2. A Serious House On Serious Earth
Published: October 1989
Author: Grant Morrison
The Big Bad: Dr. Charles Cavendish, Joker
The Premise: The inmates of Arkham Asylum are freed from their cells and take over the facility. They demand Batman come to the madhouse threatening to murder their hostages if he refuses. A cat and mouse game ensues as Batman is forced to play hide and seek with the inmates and learns the history of the asylum along the way.
Why it Would Work: A Serious House on Serious Earth is one of the greatest Batman tales ever told. The game Arkham Asylum is heavily influenced by the story and would do well on television. Like The Greatest Arkham we come to peer deeper inside Bruce Wayne's own psyche as he is forced to keep his wits about him while avoiding the various inmates. There's a great deal of characterization within the one story that offers a lot of differing perspectives into the warped minds of Batman's rogues gallery. Among them are the Mad Hatter, Clayface, and Maxie Zeus. The Joker and Two-Face receive an incredible amount of characterization with the latter showing strong development. The history of the asylum makes for a great side-story to the main plot of Bruce fighting for his life in a madhouse full of the people who hate him the most. The truth behind the real conspirator is a real twist in the plot and the ending will leave some wondering what just happened while others more familiar with the history of Batman's rogues gallery will most likely feel more content. The entire story is an outrageous ride into the dark woods of Gotham's criminally insane and would be incredibly entertaining on the small screen. The writers could tie the episode and Dent's treatment to other episodes including his introduction to the asylum as well as his subsequent reformation. Like Elegy, the producers would also do well to take inspiration from the art which could be emulated to create an astounding ambiance in a live-action setting.