The Dark Knight Strikes Again is a Batman graphic novel by Frank Miller. It is a sequel to Miller's The Dark Knight Returns.
It was originally published in three issues, and has since been collected into a hardback.
Like its predecessor, this story takes place in a timeline that is not considered canonical in the current continuity of DC Comics.
Synopsis
After going underground, Batman (Bruce Wayne) and his young sidekick Catgirl (Carrie Kelly , Robin from The Dark Knight Returns) train an army of "batboys" to save the world from a "police-state" dictatorship.
In a series of raids on government facilities, Batman's soldiers release from captivity ageing superheroes including The Atom, Flash and Elongated Man. Superman, working for the government, is ordered by the "President" (a front for Lex Luthor and Brainiac) to stop Batman. He confronts Wayne at the Batcave, but is defeated by the Dark Knight and company.
Meanwhile, Batman's raids have not gone unnoticed by the media. After being banned for years, the freed superheroes have recaptured the public imagination, becoming a fad among youth. At a concert for pop group "The Superchix," Batman and the other heroes make a public appearance, urging their fans to rebel against the oppressive government.
An alien monster lands in Metropolis and begins to destroy the city, but Batman, convinced it is a trap, does not respond. Superman and Captain Marvel come out of hiding to fight the threat, but the monster is revealed to be Brainiac, who coerces Superman (using the bottle city of Kandor) into losing the battle in order to crush the people's faith in superheroes. Captain Marvel is killed defending citizens from the carnage, but Superman is saved by his and Wonder Woman's daughter, who has been carefully hidden by the pair until now. She destroys Brainiac's monster body, but now that the government knows she exists they demand she be handed over.
Realizing Batman was right after all, Superman, Wonder Woman, and their daughter join him and assist in his plan, destroying the power source of the dictatorship and inciting revolution.
Political Themes
The graphic novel contains caricatures of several prominent members of the first administration of President George W. Bush, including John Ashcroft, Ari Fleischer, and Donald Rumsfeld.
Criticism
The graphic novel's conclusion can be interpreted as anti-democratic. Superman asks his daughter, "What shall we do with our world?" In other words, Luthor's dictatorship is replaced by a non-democratic oligarchy of heros from the Silver Age of DC Comics.
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