I remember back in the early 90s I could walk into a comic shop (which still existed in the early 90s) and pick up a comic book by the name of "Batman."
First off. What the hell happened to straight-up "Batman?", and for that matter, were I to try to buy a Batman comic today, what exactly would it be called? Is there a single book running right now that represents the most modern main continuity?
There are still comic shops, and up until March the main book was still just plain "Batman."
Then, all of the titles were paused for the Battle for the Cowl miniseries event, which honestly wasn't very good and very little was accomplished during it.
Right now the most important Bat Book is called Batman and Robin, and stands completely on its own, not tying in to any of the other bat books. New batman, new robin, and all new villains, with no real reliance on any previous Batman continuity.
Beyond that, the normal 'Batman' serves as a second tier book and has been surprisingly good so far. It's much more similar to the traditional Batman stories that have been going on for the last few years, featuring the gang wars and usual rogues gallery. Batman: Streets of Gotham is another book that features the same overlapping gang war/rogues group idea, but shows Batman taking down criminals separate from the normal Batman book.
Beyond that, there's Detective Comics which currently features Batwoman and the Question, and also doesn't tie in.
There are still comic shops, and up until March the main book was still just plain "Batman."
Then, all of the titles were paused for the Battle for the Cowl miniseries event, which honestly wasn't very good and very little was accomplished during it.
Right now the most important Bat Book is called Batman and Robin, and stands completely on its own, not tying in to any of the other bat books. New batman, new robin, and all new villains, with no real reliance on any previous Batman continuity.
Beyond that, the normal 'Batman' serves as a second tier book and has been surprisingly good so far. It's much more similar to the traditional Batman stories that have been going on for the last few years, featuring the gang wars and usual rogues gallery. Batman: Streets of Gotham is another book that features the same overlapping gang war/rogues group idea, but shows Batman taking down criminals separate from the normal Batman book.
Beyond that, there's Detective Comics which currently features Batwoman and the Question, and also doesn't tie in.
Yeah, it gets kind of confusing.
So which among these respect one another's continuity?
For that matter, are we still using Batman: Year One as the basis for his present continuity? Comic books confuse the hell out of me.
There are still comic shops, and up until March the main book was still just plain "Batman."
Then, all of the titles were paused for the Battle for the Cowl miniseries event, which honestly wasn't very good and very little was accomplished during it.
Right now the most important Bat Book is called Batman and Robin, and stands completely on its own, not tying in to any of the other bat books. New batman, new robin, and all new villains, with no real reliance on any previous Batman continuity.
Beyond that, the normal 'Batman' serves as a second tier book and has been surprisingly good so far. It's much more similar to the traditional Batman stories that have been going on for the last few years, featuring the gang wars and usual rogues gallery. Batman: Streets of Gotham is another book that features the same overlapping gang war/rogues group idea, but shows Batman taking down criminals separate from the normal Batman book.
Beyond that, there's Detective Comics which currently features Batwoman and the Question, and also doesn't tie in.
Yeah, it gets kind of confusing.
So which among these respect one another's continuity?
For that matter, are we still using Batman: Year One as the basis for his present continuity? Comic books confuse the hell out of me.
They're all in continuity, and at the moment they all still stand alone. But there's a big push for Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin title, which is currently the main book right now, to be completely alone. It doesn't even mention what's happening in the bat titles, and so far there have been little character interactions that don't necessarily go along with the other books.
Batman and Streets of Gotham are both dealing with a major gang war in gotham city, with three sides: The Penguin, Two-Face, and The Black Mask (who has an army of minor rogues working for him). In Batman, it currently shows Batman dealing with two face. In Streets of Gotham, we're seeing Batman deal with Black Mask's people.
And yeah, Year One is still the origin, I think. Except, well, Bruce Wayne isn't around right now. He's presumed to be dead in the books. Nightwing is currently Batman.
Black Mask isn't very interesting to me, as he seems like a character that was created just because the writer wanted a more straight-laced villain without any kind of gimmick to him. The dude who's involved in the gang war isn't really Black Mask though, so I guess my prior feelings are all moot.
And I think it's because I've only been reading batbooks regularly since Battle for the Cowl, and because the standard gang war stories don't normally interest me.
If I had to take a blind guess,
Jason Todd or Hush
But I actually doubt it's either of them! Although maybe it's
There are still comic shops, and up until March the main book was still just plain "Batman."
Then, all of the titles were paused for the Battle for the Cowl miniseries event, which honestly wasn't very good and very little was accomplished during it.
Right now the most important Bat Book is called Batman and Robin, and stands completely on its own, not tying in to any of the other bat books. New batman, new robin, and all new villains, with no real reliance on any previous Batman continuity.
Beyond that, the normal 'Batman' serves as a second tier book and has been surprisingly good so far. It's much more similar to the traditional Batman stories that have been going on for the last few years, featuring the gang wars and usual rogues gallery. Batman: Streets of Gotham is another book that features the same overlapping gang war/rogues group idea, but shows Batman taking down criminals separate from the normal Batman book.
Beyond that, there's Detective Comics which currently features Batwoman and the Question, and also doesn't tie in.
Yeah, it gets kind of confusing.
So which among these respect one another's continuity?
For that matter, are we still using Batman: Year One as the basis for his present continuity? Comic books confuse the hell out of me.
Not quite
Bruce Wayne isn't Batman at present so Year One is of very limited relevance. You just need to know that Bruce Wayne WAS Batman, and that now the mantle has been passed.
There's nothing confusing at all about them. Everything with Batman in the title (Batman, Batman & Robin, Batman: Streets of Gotham, Batman Confidential) stars Batman. All but Confidential take place "presently", but all are in continuity.
Edit: Streets of Gotham also has a co-feature with Manhunter in it, but even still that shouldn't make anything confusing.
Garlic Bread on
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TexiKenDammit!That fish really got me!Registered Userregular
edited August 2009
It's even less confusing because this is Dick Grayson as Batman, and he's only been Batman for two of our human months I mean months. There's very little continuity here, and DC have made all the bat books really welcoming to new readers.
The first Robin is now Batman. His Robin is Bruce's son. And it's solved.
It's even less confusing because this is Dick Grayson as Batman, and he's only been Batman for two of our human months I mean months. There's very little continuity here, and DC have made all the bat books really welcoming to new readers.
The first Robin is now Batman. His Robin is Bruce's son. And it's solved.
I'd still recommend new readers read a few of the pre-Battle for the Cowl stories, if only because they're being referenced in the current books. Otherwise you don't really know that Hush performed plastic surgery on himself to look like Bruce Wayne, nor do you know who Dr Hurt is (who'll be appearing in Batman and Robin at one point).
I don't think it's Cass based on that preview. Frankly, she sounds more like Stephanie. I'm not anticipating that the series will be very good, personally, so I'm sure I'll also stop after the first issue unless I'm impressed.
When I read this, my first reaction was "Harley Quinn is going to be the new Batgirl?"
Actually, I've always thought that would be a good story. If a writer were to play with the idea that Harley suffers a perverse, irresistible attraction to powerful men, I could see Bruce taking her under his wing, were her relationship with the Joker to be completely severed. Naturally the rest of the Bat-clan would go nuts, until they realize how useful a talented acrobat and fighter with a background in criminal psychology actually is.
Really, I think Harley is one of the few female characters who could carry a Batgirl series in the current market, aside from Barbara Gordon.
I had actually hoped that the relationship between Harley, Jason, and Holly would continue on past Countdown, but of course the fact that WE MUST NEVER SPEAK OF THAT SERIES AGAIN got in the way of that.
I had actually hoped that the relationship between Harley, Jason, and Holly would continue on past Countdown, but of course the fact that WE MUST NEVER SPEAK OF THAT SERIES AGAIN got in the way of that.
Speaking of that, wasn't there supposed to be a Challengers of the Unknown ongoing with Kyle, Donna and Atom? Coulda sworn that was scheduled at some point, although not surprised they scrapped it after the mess that was Countdown.
I had actually hoped that the relationship between Harley, Jason, and Holly would continue on past Countdown, but of course the fact that WE MUST NEVER SPEAK OF THAT SERIES AGAIN got in the way of that.
Barnes and Noble has a novelization of Countdown on their bargain section, and I'm tempted to read it just to see what happened that was so awful in that book and it would be way cheaper than getting the trades/issues.
Some bad stuff does happen, but mostly it's just that it was 52 issues long and not at all worth the time and investment. I don't think that would translate to the novelization, unless the novel was really long and cost like $100.
Countdown wasn't terrible in the sense that you can point you finger to any specific part as being an outstanding example of awfulness.
Rather, it was just very, very mediocre. The story wasn't very interesting, it moved at a snails pace, and there are a whole lot of inconsistencies both within the book itself as well as with the DC Universe at large.
Countdown wasn't terrible in the sense that you can point you finger to any specific part as being an outstanding example of awfulness.
Rather, it was just very, very mediocre. The story wasn't very interesting, it moved at a snails pace, and there are a whole lot of inconsistencies both within the book itself as well as with the DC Universe at large.
I think the worst part of it was how incredibly dumb some of the ideas within it were. Who really thought the Jimmy Olsen story was interesting? Or making Mary evil?
And when they finally explored the new multiverse, they completely ruined it. The 3-4 original universes within it were really unimaginative and dull, while the other ones based on elseworld stories (like Red Son) just felt like they were lame fan fiction.
I'm not sure who to blame so I'm just going to go ahead and blame editorial. Sean McKeever didn't know crap about the DCU, so good management would know not to put him on universe spanning books (or team books). Adam Beechen is just a plain shit writer and had just finished one of the worst Teen Titans runs ever, so they should've booted him out. And while I like the rest of the writers (Dini, Bedard and Palmitotti), if they were the ones coming up with that shit, editorial should've had the brains to cut it.
Jimmy Olsen needs a solo series again. A man on the street perspective on the larger than life events of the DC Universe would be great, and you could even have him go on surreal adventures where he has to marry gorillas again.
Jimmy Olsen needs a solo series again. A man on the street perspective on the larger than life events of the DC Universe would be great, and you could even have him go on surreal adventures where Superman won't give him any water.
Mary Marvel's story could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (Could have been a counter-point story to Freddie's trials)
Parallel Earths could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (52 gave us a fresh slate, Booster Gold's potential was also wasted for the most part)
Jimmy Olsen's freak outs could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (Pre COIE history intruding on Post IC present time? A cool angle on the multiverse about to crash)
Posts
I remember back in the early 90s I could walk into a comic shop (which still existed in the early 90s) and pick up a comic book by the name of "Batman."
First off. What the hell happened to straight-up "Batman?", and for that matter, were I to try to buy a Batman comic today, what exactly would it be called? Is there a single book running right now that represents the most modern main continuity?
There are still comic shops, and up until March the main book was still just plain "Batman."
Then, all of the titles were paused for the Battle for the Cowl miniseries event, which honestly wasn't very good and very little was accomplished during it.
Right now the most important Bat Book is called Batman and Robin, and stands completely on its own, not tying in to any of the other bat books. New batman, new robin, and all new villains, with no real reliance on any previous Batman continuity.
Beyond that, the normal 'Batman' serves as a second tier book and has been surprisingly good so far. It's much more similar to the traditional Batman stories that have been going on for the last few years, featuring the gang wars and usual rogues gallery. Batman: Streets of Gotham is another book that features the same overlapping gang war/rogues group idea, but shows Batman taking down criminals separate from the normal Batman book.
Beyond that, there's Detective Comics which currently features Batwoman and the Question, and also doesn't tie in.
Yeah, it gets kind of confusing.
So which among these respect one another's continuity?
For that matter, are we still using Batman: Year One as the basis for his present continuity? Comic books confuse the hell out of me.
They're all in continuity, and at the moment they all still stand alone. But there's a big push for Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin title, which is currently the main book right now, to be completely alone. It doesn't even mention what's happening in the bat titles, and so far there have been little character interactions that don't necessarily go along with the other books.
Batman and Streets of Gotham are both dealing with a major gang war in gotham city, with three sides: The Penguin, Two-Face, and The Black Mask (who has an army of minor rogues working for him). In Batman, it currently shows Batman dealing with two face. In Streets of Gotham, we're seeing Batman deal with Black Mask's people.
And yeah, Year One is still the origin, I think. Except, well, Bruce Wayne isn't around right now. He's presumed to be dead in the books. Nightwing is currently Batman.
Anyone pick up any hints as to who he might be?
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
And I think it's because I've only been reading batbooks regularly since Battle for the Cowl, and because the standard gang war stories don't normally interest me.
If I had to take a blind guess,
But I actually doubt it's either of them! Although maybe it's
Not quite
White FC: 0819 3350 1787
Huh, Streets of Gotham is an in-continuity Bat book? I really need to pay more attention to DC news, now that I'm reading Bat books again.
There's nothing confusing at all about them. Everything with Batman in the title (Batman, Batman & Robin, Batman: Streets of Gotham, Batman Confidential) stars Batman. All but Confidential take place "presently", but all are in continuity.
Edit: Streets of Gotham also has a co-feature with Manhunter in it, but even still that shouldn't make anything confusing.
The first Robin is now Batman. His Robin is Bruce's son. And it's solved.
I'd still recommend new readers read a few of the pre-Battle for the Cowl stories, if only because they're being referenced in the current books. Otherwise you don't really know that Hush performed plastic surgery on himself to look like Bruce Wayne, nor do you know who Dr Hurt is (who'll be appearing in Batman and Robin at one point).
read "Batman and Robin" and any other book that has Batman in the title that has a cover you think looks cool. You'll figure it out from there.
Now if Batman and Robin 3 can come out abit faster...
The writing might lend some clues as to who the new Batgirl is - she doesn't seem to take things very seriously, and she's pretty chatty. Hmm.
"Boys are stupid." Oh yeah? Well guess who's not buying your book! *Runs off in tears*
I'll stick to my macho Batman and Robin for now.
I'll probably pick up the first issue of this, but unless it either A) stars Cass Cain or
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When I read this, my first reaction was "Harley Quinn is going to be the new Batgirl?"
Ditto, but then it's not like DC's writers have been too concerned with keeping her in character lately, you know?
Tumblr Twitter
That would be pretty hilarious.
Actually, I've always thought that would be a good story. If a writer were to play with the idea that Harley suffers a perverse, irresistible attraction to powerful men, I could see Bruce taking her under his wing, were her relationship with the Joker to be completely severed. Naturally the rest of the Bat-clan would go nuts, until they realize how useful a talented acrobat and fighter with a background in criminal psychology actually is.
Really, I think Harley is one of the few female characters who could carry a Batgirl series in the current market, aside from Barbara Gordon.
Tumblr Twitter
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
Speaking of that, wasn't there supposed to be a Challengers of the Unknown ongoing with Kyle, Donna and Atom? Coulda sworn that was scheduled at some point, although not surprised they scrapped it after the mess that was Countdown.
And there's an Azrael book coming out soon too.
Barnes and Noble has a novelization of Countdown on their bargain section, and I'm tempted to read it just to see what happened that was so awful in that book and it would be way cheaper than getting the trades/issues.
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
Rather, it was just very, very mediocre. The story wasn't very interesting, it moved at a snails pace, and there are a whole lot of inconsistencies both within the book itself as well as with the DC Universe at large.
I think the worst part of it was how incredibly dumb some of the ideas within it were. Who really thought the Jimmy Olsen story was interesting? Or making Mary evil?
And when they finally explored the new multiverse, they completely ruined it. The 3-4 original universes within it were really unimaginative and dull, while the other ones based on elseworld stories (like Red Son) just felt like they were lame fan fiction.
I'm not sure who to blame so I'm just going to go ahead and blame editorial. Sean McKeever didn't know crap about the DCU, so good management would know not to put him on universe spanning books (or team books). Adam Beechen is just a plain shit writer and had just finished one of the worst Teen Titans runs ever, so they should've booted him out. And while I like the rest of the writers (Dini, Bedard and Palmitotti), if they were the ones coming up with that shit, editorial should've had the brains to cut it.
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
Mary Marvel's story could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (Could have been a counter-point story to Freddie's trials)
Parallel Earths could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (52 gave us a fresh slate, Booster Gold's potential was also wasted for the most part)
Jimmy Olsen's freak outs could have been awesome, but they screwed it up. (Pre COIE history intruding on Post IC present time? A cool angle on the multiverse about to crash)
Gah. Countdown.