Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 (May 1939) and was published by DC Comics. Batman enjoyed early popularity and was a pre-war mainstay in DC comics for decades alongside other titles such as Superman. Known for a vibrant rogue's gallery of villains, Batman has been featured in several multimedia productions, including three films and a television show. The character has gone through a number of changes throughout the decades. While originally a gritty counterpart to the popular Superman comics during the Golden Age of Comic Books, the 1966 Batman television show and the contemporaneous Silver Age of Comic Books saw the title adopt a lighter, more humorous approach to the character. In the 1970s, Batman comics began to return the titular protagonist to his darker origins. However, the public perception of Batman outside of fans of the comics still associated the title with the 1966 show. In 1983 when World War III broke out, publication of all DC titles ceased for well over a decade. In 1994, rights to the character were acquired by Etcetera Entertainment and American Comics.
Post-war Batman publications have been largely contradictory, with story arcs being significantly shorter and oftentimes having no bearing on the next. Many titles are not even proper comic books - for example, the main Batman title is now typically published page-by-page in various newspapers, with an annual special comic book releasing once per year. Publication of Batman comic books resumed in the ANZC in 1999 with The Caped Crusader #1. Rather than a single continuity, each story seems to be, at most, semi-connected to each other, with many stories contradicting each other. Post-doomsday comic book artists tend to create their own continuity, rarely if ever referencing events from another artist. For a number of years, comic books did not discuss Doomsday. However, in 2003, the Return of the Batman comics by Tim Burton first referenced the global nuclear war. The tone of Batman publications also varies greatly - most comic strips such as Batman and Batman & Robin are usually comedic, similar to the pre-war Adam West series. The comic books themselves tend to take a darker tone, though even then many artists prefer depicting Batman in humorous situations.
Publication History[]
Pre-Doomsday[]
In the original version of the story and the vast majority of re-tellings, Batman's secret identity is Bruce Wayne, an American millionaire (later billionaire) playboy, industrialist, and philanthropist. Having witnessed the murder of his parents as a child, he swore to avenge his parents' deaths by fighting crime, an oath tempered with the greater ideal of justice. Wayne trains himself both physically and intellectually and dons a bat-themed costume in order to fight crime. Batman operates in the fictional American Gotham City, assisted by various supporting characters including his crime-fighting partner, Robin, his butler Alfred Pennyworth, the police commissioner Jim Gordon, and occasionally the heroine Batgirl. Unlike most superheroes, he does not possess any superpowers; he makes use of intellect, detective skills, science and technology, wealth, physical prowess, martial arts skills, an indomitable will, fear, and intimidation in his continuous war on crime.
Batman became a very popular character soon after his introduction and gained his own comic book title, Batman, in 1940. As the decades wore on, differing interpretations of the character emerged. The late 1960s Batman television series used a camp aesthetic which continued to be associated with the character for years after the show ended. Various creators worked to return the character to his dark roots. This period of comic book publication known informally as the "bronze age of comics" saw increased attention to social issues at the time. In our timeline, this era of publication would mold the modern identities of comic heroes. Batman fought crime in a poverty-stricken Gotham City reminiscent of contemporaneous New York City. Classic villains, especially the Joker, had shifted into sinister, homicidal opponents.
The DC universe of OTL would be rebooted in 1986 with the Crisis on Infinite Earths. This fundamentally changed many DC titles. By this point, Batman had already seen a radical shift in tone. The transition into the new continuity had been largely seamless. By this point, Dick Grayson's Robin had become a mainstay in the popular Teen Titans title. Wishing to introduce Robin into more Batman stories, editor Len Wein introduced a new person assuming the mantle of Robin. In Batman #357, Jason Todd was introduced as the new Robin. At this point, he was a cheerful, happy-go-lucky take on Robin. Initially, Jason Todd was popular with fans - a few years later in our timeline, DC comics would reboot its canon and Jason Todd became a troubled, angrier version of Robin which was poorly received by fans. However, in this timeline, Jason Todd did not appear in many more issues before Doomsday.
Doomsday[]
When the bombs fell, publication of Batman obviously stopped for years. This hiatus was ended in 1994, when American Comics hired writer Tim Burton to write comics for the series. Burton, who had been a little-known writer for movies, had been fond of the Batman comics before Doomsday. He gladly took up the responsibilities of writing Batman again.
Post-Doomsday[]
Batman[]
Doomsday had been practically ignored by the comic, much like in other titles. Batman continued his classic fight against the Joker. The hiatus was explained by the creation of a new villain, Bane, who broke Batman's spine. While he was recovering, Robin took the role as Batman until 1995. The series had a hiatus in 2004, when fans demanded that Doomsday is introduced. Rather than introducing it in the Batman comics, American Comics decided to spawn two more Batman series.
In the Batman series, the other DC heroes pitched in to save the world from Doomsday. While some cities were hit (Coast City, leading Hal Gordon to go rogue), most cities were saved. Batman continued his crusade against crime, sometimes teaming up with heroes in crossover comics and even villains who had a change of heart.
Batman: Dark Knight[]
In Gotham Knights, Batman was able to divert the nuclear bomb headed for Gotham, though Doomsday still happened. Riots tore the city apart and Batman was forced to be a bit more violent in his methods. This is considered an 'evil Batman' scenario, though he still fights for good. This particularly dark series saw the cameos of Superman and Lex Luthor, who had moved from Metropolis.
Gotham Knights[]
In Gotham Knights, Batman was able to divert the nuclear bomb headed for Gotham, though Doomsday still happened. Metropolis had been destroyed, along with several other areas. For years, riots tore the city apart. Not even Batman could stop them. In 2005, the Superman/Lex Luthor battle tore the city apart. Eventually, 12 men, women and teenagers, came together to help Batman. They saved the city from near destruction.
This comic, though first about Batman, eventually began to focus on the Gotham Knights. This is considered a replacement for the Titans comics. The Gotham Knights are Nightwing, Robin, Catwoman, Batgirl, The Knight, Black Canary, Crimson, Jack Ryder, The Green Arrow, Chloe Sullivan, Ranger, and Azrael.