DC: Batman Collection Announced By The Folio Society

Jamie Lovett

02/19/2024 11:32 am EST

Batman is getting The Folio Society treatment. The Folio Society, in collaboration with DC, will celebrate the 85th anniversary of Batman's first appearance in Detective Comics #27 with DC: Batman, a high-end collection of some of the Dark Knight's most important adventures. That includes a replica edition of Batman #1, reprinting Batman's first headlining comic book as it first appeared in 1940. The DC: Batman collection (The Folio Society's second collaboration with DC, following last year's DC: The Golden Age) features comics by talents like Bill Finger, Bob Kane, Jerry Robinson, Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams, Marshall Rogers, Frank Miller, Dave Mazzucchelli, Alan Moore, Brian Bolland, and Kelley Jones, as selected by former DC President, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of DC, Jennette Kahn

The 320-page DC: Batman volume includes 12 Batman issues in total, plus the Batman #1 facsimile, scanned from an original copy. The issue includes the original backup stories and vintage, and the stories introduce The Joker and The Cat, later known as Catwoman.

(Photo: The Folio Society)

"Created towards the end of the Great Depression by artist Bob Kane with writer Bill Finger, Batman is an icon as familiar as James Bond or Tarzan, one who has evolved to reflect the changing attitudes of the twentieth century," said Folio Society Head of Editorial, James Rose, in a press release. "The stories selected for DC: Batman reveal how the character and his billionaire alter-ego Bruce Wayne gradually evolved from the dutiful crimefighter of the 1940s to a man possessed, as crazy as the criminals he puts away. The Caped Crusader faces a rogue's gallery steeped in gothic horror, from the Weimar cinema-inspired The Joker to the Jekyll/Hyde figure of Two-Face and the Moriarty-like Ra's al Ghul."

In her DC: Batman introduction, Kahn writes, "Trauma is a through-line in the Batman mythology. It has made psychopaths of Batman's foes and brought him to the edge of madness himself. Batman's battle is not just against criminals and crime. He fears the day he'll look into a mirror and see, not Bruce Wayne's face, but The Joker's."

"The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller and Batman: Year One, by Miller and Dave Mazzucchelli, and the terrifying classic The Killing Joke by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland are widely regarded as among the greatest comic books ever created," added Tom Walker, Folio Society's Publishing Director. "These stories changed the graphic medium forever with their combination of cinematic storytelling, shocking violence, and literary depth and serve as centerpiece texts for DC: Batman."

The Folio Society provided a list of all the stories in its DC: Batman collection. The book includes:

Facsimile: Batman #1 (Spring 1940)

"The Bat-Man"

"Robin—the Boy Wonder"

"The Crimes of Two-Face!"

"Batman and Green Arrow: The Senator's Been Shot!"

"Daughter of the Demon"

Related:

"The Dead Yet Live"

"The Dark Knight Returns"

"Batman: Year One—Chapter One: Who I Am—How I Come to Be"

Batman: The Killing Joke (July 1988)

"The Last Arkham (Part One)"

"Knightfall Part 1: Crossed Eyes and Dotty Teas"

DC: Batman is the second release in The Folio Society's DC publishing program, following DC: The Golden Age. DC: Batman is scanned from original copies found in the DC archives. The comics are reproduced in 10" x 7" treasury format within an anti-scratch laminated hardcover sporting Batman's silhouette. The titles are foil-embossed in yellow and midnight blue. The book fits into a pitch-black slipcase emblazoned the Bat-Signal.

DC: Batman will go on sale from The Folio Society on February 20th. Interested readers can place their orders at The Folio Society's website.

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