The last time I read Batman (or DC) was during Grant Morrison's time. Dick and Damian were teamed up and Bruce had just come back.
I'd like to get caught up as quickly as possible. Is it necessary to read all of the New52 and Rebirth trades? Are Nightwing, Harley Quinn, Batwoman, or Batgirl necessary?
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08-15-2020, 06:26 AM #1All-New Member
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Which TPBs or HCs should I read to get caught up?
Last edited by Juniper2099; 08-15-2020 at 07:43 AM.
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08-15-2020, 06:45 AM #2Extraordinary Member
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For continuation of Morrison lore get Batman Inc and New 52 Batman and Robin, but that will be the last of Post Crisis elements as they fully go into New 52 rebooted continuity after that
New 52 Batman definitely because it establishes the Snyder lore that continues to be used since Snyder's handling the larger DCU lore now. Batman Eternal brings back Stephanie Brown in the reboot, Batman and Robin Eternal brings back Cassandra Cain, both directed by Snyder.
Rebirth brings back elements of previous continuity missing in New 52 from Golden Age to Post Crisis. Batman reestablished Batman and Catwoman lore, Detective Comics handles Batwoman and Tim Drake, and Snyder lore continues in All-Star Batman, Dark Nights Metal, No Justice, Justice League and Death Metal.
Basically Rebirth operates on "everything is canon, we also add new stuff, don't think too much about it"
Harley's series is semi-canon and does her own thing. The more canon New 52 Harley is in Suicide Squad.
Batgirl is barely related to Batman
The current system is whatever happens to Batman impacts his family titles but whatever happens in the family titles stays in that title excepting some signs of changes, like Batgirl changing her costume or moving in or out of Gotham.
Nightwing is a victim series
Basically New 52 and Rebirth Nightwing does his own thing until Batman or the larger DCU event needs a victim, they use Dick, then he's back to his own title with a new status quo. Can't keep a supporting cast or setting every couple of years or so.Last edited by Restingvoice; 08-16-2020 at 07:24 AM.
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08-15-2020, 06:53 AM #3All-New Member
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Cool thanks for the info
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08-16-2020, 12:32 AM #4BANNED
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Just read Snyder's run them Tom kings run. After that's done wait until this fall when tynions runs first trade comes out "his dark designs " or whatever it's called and you're caught up as far as cannon goes.
There are a few batman stories out of continuity since Morrison's run that are decent which are not too hard to get into, white knight, curse of the white knight, damned,last knight on earth (Snyder's run is essential to understanding this) but mostly it's just Snyder's and kings run.
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08-16-2020, 02:57 AM #5Mighty Member
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Well to get Caught Up to date.
Originally Posted by Juniper2099
To get up to date on Batman, you mostly don't have to read it all. But it doesn't mean the others aren't good reads.
Before all you have to know that DC had a reboot in 2011 and a reorganisation in 2016 and one is going on right now with 2-3 events that can be read as follow:
- The Watchmen - 1986
- Flaspoint - 2011
- Road to Rebirth
- - Darkseid War
- - Final Days of Superman
- - Lois and Clark
- - Titans Hunt
- Rebirth - 2016
- - Rebirth
- - The Return of Wally West
- - Justice League vs. Suicide Squad
- - Superman Reborn
- - Batman/The Flash: The Button
- - Titans: The Lazarus Contract
- Road to Doomsday Clock
- - Superman: The Oz Effect
- - Batman: A Lonely Place of Living
- - Justice League of America: Panic in the Microverse
- Doomsday Clock - 2018
- - Doomsday Clock
- Dark Knigts: Metal - 2018-2021
First off the Damian saga. It is in 3 runs : Grant Morrison's, Peter J. Tomasi and Ray Fawkes
in tpb it goes:
- Batman: Batman & Son - Morrison
- Batman: The Black Gove - Morrison
- Batman: Batman R.I.P. - Morrison
- Batman & Robin: Batman Reborn - Morrison
- Batman & Robin: Batman vs. Robin - Morrison
- Batman & Robin: Batman must Die - Morrison
- Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne - Morrison
- Batman Inc. Deluxe - Morrison
- (Flashpoint) - Geoff Johns
- Batman & Robin New52: Born to Kill - Tomasi
- Batman & Robin New52: Pearl - Tomasi
- Batman & Robin New52: Death of the Family - Tomasi
- Batman Inc. New52: Demon Star - Morrison
- Batman Inc. New52: Gotham's Most Wanted - Morrison
- Batman & Robin New52: Requiem For Damian - Tomasi
- Batman & Robin New52: The Big Burn - Tomasi
- Batman & Robin New52: The Hunt For Robin - Tomasi
- Batman & Robin New52: Robin Rises - Tomasi
- (We Are Robin: The Vigilante Business) - Lee Bermejo
- Robin: Son of Batman: Year of Blood - Ray Fawkes
- Robin War - crossover
- (We Are Robin: Jokers) - Lee Bermejo
- Robin: Son of Batman: Dawn of the Demons - Ray Fawkes
- (Superman: Lois & Clark)
- (DC Univers Rebirth) - Geoff Johns
- (Super Sons: When I Grow Up...) - Tomasi
- (Super Sons: Planet of the Capes) - Tomasi
- (Super Sons of Tomorrow) - Tomasi
- (Super Sons: Parent Trap) - Tomasi
Of course each run is available in HC Omnibus if wanted
Second Batman's adventures. Let's look at it by eras. During the New52 it's mainly Scott Snyder (Batman) and during rebirth it's mainly Tom King (Batman) and James Tynion IV (Detective Comics). And now it's Scott Snyder (Metal event) again and Peter J. Tomasi (Detective Comics) and James Tynion IV (Batman and his Joker War)
New52 - the Owl Saga - Scott Snyder
- Batman: Court of Owls
- Nightwing: Traps and Trapezes
- Night of the Owls Saga
- Batgirl annual #1: The Bat, The Cat, and The Owl
- (Talon: Scourge of the Owls)
- (Talon: The Fall of the Owls)
New52 - Death of the Family + Endgame - Scott Snyder
- (Batman: Faces of Death)
- (Batman: Scare Tatics)
- Batman: Death of the Family
- Joker: Death of the Family
- Batman: Endgame
- Joker: Endgame
New52 - Zero Year - Scott Snyder
- Batman: Zero Year - Secret City
- (DC Comics: Zero Year)
- Batman: Zero Year - Dark City
New52 - Superheavy - Scott Snyder
- Batman: Superheavy
- Batman: Bloom
- (Batman: Blood of Heroes)
- (Batman: Gordon at War)
- Batman: Epilogue
Rebirth - Rise and Fall of the Batmen - James Tynion IV
- Batman: Detective Comics: Rise of the Batmen
- Batman: Night of the Monster Men
- Batman: Detective Comics: The Victim Syndicate
- Batman: Detective Comics: League of Shadows
- Batman: Detective Comics: Deus Ex Machina
- Batman: Detective Comics: A Lonely Place of Living
- Batman: Detective Comics: Fall of the Batmen
- Batman: Detective Comics: Batmen Eternal
Rebirth - I am trilogie + War of Jokes and Riddles + The Weding and the Breakup + City of Bane - Tom King
- Batman: I Am Gotham
- Batman: I Am Suicide
- Batman: I Am Bane
- Batman: The War of Jokes and Riddles
- Batman: The Rules of Engagement
- Batman: Bride or Burglar
- Batman: The Wedding
- Batman: Cold Days
- Batman: The Tyrant Wing
- Batman: Knightmares
- Batman: The Fall and the Fallen
- Batman: The City of Bane Part 1
- Batman: The City of Bane Part 2
Rebirth - Joker War - Peter J. Tomasi (Detective Comics) + James Tynion IV (Batman)
- Batman: Detective Comics: Greetings From Gotham
- Batman: Detective Comics: Mythology
- Batman: Their Dark Designs
- Batman: Detective Comics: Prelude to Joker War
- Batman: Joker War part.1
- ... upcoming
Metal - Scott Snyder
- Phase 1
- Dark Days: Road to Metal
- Dark Nights: Metal Deluxe
- Dark Nights: The Nightmare Batmen
- Dark Nights: Metal – The Resistance
- Phase 2 - Justice League
- Justice League: No Justice
- Justice League: The Totality
- Justice League: Graveyard of Gods
- Justice League: Hawkworld
- Justice League: The Sixth Dimension
- Justice League: Justice/Doom War
- Phase 2 - Batman
- The Batman Who Laughts
- Superman/Batman: The Infected
- Phase 3
- Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen
- Phase 4
- Death Metal
- DM: Trinity Crisis
- DM: Speed Metal (Flash Unite)
- DM: Multiverse's End
Last edited by jb681131; 08-18-2020 at 12:33 AM.
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08-17-2020, 07:01 PM #6All-New Member
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Thank you! Do you know which are Snyders and which are Kings? Originally Posted by Bad Witch
Wow that is comprehensive. I love how when I ask which to read people say all of it Originally Posted by jb681131
That means its good.
Is there a streamlined reading list or do they really build off each other?
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08-17-2020, 08:30 PM #7Extraordinary Member
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Snyder is all of New 52 Batman Originally Posted by Juniper2099
Thank you! Do you know which are Snyders and which are Kings?
Wow that is comprehensive. I love how when I ask which to read people say all of it That means its good.
Is there a streamlined reading list or do they really build off each other?
King starts at the beginning of Rebirth and ends with City of Bane
The current arc Joker War is right after City of Bane
A more streamlined reading list... well if you just wanna read Batman... the family title tend to not be a required reading unless someone dies so you can take those out from jb's list
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08-18-2020, 12:29 AM #8Mighty Member
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Well. The New52 (post-Flashpoint) plots do not really impact the Rebirth plots which do not really impact the Metal event. Originally Posted by Juniper2099
Thank you! Do you know which are Snyders and which are Kings?
Wow that is comprehensive. I love how when I ask which to read people say all of it That means its good.
Is there a streamlined reading list or do they really build off each other?
I have updated my previous list to know who wrote which storyline.
Each blocs on my list can pretty much be read on their own. But I find it a little bit better to read each run in publication order. So you have 5-6 runs:
- New52 - Scott Snyder on Batman - didn't bring much - only the Owls arc is a real must read
- New52 - Grant Morrison + Peter J. Tomasy + Ray Fawkes on the Damian Plot - the most fun plot to read in my opinion
- Rebirth - James Tynon IV on Detective Comics - no real impact - but I find it better than Tom King's run
- Rebirth - Tom King on Batman - Introduced a new relationship between Batman and Catwoman, and revived Bane
- Rebirth - Peter J. Tomasy on Detetive Comics + James Tynion IV on Batman - Independent stories in Detective Comics before James Tynion arrives on Batman and launches Joker War.
- Rebirth - Metal by Scott Snyder - big event that will end the Rebirth era that has already changed after Doomsday Clock (the issues don't have the Rebirth stamp anymore but a DC Univers one)
But those are not the only Batman stuff that came out, nor are the best Batman stuff that came out. If you want to know more, don't hesitate to ask.Last edited by jb681131; 08-18-2020 at 02:16 AM.
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08-18-2020, 07:02 AM #9All-New Member
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Great, thanks all! I've got a lot of reading ahead.
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08-18-2020, 10:56 AM #10Mighty Member
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Just to warn you, Scott Snyder and Tom King's runs have fun moments but aren't that great globably. Originally Posted by Juniper2099
There are shorter runs and stories that I preffered that are a bit of the main canon storylines.
To be also noted. There are 2 important Elseworlds:
- Batman: Earth-One - 2 volumes - by Geoff Johns
- Batman: White Knight + Curse of the White Knight - 2 volumes - by Sean Murphy
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08-19-2020, 11:42 AM #11Amazing Member
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Since you have mentioned it, what do you think about the White Knight saga? I haven't read it yet, but I'm curious because recently I've been listening good things about it. Originally Posted by jb681131
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08-19-2020, 12:24 PM #12Fantastic Member
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If you want it streamlined go with the following books.
The New 52 (in 20 books)
Batman: The Court of Owls
Batman: The City of Owls
Batman: Faces of Death
Batman and Robin: Born to Kill
Batman: Death of the Family
Batman Incorporated: Demon Star
Batman Incorporated: Gotham's Most Wanted
Batman and Robin: Requiem for Damien
Batman and Robin: The Hunt for Robin
Batman and Robin: Robin Rises
Batman Eternal Volume 1, 2 and 3 or the new omnibus
Batman: Endgame
Batman: Superheavy
Batman: Bloom
Batman and Robin Eternal Volume 1 & 2
Batman: Epilogue
Justice League: Darkside War (optional)
Rebirth
Batman: Rise of the Batmen
Batman: The Victim Syndicate
Batman: League of Shadows
Batman: Dues Ex machina
Batman: A Lonely Place of Living
Batman: Fall of the Batmen
Batman: Batmen Eternal
Dark Knights Metal
Scott Snyders Justice League
Dark Knights: Death Metal
you can now start on Tynion's Batman and Tomasi's Detective comics.
I do not recommend any of Tom King's Batman, it is not good, if you really need something from it get I Am Gotham and City of Bane, everything inbetween is horrible. with charcters being written out of character (Booster gold in the gift story), robotic dialogue, characters suppsoed to be having a discussion but really they're talking to themselves because the other character is ignoring them and having their own discussion with themselves, stories jumping all over the place, dialogue simply not making sense. the complete waste of time that was the wedding. just an awful, awful run.
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08-19-2020, 01:25 PM #13Extraordinary Member
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This is unnecessarily detailed about timeline just because I have the time...
Faces of Death is set 1 year before Death of The Family
Born to Kill started is in September, right after Post Crisis Batman and Robin ends.
Court of Owls started before snow falls
City of Owls is right after Court, in winter, and ends when it's no longer snowing
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08-19-2020, 01:40 PM #14Mighty Member
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White Knight has great art. Originally Posted by Wrestler
The Story in the first book is interresting. The purrist would say that some similar topic have already been done about Batman, so there's nothing amazing. But it is much betterly done than all the other's I've read and to me one of the best Batman in the past 15 years.
The Second book, I haven't read, but I heard the art is still as good, but the story is a little lower and a bit far fetched. But still a great read and much better than most of the Batstories from the past years.
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08-19-2020, 01:43 PM #15Mighty Member
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That's why they are in parenthesis ! They are optional. Originally Posted by Restingvoice
And "City of Owls" is the Batman serie only book, "Night of Owls" is the complete crossover book.
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