TERMINATORS BE TERMINATIN’
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BATMAN: AN INTRODUCTION
One of the most frequent comments I get when I tell people I work in comics is, “I love Batman, but there are so many comics, I don’t know where to start.” No doubt many people will be walking out of Batman V. Superman this weekend with the same question on their minds.
Batman tends to be defined by his creative team, and depending on who you ask, any number of different creators could be responsible for the “definitive Batman.” For my money, the best place to start is the relatively short run on Detective Comics by Steve Englehart, Marshall Rogers and Terry Austin. Spanning issues 471-476, these stories have just about anything you could ask for from a Batman tale, blending moody, noir-ish visuals with melodrama and serious action. Here you’ll find Bruce Wayne’s struggles with his noctual alter ego (is he Bruce Wayne pretending to be Batman, or Batman pretending to be Bruce Wayne?), his tortured love affair with Silver St. Cloud, a psychological battle with potential usurper Hugo Strange, the introduction of the modern version of Deadshot and the legendary Joker fish story that inspired the first Batman movie. A lot happens in just six issues!
These stories are great because they give you a look at some of the the Caped Crusader’s finest crimefighting, but also a glimpse at his human side, the man behind the bat. Batman is a cool character, and a lot of his appeal has always been in his depth, and you get a lot of that here, not just in the grand “oh, my parents died and now I’m a creature of the night” kind of way, but in a very human, relateable way. How does someone with a calling balance their needs as a human being with their desire to do good? And does the desire for justice always equate to doing the right thing? You’ll get plenty of that here, expertly balanced with rooftop showdowns and aerial, rainsoaked kung-fu.
Detective Comics #471-476 by Englehart, Rogers and Austin are personal favorites, but they’re not the only place you can start with Batman. A few other suggestions:
-Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy have collaborated on a number of Batman stories over the years, and bring a similar mix of depth and style to the character as Englehart and Rogers (and a continuation of their Hugo Strange storyline). Most of their stories appeared in Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight.
-Scott Snyder has guided the Dark Knight’s adventures for many years now, and he has a great feel for the world of Gotham. His first run on the character, starting in Detective Comics #871 is a perfect starting point for anyone who wants to get up-to-date on Batman’s current adventures.
What’s your favorite Batman story?
Harris Smith is a senior Production Coordinator and Tumblr editor at comiXology. He attended the Washington, DC premiere of the first Batman movie as a kid and still has the copy of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns they gave away at the afterparty in the bat cave of the National Zoo.
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