Nine comics that every Batman fan should read

Thanks to the efforts of Christopher Nolan and Matt Reeves, and developer Rocksteady, Batman has become the superhero of note as of late. Fans have always loved the adventures of Bruce Wayne's vigilante, but as far as DC goes, Batman has pretty much been the only character to see any success beyond the written page in the past decade or two. But just because he's a pop-cultural icon doesn't mean the comics he stars in drop the ball. Rather they are some of DC's finest, and here are just nine options that prove how complex of a character that Bats truly is.

Batman: Year One

Thematically, it makes sense to begin with Frank Miller's origin story as it remains pretty much the gold standard Batman origin tale. Year One does exactly what it says on the tin, it chronicles the first year of adventures of the Batman, seeing him begin his crimefighting effort and taking on increasingly violent and ruthless villains along the way. It's rooted, gritty, and as you would hope from a Batman story, dark. What more could you want?

Batman: The Long Halloween

There's also a thematic reason why we've selected and placed The Long Halloween here, and it is that it's essentially a Year Two story. It follows an entire calendar year and sees how Batman faces tracking down and stopping a killer who has been targeting many of Gotham's criminal elite. This is more of a mind-boggling detective story than Year One, seeing Batman follow threads and clues as he continues his journey to become the World's Greatest Detective.

Batman: A Death in the Family

One of the earlier tales that featured the Dark Knight, A Death in the Family explores the harrowing turn of events that led to the Joker killing Jason Todd, the second Robin. It sees Batman chasing the iconic psychopath across the world, attempting to stop him from selling dangerous arms and weaponry to make a quick buck that'd further finance his fear-mongering efforts. However, that soon sees Robin in the firing line and Batman unable to save the Boy Wonder, further serving as an example as to why Joker remains to this day as Batman's greatest archnemesis.

Batman: Knightfall

Granted, for a while it looked like Bane would take over as Batman's greatest threat, something that Knightfall documents. It explores the origin of the powerful villain and sees how he came to Gotham City, tormented Bruce Wayne by pulling strings from behind the scenes, and ultimately, when Batman was at his weakest, broke him mentally and physically. If you were wondering where Nolan got the inspiration for The Dark Knight Rises from, this is the story, albeit with the film not exploring the latter events that saw Jean-Paul Valley (A.K.A. Azrael) taking over the cowl and becoming a much more ruthless and vicious Batman 2.0, something the defeated Bruce Wayne could not sit idly by and accept.

Batman: The Killing Joke

We only just recommended the story where Joker kills Robin, so why not build on that with the one where Joker permanently cripples Barbara Gordon, or as her alter-ego is known, Batgirl/Oracle. The Killing Joke explores how Joker was born and driven mad, it sees how he continues to take revenge by causing chaos in Gotham City and even by taking Commissioner Gordon hostage, shooting Barbara in the spine in the process, and then sees how Batman approaches saving the important city official and his dear friend. It's a much snappier story than some that preceded it on the list, but equally entertaining.

Batman: Hush

Looking for another fine example of the Batman many know him as today? Let's draw your attention to Hush, a great story that sees Bruce Wayne tormented by a new villain that has twisted many of Gotham's best-known crooks and even Bruce's allies to his whim. But who is this masked man, this mastermind that handles crime like a surgeon wields a scalpel? That's precisely what Batman is asked to determine in this complex tale that sees Bruce putting his excellent detective skills to the test once more.

Batman: The Court of Owls Saga

We love a Batman story that sees Bruce Wayne having to solve a mind-boggling mystery and if you do too, then The Court of Owls Saga is a must-read. Here we find a Batman tormented by the idea that there is a powerful organisation at the heart of Gotham City, pulling its strings and commanding it, an organisation that does not exist on paper anywhere. So, is it real? Bruce certainly thinks so and after turning over enough stones he finds himself at this group's mercy and as the prey of their powerful agent, a warrior that pushes Batman beyond his limits.

The Dark Knight Returns

To many, this is the story that defines Batman, the greatest tale featuring the Caped Crusader. Coming from Miller, the same author who penned Year One, this story follows a much older Batman, a retired hero who amid witnessing Gotham City fall further into disarray at the hands of unstoppable criminals, decides to get his dusty cowl out of the dresser and return as Batman to strike fear into the hearts of the criminal underbelly and to invoke a sense of hope into the good and honest civilians. It's a more brutal version of Batman that is presented here, one that was enough to show that comics can be much more than entertainment for children when it was originally published in the 1980s. To this day, almost 40 years later, it remains one of the quintessential comic reads.

The Batman Who Laughs

Frankly, this isn't nearly as iconic nor well-written as The Dark Knight Returns, but The Batman Who Laughs is definitely a memorable tale simply for the characters it introduces. The premise is simple. A multiversal Batman has come to Bruce Wayne's reality, except this isn't the Caped Crusader we know, it's a twisted and maligned version who has been corrupted by the Joker's madness after finally putting a permanent stop to the crook, breaking his one rule by committing murder. It sees how this Batman Who Laughs strikes at Bruce's world, killing anyone who gets in his way largely for the fun of it, and all while backed up by an equally lethal firearm-wielding alternative Batman known as The Grim Knight, who wants revenge on a Commissioner Gordon, to get back at the one who put a stop to his own lethal and effective crimefighting style back in his own world. Needless to say, Batman is pushed to limits like never before by being tasked to overcome not one but two lethal versions of himself in order to save the day.

Have we missed any Batman comics that you regard as a must-read? If so, let us know in the comments below.