Who do you think had the best run for batman (writer) ?
Who do you think had the best run for batman (writer) ?
Its between Grant Morrison and Scott Snyder. I'd give the edge to Snyder. I really wish Geoff Johns would have given it a shot.
Alan Grant takes it.
I think just about every main Batman writer has accomplished or done at least something of note on the book, although who's the "best" is really up to personal taste.
Between Grant, Conway Moench, Dixon, Brubaker, Rucka, Winnick, Morrison, Snyder, and King you've got very different runs.
I've come around completely from not liking Grant Morrison's run to thinking it's the ultimate Batman story.
I've more than one favorite writer and his take on the character. Since we're talking about a run, I won't count Frank Miller, even though I love his two main contributions to Batman: Year One and DKR.
In no particular order:
-Dennis O'neil
-Steve Englehart
-Jim Starlin
-Grant Morrison
-Scott Snyder
-Tom King
Still, there're a ton more of amazing Batman writers
Last edited by Chubistian; 12-24-2017 at 04:37 PM.
"The Batman is Gotham City. I will watch him. Study him. And when I know him and why he does not kill, I will know this city. And then Gotham will be MINE!"-BANE
"We're monsters, buddy. Plain and simple. I don't dress it up with fancy names like mutant or post-human; men were born crueler than Apes and we were born crueler than men. It's just the natural order of things"-ULTIMATE SABRETOOTH
Greg Rucka and Ed Brubaker.
Close runner-up: Grant Morrison.
I'd like to hear why people loved particular runs. It would be interesting to see if it's very similar reasons, or a large variety. (would also guide me in reading more).
My personal favorite has been King so far. Mostly because I really like the way that the run digs into Bruce's psyche and really humanizes him while at the same time still supplying plenty of fan service Batman moments. However I can completely understand where Kings run is not really for everyone.
Prior to King's run my top 5 favorite Batman writers were O'neil, Barr, Morrison, Snyder and Brubaker
"You know, there are some words I've known since I was a schoolboy: "With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably.. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged"- CAPT. Picard
O'neil: He made Batman feel as a man in a costume, trying his best to do some good in his city and beyond. His Batman was smart, a great fighter and had many other skills, but he felt real, or as real as you could be in the mainstream superheroes world, even when he was fighting ghosts or embarquing in James Bond type of adventures, you could tell Batman was in danger and made mistakes or could be killed just as anyone else. Also, his narration, surrounding the character in a dark and mystic ambience, was pretty awesome.
Englehart: Pretty in line with what O'neil did, he gave us Bruce Wayne as more than Batman's alter ego, but as a genuine person with concerns and a life.
Starlin: I like how he injected politics and cultural and social issues of the epoque to the character while remaining true to his core. As with the other two writers named, Batman was still a man in a costume, but this time he has also to deal with political killings, crazy religious cults and his ward becoming like the criminals he fights among other things.
Morrison: He wrote the ultimate Batman, Bruce was in his peak, no longer a believable man, his take on the character showed us a man prepared to anything, always planning, always comparing every factor and result possible. I really think Morrison's Batman should have been the end of the character as we know him, previous to the New 52, instead of keeping his Batman Incorporated and other ideas in canon with the new continuity.
Snyder: The reasons why I like his run are the same of why I got tired of it towards the end, but I never got to hate it or anything close to that. It's bombastic, intriguing, thrilling and the danger felt real, even to characters that we know can't be killed, at least not for long, for editorial reasons. He defined the character for the whole N52 era.
Tom King: An amalgam between the modern and classic Batman, I love all the concepts he plays with, humanizing the character and showing us that he's far from being the pinnacle that we were meant to think he was. He has doubts, and not only concerning capes, but also dealing with love, solitude and happiness, topics I think anyone can relate to in some degree, even if they like or not the run itself. Also, it came in a time in my life where I really needed something that felt different, a wind of fresh air, in the mainstream scene
"The Batman is Gotham City. I will watch him. Study him. And when I know him and why he does not kill, I will know this city. And then Gotham will be MINE!"-BANE
"We're monsters, buddy. Plain and simple. I don't dress it up with fancy names like mutant or post-human; men were born crueler than Apes and we were born crueler than men. It's just the natural order of things"-ULTIMATE SABRETOOTH
"The Batman is Gotham City. I will watch him. Study him. And when I know him and why he does not kill, I will know this city. And then Gotham will be MINE!"-BANE
"We're monsters, buddy. Plain and simple. I don't dress it up with fancy names like mutant or post-human; men were born crueler than Apes and we were born crueler than men. It's just the natural order of things"-ULTIMATE SABRETOOTH
Hmm. While I'm really digging King's run, I hate listing uncompleted work in a "Best of" type list (also trying to avoid too much recency bias). I imagine it'll be a top 3 run for me at the end, but it seems premature to place it already.
There are otherwise a lot of interesting candidates, and it depends on if you mean the best run about Bruce (which is what King is writing) or just the best run of a Batman title. Really enjoyed Rucka's run, but more so for Two-Face, Renee, and Sasha than for some deep insight into Bruce. I'm going to say Morrison at the end, but it bears pointing out that really only a third or a half of his run is really about who Bruce is (and Dick + Damian is the best part). Although he had a long run on 'Tec (with many highs and lows), I think of Chuck Dixon more for Robin and Vengeance of Bane. I really liked the beginning and end of Snyder's run, but thought it middled poorly (Death of the Family and parts of Zero Year do nothing for me). Paul Dini's run on 'Tec (until Heart of Hush) was fantastic. Doug Moench probably ought to get a shout-out - he was part of a great run around Knightfall and had some fantastic LotDK arcs (although, like Chuck Dixon, he wrote for so long that there are some real forgettable sections of his run).
Well, that's enough waffling and honorable mentions. It's Morrison's run. Great character work on Bruce, Dick, and the Joker. Created and defined Damian, Dr Hurt, and a whole host of (since underused) new villains (Pyg, Flamingo, Le Bossu, El Sombrero). Brought back Kathy Kane. Defeated Darkseid's cloning process by having too much pain. Fought Vandal Savage at the beginning of time and the Hyper Adapter at the end of time. "Gotcha"