Detective Comics
(The Batman)

469-476
Batman: Dark Detective I

From the moment this eight-issue run appeared, it was dubbed the "Definitive Batman." It's been reprinted in its entirety twice in English (and often in other languages; the example below is Finnish), and individual stories have appeared in four "Greatest" collections. This is not a complete showcase of the reprints by any means.

This series made The Batman someone an adult could appreciate, introduced his most famous woman, Silver St. Cloud, and showcased his most memorable encounter with the Joker in "The Laughing Fish." At the same time, it reestablished the dark, pulp roots of the character; I even asked for the panel borders to be thicker, to get more black on the page. It defined a man, a city, and an ambiance.

The first Batman movie (the good one) was based on these stories. When Warner Brothers was stuck because two screenwriters failed to adapt them adequately, they brought me back to write a film treatment that did. Two other writers then finished the screenplay. This was the second film made from my stories, following Dr Strange and preceding the NightMan television series and Guardians of the Galaxy.

The latest Batman movie (The Dark Knight) was based on the follow-up to these stories, DARK DETECTIVE II and the unpublished DARK DETECTIVE III.

Batman: The Animated Series and The Adventures of Batman & Robin, with their emphasis on "Dark Deco," were born of this run. Batman: TAS adapted the Hugo Strange stories and took "The Laughing Fish" almost word for word.

In short, these eight issues define the modern Batman franchise, and from that, the modern superhero film franchise.

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ICollection: 469-470I
ICollection: 471-472I
ICollection: 473-474I
ICollection: 475-476I
ICollection: 469-476I
ICollection: 469-476I
ICollection: includes 474I
ICollection: includes 473I
ICollection: includes 475-476I
ICollection: includes 475-476I
IBatman, the FilmI
IBatman: The Animated SeriesI
IThe Adventures of Batman & RobinI

COMICS


NOTES:

469-470: Walt Simonson and Al Milgrom, artists. Julius Schwartz, editor.

471-476: Marshall Rogers and Terry Austin, artists. Julius Schwartz, editor.

Certainly Batman Beyond and The New Batman/Superman Adventures - not to mention Superman Animated and Justice League - are fruits of the same tree, but evolved fruits. Justice League, however, comes from my JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA and GREEN LANTERN, so it's all part of the whole.

When Marshall, Terry, and I did the sequel to this run, we decided we needed a "brand name," so this run became DARK DETECTIVE I and the sequel DARK DETECTIVE II.