Arkham after being apprehended by Batman and Robin, but it's there we see how dangerous he really is. He's able to manipulate the other inmates however he chooses. Sometimes he'll start a joke but leave it unfinished so they'll riot. Other times he'll cause them to mutilate themselves. Or he'll just have them attack the guards so he can use the chance to escape once again. Similar to how he's portrayed in DKR, Joker is a little more calm and collective when he wants to be, which would indeed make it hard to tell what he's planning. Compared to a more manic Joker that we're used to, I believe this makes this version of Joker all the more dangerous.

There's a lot that could have been done with this idea, but unfortunately, it seems like this one-shot was part one of a two-part story because it just ends.
I mean, first of all, let's talk about how it ends. After learning of Joker's latest escape, Jason wants to go out and get him before he can do anything deadly. But Bruce, badly injured after his battle with Killer Croc, tells Jason to stand down and wait for him to heal. Jason, wanting to prove himself, suits up as Robin and tracks Joker to one of his hideouts. As Jason picks the lock to break in, two of Joker's henchmen sneak up behind him and just beat him to death, all the while Joker sits and reads.
Now, Jason's death in the mainstream continuity was iconic. Everyone knows the details, with Joker beating him with a crowbar and leaving him in a warehouse that would explode. Jason in "Last Crusade" really goes out like a punk, getting sneaked up on by two thugs. I'm not saying they had to copy Jason's original death, but something along the lines of Joker torturing him to the point he dies would have been more impactful. And given Miller and Azzarello's styles, it may have been even more gruesome. To play devil's advocate though, I guess Jason's death here does go along with what Bruce was saying about him not being ready.
As I said though, it's at this point that the story just ends. I mean, we all know what happens with Jason's death affecting Bruce so much that he hangs up the cowl, but there's so much more that could have been done. Show Bruce in mourning for Jason, his interactions with Alfred, Gordon, Selina, and Dick, going on the warpath to bring Joker in, maybe even coming close to killing him, with the final moments of the story having Bruce close down the Batcave declaring "Never again."

For what it is, "The Last Crusade" succeeds in adding more to Miller's Dark Knight Universe, being able to capture the tone, look, and voice that made DKR memorable, even if it does feel we're only getting half the overall story.