Summary
Recently released by Amazon,Batman: Caped Crusaderis a verified hit,dropping Batman into a 1940s Noir settingwith grim themes and an ensemble cast of Gothamites, each committed to justice in a different way. However, with only 10 episodes currently in existence, many fans are craving more of this compelling take on Gotham’s protector - and comics are the answer.
Here are the 10 best series to read to capture the same magic as the show, placing high priority on a Noirish tone, grounded villains, and a supporting cast whodon’thave bird-themed codenames.While we’ll start with some big-name series that new fans should know about, we’ll also touch on some lesser-known comics, hopefully offering even longtime fans something new to read.
Batman: Caped Crusader
Cast
Wealthy socialite Bruce Wayne, transformed by tragedy, takes on the mantle of Batman to combat the rampant corruption and crime in Gotham City. His vigilante actions attract both allies within the GCPD and City Hall and deadly adversaries, leading to unforeseen consequences. The series delves into the noir roots of Batman, exploring the psychological depths of Gotham’s inhabitants.
You probably already readThe Long Halloween, but its prequelHaunted Knightis equally worth your time.
Year of Release:
1996/1996/1999
Long Halloweenis one of Batman’s most celebrated comics, appearing on pretty much any ‘best of Batman’ list, so we’ve included its pseudo-prequelHaunted Knightand sequelDark Victory, all by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. The trilogy (soon to be extended withthe duo’s newThe Last Halloween) has the same haunted, Noirish tone asCaped Crusaderand takes place as the age of mobster dynasties and tommy guns is coming to an end.Long Halloweeneven echoes the episodic nature of the TV show - while there’s a larger story afoot about Batman hunting a new serial killer,each issue sees him come up against a different Gotham villain on a different major holiday.
WhileLong Halloweenis inarguably the best of the bunch,Dark Victoryis a worthy sequel with a similar approach. However,if you haven’t readHaunted Knight, that’s where to start. A trilogy of spooky stories starring Batman, positive fan reaction toHaunted Knightis the reasonLong Halloweenexists, seeing Batman go up against three foes who each call his commitment to crime-fighting into question in a different way.
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Batman: Year Onefollows Gordon and Batman fighting the city’s corruption from opposite ends, leading up to the origin of their friendship.
1987
Batman: Year Oneis another entry that appears on every ‘best of Batman’ list, butif you haven’t read it yet, it really is the perfect follow-up toCaped Crusader. The series follows Bruce Wayne’s first foray into vigilantism, as he develops the Batman persona, gets back to grips with Gotham after years away, and develops a relationship with Jim Gordon, who at this point is nowhere near making Commissioner. It’s an era before the costumed criminals rose up, which means Batman is left to deal with organized crime rather than the Riddler’s death traps - a similar approach toCaped Crusader’s toned-down villains.Batman: Year Onedoesn’t explicitly commit to a given year, but there are enough trench coats and service revolvers to keep fans of the show’s ’40s setting happy.
Batman: The Adventures Continuetakes the novel approach of structuring the story like a television season, adding to the sense of the original show continuing in a new form.
1992/2020
The Batman Adventuresis a long-running series set in the same continuity asBatman: The Animated Series. The beloved ’90s show was the impetus forCaped Crusader’s creation, as while producer Bruce Timm didn’t want to revisit his former project, he did agree to create a spiritual sequel. The comics continue to unpack Batman lore in the context of the Noirish but family-friendlyBatman Adventures,introducing characters like the Suicide Squadand the Court of Owls. The most recent continuation of the show’s canon,Batman: The Adventures Continueeven takes the novel approach of structuring the story like a television season, adding to the sense of the show continuing in a new form.
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Mike Mignola and P. Craig Russell
1989
Gotham by Gaslightgoes back even further than the 1940s, imagining a version of Batman who is operating around the 1880s, facing off against Jack the Ripper. While this obviously leads to a very different vision of Gotham, it’s just as dark and pulpy as inCaped Crusader, and Batman is similarly stripped down, lacking his usual Bat-Family and gadgets as he pounds the streets, desperate to stop a serial killer.
2000
Batman: The Doom That Came to Gothamis a similar period piece, this time set in the 1920s. Combining the Dark Knight with H.P. Lovecraft’sThe Cthulhu Mythos, it’s also a pulp story that captures the spirit of one man desperately fighting an entire city founded on crime.
The book’suse of the ‘Robin’ ideais particularly unique, asBruce’s various Boy Wonders become something more similar to Sherlock Holmes' Baker Street Irregulars. While these two series tell very different stories, they scratch a similar itch and are already well-known, hence sharing their spot on this list.
2002
A true hidden gem,Batman: Nine Livesis a genuine Noir mystery. Set in the 1940s,Nine Livessees private investigator Dick Grayson investigate the murder of Selina Kyle, with Bruce Wayne as one of several suspects. This series embraces the pre-superhero pulp detective story, toning down Gotham’s villains from supervillain excess to dangerous figures in Gotham’s criminal underground.
B-listers like Mister Freeze and Clayface are actually scarier inNine Livesthan when they had powers, and seeing Batman through someone else’s eyes helps to increase his mystique. The cherry on the cake is thatNine Livesalso shakes up the power structure of Gotham, makingits versions of Joker, Penguin and Mister Freeze feel fresh and - crucial for an actual murder mystery - unpredictable.
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Similarities toCaped Crusadershouldn’t be surprising in this case, since the story was written by Ed Brubaker - one of the show’s executive producers.
2001
Set in the late 1940s,Batman: Gotham Noirfollows Jim Gordon as a down-on-his-luck private investigator investigating a murder which quickly blossoms into a tale of corruption and organized crime. The issue isfrom Brubaker and Phillips, famous for many of the best crime comics on the market, includingCriminal,The Fade OutandFatale.
Gotham Noiris essentially a classic Noir movie with Batman in the background, similar toCaped Crusader’s ‘Moving Target’ episode, where Gordon istargeted for assassination by Onomatopoeia. That shouldn’t be surprising, asthe story was written by Ed Brubaker - one ofCaped Crusader’s executive producers.
New Frontierfeels like ifCaped Crusadersuddenly opened up and introduced an entire DC Universe, making it an exciting follow-up to the show.
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2004
One of DC’s most acclaimed comics of all time,Darwyn Cooke’sNew Frontieris a big-picture reimagining of the DC Universe where the dawn of superheroes stretches from 1945 to 1960. It’s a major ensemble piece, asWonder Woman, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and more grapple with real-world events such as atomic testing and the Civil Rights movement. Batman in particular is depicted as the dark, genuinely scary loner of this new group, with a version of his early costume that matchesCaped Crusader’s stylized suit.
Evoking theSilver and Gold Age of comics,New Frontiernevertheless has its dark side, with very human superheroes clashing in believable ways. In effect,New Frontierfeels like ifCaped Crusadersuddenly opened up and introduced an entire DC Universe, making it an exciting follow-up to the show.
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2024
Only recently released,First Knight’s gimmick is that it followsBatman as he was originally depicted, increasing the pulp violence and the idea of one man using a costume to viciously fight back against organized crime. Published under DC’s Black Label imprint,First KnightisCaped Crusaderwith the family friendly angle cast aside, getting to its first decapitated in just a couple of pages. Set in 1939 (the year of Batman’s debut), it’s fascinating to see the same character in the same time period asCaped Crusader, but holding nothing back in terms of adult themes.
From artist Darwyn Cooke and writer Ed Brubaker,Detective Comics' ‘Trail of the Catwoman’ seesprivate investigator Slam Bradleytrying to track down Selena Kyle, whileCatwoman: Selina’s Big Score(with Cooke as both writer and artist) is a heist story which evokes the iconic pulp writing of Richard Stark.Batman appears throughout, but Slam Bradley - who embodies the pre-superhero pulp hero - is a far grittier hero who takes as many beatings as he hands out.
Not only does Cooke offer up a hat-tip to crime writer Richard Stark by naming one of Catwoman’s confederates in his honor, but he later went on toadapt Stark’sParkerbooks to comics.
These two Catwoman stories are unbelievably stylish fun, perfectly designed for the comic medium, while also evoking the same 1940-style Noir world of private investigators and mobsters.
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Gotham Central has a simple premise - what’s it like to be a regular cop in a city that’s constantly menaced by supervillains?
Another fixture on any decent list of DC’s best comics,Gotham Centralhas a simple premise-what’s it like to be a regular cop in a city that’s constantly menaced by supervillains?StarringCaped Crusader’s Commissioner Gordon and Detective Renee Montoya,Gotham Centralevokes a Noir tone with its tales of mass corruption and shocking murders that are tied into bigger conspiracies. Set in DC’s main reality, it still manages to reinvent Batman’s villains, showing how terrifying and dangerous even his minor foes are to normal people.
With many of the characters and elements that makeCaped Crusadergreat,Gotham Centralalso offers up some of the most thrilling but mature writing in superhero comics - not just in terms of being willing to depict violence, but in how deeply it gets into the heads of Gotham’s criminals and the people who have dedicated their lives to stopping them.
Those are our picks for the 10 best series to check out if you lovedBatman: The Caped Crusader, however whether you loved the animated show or not, there are no duds here, and each entry is also among the greatestBatmanstories ever written.
