Where do I start with Batman comics?

[Silvanus]

I'm not particularly interested on the supernatural. I opted for the Arkham graphic novel because I'm playing Asylum and it seemed appropriate (freaky and surreal as the take is). But I'm definitely more onto the down-to-earth stuff in stories, as far as Batman is concerned. I saw Year One and Long Halloween for $16 and about $20-25 each in the same store where I bought Arkham so I'll probably be checking them out later, in that order. I asked about Knightfall because I've always been a fan of Bane (Nolan's version nonwithstanding) but the dude in the store told me it's a massive arc spanning 4 volumes or so and lots of colleceted comics, so it's a bit overwhelming for me at the time.

I also saw they had A Death in the Family. Is that any good?

Knightfall is pretty huge, yeah. Plus, the entire arc includes not only Knightfall, but Knightquest (which I haven't read; this is Jean-Paul Valley's time as Batman) and KnightsEnd (which is worth reading, but if you know what happens, not essential). I've also read parts of Prodigal, which is a brief following arc in which Dick Grayson is dealing with some of the inmates from the Knightfall break-out that Bruce didn't manage to catch, such as Ratcatcher and Two-Face. Fun, but I don't think it's collected in a single volume, and wouldn't really be worth finding every single issue individually.


Death in the Family... some people consider it a classic, but if I'm perfectly honest, I didn't enjoy it very much. A lot like The Death of Superman, it's important for what happens, but it's not actually that great a read.

 

[Sizzle Montyjing]

You don't. Get out while you can.
Run.
I'm not an expert, nor a novice, so I can't help you there.
What I can tell you, however, is to watch all of the Adam West Batman TV series. All of them.

 

[elvor0]

As well as all the good ones mentioned here, I'd like to give Scott Snyder a tongue bath, not exactly a start comic, but it is a very good story when you get round to it: Court of Owls/City of Owls, it's part of the new stuff, but it is a FANTASTIC read. Snyders been absolutely nailing it recently. Also, the latest Joker story "Death of The Family" (different from A Death IN the Family), was great too, though I'm not sure if it's out in paper back yet. That's basically most of the new run by Scott Snyder so far and if you ever decide to start reading it monthly I can wholeheartedly recommend the current run.

Due to it being recently rebooted they're set up to be new reader friendly (ish) so you can jump in without feeling lost, and so far they've been new and fresh ideas so there's no back story clogging you down. Plus they're running the new origin story, though I am out of the loop at the moment, but that could be /really/ handy for a new reader. Most of the New 52 has dubious quality, but Batman is of really good quality. Also, note the monthly comic is just called Batman. No sub titles or anything.

 

[Xenedus]

Wikipedia.

This applies to pretty much any superhero comic. Pick a Superhero. Read Wikipedia. Pick up any comic and start reading. If you have questions about something refer back to Wikipedia.

EDIT: Obviously Wikipedia will have spoilers but that's kinda the point if you want to get caught up on the story in a hurry.

 

[VonKlaw]

*snip*

I think you have, but listen to this guy.

I'd also agree with The Long Halloween and Hush, both pretty enjoy and both include plenty of villains to get used to.

Also, not to derail the thread, I've almost finished reading the Knightfall stuff and a friend of mine has recommended the War Games arc. Any good?

 

[ZZoMBiE13]

I'm particularly fond of Scott Snyder's work. He's been writing BATMAN since the New 52 launch (and a bit before I think, but don't quote me on that). His run on the New 52 has been pretty incredible and they're easily collected in hardback editions that shouldn't be difficult to find.

But honestly, my favorite incarnation of the Dark Knight is the Animated Series version. I am of course biased since I am such a huge fan, but I believe it holds up pretty well despite being 20+ years old. It has a timeless feel to it that builds not just Batman, but the sidekick characters, the rogue's gallery and Gotham itself into wonderful characters. And if you follow the shows as they progressed, there is a pretty cohesive narrative running through all of the DC Animated Universe from Batman: TAS to Superman: TAS to Justice League to Justice League Unlimited. You can follow up with Teen Titans and Batman Beyond if you like. It's all the same animators and writers and creators so they all have a pretty natural flow.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Wikipedia.

This applies to pretty much any superhero comic. Pick a Superhero. Read Wikipedia. Pick up any comic and start reading. If you have questions about something refer back to Wikipedia.

EDIT: Obviously Wikipedia will have spoilers but that's kinda the point if you want to get caught up on the story in a hurry.

That's usually my philosophy in life but I wanted a more personalized feedback. It's also saved me and anybody interested a considerable amount of time.

 

[elvor0]

I'm particularly fond of Scott Snyder's work. He's been writing BATMAN since the New 52 launch (and a bit before I think, but don't quote me on that). His run on the New 52 has been pretty incredible and they're easily collected in hardback editions that shouldn't be difficult to find.

Yeah the ones I know of are Black Mirror(with Dick as Bats) and Gates of Gotham, I've heard Gates of Gotham was supposed to be a precursor to the Court of Owls storyline in some form, as in he was going to be using that story anyway before they rebooted, but presumably it was too good to pass up even without Gates of Gotham. I haven't read them myself, but I certainly plan to. I do really need to catch up, I ran out of funds after issue #21 and I'm really looking forward to seeing what he does with Batmans Origins when I have some cash to catch up, and I really want to have a complete collection of Snyders run, missing an issue would annoy the fuck out of me ><

And I'd like to add that Batman Beyond is a must watch, maintains the same great tone of BTAS, had an excellent wrap up with "Epilogue" and manages to propel Terry in the role without him feeling overshadowed by the classic baddies/history, I'm still hoping Rocksteady'll make a game of it after their mystery Silver Age game, cos right now, as good as Arkham Origins looks, I've heard the combat is really clunky compared to Asylum and City.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I'm still hoping Rocksteady'll make a game of it after their mystery Silver Age game, cos right now, as good as Arkham Origins looks, I've heard the combat is really clunky compared to Asylum and City.

That would be really weird and inexplicable considering how freeflowy combat is in those games.

 

[elvor0]

I'm still hoping Rocksteady'll make a game of it after their mystery Silver Age game, cos right now, as good as Arkham Origins looks, I've heard the combat is really clunky compared to Asylum and City.

That would be really weird and inexplicable considering how freeflowy combat is in those games.

Well I suppose "really clunky" is overstating it, I watched some footage of it from Pax with TotalBiscuit playing, where it was quite clearly running at 30 fps as opposed to the stable 60 City/Asylum had, he said it didn't feel as fluid as the others, and it certainly looked slower and less smooth regardless. I'm hoping that it's just a demo build intentionally capped at 30, but I would assume with it coming out late october, if that isn't an early build, then they don't exactly have much time to bring it up to scratch with the other two.

 

[ninjaRiv]

Yeah, you're gonna want to start with the likes of Year One, Dark Knight Returns, Long Halloween, etc to build up your knowledge of that character. After that it's just a case of getting a feel for the sort of Batman you like and looking at the different arcs that might suit you. Arcs like Hush, City of Crime, etc are very good for the more detective sort of stories, for example. Or you could check out Grant Morrison's stuff for the more whacky, continuity stuff (I don't advise that). Lots and lots of Batman, something for everyone (even Batman "haters").

 

[Harley Q]

I'm a fan of Hush, but its good to start with the more reverred ones if you want to really get into it. like Knightfall, Long Halloween, Year One, The Killing Joke.

I really enjoyed, Lovers and Madmen, but thats just me. I think dip you toes in the ocean and see how you feel.

 

[Zeraki]

Year One, The Killing Joke, The Long Halloween, Hush, Black Mirror and Dark Knight Returns.

All of those come highly recommended. The best part is that they are all stand alone stories with very little to do with the DC Universe at large, so they're easy to follow for newcomers and casual comic readers(like myself).

 

[Psychobabble]

I was snooping around a comic book store a few hours ago and suddenly I remembered "Of course! Batman's a comic too!" (I've been playing Arkham Asylum/City). But after flipping through hundreds of comics I'm at a loss. I have NO idea what's a good intro comic for Batman. I don't know if I'm supposed to look for the oldest print, or in the DC Comics or Gotham Stories section, and at what point it stops being kitschy idiocy about Batman handling suicidal gorillas and gets any good.

So what's a good place to start? Timeline, arc, company, writer, whatever? (No alternate reality bullshit please.)

Just read The Killing Joke and forget the rest. It's all down hill from there.

 

[Silvanus]

Also, not to derail the thread, I've almost finished reading the Knightfall stuff and a friend of mine has recommended the War Games arc. Any good?

I'm afraid I haven't read War Games. It's pretty large, and I've never had much of an interest in Black Mask, who I think is the primary villain in that arc.

 

[Zeldias]

The Long Halloween is a great place to start. It's an excellent story.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

But seriously, that's exactly what I'd recommend. Stands on it's own, and it's excellent.

 

[redmoretrout]

Just read The Killing Joke and forget the rest. It's all down hill from there.

This guy beat me to the punch. But, yeah he's correct.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Basing on most answers so far I'd present the following makeshift timeline...

1) 1987 - Year One (good intro)
2) 1996 - The Long Halloween (good follow-up, add Dark Victory and Catwoman sequels too)
3) 1988 - The Killing Joke (one-shot)
4) 1989 - Arkham Asylum (one-shot)
5) 1993 - Knightfall (big ass arc)
6) 1986 - The Dark Knight Returns (good finale... even though it was made by the same guy who made Year One THE YEAR AFTER)

Agree, disagree?

EDIT: I'd also throw in Hush (2003), though a lot of people seem to be torn on this one.

 

[Queen Michael]

Basing on most answers so far I'd present the following makeshift timeline...

1) Year One (good intro)
2) The Long Halloween (good follow-up)
3) The Killing Joke (one-shot)
4) Arkham Asylym (one-shot)
5) Knightfall (big ass arc)
6) The Dark Knight Returns (good finale... even though it was made by the same guy who made Year One THE YEAR AFTER)

Agree, disagree?

I'd say this is a perfectly fine way of doing it.

 

[CrashBang]

If you're looking at getting trades (collections) then go for the classics: The Long Halloween, Year One, Hush, Arkham Asylum.

Also get your hands on every issue of Scott Snyder's current run on Batman (23 issues so far). It is consistently phenomenal. Either track down the single issues or get the trades.
Morrison's run on Batman from 'Batman & Son' to 'Batman Incorporated' was also whacky and insane.

My personal favourites:
The Long Halloween
The Killing Joke
Earth One
The Man Who Laughs
The Back Mirror
Gotham By Gaslight

Check all of those out!