Is Denny O'Neil's Batman anyone's favorite version in comics?

[TomServofan]

Definitely mine! i loved how he got rid of Batman's campy image from the 60's and rebooted him back to basics in the 70s as much as Frank Miller and Alan Moore did in the 80s.

His version of Gotham is quite unique and realistic, i even like how he explores in the characters and all that. And when i see Nolan's Batman films, they remind me of O'Neill's version which is why i love Nolan's films.

Man Who Falls is one of my favorite Batman stories.

[t hedge coke]

His prose version, particularly in Helltown, might be my favorite Batman/Bruce anywhere, but in comics, Miller's, Morrison's, Milligan and Aparo's, Grant and Beyfogle's may all have him beat.

[Powerboy]

Definitely mine! i loved how he got rid of Batman's campy image from the 60's and rebooted him back to basics in the 70s as much as Frank Miller and Alan Moore did in the 80s.

His version of Gotham is quite unique and realistic, i even like how he explores in the characters and all that. And when i see Nolan's Batman films, they remind me of O'Neill's version which is why i love Nolan's films.

Man Who Falls is one of my favorite Batman stories.

Interestingly enough, he seems to have disliked Miller's Batman, feeling there is a difference between realistic and even dark on the one hand and corrupted on the other hand. But I loved O'Neill's Batman stories and his Green Lantern stories.

[K. Jones]

I love Denny, and think I consider myself something of a Denny O'Neil acolyte. So it's interesting that his Batman isn't my favorite - but it's kind of a weird scenario. It might not be my favorite ... but he invented (or brought back) all of what IS my favorite Batman stuff. He invented the Al Ghuls and the League (and littered run-ins with them across the kung-fu DCU, not just in Batman). He brought back Bill Finger's Joker. Ad infinitum. He's such an important figure in Batman, and spent so much time after his seminal run editing good comics (and writing side-stories) that I consider him pretty infallible choice if he is someone's favorite.

It boggles my mind that Denny's Batman Renaissance was happening simultaneously as Kirby's Fourth World. Batman & Dick's every steps were hounded by satanic assassins as Superman & Jimmy were embroiled in a secret invasion god war against cosmic demons. Batman and Superman were exposed, near simultaneously to their ultimate enemy devil masterminds. (Which is the entire backstory of Morrison's run. Sidenote: It also boggles my mind that there are Denny/Jack collabs out there.)

So yeah, Denny. Not my favorite. I like his The Question ten times more than I like his Batman stories. But I feel like the "students of the Denny school of Batman" told better Batman than the master did, once they took his lessons to heart. Primarily Rucka & Morrison, but with honorable mentions to oh, Wein, Grant, Moench, Dixon, Brubaker, Dini. The heavy hitters. Add Denny and Bill Finger to that list and it's not just "my" top ten Gotham writers ever list, it's close to definitive.

(On a quick tangent; I love at least half of the Frank Miller Batman comics, but I don't think writing ... oh, less than 20 issues total in like 25 years ... really qualifies someone for my ultimate top ten. He'd be in the low teens on a top 20 list though. Oh god, and with that in mind anyway, why not just do a list?)

1. Morrison
2. Rucka
3. O'Neil
4. Brubaker
5. Dini
6. Grant
7. Moench
8. Dixon
9. Wein
10. Finger
11. Milligan
12. Haney
13. Tomasi
14. Miller
15. Snyder
16. Winick
17. TBD
18. TBD
19. TBD
20. Loeb

[TomServofan]

Do you all agree Nolan's version is similar to O'Neill's take even the way Gotham is portayed?

[K. Jones]

Do you all agree Nolan's version is similar to O'Neill's take even the way Gotham is portayed?

There's echoes. Nolan's films draw from a variety of timely choices ... Finger, O'Neil, Miller, Loeb, Morrison, Grant and Dixon.

[TomServofan]

There's echoes. Nolan's films draw from a variety of timely choices ... Finger, O'Neil, Miller, Loeb, Morrison, Grant and Dixon.

Don't forget Moore.

[John Venus]

I like O'Neil's Batman work as well. Birth of the Demon is fantastic and one of the best Ras stories ever written. I remember an issue he wrote which revealed that Batman was a huge jazz fan and there was this one great issue with Batman trying to solve the mystery of a poison gas attack and some criminals were discussing something when Batman just comes out of the shadow and eats a chicken off of the fork one of the criminals was holding which scared the crap out of the criminals. That was both creepy and hilarious at the same time.

O'Neill is underrated, he was the Bat editor for almost 2 decades after writing the character, he created Ras and Talia and the Bat Family really grew during his time. The creators of B:TAS and the Nolan movies cites him as an influence. The first Iron Man film is also partially based off of his run on the character I believe. He is arguably just as influential if not moreso than Frank Miller when it comes to Batman. I wonder if anyone has tried to tally up their contributions to the mythos?

I agree that his prose is really good, there is a little bit of it in Birth of the Demon and he wrote the Green Lantern novel titled 'Hero'.

[JBatmanFan05]

I love Denny, and think I consider myself something of a Denny O'Neil acolyte. So it's interesting that his Batman isn't my favorite - but it's kind of a weird scenario. It might not be my favorite ... but he invented (or brought back) all of what IS my favorite Batman stuff. He invented the Al Ghuls and the League (and littered run-ins with them across the kung-fu DCU, not just in Batman). He brought back Bill Finger's Joker. Ad infinitum. He's such an important figure in Batman, and spent so much time after his seminal run editing good comics (and writing side-stories) that I consider him pretty infallible choice if he is someone's favorite.

I agree with like all this, I'm a Denny acolyte. He steered Batman through his best comic book years. First as a writer, then as editor.

He of course deserves a Legends of/Tales of hardcover. Many volumes actually. He deserves statues and monuments and the whole nine yards.

But I feel like the "students of the Denny school of Batman" told better Batman stories than the master did, once they took his lessons to heart.

Yea, Denny has some particular stories that rival the best of them (bat-writers), but generally many of the students were better writers. Wein was a very similar writer to Denny I'd say.

[t hedge coke]

Some things I love about O'Neil's prose Batman:

Bruce Wayne/Batman/Bruce: Rather than Wayne's public face being a mask for Batman or vice versa, or some silly "he's just a little dead boy pretending to be a big man" pessimism, there's a very centered, smart, funny guy who likes to show off and help people who plays both Bruce Wayne and Batman.

Bruce Wayne is a Clown: I love seeing Public Wayne just make a mockery of himself. Not that he's vindictive or something, he's just so awkward it makes you want to cry sometimes.

Le Sex: O'Neil's Batman/Bruce has sex and sexual appetites and that's okeh. The times where he's trying hard not to have sex with any of the women he dates or have genuine feelings for them like they're real human beings is unhealthy and something he has to get past in Knightfall.

The Violence: Batman doesn't have to be as violent as he sometimes is, and that, too, is something he has to consciously accept and temper. How much does punching someone actually solve vs how good does it feel is rarely a question highlighted in Batman stories, and in O'Neil's bat-prose, he highlights it every time.

Spirituality: Bruce is superstitious, bemused, amused, and he wants to believe. Bruce believes in luck, in signs and portents, in ritual, in the power of masks and mantras, traditions and hypnosis and reaffirmation and prayer. Batman is a holy thing. And, without contradiction, Bruce is the eternal skeptic, a man for who things can use a more and more precise frame every time. Batman is a thing that must work, and Bruce chases refinement to keep it working, keep it well-built, well-oiled, and good.

[nepenthes]

Some things I love about O'Neil's prose Batman:

Bruce Wayne/Batman/Bruce: Rather than Wayne's public face being a mask for Batman or vice versa, or some silly "he's just a little dead boy pretending to be a big man" pessimism, there's a very centered, smart, funny guy who likes to show off and help people who plays both Bruce Wayne and Batman.

Bruce Wayne is a Clown: I love seeing Public Wayne just make a mockery of himself. Not that he's vindictive or something, he's just so awkward it makes you want to cry sometimes.

Le Sex: O'Neil's Batman/Bruce has sex and sexual appetites and that's okeh. The times where he's trying hard not to have sex with any of the women he dates or have genuine feelings for them like they're real human beings is unhealthy and something he has to get past in Knightfall.

The Violence: Batman doesn't have to be as violent as he sometimes is, and that, too, is something he has to consciously accept and temper. How much does punching someone actually solve vs how good does it feel is rarely a question highlighted in Batman stories, and in O'Neil's bat-prose, he highlights it every time.

Spirituality: Bruce is superstitious, bemused, amused, and he wants to believe. Bruce believes in luck, in signs and portents, in ritual, in the power of masks and mantras, traditions and hypnosis and reaffirmation and prayer. Batman is a holy thing. And, without contradiction, Bruce is the eternal skeptic, a man for who things can use a more and more precise frame every time. Batman is a thing that must work, and Bruce chases refinement to keep it working, keep it well-built, well-oiled, and good.

Absolutely, these are fantastic. I wish more writers would pin these "Truth Of Batman" to a wall before embarking on a Batman run. Especially the superstition/skeptic angle.

[JBatmanFan05]

Some things I love about O'Neil's prose Batman:

I never read Denny's Knightfall novelization. You're tempting me to read it.

Problem is I'm biased some against novel-form Batman some (and film and radio and etc), because I really view Batman as a comic book character.

[Naked Bat]

Bronze age batman is my favorite batman, because he's a serious and dark figure of the night, but he's also your manly pulp hero, and he's compassionate and truly heroic.

[Speed Force League Unlimited]

I love O'Neil's run, O'Neil, Englehart, and Breyfogle runs are the ones that come to mind when I watch an episode of Batman the Animated Series, so these three runs rank very high to me.

[Jon-El]

Probably my favorite Batman writer other than Englehart. I enjoy Miller's version but never thought it would become the dominant vision of the character. I started reading in the mid 70's & bought the tabloid reprint with the Ra's Al Ghul. Blew me away & forever defined the character for me.

One thing I've enjoyed as I've gone back & collected 70's Batman: O'Neil didn't overdo the villains. Some issues had Batman deal with regular criminals. I like that.