The 7 most essential batman comic book stories nerdist. These stories are from comic books still being published and are, in a sense, ongoing. Batman is an ongoing american comic book series featuring the dc comics superhero batman as its main protagonist. Both were millionaires who fought bizarre bad guys and hobnobbed with the resident police commissioner. The story was the beginning of morrisons run in the batman comic as well as his longterm take on the character of batman through multiple titles over the next seven years. Batman and son is a 2006 comic book story arc featuring the dc comics character batman. Every batman fan has their list of best comics, but for me, its these comic books that offer depth and reflection on the dark knight while also providing a great story. Batman has been featured in many ongoing series, limited series and graphic novels published by dc comics. This 1941 comic was the second issue of dc comics then called nationals book that contained both superman and batman stories in it. This list presents these titles separated by general type of publication. After listening to their stories, bruce surprises them by appearing as batman.
Jan 01, 2000 i picked this collection of the seventies because thats when i started reading comic books. Batman is a comic book character whos notorious for inspiring some of the darkest comic book storylines. Is there an official reading order to the batman books. Batman reading order and timeline modern age gotham.
The 25 most important batman stories ever told, a cbr ranking. The joker has changed radically from age to age, much like the batman. But for many fans this storyline went beyond the line of good taste when the joker murdered his second robin, jason todd. The version this film gave audiences was a lumbering brute who although was gifted with metastrength, could barely speak and was subservient to poison ivy. Batman reading order and timeline modern age gotham archives. Peter weller and ariel winter are the voices of batman and carrie kelley, but the standout voice is michael emerson, providing a dark and strange take on the joker. In this case, however, it is a villain who is portrayed. Oct 09, 2019 the joker is one of the most iconic characters in comic book history. Well, there isnt an official one but i have found a couple of unofficial ones people have collected in the comic book community. Like the greatest batman stories ever told, the greatest joker stories ever told chronicle the history of one of comic book historys most enduring characters.
Batman is a rarity, enjoying arguably as much success outside of comics as within. Verry, very, happy to receive this book, as i can read the more serious comic book stories that inspired the less serious television adaptations from the beloved 196668 television series. We are going to take a look at a few of not only the best batman comics but also the most important to the character of bruce wayne and the mythology built around him. Though only 96 pages long, i could not put the book done until i finished it and read cowriter david mazzucchellis afterword comic narration. Batman 1940 comic read batman 1940 comic online in high. No comic book character can boast quite the collection of great comic book stories written about them as batman. Apr 20, 2018 batman is a fictional superhero appearing in american comic books published by dc comics. Mar 16, 2020 the best batman books push the caped crusader to his limits. John sazaklis spent part of life working in a family coffee shop, the house of donuts. With that out of the way, here are the 25 best and most influential batman graphic novels of all time. Letters from comics writers bob rozakis and mike w. Batman has been featured in many ongoing series, limited series and graphic novels. Thats the sound of comic book excitement coming to life and ebay has all the brands, genres and issues any fanboy or fangirl could ever want.
This section also generally handles titles that have spun off of the core batman titles to feature related characters. Serving as a villain and often a nemesis for batman across stories set in gotham city, the dc comics. It introduced the secret underground society of the same name, with ties all the way to the highest levels of gotham citys power structure. Instead of a dark and gritty take on batman s beginnings, scott snyder and greg capullo deliver an excellent actionadventure story depicting their version of batman s first days on the job in gotham.
Oct 24, 2015 whether you are a firsttime reader or an avid batfan, these are the batman stories everyone should read. I felt that this collection fell short from being the vintage batman of that decade in spite of the fact that most stories were from dennis o neil, and they were entertaining. While detective comics focuses on mysteries and the bats detective work, batman is designed as the. Jan 25, 2018 it introduced the secret underground society of the same name, with ties all the way to the highest levels of gotham citys power structure. Its well known that the first batman story was an adaptation of a 1936 pulp novel featuring the shadow, partners of peril. The best batman stories and comics, chosen by dc artists and. He has illustrated spiderman books and written batman books for harpercollins. Consequently, batman is literally a comic book version of the great pulp hero. These titles have been handled or coordinated through a single editorial section at dc comics. Starring the joker, the penguin, the riddler and mr. Batman has been featured in many ongoing series, limited series and graphic novels published.
We have the worlds largest selection of batman comic books and graphic novels. For the first time, dc comics collects batman stories originally published between 1948 and 1966 that were adapted into specific episodes of the classic batman tv series. Moench created the concept for the first installment and convinced jones, of whom he was a fan, to join the project. This page contains a listing of all known storylines involving this character. Batmans secret identity is bruce wayne, a wealthy american playboy, philanthropist, and owner of wayne enterprises. These are the comics that belong on any batfans shelf. Batman has had many different types of adventures in the 80 years and counting hes been patrolling gotham city, and that stands to reason, as arguably, there is no comic book character who can transcend more genres than the caped crusader. This book is more about the blockbuster creative team than it is the actual story content, but hush still manages to be a solid read despite that. Geoff johns and gary frank bring the dc and watchmen universes together. There have been excellent batman comic books going back over 75 years, but its not just a matter of longevity. Originally released in 1995 first appearance of poison ivy.
Batman earned his own selftitled comic book in 1940, while continuing to be featured in detective comics. This story is about bruce wayne learning he has limits. Four new series set in the world of the vertigo classic. Two of the most consequential batman stories ever published were crossovers. Jan 14, 2014 verry, very, happy to receive this book, as i can read the more serious comic book stories that inspired the less serious television adaptations from the beloved 196668 television series. The books were published by dc comics as a part of its elseworlds line of comics.
Bill finger, who wrote that initial batman story, admitted that his first batman. The animated series cocreator paul dini, and it looks and feels just like the best episodes of the batman cartoon show. Four of a kind is a collection if four year one annuals which is a retelling of batmans first encounter stories of poison ivy, riddler, scarecrow and manbat. You can pick any given year and there will likely be a great batman comic he just seems to draw out the best in writers and artists, and of course, in fans. In 1939, it sold for ten cents, but it moved enough copies to merit more stories featuring the greyandblack crimefighter. Its amusing, but i had searched for years to find the comic magazine story that the first batman television episode was basedupon. In many respects, this story served as the foundational basis of the super successful dark knight movie, and is one of the darkest comic book storylines that has gone on to influence hundreds of other batman stories that have followed. The story of how an orphaned bruce wayne trained his body to perfection and honed the vast skills of his mind in order to avenge the murder of his parents has transcended comic books and is now a. Thomas wayne and his wife martha, two very wealthy and charitable gotham city socialites in 1915. Dc direct, dc direct statues, dc designer series, dc designer series statues, batman, batman by rafael grampa, rafael grampa, rafael grampa profile, rafael grampa artist, rafael grampa batman, rafael grampa batman statue, dark knight returns. While many batman spinoffs come and go, the selftitled series and detective comics are the two mainstays that will never fade away. Dc comics batman universe is constantly changing and evolving.
The character was created by artist bob kane and writer bill. Batman has had his origin story retold differently several times over his many years of publication, with significant variations in continuity golden age. Please browse through the title listings below or use the search bar at the top of this page to quickly find a specific title. Werthams thesis was that children imitated crimes committed in comic books, and that these works corrupted the morals of the youth. The epic standout for comic book storytelling, the dark knight returns has always been looked at fondly for its grim take on the final days of the batman. Bruce wayne, who witnessed the murder of his billionaire parents as a child, swore to avenge their deaths. Its probably the best villainhero rivalry in all of comic books, and we look at the best of the best.
Bruce wayne takes a group of children on a camping trip and learns what they think of batman. Gotham central is one of my 25 favorite comic book series of all time, with amazing gcpd stories from greg rucka, ed brubaker, and michael lark. Originally named the batman, the character is also referred to by such epithets as the caped crusader, the dark knight, and the worlds greatest detective. Batman proved to be so popular that a selftitled ongoing comic book series began publication with a cover date of spring 1940. Reeves previously told press his film centers on a younger batman but is not based on origin tale year one or any particular comic book. Below are our picks for the 7 most essential comic book story arcs in the history of dc comicsand comics in generalsmost popular hero. Serving as a villain and often a nemesis for batman across stories set in gotham city, the dc comics legend has never been. Dc comics invited miller to retell batman s origin story around the implementation of the first linewide reboot on what had been the worlds oldest, uninterrupted comic book continuity. They are listed here in the chronology of the storylines.
Zero, and featuring the debut of batgirl, these stories have never been collected together before. Bill finger, who wrote that initial batman story, admitted that his first batman tale was a takeoff of a shadow novel. Sep 07, 2019 reeves previously told press his film centers on a younger batman but is not based on origin tale year one or any particular comic book. The best batman stories and comics, chosen by dc artists. This was the first issue of the series to be titled worlds finest comics, the title it would retain for the next 45 years. This batman comics price guide will help you to value all the early issues of batman comics. Freeze wasnt always an a list member of batmans rogues gallery. When i first wanted to get into reading the batman books my first issue was where do i start. The story was written by grant morrison and it took place in both volumes of his ongoing comic book series, the first volume of which was called batman inc.
The best batman books push the caped crusader to his limits. Batman comics were among those criticized when the comic book industry came under scrutiny with the publication of psychologist fredric werthams book seduction of the innocent 1954. Following the success of this story, worlds finest comics was revamped so it featured stories starring both heroes together, instead of the. Here are 10 of the best stories to stem from the last decade. Red rain 1991, bloodstorm 1994, and crimson mist 1998written by doug moench and penciled by kelley jones. The joker is one of the most iconic characters in comic book history. The comic book version of bane was physically imposing to be sure, but was also a genius and a shrewd tactician. The murder of young bruces parents by a mugger was first shown in this issue, the first of many retellings of the dark but iconic beginnings of the bat. I picked this collection of the seventies because thats when i started reading comic books. The top 25 best batman comics and graphic novels ign.
The other part, he spent drawing and writing stories. Journalists have praised the books for their story and artwork. Batman 1940 comic read batman 1940 comic online in. Storylines can be entered using the storyline template. Year one is necessary for both longtime batman comic book fans and newcomers alike. The character was created by artist bob kane and writer bill finger, and first appeared in detective. Were also limiting our focus to stories where batman himself is the star of the show. Whether you are a firsttime reader or an avid batfan, these are the batman stories everyone should read.
Of course, there is no shortage of great batman stories for reeves to draw from, especially considering dc gets ready to celebrate the characters 80th anniversary. For batmans debut storyline in this brave new world, hes fighting the. Batman is a fictional superhero appearing in american comic books published by dc comics. Werthams thesis was that children imitated crimes committed in comic books, and that these works corrupted the morals of. Dc comics invited miller to retell batmans origin story around the. In the name of his murdered parents, bruce wayne wages eternal war on the criminals of gotham city. The aforementioned 1960s batman tv series was based on the batman comic books of the era, and this trade paperback collects various stories from the era that inspired the series, including the introduction of batgirl, who soon debuted in the third season of the tv series as played by the late, great yvonne craig. Mar 27, 2019 consequently, batman is literally a comic book version of the great pulp hero. Following the adventures of gothams dark knight, batman is one of comics longestrunning monthly comic books. He trained extensively to achieve mental and physical perfection, mastering martial arts.
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