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Thread: New 52

  1. #1
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    Default New 52

    New to Batman So I've just been reading from a suggestion list including the likes of year one, long Halloween, dark victory, man who laughs, killing joke, death in the family etc etc.
    However, the list abruptly ends with reading 'new 52' and I'm struggling to understand this series. What new 52 comics or series' are the most enjoyable for the batman world including the villains. Taking in mind currently my favourite has been Arkham asylum a serious house on a serious earth and i have been collecting the Harley Quinn volume 2 new 52.

  2. #2
    Fantastic Member GigiFusc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Leewislees View Post
    New to Batman So I've just been reading from a suggestion list including the likes of year one, long Halloween, dark victory, man who laughs, killing joke, death in the family etc etc.
    However, the list abruptly ends with reading 'new 52' and I'm struggling to understand this series. What new 52 comics or series' are the most enjoyable for the batman world including the villains. Taking in mind currently my favourite has been Arkham asylum a serious house on a serious earth and i have been collecting the Harley Quinn volume 2 new 52.
    Join the club. I'm currently catching up on the Bat New 52 titles and from one issue to the next I can easily lose complete placement. I just went from #20 to #21 and from nowhere there was an origins retelling but quoting things that have happened prior to the retelling that I have somehow missed! Reading the series retrospectively has been a cluster **** for me tbh.

    Also, the quality across the titles varies wildly - from very good to downright piss poor. Batman Inc for instance was just awful for me. I think one of the reasons I got messed up might be because I didn't read 'Batman & Robin'. I'm about to start on those to see if they fill in the gaps. I might pre-emptively advise you to do the same.

    Good luck!

  3. #3
    Astonishing Member Panfoot's Avatar
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    Best place to start is the main title, Batman by Scott Synder and Grep Capullo (so New 52 Batman Vol 1: The Court of Owls). It's been more or less the main batman title and you shouldn't have to much trouble understanding it(it's where I started, having only read some unrelated older stuff like the Killing Joke, Dark Knight Returns, and Year One).

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    Astonishing Member dan12456's Avatar
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    Focus on one run, just read Snyder, then just read Batman and Robin. The odd issue will be a little confusing (like Requiem) but for the most part it won't be. In general with reading any character I've accepted that sometimes there will be references that don't make sense or need to be googled. There are just too many comics to ever understand all the references, especially when you are reading an older standout title that references continuity from books that weren't that good and no one reads anymore.
    Current Pull: Lazarus, The Realm, Seven to Eternity, Aquaman, Flash, Justice League Dark, Justice League Odyssey, Sideways, Black Panther, Captain America, Daredevil, Death of the Inhumans.

    Future Pull: Killmonger.

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    Fantastic Member GigiFusc's Avatar
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    I don't know if this will help or not but I've just been advised to read Batman R.I.P and Batman Final Crisis (in that order I think). Reading the events of those two storylines might make it easier on you. /shrugs

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    Moderator joybeans's Avatar
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    The top New 52 Batbooks have been:

    Scott Snyder's Batman
    Grayson
    Peter Tomasi's Batman and Robin
    Genevieve Valentine's Catwoman
    Gotham Academy
    Robin: Son of Batman
    Williams/Blackman's Batwoman

    Others that are decent:

    Gotham by Midnight
    Kyle Higgins's Nightwing
    Gail Simone's Batgirl
    Fletcher/Stewart's Batgirl
    Manapul/Buccellato's Detective Comics

    If you're trying to put together a reading order, the first three volumes of Batman and Robin, Nightwing, and Simone's Batgirl run parallel with the events of Snyder's Batman. After that, they all go their separate ways. Batman enters Zero Year, an origin story. Nightwing is eventually followed up by Grayson. Batman and Robin is followed up by Robin: Son of Batman.

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    Moderator joybeans's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GigiFusc View Post
    I don't know if this will help or not but I've just been advised to read Batman R.I.P and Batman Final Crisis (in that order I think). Reading the events of those two storylines might make it easier on you. /shrugs
    Those are parts of Grant Morrison's Batman run, which draws heavily from all parts of Batman's comic book history. The full reading order would be:

    Batman: Batman and Son (new edition also includes "The Black Glove")
    Batman RIP
    Final Crisis
    Batman and Robin: Batman Reborn
    Batman and Robin: Batman vs Robin
    Time and the Batman
    The Return of Bruce Wayne
    Batman and Robin: Batman and Robin Must Die!
    Batman Incorporated
    Batman Incorporated New 52 Vol 1
    Batman Incorporated New 52 Vol 2

  8. #8
    Fantastic Member GigiFusc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by joybeans View Post
    Those are parts of Grant Morrison's Batman run, which draws heavily from all parts of Batman's comic book history. The full reading order would be:

    Batman: Batman and Son (new edition also includes "The Black Glove")
    Batman RIP
    Final Crisis
    Batman and Robin: Batman Reborn
    Batman and Robin: Batman vs Robin
    Time and the Batman
    The Return of Bruce Wayne
    Batman and Robin: Batman and Robin Must Die!
    Batman Incorporated
    Batman Incorporated New 52 Vol 1
    Batman Incorporated New 52 Vol 2
    Brilliant, thanks for taking the time to list that - very helpful. I've been trying to catch up the last 5 years over the last 6 months now and you've just given me a proper start point.

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    So following the major ones listed before the new 52, batman: batman and son is the first series of new 52 to read?

  10. #10
    Moderator joybeans's Avatar
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    That's the start of Morrison's Batman saga. However, I wouldn't recommend starting on that path until you're a bit more familiar with Batman's history. Morrison's saga operates under the assumption that everything from previous seven decades of Batman history is canon in one form or another, including a lot of the weird and outdated stuff from the Golden and Silver Ages. It brings in a lot of concepts and ideas from old (and sometimes obscure) Batman stories. It's a great read, but it requires you to have some idea of what you're getting into. It's not the Batman story that a new reader is expecting.

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