Knightfall in singles VS trades

[Legion564]

Hey just have a few questions for you batman experts. I want to read knight fall. Is it neigh to read parts 1-19 or should I get everything that's in the trade? And do you know what the reading order is if I include that vengeance of bane and shadow of the bat issues?

[nepenthes]

I believe there's a section missing from the trades but I'm not sure how important it is, if at all. The thing is a HUGE and sprawling story, it's going to be far easier for you to just grab the three three tpb's and be done with it.

Vengeance of Bane can be read anywhere early one (it's Banes first appearance and is included in the Vol.1 tpb) - I'm not sure which SoB issues you're referring to.

[HusCowboy]

A portion of Knightquest is missing from the trade. The Search I believe? You'll need to collect that in singles if you want the ENTIRE story.

[Michael24]

The 2012 editions are more comprehensive because they include the "Knightquest: The Crusade" chapter, which was omitted in the original trades. However, "Knightfall: The Search" was left out, so those issues would need to be bought as singles. Wikipedia has a good reading order breakdown here.

The tough part is that only "Knightfall" and "KnightsEnd" were really created with a specific crossover reading order: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, etc. But for "Knightquest," rather that continuing as a straight-forward crossover, the Bat-books went back to doing their own thing, following their own storylines, just with Jean-Paul Valley as the new status quo. So for "Knightquest: The Crusade," there is no real definitive order in which to read the issues.

So I would say read the three 2012 edition TPBs, because they cover pretty much all of the essential "Knightfall" issues, and then buy "Knightquest: The Search" in singles. It's only a handful of issues, as detailed at the Wiki link I posted. "Vengeance of Bane" is included in the 2012 edition of Volume 1 and can be read as a prelude, since it details Bane's origins and his arrival in Gotham City.

[Mgoldman14]

Just go to amazon and get them all. Trust me it may be costly but it's the best story ever.

[catbatfan]

I'm still annoyed that the 2012 trades didn't include The Search, yet they included the non-essential Prodigal story (which should have been collected in its own trade along with Troika). Luckily, The Search is available in single issues through Comixology. I also wish they'd included the Sword of Azrael story, perhaps in a "Prelude to Knightfall" trade.

[exile001]

I believe there's a section missing from the trades but I'm not sure how important it is, if at all.

It's the bit about how Bruce's back gets "un-broken" so pretty important. Couldn't believe it wasn't included in the three giant TPBs in favour of Prodigal.

[Buried Alien]

Not only is KNIGHTQUEST: THE SEARCH missing from all editions of the KNIGHTFALL trades, but the trades never seem to *begin* in the right place. The newest edition has added the VENGEANCE OF BANE special, which was sorely needed and much appreciated, but still neglects to collect together the three to five issues of BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS that preceded the proper beginning of KNIGHTFALL that really foreshadowed Bruce's breakdown. Additionally, the SWORD OF AZRAEL story should have been collected into the KNIGHTFALL package as well.

Every edition of the KNIGHTFALL trade collections has been better than the last, but it's still only possible to get the whole story through the single floppies.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[lancerman]

Not only is KNIGHTQUEST: THE SEARCH missing from all editions of the KNIGHTFALL trades, but the trades never seem to *begin* in the right place. The newest edition has added the VENGEANCE OF BANE special, which was sorely needed and much appreciated, but still neglects to collect together the three to five issues of BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS that preceded the proper beginning of KNIGHTFALL that really foreshadowed Bruce's breakdown. Additionally, the SWORD OF AZRAEL story should have been collected into the KNIGHTFALL package as well.

Every edition of the KNIGHTFALL trade collections has been better than the last, but it's still only possible to get the whole story through the single floppies.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

The biggest thing that's missing is "The Search" and it's probably the part of the whole arc that got the worst reviews and is the most lambasted. Honestly you're better off just knowing that Bruce's back eventually healed, rather than going through reading that. It actually kind of lessens the impact of the whole thing.

[t hedge coke]

Denny O'Neil's novelization is still the best way to go, I think, with Knightfall. Not only does it give you every bit you need, it's also really damned good.

[catbatfan]

The biggest thing that's missing is "The Search" and it's probably the part of the whole arc that got the worst reviews and is the most lambasted. Honestly you're better off just knowing that Bruce's back eventually healed, rather than going through reading that. It actually kind of lessens the impact of the whole thing.

Whether or not it's good is not the issue. It should have been collected. I read Knightfall, Quest, and End when they came out but somehow missed The Search. I want it, and it should have been part of the trades. I am not sure I'd buy Knightfall yet again in trade paperback, so hopefully one day they will publish The Search separately.

[catbatfan]

Not only is KNIGHTQUEST: THE SEARCH missing from all editions of the KNIGHTFALL trades, but the trades never seem to *begin* in the right place. The newest edition has added the VENGEANCE OF BANE special, which was sorely needed and much appreciated, but still neglects to collect together the three to five issues of BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS that preceded the proper beginning of KNIGHTFALL that really foreshadowed Bruce's breakdown. Additionally, the SWORD OF AZRAEL story should have been collected into the KNIGHTFALL package as well.

Every edition of the KNIGHTFALL trade collections has been better than the last, but it's still only possible to get the whole story through the single floppies.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

Agreed. A "Prelude to Knightfall" trade would have been a great idea. Prodigal and Troika could have been collected in a "Knightfall Epilogue" trade.