The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to... Batman: Part 1

After witnessing the death of his parents at the hands of a petty crook, Bruce Wayne dedicates his life to avenging them. Deciding that Gotham City needs someone who can work outside the law to bring wrongdoers to justice, Bruce trains his mind and body to peak performance and adopts the bat as a symbol to strike fear in the hearts of criminals.

He is vengeance. He is the night. He is Batman!

Given that Batman is one of DC Comic’s most published heroes, this particular guide covers some classic Batman stories, young Batman, the new 52, and DC rebirth. See Part 2 for more Batman series, or read the full guide!

Updated September 24, 2024
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Wellington City LibrariesYouth team at Wellington City Libraries
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Batman : year one
Miller, Frank
Paper Book
In 1986, writer Frank Miller joined with artist David Mazzucchelli and colorist Richmond Lewis to create one of the most groundbreaking superhero tales ever to see print--BATMAN: YEAR ONE, now available in a deluxe edition!   Originally published over four issues in the monthly...
Batman, zero year
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
As the new Batman, former police commissioner Jim Gordon is in for the fight of his life against the bizarre threat of Mr. Bloom, who controls plant life in Gotham City! At the same time, an amnesiac Bruce Wayne has discovered the truth of his past as the Dark Knight -- now, he must descend into the...
Batman Ego and Other Tails Deluxe Ed
Cooke, D.
Paper Book
A collection of pulse-pounding stories of the Dark Knight, Catwoman and more of Gotham's finest. Featuring Darwyn Cooke's unique visions of Batman and Catwoman, now available as a Deluxe Edition hardcover! Written by Darwyn Cooke and Paul Grist. Art by Darwyn Cooke and...
Batman : Arkham Asylum
Morrison, Grant
Paper Book
Batman. Volume oneKnightfall
Moench, Doug
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Bestseller The villainous Bane breaks the Bat in one of the most popular and well-known Batman tales The inmates of Arkham Asylum have broken free and Batman must push himself to the limits to re-apprehend the Joker, Poison Ivy, the Riddler, Killer Croc and more....
Hush
Loeb, Jeph.
Paper Book
The best-selling and critically acclaimed HUSH storyline is here- re-experience the entire thrilling adventure in one complete deluxe hardcover volume! This edition includes sketches, character designs, annotations, and a brand-new cover by artist and DC publisher Jim Lee. This...
Batman : night of the owls
Snyder, Scott.
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES #1 BESTSELLER As evil spreads across Gotham City, Batman's allies, including Red Robin, Batwing, Robin, Batgirl, the Birds of Prey, Nightwing and even Catwoman find themselves in a battle coming from all sides. The Court of Owls have shown their hand, and it...
Batman : universe
Bendis, Brian Michael
Paper Book
In this all-new original story written by Brian Michael Bendis, Batman is pushed to his limit as he sets off in search of an item with the potential to destroy the universe as we know it! Batman isn't the only one looking for this item though. It's a race to the finish line with the fate of the...
Batman, the Dark Knight returns
Miller, Frank
Paper Book
The comics masterpiece Batman: the Dark Knight Returns is back in hardcover, with a new cover designed by Chip Kidd.The Batman has not been seen in ten years, some now consider him more myth than reality, but crime and violence have continued in Gotham City. Bruce Wayne had reached a point in his...
Batman : last knight on Earth
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
Powerhouse creative team Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo (Batman: The Court of Owls, Dark Nights: Metal) conclude a decade-long partnership with the Caped Crusader in Batman: Last Knight on Earth. Twenty years in the future, Bruce Wayne wakes up in Arkham...
Batman beyond. Vol. 1, Escaping the grave
Jurgens, Dan
Paper Book
Writer Dan Jurgens (Action Comics), artist Bernard Chang (Green Lantern Corps) and colorist Marcelo Maiolo (Green Lantern Corps) bring Terry McGinnis' Batman back to the future in Batman Beyond Volume 1: Escaping the Grave as a part of DC Rebirth!    As the...
Batman. Volume 3, Death of the Family
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
Batman. Volume 4, Zero year-secret city
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
In this first volume of the critically acclaimed ZERO YEAR storyline, the #1 New York Times bestselling creative team of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo present an astonishing new vision of the Dark Knight's origin--and his first encounters with the Riddler, the Red Hood, and others! ...
Batman. Volume 5, Zero Year - Dark City
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
A #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Before the Batcave and Robin, the Joker and the Batmobile ... there was ZERO YEAR. The Riddler has plunged Gotham City into darkness. How will a young Dark Knight bring his beloved hometown from the brink of chaos and madness and back...
Batman. Volume 6, Graveyard shift
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
In the wake of the death of his son Damian, Batman is in danger of losing his humanity. However, the foes of this grief-ridden Dark Knight mean to strike him when he's at his weakest. Has Batman's worst foe become... Bruce Wayne? Plus, three pivotal chapters from the epic ZERO YEAR...
Batman. Volume 7, Endgame
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
HA. HA. HA.    Batman's greatest foe has returned for one last gag. But this time, not even the Joker is laughing. In their last encounter, the Dark Knight failed to live up to Joker's grand plans, so now the Joker is deadly serious. The games are over, and for their final...
Batman. Volume 8, Superheavy
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
COMMISSIONER GORDON IS THE NEW BATMAN!   Following the disappearance and presumed death of Batman, former police commissioner Jim Gordon has been called to carry on the Dark Knight's legacy and become the Dark Knight's successor.   But while the name and what it...
Batman. Volume 9, Bloom
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
As the new Batman, former police commissioner Jim Gordon is in for the fight of his life against the bizarre threat of Mr. Bloom, who controls plant life in Gotham City! At the same time, an amnesiac Bruce Wayne has discovered the truth of his past as the Dark Knight -- now, he must descend into the...
Batman. Volume 10, Epilogue
Fawkes, Ray
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES best-selling series!   THE LAST CHAPTERS... As acclaimed writer Scott Snyder draws the final curtain on his game-changing Batman series, the newly returned Dark Knight battles familiar foes and new enemies. These exquisite stand-alone stories take the...
All-star Batman. Vol. 1, My own worst enemy
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times best-selling author of BATMAN returns to the Dark Knight in ALL-STAR BATMAN VOL. 1! But he's not alone. Critically acclaimed, legendary illustrator John Romita Jr. joins him on this epic new series! In this new graphic novel, Batman finds himself trying to help old...
All-star Batman. Vol. 2, Ends of the earth
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES best-selling BATMAN author Scott Snyder's ALL STAR BATMAN continues with a new volume featuring new stories drawn by some of the top artists in all of comics! For more than 75 years, Batman has been one of the most widely-recognized and revered super-heroes in all of...
All-star Batman. Vol. 3, The first ally
Snyder, Scott
Paper Book
New York Times #1 best-selling writer Scott Snyder and artist Rafael Albuquerque, the Eisner Award-winning creative team of American Vampire, reunite for All Star Batman Vol. 3: The First Ally--a pulse-pounding thriller striking directly at the heart of the Bat-mythos, now in...
Batman. Vol. 1, I am Gotham
King, Tom
Paper Book
Batman is Gotham City's greatest protector. But now he's not alone. There are two new heroes in town-a pair of masked metahumans with the powers of Superman and a devotion to preserving all that is good about this twisted city. Calling themselves Gotham and Gotham Girl, they've saved Batman's life,...
Batman : night of the monster men
Orlando, Steve (Comic book writer)
Paper Book
The first Batman crossover of DC Rebirth is here in BATMAN: NIGHT OF THE MONSTER MEN!   It's the storm of the century, and it's headed straight for Gotham City. The guardians of this sprawling urban center--Nightwing, Batwoman and the Batman himself--think they've prepared...
Batman. Vol. 2, I am suicide
King, Tom
Paper Book
Bestselling writer Tom King continues his epic run on the Dark Knight! Still reeling from a cataclysmic battle, Batman finds himself up against some of the biggest (literally) threats he's ever faced within the city limits of Gotham. To save the city he loves, Batman enlists the help of the toughest...
Batman. Vol. 3, I am Bane
King, Tom
Paper Book
Monster Men. New costumed vigilantes. Mad doctors. Each new threat has brought Batman--and Gotham City--to the brink. But it was all a smokescreen for the real threat in the shadows... Bane. The man who has physically tested the Dark Knight like no man before is back to finally...
Batman. Vol. 4, The war of jokes and riddles
King, Tom
Paper Book
Zero Year. 12 months in which Gotham City was left without power, without laws, without hope. 365 days in which the Riddler ruled the streets. But once again, Batman was victorious. In the aftermath of Zero Year? War. The Joker vs. The Riddler. They called it the War of Jokes and...
Batman. Vol. 5, The rules of engagement
King, Tom
Paper Book
When Catwoman accepted Batman's marriage proposal, she changed more lives than just Bruce Wayne's and Selina Kyle's. A union between the World's Greatest Detective and one of Gotham City's fiercest criminals is a shake-up that will rattle everyone in the Dark Knight's life--from the young...
Batman. Vol. 6, Bride or burglar?
King, Tom
Paper Book
The path to the altar has never been so dangerous! Not long after Batman announces his engagement to Catwoman, he and Wonder Woman are called to honor an old commitment requiring them to fight for Earth in a distant, magical realm. But time flows strangely in this new land, and...
Batman. Vol. 7, The wedding
King, Tom
Paper Book
Batman and Catwoman are about to have the wedding of the century... or are they? For these star-crossed crime-fighters, nothing ever comes easy. As Bruce and Selina prepare to tie the knot, the time-traveling hero called Booster Gold crashes the party with a dangerous and deadly...
Batman. Vol. 8, Cold days
King, Tom
Paper Book
Author Tom King pens the next epic volume of his critically acclaimed, best-selling Batman series in Batman Vol. 8- Cold Days! Bruce Wayne has been selected for jury duty in a chilling court case involving Mr. Freeze! Freeze claims the charges should be dismissed...
Batman. Vol. 9, The tyrant wing
King, Tom
Paper Book
The Penguin claims Bane, the man who broke the Bat, is the one pulling the strings in Batman's life. But how could that be when Bane is safely locked away in Arkham Asylum--and a broken man himself? He's been in a padded room, in a nearly catatonic state, since his last encounter with the Bat.<...
Batman. Vol. 10, Knightmares
King, Tom
Paper Book
Eisner Award winner Tom King's explosive Batman run continues as he plunges the Dark Knight's world further into a spiral of madness from which he may never return. There are strange goings-on in the dark alleys of Gotham City, mysteries that will require a different skill set...
Batman. Vol. 11, The fall and the fallen
King, Tom
Paper Book
Bruce and Thomas Wayne, THE BATMEN OF TWO WORLDS! Batman has uncovered the mastermind behind his recent (and not-so-recent) troubles- Bane. But Batman's closest allies refuse to believe Bane is active again, and even after battling the villain himself, puzzlingly, there's no...
Batman. Vol. 2 The Joker War
Tynion, James, IV
Paper Book
This is it- the Clown Prince of Crime battles the Dark Knight Detective head-to-head for the last time. And one way or another, this will be the final chapter of their agelong conflict. The Clown Prince of Crime and the Dark Knight Detective go head-to-head for the last time. The...
Batman. Vol. 3, Ghost stories
Tynion, James, IV
Paper Book
A new day dawns in Gotham, and the horrors of "The Joker War" are just being realized.;;A bold new direction for Batman begins as Bruce Wayne's circumstances are forever changed. How did The Joker's rampage affect the citizens of the city? ;;Bruce Wayne and the city he loves have changed...
Batman. Vol. 4, The cowardly lot
Tynion, James, IV
Paper Book
Following the tragic events in the Infinite Frontier special, Batman and his new ally Ghost-Maker must reckon with a new gang operating in Gotham City. The bestselling creative team behind last year's epic "The Joker War" returns for a thrill-packed, dangerous story...
Batman. Vol. 5, Fear state
Tynion, James, IV
Paper Book
Gotham City is on the brink of martial law as Batman fights a two-front battle! The Scarecrow is unleashing a devasting attack on the city while the Magistrate have made their move to invade! The BATMAN- THE JOKER WAR creative team of James Tynion IV and Jorge...
Batman. Vol. 1, Failsafe
Zdarsky, Chip
Paper Book
Superstar writer Chip Zdarsky joins red-hot artist Jorge Jimenez to define a new era in Batman with their critically acclaimed and bestselling Failsafe arc! Batman has battled all manner of criminals, monsters, and super-villains, but nothing could have prepared him for what's...
Batman. Vol. 2, The Bat-Man of Gotham
Zdarsky, Chip
Paper Book
Gotham City has never been darker or deadlier. And after Failsafe, there is no Batman to save it. The mean streets of Gotham City have gotten meaner as the likes of Harvey Dent and Killer Croc roam free, brutalizing the population. Where is Batman and why hasn't he responded to...

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