10 Great Batman Comics to Read Before (or After) The Batman

”The Batman is offering a unique portrayal of the Dark Knight, as evident from its trailers”

For the thirteenth big-screen appearance for the character (not counting cameos), director Matt Reeves offers a mystery grounded in the real world, where the young Batman must follow clues to stop the Riddler from continuing a murder spree. Along the way, he enlists help from the seemingly amoral Selina Kyle, a.k.a. Catwoman, and Gotham City’s most honest cop, Jim Gordon. All this the Riddler is doing to force Batman to confront some very uncomfortable truths about his parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne, and also deal with the crime bosses Carmine Falcone and the Penguin.

Of course, absolutely nothing related to a nearly 100-year-old character could ever be brand new. From 1939’s Detective Comics #27’s introduction of Batman, he has been re-imagined from everything from being a cold-blooded killer to protect the rich to an upright paragon of righteousness, a dedicated loner, or head of a family.

That’s how you can have the Goth creature of the night in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman and the messed-up rich kid in military drag in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight So, when Reeves, along with his collaborators, sat down to work on his version of the World’s Greatest Detective, he could draw from several Batmen

That breadth of choice, however, is frightening for those who want a little more of the Reeves and Pattinson style of character. For those wanting their Caped Crusader which is gritty and real, here are some of the comics that inspired the new blockbuster film.

Table of Contents

1. DC Comics Batman: The Long Halloween

Perhaps the biggest influence on the new movie, The Long Halloween, is probably the best work from the team of writer Jeph Loeb and artist Tim Sale The thirteen-part story involves the emergence of a new killer called Holiday, who each month kills a different person connected to the Falcone crime family Batman, Lieutenant Gordon, and District Attorney Harvey Dent make a pact to stop Holiday, a decision that ends up having disastrous consequences

The Long Halloween has everything one would want from a Batman mystery, complete with appearances by the best of the hero’s rogues gallery, and—in surprisingly large roles—Calendar Man and Mad Hatter. Where the comic shines is in the art: ”Sale’s thin, sketchy lines combined with messy black areas make for a creepy setting where the characters move, enhanced by Gregory Wright’s moody colors and Richard Starkings’ lettering choices The outcome is a true-to-Batman noir masterpiece

2. DC Comics Batman: Year One (Batman #404-407)

”Now, for clarity’s sake, it’s obvious that Batman happens in his second year as the Pointy Ears guy And guess what? The movie didn’t borrow anything from that Batman: Year Two comic Nope, it got its mojo from the awesome origin tale, Batman: Year One Smart move, really; that story made Batman shine after some shaky years

Batman: Year One is Frank Miller’s gritty take on Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham City and the birth of the Batman persona Miller keeps it real by focusing on the human side of the character, thanks in part to David Mazzucchelli’s amazing artwork The washed-out colors and rainy atmosphere make Gotham feel like a dark, twisted maze Todd Klein’s unique lettering adds to the overall vibe This is the OG Dark Knight story!

3. Dark Knight, Dark City (Batman #452-454)

The Riddler has never been one of Batman’s top enemies, which is why there are so many different interpretations of him Movie fans might remember Jim Carrey’s wild version of Edward Nygma, where he changed costumes and tones constantly That was influenced by Frank Gorshin and John Astin’s goofier portrayals in the 1966 Batman series But in The Batman, Paul Dano takes a different approach He plays the Riddler as a serial killer, similar to Vincent Price’s monster characters or the Jigsaw Killer from the Saw movies, trapping his victims in elaborate death traps

Although he wears army surplus gear instead of the usual fancy green suit coat and derby, Dano’s Riddler owes a lot to the villain from the 1990 storyline Dark Knight, Dark City Written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by Kieron Dwyer, this arc has the Riddler sending Batman on a creepy quest, accidentally summoning a demon named Barbathos It also influenced Grant Morrison’s successful run with the character and showed us how dark the Riddler can be.

4 Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score

Catwoman, aka Selina Kyle, is a big part of both The Long Halloween and Year One In those stories, she’s a side character, but you still see glimpses of her depth In The Batman, Zoë Kravitz plays Catwoman as well, and as the plot unfolds, her connection to the mystery makes her one of the most interesting characters in the movie

For that reason, partly, the filmmakers must have drawn on what many consider the best solo Catwoman story: Selina’s Big Score by the late, great Darwyn Cooke. With its Jack Kirby-by-way-of-Bruce Timm line work courtesy of Cooke and flashy colors from Matt Hollingsworth, it suggests a bright, breezy crime caper. But by introducing a bevy of characters—among them the long-time DC Comics hard case Slam Bradley—Cooke brings an otherwise poppy adventure a great deal of depth. As double- and triple-crosses get underway, Selena proves herself a principled protector of the downtrodden, not merely a sleek cat burglar.

5″Venom” (Legends of the Dark Knight #16 -20)

Stories about the origins of Batman must therefore grapple with the question of moderation. Where most creators—the adult Batman—show him measured and in control, alive to how his actions rub off on others, the early Batman, for reasons of consistency, has still had to learn a balance between anger and passion. This is what generally propels Pattinson’s take in The Batman, where this new hero strives to be more than an instrument of vengeance.

In Venom, Batman faces one of his most haunting failures Unable to save a young girl from drowning, he turns to a new drug for strength But it only makes him angrier and more dangerous, turning him into the very monsters he fights Despite some choppy storytelling, the artwork is great And for a glimpse into Batman’s moral character and the origins of supervillain Bane, Venom is essential

6 DC Comics “The Penguin!” (Detective Comics 58-59)

Mostly, though, Reeves roots the characters of Batman’s world in roles from everyday reality. Oz Cobblepot, aka Penguin—a captain under mob boss Carmine Falcone—stands as the single cast member shattering that reality.

This Penguin, as played by Colin Farrell in stage makeup and a fat suit, is loud and brash, jarringly over-the-top in a relatively downbeat film. For that reason, the best Penguin comics to read in preparation for the movie aren’t more modern takes like The Dark Penguin: Pain and Prejudice. Instead, Farrell based his conception of the character on those early stories—particularly on his first two appearances in Detective Comics #58 and 59. Writer Bill Finger concocts enjoyably lighthearted capers for the newest member of Batman’s rogues gallery, and artist Bob Kane brazenly cribs from Dick Tracy, creator Chester Gould for his design for the grotesque Penguin.

7. DC Comics Batman: No Man’s Land

The setting, as in any good mystery, forms an integral part of The Batman: Gotham City. It is providing the city full of darkness from which the Batman should strike, a dwelling for the oppressed, and a sanctuary for the rich and their oppressors. Gotham is a city that is filled with evil that needs to be destroyed and good that needs to be cultivated.

Few Batman stories have delved into Gotham’s depths quite like the year-long 1999 crossover event No Man’s Land After an earthquake wrecked Gotham, the US government said, See ya! and left the city to rot The folks who stayed behind, whether by choice or not, are stuck in the middle of a crazy gang war led by all sorts of baddies And to make matters worse, Batman’s gone MIA, leaving Gotham to fend for itself This epic tale not only shows the messed-up side of Gotham City but also makes us rethink where Batman fits into all of it

8: “E. Nygma, Consulting Detective,” Detective Comics #822:

Paul Dini is a big deal when it comes to Batman His work on Batman: The Animated Series shaped how we see the character – a mix of old-school superhero stuff and gritty noir Even though people tend to focus on Grant Morrison’s fancy Batman stories, Dini’s Detective Comics run has some hidden gems worth checking out

For the minds behind The Batman, probably the most important aspect of Dini’s run was its new use for the Riddler. No longer content just to be a villain, the Riddler has become a consulting detective for the Gotham Police Department, pitting him as both collaborator and rival to Batman himself. Riddler doesn’t do anything especially mean during this storyline, but he does get under Batman’s skin, which might be the most brilliant move of all.

9 Batman/Catwoman

When Batman 50 ended, instead of Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle getting married, she dumped the Caped Crusader because of Bane Fans weren’t happy Writer Tom King insisted it was all part of a bigger story. ”Batman/Catwoman captures what all stories about the duo, including The Batman, want to emulate–a high-wire act balancing sexual tension with deep antagonism and genuine respect Greeley’s work for DC Comics includes Batman/Catwoman 5-6”

10. DC Comics: Batman: Earth One.

”So it’s a surprise to find so many of its key elements make their way into The Batman, including Batman’s growling,””I’m revenge!” But the most important element that Reeves and his co-writer, Peter Craig, pull from the series is another take on Alfred Pennyworth.

As played by Andy Serkis, Bruce Wayne’s loyal butler has a more rugged feeling than those portrayed by older actors, Michael Caine and Michael Gough. The film’s gruff Alfred walks with the aid of cane and sports visible scars as he talks about the need to “protect” the Waynes. .That’s straight from Earth One by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, where he is an old army acquaintance of Thomas Wayne with a shadowy past. Hired originally by Thomas as security for his mayoral campaign, Alfred becomes a guardian and then trainer to Bruce as the boy begins his tenure as Batman.

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