Your Top 10 Batman stories.

[Gurz]

Mine:

1- Killing Joke
2- Long Halloween
3- The Dark Knight Returns
4- Heart of Hush
5- Black Mirror
6- Year One
7- Court of Owls
8- Death and Maidens
9- No Man's Land
10- Black Glow

[jb681131]

Mine:

1- Killing Joke
2- Long Halloween
3- The Dark Knight Returns
4- Heart of Hush
5- Black Mirror
6- Year One
7- Court of Owls
8- Death and Maidens
9- No Man's Land
10- Black Glow

Hard choices to do, those are not bad, not the best in my opinion.
I really think Batman should be read in runs or in eras.
Because, those runs make up largers stories that are way better.

Here would my choices be but in not order (and yes a little more than 10):

• Batman: Strange Apparitions + Batman: Dark Detective
• Batman: Year One + Batman and the Monster Men + Batman and the Mad Monk + The Man Who Laughs + Batman: Prey + Batman: Terror
• The Long Halloween + The Dark Victory + Catwoman: When In Rome
• Robin: Year One + Batgirl: Year One + The Killing Joke + Death in the Familly + A Lonely Place of Dying + Batman: Under the Red Hood + Red Hood: The Lost Days
• The Sword of Azrael + Knigthfall (new omnibus)
• Contagion + Legacy + Catclysm + No Man's Land
• New Gotham + Turning Point + Gotham Central + Bruce Wayne: Murderer ? + Bruce Wayne: Fugitive
• Batman: Hush + Batman: Detective + Batman: Death and the City + Batman: Private Casebook + Batman: Heart of Hush + Batman, Streets of Gotham: Hush Money + Batman, Streets of Gotham: Leviathan + Batman, Streets of Gotham: The House of Hush
• Birth of the Demon + Bride of the Demon + Birth of the Demon + The Resurection of Ra's Al Ghul + Batman & Son + Batman & Robin + Batman Inc + Batman & Robin New52 + We are Robin + Robin, Son of Batman
• Batman: Court of Owls + Nightwing: Traps and Trapezes + Batman: Night of Owls + Nightwing: Night of the Owls
• Emperor Penguin + The Wrath + Gothtopia + Icarus + Anarky
• Batman: The Cult
• Arkham Assylum: A Serious House on a Serious Earth
• Joker by Lee Bermejo
• Batman: Earth One
• Batman/Dracula: Red Rain + Batman: Bloodstorm + Batman: Crimson Mist
• Batman: Gotham by Gaslight + Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham
• Batman: Year 100
• Batman: Mad Love
• Batman: Ego

[Gurz]

Almost everythings is ok but just no to this:

Emperor Penguin + The Wrath + Gothtopia

I have read these pieces of crap unfortunaly and i want my time and money back... It was so bad, oh so bad...

[JBatmanFan05]

In no particular order (not counting runs, but counting events):

Batman: Strange Apparitions
Batman: Year One
Batman Gothic
Batman: Prey
The Long Halloween
Batman Venom
Dark Knight Returns
Batman Blind Justice
Batman: The Cult
Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on a Serious Earth


As you can tell, I think Legends of The Dark Knight disproportionately contributed more of the best arcs in Batman history than any Batman title. A number of LOTDK arcs just narrowly missed making this list. Like Bryan Talbot's Mask. Or Robinson's Blades. Or Going Sane (which contains one of my favorite single scenes in Batman comics). Or maybe Shaman.

Monster Men/Mad Monk also almost made the list. There are great 70s stories I didn't include too lamentably.

[thwhtGuardian]

Almost everythings is ok but just no to this:

Emperor Penguin + The Wrath + Gothtopia

I have read these pieces of crap unfortunaly and i want my time and money back... It was so bad, oh so bad...

I didn't care for Emperor Penguin either but I thought the reinvention of the Wrath was pretty solid. Nearly made my honorable mentions.

[jb681131]

Almost everythings is ok but just no to this:

Emperor Penguin + The Wrath + Gothtopia

I have read these pieces of crap unfortunaly and i want my time and money back... It was so bad, oh so bad...

Well I guess you ought to re-redead them with more care.
And when you assert that "it was so bad, oh so bad..." you should at least say why you are so fierce, oh so fierce... !

[Gurz]

Well I guess you ought to re-redead them with more care.
And when you assert that "it was so bad, oh so bad..." you should at least say why you are so fierce, oh so fierce... !

I'm searching my memory just for you my rat friend... lol that's a rat on your avatar right ? lol ...
They are not worth remembering but... I thought Emperor Penguin was the story that Penguin deserves... But instead we got ogylvy or whatever his name was. He immitated penguin or something and became number 1 in the crime world... I don't give a flying **** about this ogylvy character as a reader, you won't believe it... this D lister character that no one gives **** about and no where now as expected... Doesn't deserve any kind of push. It's such a disservice. Nonesence story.

The Wrath was too short first of all... Not in anyway establishing The Wrath as the anti-Batman but used him again in a fill in forgetable story as a C lister villain, only thing they did was the new costumes... Bringing in The Wrath like this showed They were out of ideas.

Gothtopia... lol what a stupid name. Batman was happy in utopic Gotham in this story. There were these new bat family members who were cringe worthy. Especially the one that considered ''even darker than batman'' lol it's desing was lame, and it's such a cringy piece of crap... OMG thanks alot for reminding me those gabeges again... I will start to hit my head to a wall over and over again and forget, i hope.... lol

[Mace Dolex]

In no particular order:

- Batman Year One
- Batman Year Two
- The Dark Knight Returns
- Ten Nights Of The Beast
- Batman The Cult
- The Killing Joke
- Batman Special 1984 ( The Player On The Other Side)
- Batman vs. Predator
- Batman Venom
- Detective Comics #526 (All My Enemies Against Me)

[thwhtGuardian]

1) Grant Morrison's Run on Batman from Batman and Son, the Black Glove, RIP, Batman and Robin, The Return of Bruce Wayne and Batman Incorporated. 2006-13

This is the run I return to again and again, in my mind Batman has never been better written than in these pages. Great characterization for Bruce, fantastic use of just about all the supporting characters and an overarching story that really gives you a sense of character evolution.

2)Batman: Sanctum from Legends of the Dark Knight #54, 1993
This under read gem is a mash up of your typical Batman story and the horror genre which is a favorite of mine and it manages to succeed on both fronts as it provides a great supernatural thriller and story that really gets to the roots of who Batman is.

3)Batman: Under the Red Hood from Batman #635-641, #645-50 and Batman Annual #25, 2005-06
This is the book that brought back Jason Todd and in stunning fashion, again it's great because it really gave us that illusion of change in Batman's world.

4)Batman: Made of Wood from Detective Comics #784–786, 2006
Batman teaming up with the original Green Lantern is just an awesome concept; it's frankly an idea which would be great enough to make this list for me even if it were only that but on top of that it features Batman doing some actual detective work which is just amazing.

5)Batman: Stories from Legends of the Dark Knight #94, 1997
the framing narrative here is a simple one: various people trapped on an elevator tell stories about their encounters with Batman. The meat of the issue however is an excuse to celebrate the various eras of Batman's history as each person's story is done in an art style paying homage to a different time which is just a great idea.


6)Batman: Night of the Stalker from Detective Comics #439, 1974
This is a very straight forward one and done is just executed perfectly as Batman hunts down a trio of thugs attempting to flea Gotham after committing a senseless murder. It's got great action, suspense and it gives us a look at Batman's origin with out retelling the whole thing.

7) Batman Strange Apparitions from Detective Comics #469-479, 1977-78
Featuring villains like Hugo Strange, the Joker, Deadshot, and Rupert Thorne, these stories are all filled with plenty of action, explore the man behind the mask as well. Oh, and I'd be remiss if I failed to mention one of my favorite of Bruce's love interests, Silver St. Cloud, she's seriously amazing.

8)Batman: Ego, 2000
The art by Darwyn Cooke is the real draw here but the deep psychological look at what makes Batman tick was great too.
9)Batman: The Black Mask from Batman #386-387 and Detective Comics #553, 1985
This story features the introduction to one of my favorite villains: The Black Mask.
10)Batman: Battle for the Cowl, 2009
I don't usually care for events but this look at the fallout of the "death" of Batman was really solid. It really gave us a great story that explored how those closest to Batman saw him and how his passing affected them.

Honorable Mentions:
Year One: what more can be said, it's a great intro and I read it often but it doesn't bring me the joy that the others above do.
The first two parts of Zero Year: I think if this had a better conclusion(I hated the whole mad max drowned city bit with the Riddler) this would have made my list. I love the look at a young Bruce Wayne and the Red Hood gang was really well done.
Monster Men/Mad Monk: These are great takes on early Batman tales with some fantastic art.
Batman: Gothic: This earlier work by Morrison gives us a fun noir take on Batman but it lacks a real punch and wanders a bit in the middle.
Batman: Court of Owls: The villains are a fantastic concept of a cabal of evil that has always tainted Gotham but Snyder failed to stick the landing at the end.

[Vakanai]

In a completely random order as they pop into my head:
1. The Killing Joke
2. The Dark Knight Returns
3. The Long Halloween
4. Dark Victory
5. Year One
6. Zero Year - Just the Red Hood arc.
7. Prey
8. Under the Red Hood - Movie version
9. Batman and the Monster Men
10. The White Knight

That list is a first draft and might not be 100% accurate - plus there's still a lot more classic stories I haven't read yet. And new great stories keep getting added. But that's a good rough draft for now.

[failo.legendkiller]

Prodigal
Knightfall
Robin: Year One
A lonely place of dying
Death in the family
The Killing joke
Contagion/Legacy/Cataclysm/No man's land
Under the red hood
Hush
Gotham by gaslight