First appearing in Detective Comics, Batman has always been a superhero whose stories often revolve around deciphering hidden plots and solving mysteries to bring criminals to justice. Over his long crusade against Gotham’s criminal underbelly, the Dark Knight has tackled a plethora of puzzling cases. As one of the smartest characters in DC Comics, Batman’s deductive skills and myriad high-tech gadgets have allowed him to solve crimes that would leave any lesser detective stumped. Batman, as a character, perfectly blends fantastical elements with gritty realism, and many of his best stories revolve around this combination. These gothic noir tales of mystery and deception are some of the Dark Knight’s most essential storylines.
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From covert conspiracies to brutal murders, these are the best stories that take Batman back to his detective roots.
5) Hush
A fan favorite storyline, Batman: Hush, concerns the emergence of a mysterious new supervillain known only as Hush, who seems to know Batman’s secret identity. With this knowledge, and by manipulating Gotham’s most dangerous criminals, including Poison Ivy, Bane, and the Joker, Hush won’t rest until he destroys Batman and everyone the hero loves. Batman works alongside some of his closest allies, including Catwoman, to determine Hush’s true identity before he strikes again. This story offers incredible art, action, and the development of Batman and Catwoman’s relationship. Even when Hush’s identity is revealed, he still periodically returns, showing just how impactful he and his introductory story were to the Batman mythos.
4) The Court of Owls
The New 52 era was a controversial time for DC, but Batman: The Court of Owls introduced a conspiracy that recontextualized everything we once thought we knew about Gotham City. While investigating a murder, Batman begins to uncover a secret society that has been controlling Gotham from behind the scenes for over a century. This secret society, known as the Court of Owls, was thought to be nothing more than an urban legend until the Dark Knight discovered the many layers to the Court’s influence over the city. This revelation uprooted Batman’s understanding of the city he swore to protect. Like Hush, the Court of Owls quickly became an intrinsic part of Batman lore and one of the Caped Crusader’s deadliest adversaries.
3) The Black Mirror
Although Bruce Wayne is the definitive Caped Crusader, Batman: The Black Mirror shows how Dick Grayson is more than capable of living up to his father’s legacy as the World’s Greatest Detective. When Bruce is semi-retired, Dick takes over his role as Batman. In this storyline, Dick has to uncover who’s responsible for selling deadly weapons to supervillains through an underground black market. Like the best mysteries, this initial endeavor uncovers something far more sinister in the works. The answer to this dark mystery is a ghost from Commissioner Gordon and Batgirl’s past, who has returned to haunt them. The story is a poignant detective thriller that shows how the Bat Family operates without Bruce to lead them.
2) Gotham by Gaslight
One of the most famous stories in the Elseworlds series, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, has the Dark Knight hunting down the most notorious serial killer in history: Jack the Ripper. Set on Earth-19 in 1889, this alternate version of Batman operates in a Victorian-era Gotham, where he investigates a string of murders of prostitutes being horrifically butchered. However, in the story things become more dire when Bruce Wayne is framed for the murders. Now Batman must prove his innocence by uncovering the identity of a serial killer who has never been caught. The idea of a steampunk Batman fighting Jack the Ripper is an incredible concept that provides great atmosphere and tension. It’s this type of outlandish yet compelling alternate universe storyline that made the Elseworlds series so beloved.
1) The Long Halloween
Recognized as one of the greatest Batman stories of all time, Batman: The Long Halloween is a mystery-thriller full of twists and turns. When the Caped Crusader is only two years into his campaign against crime, he must track down an elusive serial killer nicknamed “Holiday.” Over the course of a year, Holiday picks off members of the Falcone crime family on a holiday for each month. As a gang war looms on the horizon, Batman must work quickly to apprehend Holiday before it’s too late. Most of Batman’s rogues also make appearances, and the story acts as a great modern reimagining of Two-Face’s origin. In the hunt for Holiday, everyone is a suspect, and the killer’s true identity will shake the reader to their very core.
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