BatChat With Matt & Will: A Batman Ranking Podcast: Recent Episodes
Matthew
Each week, Matt Lazorwitz and Will Nevin, two writer, comics fans and guys who love Batman, examine three stories featuring Batman, rank them, and put them on a list of Batman stories from best to worst
These milestone episode numbers are getting surreal. 250 episodes. Yikes. For this anniversary, we're looking at stories where Bruce Wayne was suspected of murder. Now, if this was the real world, a lazy billionaire would be prime suspect #1 and I wouldn't be surprised. But we are looking at a fictional world that actually has good billionaires, so guess what? Bruce Wayne is innocent of each of these crimes. There's an issue of the animated series tie-in that riffs on Hitchcock, the wrap up of a running subplot that seems to just sort of quickly end and the first of two linked Bat family crossovers. Also, we have a surprise guest at the beginning of the episode who humbly blessed our show with his appearance.The Third Door (Batman Adventures V.1 #6)Standard Operating Procedure (Batman: Shadow of the Bat V.1 #55Bruce Wayne, Murderer? (Batman: The Ten Cent Adventure #1, Detective Comics V.1 #766-767, Batgirl V.1 #24, Nightwing V.2 #65-66, Batman: Gotham Knights #25-26, Birds of Prey V.1 #39-40, Robin V.2 #98-99, Batman V.1 #599)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
If you've listened to this show for any amount of time, you have probably heard Matt talk about his least favorite major DC characters: Deathstroke and Lobo. Deathstroke has a lot of cross over with Batman over the years, being he is one of Nightwing's most significant rogues, and various creators have drawn parallels between them. But how many times can Batman have met Lobo? He's a space bounty hunter, where's the crossover? Well, Patreon backer John Wickham found enough to pull together this episode. It's... something.Universe's Finest (Batman/Superman V.1 #28-30)Daddy Issues (Teen Titans V. 6 #31-38)The Batman Who Frags (Dark Nights: Death Metal- Infinite Hour Exxxtreme #1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Robin V.3 # 11-13)Ride the Lightning (Batman: The Red Death # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Justice # 6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
character, he still is usually fighting with killer clowns, obnoxious geniuses and crocodile men. So who handles all the day to day crime? Well, the Gotham City Police Department of course. And while it is a legendarily corrupt force, there are still cops who do their best (yes, we understand the copaganda of it all, but it's fiction and we can hope, right?). We've covered GCPD stories before, so we're heading back for another go. This week, we read two stories from the 90s from before the No Man's Land focused on our usual squad of good cops and then wrap up with an issue of Gotham Central that digs deep into the seedy underbelly of the cops who aren't so good.Batman: GCPD # 1-4Batman: Bullock's Law # 1Nature (Gotham Central # 32)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back to the runs that we're covering in order, with a twist. We've reached the next chapter of Knightquest: The Crusade, where AzBats fights a super assassin with psychological conditioning, and No Man's Land, where we see what the Justice League is doing to help Gotham. But with the Morrison run done, we're filling in some of the side No Man's Land stories we skipped. This time out, we're hitting an issue of Batman Chronicles, featuring the story of how Renee Montoya met Two-Face, what happened to Harold and a story of what happens when two people trying to to find a safe place in the No Man's Land stumble into a clown themed hacienda. It goes about as well as you'd expect.Inside Job (JLA # 32-33)Codename: Mekros (Batman V.1 # 501-502)Batman Chronicles # 16Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
BatgirlCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
A few weeks ago, comics lost one of the legends of the late Silver and Bronze Age. While Gerry Conway is probably best known for his work on Spider-Man at Marvel, where he killed Gwen Stacy and creating the Punisher, and to a somewhat lesser extent creating Firestorm at DC, Conway had a solid run on both Batman and Detective Comics, as well as writing other Batman stories. In memory of Conway, this week we're reading three stories he wrote. We have a one-off featuring the return of the Silver Age Mystery Analysts of Gotham City, a two parter featuring Two-Face and a story from Brave and the Bold where Batman solves a space mystery with Green Lantern and the Guardians of the UniverseThe Adventure of the Houdini Whodunit (Batman V.1 # 295)Half a Hero is Better than None (Batman V.1 # 346, Detective Comics V.1 # 513)One of Us is Not One of Us (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 173-174)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
as Joker, who at this point has no face, does everything he can to show how much he loves Batman in stories from the New 52 volumes of Batman, Batman and Robin and (sort of anyway) Detective Comics.Death of the Family (Batman V.2 # 13-17)Little Big Man (Batman and Robin V.2 # 15-16)Nothin' But Smiles (Detective Comics V.2 # 16-17)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's our annual Pride episode of BatChat. It's nice to see that we have plenty of stories we can cover about queer, out Bat characters, you know? We're covering the first of DC's big Pride anthologies, which features stories including Batwoman, The Question (Renee Montoya), Harley and Ivy and Alan Scott Green Lantern, who might not be a Bat character but is certainly connected to Gotham. Then we read a fun Batwoman/Montoya adventure, and dip into the very lady forward, and queer lady forward, DC Comics Bombshells universe.DC Pride 2021The Time of Your Life (Batwoman V.3 # 17-18)Enlisted (DC Comics Bombshells # 1-6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Of all of DC's obscure characters outside the Bat family, two of Matt's absolute favorites are the Elongated Man, Ralph Dibny, and his wife, Sue. Inspired by Nick and Nora Charles from Dashiell Hammett's novel, The Thin Man, Ralph and Sue are a bantering, loving couple who solve mysteries. They are, as the kids at one point or another said, couple goals. And ignoring the ignominy of Identity Crisis, Ralph and Sue made it through any problem with a smile, a wink and the twitch of a nose. Being a detective himself, you'd think Batman and Elongated Man team-ups would be mysteries. This week, well, two out of three ain't bad. We read their first meeting in the Silver Age, an early Justice League story and a more recent story where Ralph and Sue team up with one Matches Malone.Museum of Mixed-Up Men! (Detective Comics V.1 # 331)Z– As In Zatanna– And Zero Hour! (Justice League of America V.1 # 51)Rubber Soul (Batman: Gotham Knights # 41)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are plenty of legacy characters in the Bat universe; how many Robins are there now? But there are far fewer legacy villains than there are heroes. But before Flashpoint and the New 52 scrambled things, or repositioned them anyway, one of Batman's solid B-tier villains was replaced. Black Mask, a character introduced in the mid-80s, was replaced in the mid-00s. Sam Hopper, Patreon backer and friend of the show, returns this week to talk about the death of the original Black Mask and the rise of his replacement. Expect lots of talk and pondering of how much editorial interference is involved in all of these stories...Backward Masking (Catwoman V.3 # 50-52)Life After Death (Batman V.1 # 692-697)Arkham Reborn # 1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Wonder Woman # 1-6Catwoman 80th Anniversary 100 Page GiantBatman: Reptilian # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
When a writer works on a character for an extended period of time, it's fascinating to watch how their interpretation of that character evolves. When Patreon backer Josh Weil came to us and wanted to cover the Robins mini-series that won DC's fan voted Round Robin competition, the natural stories to pair with it were other stories written by Tim Seeley that featured Dick Grayson; Seeley had quite a history with him after all, from Grayson through his ongoing to that mini-series and beyond. So here we have the first arc of the Rebirth era Nightwing, the Robins mini-series, and a team up of carnies, with Dick working with Deadman.Better Than Batman (Nightwing: Rebirth, Nightwing V.4 #1-4)Being Robin (Robins #1-6)Down the Road (Batman: The Brave and the Bold V.1 #13-16)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Not long ago, we did an episode entirely dedicated to Batman stories that originated in Japan. Amongst those stories was a collection of creator Jiro Kuwata's 60s Batman manga, that were adaptations of earlier American Batman stories. This week, we dive into those stories, reading three of them and seeing not just how they rank, but how the compare to Kuwata's versions.The Man Who Quit the Human Race!( Batman V.1 # 165)Batman Battles the Living Beast-Bomb! (Detective Comics V.1 # 339)The Weather Wizard’s Triple Treasure Thefts! (Detective Comics V.1 # 353)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Chaos? People wouldn't know what to do with it. But we comics fans are made of sterner stuff. This week, Matt McThorn joins us to talk about three mini-series from DC's Future State event, an event that led into one of the most important initiatives in DC history: 5G. Wait, what? 5G never happened, and so this was just sort of like an Elseworlds that some reverberations in continuity but mostly was quickly forgotten? Well, crap. But at least a couple of these were really fun!Future State: Dark Detective # 1-4Future State: Catwoman # 1-2Future State: The Next Batman # 1-4Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
White V.2 # 1-6)Stories (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 94)Detective Comics V.3 # 1,027Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Bat-Mite is a silly character. He is this hopeless fanboy who just doesn't get what a pain in the tuchus he is. But he's not the only mite in the DC Universe, and the others aren't quite as benevolent, if hopelessly backwards. The most notable imp (sorry, Bat-Mite) is Mr. Mxyzptlk, Superman's nemesis who is just kind of an asshole who trolls Superman for LOLZ (The kids still say that, right?). This week, we're seeing time the Bat family ran into Mxy. Yes, two of those stories involve Bat-Mite, but the third is a bit on the darker side, because what is darker than the Joker becoming a god?Bat-Mite Meets Mr. Mxyzptlk (World's Finest Comics # 113)Superman and Batman: World's Funnest # 1Emperor Joker (Superman V.2 # 160-161, Adventures of Superman V.1 # 582-583, Superman: The Man of Steel # 104-105, Action Comics V.1 # 769-770, Emperor Joker # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
OK, so normally I would have something pithy to say about suffering through Will just picking random stuff of dubious quality that isn't available on-line and Batman '66 trades, which I just did. But what I really want to focus on are the vagaries of fate and coincidence.As you'll hear if you just start this episode, we recorded this on March 18th. And three days later, on March 21st, the news of the passing of Sam Kieth broke on-line. We have had Kieth stories in some anthologies, but Through the Lookingglass is the first story we've done that Keith was the writer of the entire thing. And sadly, none of his other Bat work is available easily on-line, so a Sam Kieth-centric episode is not in the offing currently. But I just want to say, his work will be missed by me. Whether it's his thick, hairy Wolverine, the surreality of The Maxx or his often forgotten contribution as the first artist on The Sandman, Kieth left a footprint as big as The Maxx's. RIP Sam Kieth.Batman '66 V.4 (Batman '66 # 17-22)Batman: Two-Face Strikes Twice # 1-2Batman: Through the Lookingglass OGNCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I know there are a lot of superheroes who are orphans and would do anything to have their parents back. Maybe they should talk to Cassandra Cain. That particular Batgirl has a much more trying set of parental relationships. We've read a bunch of stories about her and her dad, the mast assassin David Cain. And while we have read only a couple stories about it, the more interesting relationship is between Cass and her mother, one of the DC Universe's greatest martial artists, Lady Shiva. Abigale Heartbalm joins us to talk about three stories featuring Cass and Shiva. The first is their battle to the death, the second involves some Freaky Friday stuff (although not a mother/daughter swap, which I now want to see) and the first arc of Cassandra's current ongoing series, where things between them reach a much more final conclusion.I am Become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds (Batgirl V.1 #25)Vice Versa (Batgirls Annual 2022, #13)Mother (Batgirl V.6 #1-6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
When she was created for Batman: The Animated Series, I can't imagine the series creators realized what a life Renee Montoya would have in the comics. Technically appearing in comics before B:TAS premiered because of the much longer lead time for animation, Montoya has gone from beat cop to detective to vigilante to police commissioner and back to vigilante. And most of these changes are thanks to one writer: master of crime and superhero comics Greg Rucka. Ross Holmes's newest Patreon request was to talk about some stories featuring her time as a vigilante, as the second hero to use the name of The Question. And what better week to read three stories written by Greg Rucka then the week he returns to the Bat titles with the new volume of a character he created (and Montoya's on again/off again love interest), Batwoman? We trace Montoya's time from right after DC's first event weekly, 52, through the events of Final Crisis and to her solo back-ups in Detective Comics.52 Aftermath: Crime Bible- Five Lessons of Blood # 1-5Final Crisis: Revelations # 1-5Pipeline (Detective Comics V.1 # 854-865 Back-Ups)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The DC Universe has a lot of strange looking characters. King Shark is a bipedal shark man. G'Nort is a walking, talking dog alien. Animal-Vegetable Mineral Man is... well, look him up. Dude looks weird as all hell. But amongst the more macabre looking characters is super villain turned superhero turned super spy Mr. Bones, a guy whose soft tissue, from skin to organs, is invisible, so he's basically a walking skeleton. This week, a Patreon request from Dan Grote, first Patreon backer, editor-in-chief at ComicsXF, and Matt's best friend of over 30 years, has us looking at three times Bones ran into the Bat family. See Bones and his Infinity Inc. teammates meet the Outsiders (and Batman on 1 page). Read Bones sending Cameron Chase to find out Batman's secret identity in two issues of one of DC's best series that didn't last a year. And think about what might have been if the payoff of the New 52 arc featuring Bones and the DEO pulling Batwoman's strings hadn't been cut short.From Here to Infinity (The Outsiders Special # 1, Infinity Inc. Special # 1)Shadowing the Bat (Chase # 7-8)Batwoman/Wonder Woman: World's Finest (Batwoman V.2 # 12-17)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
BatChat has been running now for 4 and a half years, which is pretty unbelievable to me. That is not quite as long as Grant Morrison's 7 year run on the Bat titles. or as tempestuous as the last period if that run. This week, we do indeed arrive at the grand finale of that epic, the final arc of Morrison's Batman Inc., as well as the next arcs of No Man's Land and Knightquest: The Crusade. Expect discussions of AzBats's mental health, exactly when Chuck Dixon went from kinda conservative to right wing crank and what might have been if the the New 52 didn't jam itself into the last third of the Morrison run.Tally Man (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 19-20)Escape to Blackgate (Nightwing V.2 # 35-37)Gotham's Most Wanted (Batman Incorporated V.2 # 7-13, Special # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Catwoman has been around for over 80 years, and like all good Bat villains, she has changed with the times. But it's amazing how much of the character has been there through the ages. Patreon backer and friend of the show Sam Hopper joins us to look at the evolution of Catwoman, what has stayed the same and what has changed, in three stories from three different eras. In a Golden Age story, Selina works to prove she's gone straight. In a Bronze Age story, well she also works to prove she's gone straight. And in a glorious story of Silver Age madness, she is not going straight at all, but is instead turning Lois Lane into another Catwoman and Superman into a housecat. It's as wild as it sounds.Catwoman: Empress of the Underworld (Batman V.1 # 65)The Catwoman's Black Magic (Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane # 70-71)Shadow of the Cat (Batman V.1 # 323-324)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We've read plenty of his stories, and if you are a long time listener to the podcast, I'm sure you realize that Tom King is a writer who has some serious variety of placements on the big board. He has multiple stories in the top 10, plus a number of stories lingering near the bottom. Tonight, friend of the show and Patreon backer John Wickham returns, and he's picked some more Tom King, including his Eisner winning Riddler story that baffled both Matt and Will in how it got there. Plus, John's vendetta against Will reaches new heights; he's come with a game that fits pretty well with ol' Eddie Nygma's schtick.The Fall and the Fallen (Batman V.3 # 70-74, Secret Files # 2)An Unimportant Man (The Penguin # 6-7)Batman: One Bad Day- The Riddler # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
where Batman an Catwoman go on a double date with Superman and Lois Lane. And since this week his appearance lined up with Valentine's, we figured it was time to finally add that story to the big board. Also, Bruce and Talia go on an animated series style date in Paris in a story with an inappropriate title and Nightwing and Oracle get married in a crossover that is mostly forgotten but was a breath of fresh air at the time.Super Friends: Date Night (Batman V.3 #36-37)Last Tango in Paris (Batman Adventures V.1 #13)Birds of Rage (Convergence: Nightwing/Oracle #1-2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Superheroes were an American invention, at least the modern conception of them. But they have spread across the globe and taken on many forms. We've done an episode about Batman stories across the world before, but this weeks we're focusing specifically on Batman stories from Japan. We're reading the first collection of stories that spun out of the 60s Batman TV craze, a more serious tale of a killer stalking Gotham with connections to Bruce Wayne's study's in Japan and the final volume of the series where Joker raises a de-aged baby Batman.Batman: The Jiro Kuwata Batmanga Chapters 1-19Batman: Death Mask # 1-4One Operation Joker V.3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
This week, BatChat is once more joined by Patreon backer and friend of the show Matt McThorn. This time, Matt wanted to talk about times Batman and his allies and enemies crossed over with properties from Dark Horse Comics. So we have Batman meeting Hellboy (and Starman, but that's less of a jump), The Joker trying on The Mask and the Justice League winding up on the farm that serves as the setting for Black Hammer.Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-2Joker/Mask #1-4Hammer of Justice (Black Hammer/Justice League #1-4)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We read three stories an episode. So with that math, episode 222 means we are ranking story 666, which is certainly a portentous number. It's a number that screams horror. And it's not like we haven't covered plenty of Batman horror on this show. But as we get to that number here, we figured there's no better time to get back to it. So this week, we're reading the first appearance of the most horror of the main Batman villains, the Scarecrow, reading a Legends of the Dark Knight one off drawn by Mike Mignola and a maxi-series from horror comic master Steve Niles with art from the definitive Batman horror artist, Kelley Jones.The Riddle of the Human Scarecrow (World's Finest Comics # 3)Sanctum (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 54)Batman: Gotham After Midnight # 1-12Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
This week, BatChat is returning to the three runs we've been following in order. Well, sorta. Yes, we're reading the next arc of No Man's Land and the penultimate arc of Grant Morrison's epic run. But Injustice has been showing signs of severely diminishing returns the past few volumes, and we had something else we've been wanting to get to, so we're subbing in Knightquest: The Crusade, the adventures of Azrael as Batman. We'll get back to Injustice once the Morrison run is over, but for this month, AzBats takes on the Trigger Twins (and Robin), Batman and Robin go into Robinson Park in No Man's Land for a conversation with Poison Ivy and the wat between Batman Inc and Leviathan kicks off in earnestMoney Train (Detective Comics V.1 #667-669, Robin V.2 #1-2)Fruit of the Earth (Batman: Shadow of the Bat #88, Batman V.1 #568, Detective Comics V.1 #735)Demon Star (Batman Incorporated V.2 #0-6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Creeper is a weird character. He's a guy with yellow skin, a green and black banana hammock, and a red fur boa. That's a heck of a look. He's also a good guy that most think is a bad guy. And sometimes he hangs out in Gotham City. That's a lot on a character who DC has tried to get over no less than four times with their own series that has never taken off. But because he's a sometimes Gotham character, we can cover stories where he interacts with the Bat family (this is entirely an excuse because Matt recently got a comic with Batman and the Creeper and wanted an excuse to read it). We see him and Batman fight a bug-man, team up with Joker and get involved with Batman in a complicated plot involving Ra's al Ghul framing Batman for murder.And Hellgrammite is his name (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 80)The Last Ha-Ha (The Joker V.1 # 3)Bat-Murderer (Detective Comics V.1 # 444-448)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's the start of a new year again, and so, as we do every year, it's time to look at some new visions of Batman in a handful of Elseworlds. We've got a pulpy adventure of Batman and Superman, the Bat-pirate Leatherwing sailing the seven seas and an issue of the Batman Chronicles anthology with a second tale of Leatherwing, a gumshoe Bruce Wayne investigating murders by a cat creature and an intellectual Batman who still has time to punch Nazis.Elseworld's Finest # 1-2Leatherwing (Detective Comics V.1 Annual # 7)Batman Chronicles # 11Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Happy holidays to all! As is our tradition, and as we aren't going to run out any time soon, the week of Christmas we read three stories of the holidays in Gotham. One is a little holiday kinda-noir from Bat legends Denny O'Neil and Frank Miller, one is a perplexing animated series style Brave and the Bold that might explain the intergalactic origins of Santa and the final is a mini-series where Batman teams up with one of the men who trained him: Kris Kringle himself.Wanted: Santa Claus- Dead or Alive! (DC Special Series #21)Final Christmas (Batman: The Brave and the Bold V.1 #12)Batman/Santa Claus: Silent Knight #1-4Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
You walk down a set of stairs hidden behind a clock. You enter a large cavern. And there you see all manner of things. A large computer. A car like no other. Cases displaying costumes. And trophies. You have entered the Batcave, and this week we're reading three stories featuring the first appearances of those three most famous Batcave trophies: the robotic T-Rex, the giant Joker playing card and the giant penny.Here's the link to the article regarding the Joker Card as mentioned in the episode: https://www.cbr.com/batman-giant-joker-playing-card-batcave/The Isle That Time Forgot (Batman V.1 # 10)Rackety-Rax Racket (Batman V.1 # 32)The Penny Plunderers (World's Finest Comics # 30)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
You can start out as a Robin, but eventually you have to grow up, right? Well, maybe not Tim Drake, who's Robin again, but there was a period where he wasn't. And Dick Grayson and Jason Todd have left the Robin identity behind long ago. This week, Sam Hopper joins us again to talk about stories featuring those three former Robins in their later identities. We read the first arcs of Tim's time as Red Robin, Dick's as a super spy and Jason's Red Hood adventures on Webtoon.The Grail (Red Robin # 1-4)Agent of Spyral (Grayson # 1-4)Red Hood: Outlaws V.1 (Red Hood: Outlaws Webtoon Strips # 1-11)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
era.Batgirl: Year One #1-9Knightfall Rising (Batgirl V.4 # 10-13)Mindfield (Batgirl V.4 # 47-50)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's time for our annual tradition here at BatChat, up there with cranberry sauce from a can, stuffing that's a little too dry and avoiding conversations about politics with your red baseball cap wearing relatives: it's all ages Thanksgiving. Three stories of Batman for the whole family come in some very different flavors this year: the next volume of the Webtoons Wayne Family Adventures Strips, a younger readers OGN that retells classic children's stories with a Batman twist and the second volume of the strangest concept we've ever talked about, the manga where Joker raises a de-aged baby Batman. Happy holidays to those who celebrate here in the states, and know we are thankful to all of you who listen.Wayne Family Adventures V.3 (Wayne Family Adventures # 52-71)Batman Tales: Once Upon a Crime OGNOne Operation Joker V.2 (One Operation Joker Chapters 8-14)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
But I'm talking in universe here. Grant Morrison had created Batman Incorporated, where Batman travelled the world, making an international team of heroes. And while it came back after, the continuity mess of the New 52 definitely interfered. But this week, friend of the show and Patreon Backer Josh Weil is here to talk about that glorious 8 issue and one shot run, along with one of the stories that inspired it, and one that followed up on it.The Club of Heroes (World's Finest Comics # 89)Leviathan Strikes (Batman Incorporated V.1 # 1-8, Batman Incorporated: Leviathan Strikes One-Shot)No More Teachers (Batman Annual 2022, Batman Incorporated V.3 # 1-5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
While in comics circles the most well known alternate future for Batman is The Dark Knight Returns, in the public consciousness, that title has to be held by Batman Beyond. Three seasons of young Terry McGinnis and crotchety old Bruce Wayne in the DCAU, plus appearances on Justice League Unlimited, left a mark for this particular iteration of Batman. This week, with Terry returning to comics in Batman/Static: Beyond, we do our first episode focused on stories featuring Terry McGinnis; two are animated series tie-ins, and one is an arc from the series that followed that continuity in a more traditional DC style.Commissioner of Fear (Batman Beyond V.2 # 13)Terry's Mom Dates a Splicer (Batman Beyond V.2 # 24)10,000 Clowns (Batman Beyond Unlimited # 1-13)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Friend of the show and Patreon backer Matt McThorn is back this week, and he wanted to return to one of is earlier themes, with three more stories featuring Thomas Blake, the Bat rogue known as Catman. We get a 90s story featuring Catman and Ratcatcher from before Catman turned super cool under the pen of Gail Simone. Then we see Blake meet Huntress and try to come off as suave in a Birds of Prey vs. the Secret Six story. And we wrap up with Catman and Bane in Gotham during Battle for the Cowl, trying really hard to honor the memory of Batman. It goes about as well as you'd expect.The Secret of the Universe (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 43-44, Catwoman V.2 # 26)Whitewater (Birds of Prey V.1 # 104-108)A Debt of Significant Blood (Secret Six V.3 # 9)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Welcome to your annual, spooky Halloween week BatChat. We've done weeks with vampires, with Man-Bats, with Demons. This year, we're dipping into stories featuring Matt's favorite classic monster: the werewolf. Batman fights the beast under a full moon over the city, and maybe even turns into one...Moon of the Wolf (Batman V.1 # 255)Werewolf Moon (Detective Comics V.1 # 505)Batman: Full Moon # 1-4Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Robin Eternal # 1-26Help Me Not To Die (Batgirl V.1 # 2)Thicker Than Water (Batgirl V.1 # 37)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
as much about Gordon as it is about Batman, that number has exploded, and the history of that character, and his connection to Batman, has been fertile ground for various creators. This week we're looking at three stories about the life and times of Jim Gordon. These are some gritty and dark tales, and they come with some specific trigger warnings, so if you need to skip over some of this, we understand, but these are some fine comics.Batman: Night Cries OGN [Trigger Warning: Childhood physical and sexual abuse]Batman: Gordon of Gotham # 1-4 [Trigger Warning: Political violence]Batman: Turning Points # 1-5Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back following the three runs we've been reading in order for a while now. No Man's Land reaches its midpoint as the Bat family comes home to Gotham and the identity of the new Batgirl is revealed. Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne face their ultimate challenge as they are trapped between Dr. Hurt and the Joker in the final arc of Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin. And Injustice lurches to the conclusion of Year Four as the Justice League and the Resistance find themselves at war not just with each other, but with the Greek Gods.Assembly (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #120)Batman and Robin Must Die! (Batman and Robin V.1 #13-16, Batman: The Return)Injustice Year 4 V.2 (Injustice: Gods Among Us- Year Four #8-12, Annual #1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Gotham Academy returns to comic shops this week with a new prequel series, so we're reading three stories about teens in Gotham. Tim Drake faces a major challenge with his first confrontation with the man who killed the previous Robin, the Joker. Duke Thomas is recruited into the We Are Robin movement in a Gotham with a very different Batman. And the mystery of Gotham Academy deepens.Robin II: The Joker's Wild # 1-4We Are Robin (We Are Robin # 1-6)Calamity (Gotham Academy # 8-12)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Time moves ever forward. I can't believe that Batman Begins is 20 years old this year. As I question my mortality and life choices, this week we read three stories from the Batman Begins trade, including the movie adaptation, a retelling of Batman's origin by Denny O'Neil and a one off by Greg Rucka.Batman Begins: The Official Movie AdaptationThe Man Who Falls (Secret Origins of the World's Greatest Super Heroes TPB)Air Time (Detective Comics V.1 #757)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
This week, Deadpool/Batman will be released, the first Marvel/DC crossover in well over a decade. And as anyone who knows how comics work, the biggest characters are the ones who get crossed over, and no one at DC is bigger than Batman. So to tie in, we're reading three Batman/Marvel team-ups. These are some fun books, and we have a good time. Plus, Will finally gets us to reverse the way the show works, and it confuses us both. Glad that's over...Batman Vs. The Incredible Hulk: The Monster and the Madman (DC Specials Series # 27)Batman/Captain AmericaNew Age Dawning (Batman/Spider-Man)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're joined by first time guest and long time Patreon backer Sam Hopper to read some Damian Wayne stories from earlier in the character's life. Back when Damian was a truly insufferable brat. I know, for many of his haters he still is, but man, in these stories he is really something else. We read his first encounter with a member of the Superman family, his first adventure as Robin with his father and his first team-up with his best friend, Jon Kent.Fright Night (Superman/Batman V.1 # 77)Born to Kill (Batman and Robin V.2 # 1-8)In the Name of the Father (Superman V.4 # 10-11)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are periods where certain characters have more of a spotlight than others. Sure, there are always a lot of Batman stories, Joker stories. But then there are pockets of time when we get lots of stories focused on Jim Gordon or the Riddler. Between 2003 and 2006, Mr. Freeze had his day. He appeared in major stories like "Under the Hood" and "City of Crime" in supporting roles, and was central to other stories. This week, John Wickham joins us again to talk about three of these stories: the final arc of the first Batgirl series where Freeze is a small player, a one off fill-in issue and a Legends of the Dark Knight arc with a different vision of Freeze's origin.Destruction's Daughter (Batgirl V.1 #66-73)Fire & Ice (Batman: Gotham Knights #59)Snow (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #192-196)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Lady Shiva walks through the world, leaving a trail of bodies behind her. Not a hero, but often not quite a villain, Shiva has developed relationships with many members of the Bat Family: trainer to Tim Drake, rival and sometimes member of the Birds of Prey, mother to Cassandra Cain. Josh Weill joins the show to take on three of these stories. One is one of her earliest modern appearances with Tim Drake, one where she and Black Canary must avenge their fallen sensei and one where she takes command of the League of Shadows and in the end she must face down her own daughter to bring her plan to fruition.Going Solo (Robin V.1 #1-5)Sensei and Student (Birds of Prey V.1 #62-67)League of Shadows (Detective Comics V.3 #950-956)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's a very special week on BatChat. We have now recorded 200 episodes. 600 stories. It's a whole lot. And to celebrate, Matt and Will are together in one room, face to face, along with our first fan, our first Patreon backer, Matt's bestest pal in the whole world, Dan Grote, to read a milestone Batman story, Grant Morrison's The Return of Bruce Wayne, along with two of the stories that inspired it. We're talking Morrison, so there are some deep dives, and Dan brings his expertise about babies, which Matt and Will are sorely lacking.Since this is an in person recording, the sound quality is different and a little rough, but stick with it because this is a lot of fun.It Happened in Rome (Batman V.1 #24)Dark Knight, Dark City (Batman V.1 #452-454)Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Next week, the second season of the HBO Max series Peacemaker drops. The first season featured some seriously obscure DC characters, and this week, to tie in with the release of the new season, we're reading three stories featuring three of those characters: Peacemaker, Vigilante and Judomaster. Now, we're stretching the definition of featured here, since one of these characters has never appeared in a story with a Bat character that wasn't just a panel in some big event, but we made it work.And as promised in the episode, here's a YouTube link to the opening of season 1 of Peacemaker, because it is awesome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mrr3UNALwwAssault on Arkham (Suicide Squad V.7 # 1-2)Corvalho (Checkmate V.2 # 11-12)The Vigilante and the Batman (Vigilante V.1 # 47)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Teen Titans have always been linked to the Bat Family. There are very few iterations of the Titans that don't include a former or current Robin in their ranks. So most Titans stories fit within the remit of this podcast. Patreon backer and friend of the show Matt McThorn specifically wanted to talk about a couple late 90s/early 00s stories featuring Nightwing and his relationship with Batman and the other original Titans, and we decided to throw in one of those completely insane Bob Haney Brave and the Bolds to round it out.Rebels in the Streets (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 94)The Technis Imperative (JLA/Titans # 1-3)Survival (Titans V.1 # 15-16)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman is not just popular here in the USA. As our listeners know, as you are from many countries, people outside America love Batman too. And sometimes we get stories reprinted here in the States that feature Batman that were created in other countries. We're reading three of those today, one from France, one from Italy and one from Japan.Batman: The Dark Prince Charming Vol. 1 & 2Batman/Dylan Dog # 1-3One Operation Joker Vol. 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Somehow, as we near 200 episodes, we still stumble across holes in our coverage. He's appeared in a lot of stories we've covered, but we have never done an episode purely focused on Penguin stories. So this week, we remedy that. We're reading Penguin's first appearance, the story that changed him from supervillain to mobster and the start of his recent maxi-series.One of the Most Perfect Frame-Ups (Detective Comics V.1 #58)Odds Against (Detective Comics V.1 #683-684)The Fall and Rise of Oswald Cobblepot Part 1 (The Penguin #1-5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Superman was pretty great, huh? We wanted to keep the good times rolling this week with an episode featuring characters other than the big guy who appeared in the movie. I really wanted to do a Batman/Mr. Terrific team up, but outside team settings, there aren't really any, so we instead went with a classic Bob Haney Metamorpho story, a Batman/Guy Gardner story that doesn't end with Gardner unconscious and the story of Maxwell Lord's infamous heel turn.Alias the Bat-Hulk (The Brave and the Bold V. # 68)2011: A Space Oddity (Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors # 13)The OMAC Project/Sacrifice (Countdown to Infinite Crisis # 1, The OMAC Project # 1-6, Superman V.2 # 219, Action Comics V.1 # 829, Adventures Of Superman V.1 # 642-643, Wonder Woman V.2 # 219)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The birth of the new DC Cinematic Universe... DC Extended Universe... DC... ah whatever the hell they're calling it, kicks off on the big screens this week with the debut of James Gunn's Superman film, so we're obviously tying in because SEO is a powerful thing. We have three more stories of the World's Finest heroes with a delightful Bronze Age oddity and two tales from the President Lex era that feel strangely prescient nowadays.The Werewolf from Krypton (World's Finest Comics #256)Lord of the Ring (Superman V.2 #168/Detective Comics V.1 #756)Public Enemies (Superman/Batman V.1 #1-6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The revolving doors of any prison or mental health facility in Gotham City are running jokes, and rightly so; they can't keep a D-lister like Ratcatcher locked up, let alone someone like the Joker. But they do keep winding up back in custody, so there has to be story potential there, right? This week's episode looks at three times Joker wound up locked up. A graphic novel from Dixon and Nolan finds Joker on death row, a tale of Joker's first time in custody and there's a mystery of exactly how all of Gotham's rogues wound up in a warehouse together and only Joker is talking.Apologies for the sound on Matt's end: this and the next couple episodes had smoe issues, but it's definitely listenable, just echoey.The Joker: Devil's Advocate OGNDo You Understand These Rights? (Batman Confidential # 22-25)The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox # 1-7Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Doug Moench wrote Batman stories for about a decade over the course of his runs on the character. And while his Bat work is probably best associated with his collaboration with Kelley Jones, generally his best known collaborator is penciller Paul Gulacy, with whom he defined Shang-Chi over at Marvel. That isn't to say he didn't work wit Gulacy on Batman though. This week we read three of those team-ups, including two Legends of the Dark Knight arcs defining the post-Crisis Hugo Strange and a Batman/Predator crossover.Also, this episode is partly brought to you by Matt's local library, which had a copy of that out of print crossover. If you're looking to read comics you can't find elsewhere? Check your local library. They're great resources.Prey (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #11-15)Bloodmatch (Batman Vs. Predator II #1-4)Terror (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #137-141)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The evolution of representation of queer characters in mainstream superhero comics is something that entire books can, and should, be written about. So I'm not going to wax rhapsodic about all the changes here, but it's June and thus Pride Month, and so we're back with queer Bat characters. First we wrap up Greg Rucka's run on Batwoman, next we see the first HarlIvy wedding (in the Injustice Universe of all places) and we read one of the DC Pride anthologies, the one that includes the brilliant story written by the one true voice of Batman, Kevin Conroy.Cutter (Detective Comics V.1 # 861-863)Injustice: Year Zero (Injustice: Year Zero Chapters 1-14)DC Pride 2022Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're getting near 200 episodes of this show, and many of those episodes have been experiences where we discover fun, fascinating comics. And then there is this week. Patreon backer and friend (?) of the show John Wickham made his pick for his return, and he decided to pick three stories related to the Joker and Joker related characters that could make it to the bottom of the Big Board. He he succeeded. The New 52 Harley, Joker's Daughter and her nonsense underground kingdom and Three Jokers all appear, all are terrible, and one takes it's spot in the opposite of rarified air at the very bottom of the Big Board. Try to guess which one. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.Harley Lives! (Detective Comics V.2 #23.2)Down Under (Catwoman V.4 #22-24 & 26, Batman: The Dark Knight v.2 #23.4)Batman: The Three Jokers #1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back to our three runs we're following in order. In No Man's Land, we meet a new character who will be an important part of the Bat Family moving forward. In the Morrison run, we get some side stories in the run up to The Return of Bruce Wayne. And in Injustice, Renee Montoya hits Superman with the Washington Monument.Mark of Cain (Batman V.1 #567, Detective Comics V.1 #734)Time and Batman (Batman V.1 #700-703)Injustice: Gods Among Us Year Four V.1 (Injustice: Gods Among Us- Year Four #1-7)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight was a title like no other at the time, with its rotating creative teams of big name creators. As the series progressed, some of the creative teams featured less well known creators, but the series always tried to do something different, even if some themes came up over and over. Patreon backer and friend of the show Josh Weil stumbled across a trade featuring three LotDK stories of Batman fighting monsters called, well, Batman: Monsters, and those are the stories we cover this episode.Werewolf (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 71-73)Infected (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 83-84)Clay (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 89-90)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoSupport the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Y'know, sometimes you get an episode request, and you wind up with stories better than you could have expected. Patreon backer and friend of the show Matt McThorn specifically wanted to talk about the Batman annual with the origin of Clownhunter and art by James Stokoe. So we decided, what better theme than more annuals. And not to spoil too much, but we wound up with not one, but two new stories in the top 100 of the Big Board. And one very weird story quite a bit lower, but that's still a great showing for the night.There is Hope in Crime Alley (Batman V.3 Annual # 5)Everyday. (Batman V.3 Annual # 4)Slade's Demon (Batman V.1 Annual # 12)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Patreon backer Sam Hopper wanted to give us a nice, fun week, and we appreciate that. He requested three stories that inspired episodes of Batman '66. There are surprisingly few episodes of that show that were adaptations, but definitely enough or an episode. But these are really short stories, so we wanted to add a little something. So on top of ranking the comics on the Big Board, we are talking about the episodes, and adding them to the Little Board. And we made a special public post over on patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill, so you can check out all the media we have ranked there before we start getting even weirder with what we'll be adding to it this summer.The Riddler (Detective Comics V.1 # 140)Joker's Utility Belt (Batman V.1 # 73)The Mad Hatter of Gotham City (Detective Comics V.1 # 230)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back with two of our favorite ladies this week: Patreon backer (and Will's wife) Abigale Heartbalm and Stephanie Brown. Abigale wanted to read three stories featuring Stephanie, and we wanted to go with something similar as the first time we did a Stephanie episode where we touch on different eras of the character, but we kinda wanted to avoid all those depressing stories where she's Robin. So this time, for her second appearance, it's all second stories: her second appearance, her second arc as Batgirl and the second arc of James Tynion IV's run on Detective Comics.Clueless (Robin V.2 # 3-5)Batgirl Rising: Core Requirements (Batgirl V.3 # 4-7)The Victim Syndicate (Detective Comics V.3 # 943-947)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
People love Batman. People love Apes. So when you combine them, you're bound yo get some fun comics, right? Well, sometimes. Patreon backer Dan Grote asked us to read some Batman and apes stories, and we read a delightful Golden/Silver Age story, a 90s story that had it's fun moments and a story that is proof that the New 52 could suck the joy out of pretty much anything. And we discuss how few Batman/Detective Chimp stories there are, which is a travesty.The Bat-Ape (Batman V.1 #114)JLApe (Legends of the DC Universe #19, JLA Annual #3, Batman V.1 Annual #23, Aquaman V.5 Annual #5, Wonder Woman V.2 Annual #8, Flash V.2 Annual #12, Superman V.2 Annual #11, Green Lantern V.3 Annual #8, Martian Manhunter V.2 Annual #2)Time to Monkey Shine (Batman V.2 #23.1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
This whole episode came about when Matt was looking for something else entirely, and he stumbled across an issue of Batman: Gotham Adventures, the animated series tie-in, written by Ed Brubaker. As he didn't remember that at all, he decided he had to read it, and since he has minimal time to read for pleasure, the best solution was to work it into an episode. Thus we have three stories about people telling stories about Batman and Bruce Wayne. Is it a stretch for a theme? Yes. Are the comics all very good? Also yes.The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 197)World Without Batman (Batman: Gotham Adventures # 33)Daydreams & Believers (Gotham Central # 11)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back to the bookshelf Will keeps of random Batman trades he has picked up over the years (a shelf that for Matt is something he just calls his house). We start off as ever with a volume of Batman '66, follow that up with Batman meets The Da Vinci Code meets Last Crusade and wrap up with a mini-series that led into Final Crisis that is actually nowhere near as bad as much of those were.Batman '66 V.3 (Batman '66 # 11-16)Batman: The Chalice OGNGotham Underground # 1-9Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are very few characters in comics that I, Matt, truly dislike. One of them is, sadly, a character with significant ties to the Bat family: Deathstroke the Terminator. A villain turned anti-hero who I don't feel like ever should have been, I decided it was time to bit the bullet and cover three stories featuring Deathstroke. We have his first meeting with Batman, a Chuck Dixon story of dueling assassins and a story where Batman and Deathstroke both feature, but don't actually meet.Content warning: this episode includes discussions of sexual assault and exploitationCity of Assassins (Deathstroke the Terminator #6-9)The Death Lottery (Detective Comics V.1 #708-710)Identity Crisis #1-7Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Bat family has grown considerably over the years. What started out as Batman and Robin now contains what seems to be a dozen or more characters. And recent years have seen many attempts to add characters who would be big hits and draw massive popularity. And while this has created some good characters, none of the characters created in period of the New 52 and early Rebirth eras took off to become characters who headlined their own books, for example. This week, we read stories about three of those characters: Harper Row, Duke Thomas, and Gotham Girl.Ghost in the Machine (Batman V.2 # 12)I Am Gotham (Batman: Rebirth # 1, Batman V.3 # 1-6)The Cursed Wheel (All-Star Batman # 1-4, 6-9 Back-Ups)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Mainstream superhero comics have been a boys' club since their invention, and while things have gotten better in recent years, it is telling how few Batman comics have women writers, outside the works of Devin Grayson and Mariko Tamaki. For the last week of March, of Women's History Month, we're reading three stories by other women who have written Bat titles. We have a fun and completely insane three issue arc of 90s Detective Comics from Louise Simonson, the first arc of Gail Simone's run on Birds of Prey, and a single issue of Gotham Academy that brings Damian Wayne to the school co-written by Becky Cloonan (who will be back in next week's episode for her art).Control Freak (Detective Comics V.1 #635-637)Of Like Minds (Birds of Prey V.1 #56-59)Curse of the Inishtree Quill (Gotham Academy #7)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Gotham villains seem to spend so much time fighting each other, it's a wonder they have any time to fight Batman. Friend of the show and Patreon backer John Wickham returns for three instances of villain on villain violence, with Blackgate Vs. Arkham during the Forever Evil crossover, Hush Vs. Talia in the run up to Infinite Crisis and The War of Jokes and Riddles, the Tom King story with the breakout star of Kite-Man.Arkham War (Batman V.2 # 23.4, Forever Evil: Arkham War # 1-6, Forever Evil Aftermath: Batman Vs. Bane)Job Termination (Batman: Gotham Knights # 66)The War of Jokes and Riddles/ The Ballad of Kite-Man (Batman V.3 # 25-32)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Friend of the show and Patreon backer Josh Weil is a busy guy these days. Josh is running in a special election as the Democratic nominee to be the new Representative for Florida's 6th District. But Josh is such a dedicated fan that he took some time off from his busy schedule to join us and talk about three Batman stories from the Golden Age of Comics: the first appearance of Dr. Death, the first super villain Batman ever fought; the first appearance of Hugo Strange; and a fun story where Batman and Robin solve murders that are using superstitions as the motif of the killings.Learn more about Josh's campaign website: https://joshweil.us/Doctor Death (Detective Comics V.1 #29-30)Batman Meets Professor Hugo Strange (Detective Comics V.1 #36)The Superstition Murders (Batman V.1 #8)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I have a soft spot for Wildcat, the Golden Age hero, member of the JSA, and trainer of heroes. And he has a connection to the Bat family, having trained more than one member. So this week we're reading a perfectly whacky issue of Brave and the Bold as only Bob Haney could write it, and two mini-series by Chuck Dixon that feature Bat characters teaming up with WildcatMay the Best Man Die! (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 118)Batman/Wildcat # 1-3Catwoman/Wildcat # 1-4Also, we are adding a fourth story to the Big Board, as we are removing one. Due to the mounting sexual assault allegations against Neil Gaiman, it has become difficult to feature a book that he headlined at the very top of the list. While any other entry on the list that features Gaiman's work is an anthology, "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?" Is a book that can't be discussed without Gaiman's contribution, and so it has been removed, and we are also reading "Succession" from Detective Comics V.1 Annual #4, by the wonderful and legendary Louise Simonson, so the Board remains evenly divisible by 3. Please listen to the cold open of the show for more details on our thinking.Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I sit and write this introduction on a February morning where it is in the mid 40s and going up to the low 50s today, but it's still winter, and so we were thinking about the snow and cold when coming up with episodes, and when you think of cold and Gotham, who else do you think about but Mr. Freeze? We feature his first appearance this week, when he was Mr. Zero, as well as an animated series tie-on and the first arc of Gotham Central where Freeze is the antagonist.The Ice Crimes of Mr. Zero (Batman V.1 # 121)Polar Opposites (Batman: Gotham Adventures # 5)In the Line of Duty (Gotham Central # 1-2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I usually try to put something witty or informative here. But this week, Patreon backer Matt McThorn is back, and he asked us to read Neal Adams's mad dream, Batman: Odyssey. He didn't know what he was getting himself or us into, so we have forgiven him, but this one feels like an all-timer. We also read two Denny O'Neil/Neal Adams stories from the 70s, as well as a classic EC Comics story that we don't rank since it's not a Batman story, but ties in with what we're talking about, and you can read it on-line HERE: https://from-dusk-till-drawn.com/2016/05/02/master-race-by-bernie-krigstein-usa-1955/. It ties in with Night of the Reaper, so if you haven't read that and a reading along, I would suggest reading that before reading this story. But aside from that homework, get ready for dinosaurs, the hollow Earth, stream of consciousness and Jazz wizards.A Vow From the Grave (Detective Comics V.1 #410)Night of the Reaper (Batman V.1 #237)Batman: Odyssey (Batman: Odyssey V.1 #1-6, V.2 #1-7)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Lightning can strike twice. But not often. The original Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight series was a collection of classic creators doing amazing stories. DC has tried to recapture that magic multiple times, and that lightning has never quite hit again. Legends of the DC Universe was another attempt to get that magic, but this time for the entire DC Universe. Three of the arcs of that series featured Batman related characters: one featuring Robin, one featuring Batgirl and one featuring the Joker. This week we read those three stories.Fear of God (Legends of the DC Universe #6)Folie a Deux (Legends of the DC Universe #9-10)The Fishy Laugh (Legends of the DC Universe #26-27)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Will wanted to talk about Paul Dini and Alex Ross's graphic album, Batman: War On Crime, so the logical episode theme was more Paul Dini stories, so this is not Matt 100% forcing more Dini on Will. And while Matt didn't do it intentionally, well, he did wind up picking a story with Zatanna, because there are so many of them. But he also picked a story with some fun characters that sadly have been forgotten that Dini created, and that's a point in his favor, right? Right?Batman: War on Crime OGNOpening Night (Detective Comics V.1 #843-844)Final Cut (Batman: Streets of Gotham #4, 7, 10-11)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's always a good time for us to return to the runs that we're following in order. This time, things go from bad to worse in No Man's Land, Dick Grayson investigates Wayne Manor for clues to Bruce Wayne's whereabouts while Damian has a strange encounter with Oberon Sexton, and the magical war in the Injustice world reaches its epic conclusion.Claim Jumping (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 119, Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 87)Batman Vs. Robin (Batman and Robin V.1 # 10-12)Injustice: Gods Among Us Year Three V.2 (Injustice: Gods Among Us Year Three # 8-12, Annual # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Over the past 169 episodes, we have covered work from a lot of creators. And I can't think of one that we have unanimously and consistently lauded than the late Darwyn Cooke. A writer artist like few others, Cooke passed away at a tragically young age, leaving a body of work that would have only grown. This week, we are covering the last comic Cooke was involved with that has any Batman related content, as well as two other comics that are related to it, one very directly, and one a bit more tangentially.Night of the Stalker (Detective Comics V.1 # 439)Solo # 5The Bad News, or The Butterfly (The Question V.1 # 1-4)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
While nearly all of Gotham's vigilantes are affiliated in some way with Batman and his family, there are a few who stand on their own. One of those few is Ragman, one of the few canonically Jewish heroes in the DC Universe. Rory Reagan wears the suit of souls, a collection of patches that are made up of the souls of criminals. And even though he is not affiliated with the Bat family, he has met members of it on more than one occasion. This episode, we're reading three of those adventures.Snitch (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 51)Suit of Evil Souls (Batman V.1 # 551-552)The Unknowns (Batwoman V.2 # 35-40, Annual # 2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman has teamed up with pretty much every hero in the DC Universe because he's, well, Batman. He's also teamed up with many a villain. We've read stories where he worked with Lex Luthor, Ra's al Ghul and Bane. But Patreon backer Ross Holmes very specifically wanted us to read a story where he teams up with the most unlikely of villains: The Joker. And as it turns out, that has happened more times than one might think...Death Has the Last Laugh (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 111)The Batman Who Laughs V.2 # 1-7Only Angels Have Wings (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 191)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's the New Year's week, and if you've been listening to the podcast, you know what that means: New Year, New Batman. That's right, it's three more Elseworlds. We have Nosferatu (which is strangely more an adaptation of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari than Nosferatu), The Nail (which is more a Marvel-style What If? than most Elseworlds) and I, Joker, which does what Sean Gordon Murphy wanted to do, only better.Batman: NosferatuJustice League: The Nail #1-3Batman: I, JokerCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Happy holidays, BatChat listeners. It's the week of Christmas and Chanukah this year, so we're celebrating the holiday in the BatChat style. Patreon backer and friend of the show John Wickham is joining us to discuss three of Dc's modern holiday anthologies. Have yourself a merry everyone!DC Infinite Holiday Special # 1DC Rebirth Holiday Special # 1New Year's Evil Vol.2 # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There was a time in the pre-Crisis days when Batman and Superman were the best of friends. But then the Crisis, and Frank Miller, came along, and things changed. For most of a decade, Batman and Superman's relationship ranged from confrontational to cordial. Patreon backer Josh Weil returns this week to trace the evolution of that relationship back to friendlier terms in three Superman stories guest starring Batman.Dark Knight Over Metropolis (Superman V.2 # 44, Adventures of Superman V.1 # 467, Action Comics V.1 # 654)Hazard's Choice (Action Comics V.1 # 719)Superman: The Wedding AlbumCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Last week was three random books from Will's collection. This week is three stories that Matt has wanted to cover that don't easily fit in with any themes he has come up with yet. We read some more black and white stories, the sequel to a highly ranked sorry by a late, great writer and an annual from some legendary creators.Batman: Black and White- The Gotham Knights Stories Vol. 2 (Batman: Gotham Knights # 17-49 or Batman: Black and White Vol. 3 TPB)Don't Blink (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 164-167)Villains in Love (Batman V.1 Annual # 11)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back picking through random volumes of mostly weird stuff from Will's bookshelf that he hasn't read before. We return to the wonder that is the Batman '66 follow up series, a sequel to a classic Batman story that may not be as classic and some more Kevin Smith Batman that is something else.Trigger Warning: This episode was recorded on November 6th, so the opening bit is a lot of feelings about the US Presidential election. If you want to skip that and get to the comics, just start around the 9:18 mark.Batman '66 V.2 (Batman '66 # 6-10)Wrath Child (Batman Confidential # 13-16)Batman: Cacophony # 1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Our annual all ages Thanksgiving episode is back, with a new volume of Wayne Family Adventures. the sequel to the charming Batman & Robin & Howard and a one off crime story from the animated universe.Wayne Family Adventures Vol. 2 (Wayne Family Adventures #26-51)Batman & Robin & Howard: Summer Breakdown OGNHow This World Goes? (Batman: Gotham Adventures #21)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman rogues have some seriously strange evolutions. Some, like the Joker, have a path you can easily follow. Others, like Mr. Freeze, have just become completely different over the years. Another like that is Catman, created in the mid-Silver Age as yet another anti-Bat before becoming a joke character, and then evolving into a morally grey anti-villain (I'm coining that right here). Patreon backer Matt McThorn wanted to talk about some Catman stories, so we're reading his first appearance, his first post-Crisis appearance and the mini-series that redefined him for the modern era.Challenge of the Cat-Man (Detective Comics V.1 # 311)Cats (Detective Comics V.1 # 612)Villains United # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's been a while, but we're returning to the three runs that we're following in order. In No Man's Land, we take a break from big story revelations for an anthology month of four of shots. In Grant Morrison's run, Dick Grayson brings Batman's corpse to England to a Lazarus Pit and learns something unexpected (by everyone but Tim Drake, because he's the best). And in the world of Injustice, John Constantine joins the resistance against Superman, as the moral darkness continues to spreadThe Calm Before (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 118, Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 86, Batman V.1 # 566, Detective Comics V.1 # 733)The Blackest Knight (Batman and Robin V.1 # 7-9)Injustice: Gods Among Us- Year Three Vol. 1 (Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Three # 1-7)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
A fixture in the Bat titles from 1999-2011, and again since Rebirth, Cassandra Cain was the second full time Batgirl. Trained from birth to be a living weapon, Cassandra had to learn not just how to fit in with the Bat family, but how to fit in among normal people. This week, just in time for her new mini-series, we discuss two early stories of Cassandra Cain and the mini-series that tried to rehabilitate the character after editorial missteps left her in a bad way after One Year Later.Down With the Ship (Batman: Gotham Knights # 2)Speech & Consequences (Batgirl V.1 # 4-9)Redemption Road (Batgirl V.2 # 1-6)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
And we have reached the end of October, the spookiest of months, and this the end of villains month. And to wrap it up, we're getting one of the spookiest of Batman villains: Man-Bat. Dr. Kirk Langstrom has an origin really out of the pages of Spider-Man, but someone has wound up a fixture in the Batman titles. Also, he has had more mini-series than any other Bat rogue. Go figure. We read his first appearance, a bizarre prestige format mini that feels straight out of 90s Vertigo and another mini that, while featuring some beautiful Man-Bat art, doesn't feature a ton of Man-Bat, alas.Man or Bat? (Detective Comics V.1 # 400, 402,407)The Subterraneans (Batman: Man-Bat # 1-3)Legends of the World's Finest # 1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Black Mask was Hush before Hush: a villains obsessed not with Batman but with Bruce Wayne, seeking to bring down Bruce for childhood grudges. But over the years he has evolved into a more sadistic figure. As villains month nears its end, we read three stories featuring Roman Sionis: his first appearance, his return in the run up to Knightfall and the story that establishes his modern rivalry with Catwoman.Losing Face (Batman V.1 # 386-387, Detective Comics V.1 # 553)Warpaint (Batman V.1 # 484-485)Relentless (Catwoman V.3 # 12-16)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Killer Croc is a character who has evolved a great deal over his time, and that pun is only half unintended. He has been a mobster, a monster and an anti-hero. This week, for Villains Month, we look at three different interpretations of Croc. In one, he's a barely human monster running from humanity. In another, he's a supervillain on a killing spree. And in the third, he is the mayor of Monstertown in the sewers of Gotham during Joker War.Swamp Things (Batman V.1 # 521-522)Batman In Barcelona: Dragon's KnightMonsters of Men (Detective Comics V.3 # 1026)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The second week of villains month, and we love a theme, so why not use this week to have our second Two-Face episode? We've covered a lot of Two-Face stories both for the podcast and the column, and we're swinging back to some classics. We have the first appearance of Two-Face (a two-parter, of course), the annual that redefined Two-Face in the post-Crisis era and an animated series story that puts a spin on that very annual.The Crimes of Two-Face (Detective Comics V.1 # 66,68)The Eye of the Beholder (Batman V.1 Annual # 14)Lucky Day (Batman: Gotham Adventures # 2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's October, the spookiest month of the year. So, what better time to focus on the villains of the Batman universe? There are five Thursdays and we'll be focusing on five villains, all but one we haven't had a spotlight on before. The first villain is a favorite of Matt's, one who has appeared in some of the higher ranked stories on the big board: Mr. Zsasz. The (as Will calls him in the episode) "knife pervert" of the rogue's gallery, we read the story of his origin, a story of him and Batman both being hunted by the GCPD, and a lost tale that was found and printed in an odd manor.The First Cut is the Deepest: The Secret Origin of Mr. Zsasz (Batman Chronicles # 3)Victims (Detective Comics V.1 # 815-816)Draining (Batman: Arkham- Mr. Zsasz [originally intended for Batman: Gotham Knights # 12])Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's strange to think that Jason Todd has been back from the dead longer than he was actually dead now. For those of us who read Batman comics in the 90s, the death of Jason was possibly the most important moment in Batman's life after the death of his parents. But he is back, and is now a member on good standing of the Bat family. That was not always the case either. John Wickham joins the podcast to talk about the stories that bridge the gap between "Under the Red Hood" and Grant Morrison's "Revenge of the Red Hood" They are... certainly something, including himbo Dick Grayson, the Brickhouse and not as much battling for the cowl as a story name might imply.Brothers in Blood (Nightwing V.2 #118-122)Seeing Red (Green Arrow V.3 #69-72)Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1-3/ Gotham Gazette: Batman Dead?/Batman Alive?Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Our very first Dick Grayson backer, Josh Weil, makes his return to the podcast this week, but he's not picking the stories. Instead, he has gifted his picks this month to our youngest backers, his sons, David and Alexander. They give us stories that show they love sidekicks, young butlers, and giant monsters.Robin War (Robin War # 1-2, Grayson # 15, Detective Comics V.2 # 47, We Are Robin # 7, Robin: Son of Batman # 17, Gotham Academy # 13, Red Hood/Arsenal # 7, Teen Titans V.5 # 15)Young Alfred: Pain in the Butler OGNJustice League Vs. Godzilla Vs KongCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman is a loner. Except for Alfred, the Robins, the Batgirls, Signal, Batwoman and the Justice League. But before many of those characters, there was Ace the Bathound, the first of numerous Bat pets, mostly brought into the cave by Damian, another noted loner , and that club now includes Titus, Alfred the tuxedo cat and Batcow. Another noted dog lover is this week's Patreon backer, Dan Grote, who asked us for stories about Bat pets. So we're going into all ages territory for some Scooby Doo and Tiny Titans, and then reading what might be the most heart warming story Mark Russell ever wrote.A Dog-gone Crisis (Scooby-Doo Team-Up # 18 [Digital 35-36])Aw Yeah, Pet Club! (Tiny Titans # 13,17,21,23,28,33)Hounded (Batman: Urban Legends # 11-16)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We've talked about it for a while, and here it is. This week, Matt and Will each picked three stories that they felt were too low on the Big Board, and they discussed them again and moved them to spots they felt more appropriate. It's a lot of the creators we talk about regularly, and a lot of the stories that have served as benchmarks for lower on the board, now moved into some more prime real estateBatman: Holy TerrorBatman/Judge Dredd: Judgment in GothamBlades (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #32-34)The Clown at Midnight (Batman V.1 #663)A Clash of Symbols (Detective Comics V.1 #617)Batman in Bethlehem (Batman V.1 #666)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's a celebration over here as we hit episode 150! We started out with a theme of anniversary issues, ones that were numbers leading up to 150, so a 50, a 100 and a 150. And we did do that. But somehow, we wound up with a second theme: stories where Batman trips balls. Sometimes you find the theme. Sometimes the theme finds you. We have a Shadow of the Bat arc where a new villain poisons some milk, The Joker War (which we both liked more than we thought we would) and a story where a little old lady tries to tempt Dick Grayson to the dark side.Nightmare in Gotham (Batman: Shadow of the Bat #50-52)The Joker War (Batman V.3 #95-100, Batman: The Joker War Zone)Grimm (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #149-153)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Welcome to the world of tomorrow! Like, way tomorrow. Matt McThorn is back, and we are talking about the 853rd century and Grant Morrison's first DC crossover, DC One Million. It's a wild, sci-fi epic, which we all know if completely Will's jam. But you might be surprised as we talk about the core mini-series, as well as the arc of Bruce Wayne in the future and the Batman of the future in Gotham right after the cataclysm.DC One Million (DC One Million #1-4, JLA #1M)Dark Planet (Batman #1M, Catwoman #1M, Robin #1M)The Bat of the Future- Today! (Batman: Shadow of the Bat #1M, Nightwing #1M, Detective Comics #1M)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I have heard it said that every writer has a Batman story they want to tell. Only a few get to tell them. And sadly not all of them are great. This week we're reading three stories from writers not usually associated with Batman, Harlan Ellison, Eddie Campbell and David Lapham. And, well, none of these really are going down as central to the canon.The Night of Thanks, But No Thanks (Detective Comics V.1 # 567)Gotham Emergency (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 200)City of Crime (Detective Comics V.1 # 800-808,811-814)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
For the first time in a very long time, this week was supposed to see the publication of a collection of Marvel and DC collaborations, so Will and I decided that this would be a good time to read some of that. But these are big omnibuses, so as is often the case, they have been delayed. But we here at BatChat aren't following suit. We planned this weird episode, and we're doing it. This week, it's three Amalgam comics, stories where DC and Marvel characters are smooshed together to make one strange hybrid character. Batman and Wolverine become Dark Claw. Jubilee and Robin become Sparrow. And Bruce Wayne and sort of Nick Fury become Bruce Wayne, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.Legends of the Dark Claw # 1Bruce Wayne, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. # 1Dark Claw Adventures # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Gotham is a city of shadows. A city where good and evil blend together. It's a city made for Noir storytelling. And while some Batman stories have some elements of a Noir, most are very much superhero stories. But to tie-in with the 40s themed animated series, Batman: The Caped Crusader, debuting this week, and because Will has wanted to do this episode since somewhere around episode 3, we're reading three Batman Elseworlds that absolutely embrace Noir and crime storytelling. We read Batman meets the Untouchables, the grimmest Jim Gordon you will ever see, and Dick Grayson, the gumshoe. It's a damn fine week.Batman: Scar of the BatBatman: Gotham NoirBatman: Nine LivesCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Over his thirty plus year career in comics, Archie Goodwin racked up a lot of accomplishments. He wrote horror stories for lots of Warren Publishing's anthologies. At DC, he wrote Detective Comics, Manhunter (more on both of those later), and was the editor behind Batman: Black and White, the early issues of Legends of the Dark Knight and James Robinson's Starman. At Marvel, he co-created The New Universe (they can't all be winners...). But possibly the biggest accomplishment, before his untimely passing in 1998, was that he was regarded as the nicest guy in comics. Everyone loved Archie. So this week, we're reading his first story on Detective, the Manhunter backups he wrote for that same series and a loving, tongue in cheek tribute done in the animated series style.Deathmask! (Detective Comics V.1 # 437)Manhunter (Detective Comics V.1 # 437-443, Manhunter Special Edition)The Threatening Three! (Batman Adventures Vol. 1 # 10,20, 30, Batman: Gotham Adventures # 13)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Generally speaking, the episodes we do here are carefully curated. We try to take a theme, a character, and thoroughly dig through the 85 years of Batman stories to find the ones that best fit that theme. But then there are the weeks where Will just picks three random books off his bookshelf and wants to cover them, and Matt just says sure.Batman '66 V.1 (Batman '66 # 1-5)A New Dawn/King Tut's Tomb (Batman Confidential # 26-28)Golden Dawn (Batman: The Dark Knight V.1 # 1-5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We've all seen the memes and the jokes: Batman's real super power is his wallet. Batman has, historically, been from the moneyed class, and that's how he gets all those wonderful toys. But what happens when Batman doesn't have all that cash? That's what friend of the show, Patreon backer, and financial adviser Abigale Heartbalm wanted to look into in this week's episode. We have a charming Golden Age tale of Batman having to pawn his diamonds, a story where Ra's al Ghul tanks Wayne stock and on of the few stories featuring broke AND amnesiac Bruce from that period at the end of the New 52 we haven't covered.The Batman Goes Broke (Detective Comics V.1 # 105)Return of the Batman (Legends of the Dark Knight V.1 # 13 [Digital # 34-37])Madhouse (Batman V.2 Annual # 4)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman works outside the law pretty much all the time. And while he often runs afoul of civic authorities in Gotham City, it's surprising how rarely he winds up in the crosshairs of the feds (well, we're just starting Absolute Power in the main line, but again, exception that proves the rule). But it has happened a few times, and since this episode is going to drop to on July 4th, we thought this week we'd look at some times Batman has had run ins with the federal government. First, one Earth-2, the diary of Batman might bring down the JSA. In 1984, the Outsiders meet the Force of July (in 1984. Get it. 1984). And finally, the Bat-fam has to deal with an anti-vigilante government task force.America Vs. the Justice Society #1-4... Land Where Our Fathers Died...! (Batman and the Outsiders V.1 Annual #1)Batman: Outlaw #1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are some stories that read a very different ways after certain events. Who would have thought that these innocent little stories about Batman involved with plagues would read so differently after a global pandemic. Patreon backer and friend of the show John Wickham joins us to talk about the 90s crossover "Contagion," a fun little 80s one off and an arc from the Rebirth era Birds of Prey, all where the cities of the DC Universe have run ins with disease.Contagion (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 48-49, Detective Comics V.1 # 695-696, Robin V.2 # 27-28, Catwoman V.2 # 31-32, Azrael V.1 # 15-16, Batman V.1 # 529, Batman Chronicles # 4)Plague! (World's Finest Comics # 303)Manslaughter (Batgirl and the Birds of Prey # 15-17)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Friend of the show and Patreon backer Josh Weil decided to take up a challenge: come up with three stories that he thought could make the top 50 of the Big Board. And gotta, say, with no spoilers, he did a pretty good job. We see Bruce Wayne mourning the loss of his son, Batman and Catwoman taking a post-engagement trip and Nightwing taking fight.Undone (Batman & Robin V.2 # 18)Rules of Engagement (Batman V.3 # 33-35)Leaping Into the Light (Nightwing V.4 # 78-83)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We’re in the heart of June, which is Pride Month, so BatChat is joined by the hosts of the Gotham Outsiders podcast to talk about three stories featuring the queer residents of Gotham. Kate Kane’s origin is revealed, Tim Drake comes out, and animated Harley and Ivy go on a road trip. Oh, and towards the end, Will does his Matt impression, something that editor Matt couldn’t bring himself to cut.And buckle in for this one, folks. We definitely earn that “E” for explicit this episode.Go (Detective Comics V.1 # 858-860)Sum of Our Parts (Batman: Urban Legends # 4-6, 10, DC Pride Tim Drake Special # 1)Harley Quinn: The Animated Series- The Eat, Bang, Kill Tour # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're joined this week by our newest Dick Grayson tier backer, Matt McThorn, who wanted to talk about series released under DC's mature readers (mostly) super-hero imprint, Black Label. We have the infamous debit book of the line, where Batman goes full frontal, a story of the Joker driving his therapist insane (not that therapist, another one), and a journey through a dark mirror Gotham. And yes, even Gotham can have a dark mirror, as hard as that is to believe.Batman: Damned # 1-3Joker: Killer Smile # 1-3, Batman: The Smile Killer # 1Batman: City of Madness # 1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I was going to try to come up with something funny and misleading to make it seem like we were talking about the Marvel character Venom for this intro, but my brain isn't coming up with anything. This week's episode is about Bane, the man who broke the Bat, and does indeed spend a lot of time interrogating his relationship with the drug that powered him at the beginning of his life: Venom. We read the follow up to his first appearance, the story where he joins the Secret Six and some Tom King, so you know Will has feelings.Thanks to the History of Batman Facebook group for the graphic accompanying this episode over on ComicsXF. Remember, May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and your mental health is just as important as your physical health.Batman: The Vengeance of Bane IIUnhinged (Secret Six V.3 # 1-7)I Am Suicide (Batman V.3 # 8-13)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Joker has wreaked unspeakable trauma on Batman over the years of their rivalry. But there is one man who he has possibly hurt as much, if not more: Jim Gordon. The Joker and Gordon's relationship goes back as far and Joker and Batman's, and Joker has often focused on Gordon. This week, we look at three of the encounters between Gotham's top cop and the Clown Prince of Crime. We witness a flashback to Gordon and Joker's first solo confrontation, see what happens the first time the two meet after The Killing Joke and read an opus as Gordon goes on a worldwide hunt for Joker.Duty (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #105-106)Wildcard! (Batman V.1 #450-451)The Joker V.2 #1-16, Annual #1, Batman V.3 #100, Batman: Joker War ZoneCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
For those of you out there who back the BatChat Patreon, you have heard Matt & will talk about all manner of Batman media: movies, episodes of animated series and live action TV, narrative podcasts. And this week, we're taking that energy, but swapping it around so we can talk about the comic adaptations of three of the highest ranked stories on the Bonus Episode Little Board: Batman '89, Mask of the Phantasm, and Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.Batman: The Official Comic AdaptationBatman: Mask of the Phantasm- The Animated MovieBatman Beyond: Return of the JokerCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Matt here, and I am going to be writing in the first person for this one. When I started this podcast, I don't know what I was expecting. Will and I had been writing the BatChat column for a while. Dan Grote and I had been recording the ComicsXF Interview Podcast (then WMQ&A) for quite a bit longer. I just wanted to talk Batman some more. I didn't know if it would work, and if it did if it would last. And here we are, ranking story 400. I just want to thank everyone for listening, out Patreon backers for backing, and Will and my friends and partners for putting up with all this chatting about Bat. We're going back to some anthology series this week, a favorite topic for us, with a collection of Batman: Black and White stories, a Legends of the Dark Knight from James Robinson (a favorite of mine) and Dan Brereton (a favorite of Will's) and a Secret Origins with some truly excellent creators.Batman: Black & White- The Gotham Knights Stories V.1 (Batman: Black & White Vol.2 TPB)Playground (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 114)Original Sins (Secret Origins V.2 Special # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Having multiple heroic identities is not something unique in the Bat family. Pretty much everyone has had more than one except for, well, Bruce Wayne. But Stephanie Brown has had three very distinct identities that all very much signify different things about the character. And as we have covered some of the worst stories about her, we only thought it fair to cover some better ones. So this week, we're reading the first appearance of Spoiler, one of Steph's few run ins with a major villain as Robin, and debut as Batgirl.Inquiring Minds (Detective Comics V.1 # 647-649)... And Red All Over (Detective Comics V.1 # 796)Batgirl Rising: Point of New Origin (Batgirl V.3 # 1-3)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's time to celebrate! Matt's other show, The ComicsXF Interview Podcast, reached episode 300 this week. And so for that celebration, that show's co-host, the first ever BatChat guest, Matt's best friend of over 30 years, ComicsXF editor-in-chief Dan Grote is joining BatChat again. We are talking stories from three creators who have been interviewed on the podcast formerly known and WMQ&A (find out about the name change by listening). Those creators are Kelly Jones (with a side of another BatChat fave, Matt Wagner- https://soundcloud.com/dan-grote-754829938/wmqa-episode-280-dracula-motherfers-with-matt-wagner-kelley-jones), Joe Kelly (https://soundcloud.com/dan-grote-754829938/wmqa-episode-241-joe-kelly-talks-about-his-dad-classic-cars-and-sonics-feet) and Scott Snyder (https://soundcloud.com/dan-grote-754829938/wmqa-episode-125-scott-snyders-eternal-darkness, https://soundcloud.com/dan-grote-754829938/wmqa-episode-200-scott-snyder-helps-us-celebrate)Darkest Night of the Man-Bat (Batman V.1 # 536-538)Who Would Win? (Superman/Batman V.1 # 78)Nowhere Man (Batman V.2 # 19-20)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
This week, one of the defining writers of DC Comics in the 80s and early 90s will turn 75 years old. John Ostrander has a storied career over more than 40 years. He created an indy hit with his creator owned mercenary, Grimjack, and wrote some of the best received Star Wars comics ever. His work at DC includes The Suicide Squad, the Spectre, Martian Manhunter, Hawkworld, Manhunter and The Kents. But if you have that length and breadth of a career, you're going to wind up writing some Batman. So this week, we're reading three Ostrander stories featuring Batman or his rogues. We discuss the value of melodrama in the life of a supervillain. learn some facts about Penguin's favorite fictional character and read one story that probably shouldn't have been included in an episode meant to celebrate a writer, since even the best sometimes miss.And here is the link Kevin Conroy reading the dialogue from a scene in The Dark Knight, as promised: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xIcjQGcgLkDeadshot # 1-4Batman: Penguin TriumphantGrotesk (Batman V.1 # 659-662)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's been a while, but we're back reading the three series/runs that we have been following (mostly) in order. In No Man's Land, both Batman and Jim Gordon make some choices that definitely won't come back to bite them on the butt. In the Morrison run, they investigate ethics in vigilantism and Jason Todd's hair color. And in Injustice, well, things still find a way to get worse.Content warning: This episode was recorded a month ago, and the opening contains a lengthy discussion about problematic creators, a topic that feels especially sensitive after events of the past week, as well as discussions of child endangerment, homophobia, transphobia, and suicide. If you want to skip right to the comics talk, that begins at timestamp 17:50.Mosaic (Batman V.1 # 565/ Detective Comics V.1 # 732)Revenge of the Red Hood (Batman and Robin V.1 # 4-6)Injustice: Year Two Vol. 2 (Injustice: Gods Among Us- Year Two #6-12, Annual # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The law of diminishing returns is often true. It's like that movie with Michael Keaton, Multiplicity (see, already brought it around to Batman!), the more times you tell a story, the more diluted or off it becomes. We have seen this proven wrong a few times: the newest versions of the Monk, the Monster Men, and the first Batman/Joker confrontation are ranked highest. Sadly, the same can not be said for the first meeting of Batman and Superman. We already covered three, and the best was the first, and Patreon backer John Wickham brought three more, and none of them are better. This time as have an early Silver Age story, a New 52 story and latter day Frank Miller. So... yeah...The Origin of the Superman-Batman Team (World's Finest Comics # 94)Cross World (Batman/Superman V.1 # 1-4)Superman: Year One # 3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Josh Weil is back, and he's bringing his favorite character with him. It's time for Batman to team up again with Ollie Queen, Green Arrow. We're reading the classic Haney/Adams story where Ollie grows his signature facial hair, a team up that also includes the Question, and some questionable content involving Poison Ivy.And just to be clear, the proposed episode title of "Flipper Penis" would have lead to some issues on some podcast apps, or otherwise that would be the title.The Senator Has Been Shot! (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 85)Fables (Detective Comics V.1 Annual # 1, Green Arrow V.2 Annual #1 , The Question V.1 Annual # 1)Batman/Green Arrow: The Poison TomorrowCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Comic books are, by their very nature, a blended medium. They are a synthesis of words and pictures, and the best ones exist in a space where the two are speaking the same language. Podcasting is an aural medium, told entirely through words and sounds. That is all to say that it's not always easy to blend the more visual nature of comics with podcasting. And this week, well, we're discussing three single issues with iconic covers. We have a classic 60s cover inspired by the height of Batmania, a Todd McFarlane cover that has been made into statues and ads, and a Simone Bianchi cover that Will remembers from its use as the prototypical Detective Comics cover on Comixology.Batman's Baffling Turnabout (Batman V.1 # 183)You Should Seen Him... (Batman V.1 # 423)Sharkbait (Detective Comics V.1 # 828)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We've read a lot of great comics for this podcast. Tonight? We are not doing that. Tonight we are reading three stories that were on the document of possible episode topics marked as "Three Stories that Matt Remembers Hating." And Matt's taste has apparently has not changed much since he first read these, because this is, far and away, the lowest ranked episode on average of any we have done. See the complete destruction of a beloved Batman cast member, read the story Matt has dubbed "The Bad Lebowski," and see if you can appreciate a book where Batman is an honest to goodness abusive parent to RobinContent warning: Will got so angry a couple times in this episode, there was nothing Matt could do to make his volume within the normal register of the show. Listeners using headphones have been warned.War Crimes (Batman Allies Secret Files 2005, Batman Villains Secret Files 2005, Detective Comics V.1 # 809-810, Batman V.1 # 643-644)Darker Than Death (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 207-211)Robin & Batman # 1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
"Jason Todd was dead. There is no doubt whatever about that." Sorry, now that I have used that expensive English degree to paraphrase Dickens, we can get on with this intro. This week, we're returning to stories featuring Jason Todd, including one of the biggest Batman stories that we haven't covered yet. See Post-Crisis Jason meet Dick Grayson for the first time, wonder what might have been with the release of the version of Batman #428 where Robin Lives! and I hope you're up on everything going on in DC Comics is 2005 and 2006 before you listen to us try to break down Under the Red Hood.White Gold and Truth (Batman V.1 # 416)From the DC Vault: Batman # 428- Robin LivesUnder the Red Hood (Batman V.1 # 635-641, 645-650)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's winter here in the US, and it is cold (well, it should be anyway. Damn climate change). And who is colder than Victor Fries, the villain known as Dr. Freeze. Wait, it's Mr. Freeze? Isn't he at least a Ph.D if not an MD? So Dr. Doom can call himself a doctor with his honorary degree from Latveria U, but Freeze is just a mister? Well, that's something. Anyway, Freeze was a pretty generic cold villain until he was redefined for Batman: The Animated Series. And since then, that particular origin has made tis way into the comics, with different variations. This week, we're reading three different versions of that modern Freeze origin. One comes from Will's favorite, Paul Dini, one is from the New 52 and one is part of DC's recent One Bad Day one-shots.Batman: Mr. FreezeFirst Snow (Batman V.2 Annual #1)Batman: One Bad Day- Mr. FreezeCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Of all of Jack Kirby's creations at DC, the Fourth World is probably the most well known, the most expansive, and the most ill used by other creators over the years. Some really get the wild cosmic and Shakespearean vibe the King of Comics was putting down. Some don't and just try to make the New Gods just any other team of super heroes. And because of the high cosmic of the Fourth World, Batman usually approaches these characters from a different angle; as opposed to Superman, he rarely goes to New Genesis or teams up with Orion. But sometimes, Batman does cross paths with the heroic gods of New Genesis and the dark gods of Apokolips. This week, we're looking at three of those stories. We have a Bob Haney joint from the 70s, Jim Starlin trying his cosmic hand at DC and the next stop on our look at Grant Morrison's DC opusDeath by the Ounce (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 128)Cosmic Odyssey # 1-4Final Crisis (DC Universe # 0, Final Crisis # 1-7, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond # 1-2, Final Crisis Submit, Batman V.1 # 682-683)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's Valentine's Day week, and I may or may not have forgotten about that when I was scheduling episodes this year. Fortunately, ComicsXF writer and friend of the show Tony Thornley picked some stories that work pretty well for Valentine's Day. You see, these are all about love: brotherly love, romantic love, and the love between best friends. We're reading three stories of Dick Grayson and the people closest to him: Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon, and Wally West.The Boys (Nightwing V.2 # 25)On Wings (Bords of Prey V.1 # 8)Doorway to Nightmare (Flash Plus # 1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are those creators you just come back to, whose work never ceases to amaze. Darwyn Cooke is one of those creators. Passing on too young, Cooke still left an impressive body of work, a lot of which was Batman or Batman adjacent. We're returning to his work this week with two intertwined tales of Catwoman and a one shot that follows up on New Frontier that proves even the best creator does miss every now and then.Trail of the Catwoman (Detective Comics V.1 # 759-762 back-ups)Catwoman: Selina's Big Score OGNJustice League: The New Frontier SpecialCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
At 120 episodes, we've covered a lot of Batman comics. A lot. But I think few have been more contentious, both in the fandom and on this podcast, as the ones this week. Because this week we're talking about the Tom King run, the creator with possibly the biggest gaps in his work on The Big Board, and specifically the stories around the not-wedding of Batman and Catwoman. We see the proposal, with Tom King's formalist tricks, some one-shots not by King that really don't do much, and the issues leading up to the wedding, which contain some of the heights, and the nadir, of King's run. All while joined by return guest, and Will's better half, Abigale Heartbalm.Every Epilogue is a Prelude (Batman V.3 # 24)Batman: Prelude to the Wedding # 1-5The Wedding (Batman V.3 # 44-50, DC Nation # 0)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Ah, my sweet summer children, let me tell you of a time called the early 90s. It was a time of hope. It was a time of questionable fashion. And it was a time when there were only three monthly Batman family titles, and one of them very rarely interacted with the others. This week, we're going back to those times long ago and reading three small inter-Bat title crossovers. We see Harold join the cast of the Bat titles while Penguin pines for a soap star and does his best Hitchcock impression, Batman trips balls to stop a brain stealing psychic entity, and the first crossover that had all three Bat titles and brought the architecture of Batman '89 to the comicsThe Penguin Affair (Batman V.1 # 448-449, Detective Comics V.1 # 615)The Idiot Root (Batman V.1 # 472-473, Detective Comics V.1 # 639-640)Destroyer (Batman V.1 # 474, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 27, Detective Comics V.1 # 641)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Will is so very tried. Three weeks in a row of big superhero stories. Not a single mobster or Year One era, bare bones Batman story to be found. Because this week, Dick Grayson tier Patreon backer Josh Weil is back, and we're talking Batman getting super powers! We get a Freaky Friday with the Justice League, a messy alien invasion and a Geoff Johns joint that doesn't know what it wants to be.JLA: Foreign Bodies The Enemies Among Us (Superman/Batman V.1 # 28-33) The Amazo Virus (Justice League V.2 # 35-39)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Last week, we talked about the Justice League International. This week, Dick Grayson Tier Patreon backer John Wickham joins us to talk about the other late 80s DC team that spun out of the Legends event, the Suicide Squad. And while the Justice League was mostly comedy, the Squad is not. We read three very different versions of the Squad in a story where Amanda Waller shows her metal, the New 52 origin of Harley Quinn and a Rebirth event where the Suicide Squad faces a Justice League that has moved past the Bwah-Ha-Ha era.Up Against the Wall (Suicide Squad V.1 # 10)The Hunt for Harley Quinn (Suicide Squad V.4 # 6-7)Justice League Vs. Suicide Squad # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Justice League International era of the mid-to-late 80s was a sea change for the Justice League franchise. While there were still superheroics, the book became grounded in character based humor; the series was basically a workplace sitcom. And early in the run, Batman was a regular member, basically the grouchy boss who couldn't put up with all these shenanigans. And if you've listened to this show, you know that Will loves nothing more than shenanigans and humor in his Batman comics, right? Right? Ok, this one is going to be something...Massacre In Gray (Justice League V.1 #5-6)Hit Or Miss! (Justice League International Annual #2)Bruce Wayne in Bialya (Justice League International V.1 #16-17) Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's the New Year, and so here at BatChat we like to look at different versions of Batman at this time, so we're going back into Elseworlds territory. But this year, it's a very specific type of Elseworld: the historical Elseworld, ones transplanting DC heroes and concepts into bygone days. And specifically we're looking at three stories from the early 20th century: Batman as a Robin Hood-esque thief in the 1910s, Batman doing all sorts of bizarre stuff in the mid-30s (He goes to a party with Hitler, for &%*#$ sake) and a film star playing Batman who maybe gets a little into his role. Happy New Year, everybody!Batman: The Golden Streets of GothamBatman: Dark AllegiancesBatman: Hollywood Knight #1-3Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Merry Bats-Mas to one and all! We're getting near Christmas, and so it's time to go back to the holiday stories in Gotham well (and if you think we might run out any time soon, have no fears, we've got stories for years). This year, we're reading the first Batman Christmas story, which features some weird not-really tie ins to A Christmas Carol, an animated universe Batman story by Paul Dini, so you know Will has feelings, and a truly mixed bag Batman annual from the dawn of the Rebirth era.Christmas (Batman V.1 # 9)A Christmas Riddle (Batman & Robin Adventures # 3)Batman V.3 Annual # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I was going to start this with the Court of Owls nursery rhyme, but I believe I did that when we actually covered the original Snyder Court of Owls story, so instead you're just going to get my usual ramble. This week, Patreon backer Matt McThorn has a request, and it's stories of the Court of Owls and the sensational character find of 2012, Calvin Rose, the Talon turned hero. Who's that, you may ask if you weren't reading Batman related comics in 2012 and 2013? Well, listen here and find out. We also look at a one off that goes into some of the history of the Court and read their introduction to the DC Animated Universe.Exquisite Dread (Batman and Robin V.2 # 23.2)Scourge of Owls (Talon # 0-7)Court Fight (Batman: The Adventures Continue-Season Two # 1-2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Originally introduced in the 1950s, Batwoman has gone from a forgotten character to one who is a queer icon and headlined her own TV series. Kate and Kathy Kane are very distinct characters, and this week, we'll be reading stories featuring them both, thanks to a request from Sam Hopper. We see Kathy meet Bat-Mite, Kate's first solo outing and James Tynion IV's run on Detective Comics begin in a story that not just features Kate but Tim Drake, so we all know Matt has feelings about that one. Batwoman's Publicity Agent (Batman V.1 # 133)Elegy (Detective Comics V.1 # 854-857)Rise of the Batmen (Detective Comics V.3 # 934-940)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The beauty of a Patreon request is you never know what you're going to get. And bless Dan Grote, co-host of WMQ&A and BatChat's first patron and guest, for coming at us with a request nobody expected. This week, we're reading three stories featuring Joe Potato, a Gotham PI who we read one story with a while back, and now we're covering all three of his other appearances. We have a story that does a Reefer Madness but with Ecstasy, Anarky makes Will really mad and a Pulp Heroes annual that totally gets the assignment. All of these served up hard boiled, even though mashed would have been more appropriate.Ecstasy (Detective Comics V.1 # 594)Anarky: Prophet of Doom (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 40-41)I Was the Love Slave of a Plant Based Killer (Batman: Shadow of the Bat Annual # 5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! As is our custom here at BatChat (and this is the third time we've done it, so that qualifies as a custom now), the Thanksgiving episode features three all ages Batman stories, and as I have pointed out in the past, for a character who is so often associated with grim stories, there are a lot of all ages Batman stories. This year, we're digging into the first volume of Webtoons Wayne Family Adventures, reading an all ages comic Matt hadn't read before featuring Bat-Mite and a Brave and the Bold tie-in that may not have aged as well as one would hope. We here at BatChat are thankful for all of you, and we hope you're having a great holiday.Wayne Family Adventures V.1 (Wayne Family Adventures # 1-25)Imp-Possible (DC Super-Friends # 11)President Batman (Batman: The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 3)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're comics fans, so we all love a crossover, right? So why shouldn't that expand to our podcasts? It's ComicsXF podcast crossover week, so Matt is joined by Battle of the Atom host Adam Reck to talk about three Batman stories from creators whose work are favorites on BotA. John Francis Moore moves out of 2099 to Gotham in the 90s, Chris Bachalo draws a atman story released the same month as the first issue of Generation X and we read the first issue of Larry Hama's short and much maligned run on Batman. It's a fun time, and Will may or may not pop by for ranking.Also, I am sorry to say that Matt's audio on the Adam sections came through the wrong mic, so it's a little rough. Not impossible, just rough. I send my regrets to your ears.Hothouse (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 42-43)Terminus (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 64)O'er the Land of the Free (Batman V.1 # 575)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
While a lot of Batman's best known rogues date back to his earliest days, the 80s spawned a handful of memorable nemeses, and none moreso than Scarface, the evil dummy, and his henchman, the Ventriloquist. This week, we're reading three stories featuring Scarface, including his first appearance, his origin and the first appearance of his second handler, Sugar.Fever (Detective Comics V.1 # 583-584)The Secret Origin of Scarface (Showcase '94 # 8-9)Double Talk (Detective Comics V.1 # 827)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Spooky season is over, and so now it's time for some wholesome fun! We covered three of the six mini-series where Batman '66 teams up with other properties a ways back, and now we're returning to cover the other three. We have Kevin Smith writing about the team-up of Batman and the Green Hornet is possibly the most all agers thing he has ever written, references done right and art not so much when Batman meets the Avengers (no, not those ones) and the Dynamic Duo and Batgirl heading to Riverdale!Batman '66 Meets the Green Hornet # 1-6Batman '66 Meets Steed and Mrs. Peel # 1-6Archie Meets Batman '66 # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's spooky time, and so this week we're covering three stories where Batman teams up with his most diabolical frenemy, the Demon Etrigan. There's lots of rhyming, most of it not very good. Be grateful I didn't try to do it for this introduction. These three stories include some charming Bob Haney nonsense, Joker deciding that sorcery and alchemy are the best hobbies and Etrigan in the world of tomorrow!Hour of the Serpent (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 137)Major Arcana (Batman V.1 # 544-546)And Flights of Demons Sing Thee to They Rest (Batman Beyond V.2 # 14)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Over his 85+ years, Batman has been a member of lots of different teams. This week, fellow ComicsXF writer Austin Gorton stops by to talk about three different teams Batman has been a member of. We fill in another gap in Will's knowledge of the roots of the Morrison run, Snapper Carr is kind of the worst and once again Mike W. Barr shows his version of Batman has a bit more of a flexible version of The One Rule.The Batmen of All Nations (Detective Comics V.1 #215)Snapper Carr- The Super Traitor! (Justice League of America V.1 #77)Enter: The Outsiders! (Batman and the Outsiders V.1 #1-2)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Everyone knows that Batman is also billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne. But what most people outside of Batman comics fans don't know is that Batman has another alter ego: two-bit mobster Matches Malone, an identity Batman uses to infiltrate the mob. This week, we're reading three stories where Batman uses the Matches identity: an arc that brings a character in from the Animated Series universe to the main DC Comics canon, a three issue story where one of comics' most celebrated modern writers takes on Batman, and a story set in the animated series universe that leaves a dangling plot thread we wish had been picked up.Lock-Up (Detective Comics V.1 # 697-699)Close Before Striking (Batman V.1 # 588-590)Playing With Matches (Batman Adventures V.2 # 5-8)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Big Two superhero comics are an iterative process. What was conceived in the 1930s and 40s has evolved and changed over the intervening three quarters of a century. Usually? That's for the better. Characters get deeper and develop more of an internal life. Plots become more mature. Art becomes more realistic, or more stylized. And then there are the origins of the three Robins during DC's New 52. Dick Grayson becomes part Tim Drake, Jason Todd becomes a mess, and Tim Drake becomes an ungrateful ass. It was not a good time, and Matt and Will find a way to at least have a good time talking about them.Perpetual Motion (Nightwing V.3 # 0)Everyone Has to Start Somewhere (Red Hood and the Outlaws V.1 # 0)Red Robin (Teen Titans V.4 # 0)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman is a creature of shadow who usually eschews the light. But even the Dark Knight can be touched by that darkest of human endeavors that lives in the brightest of spotlights: politics. Dick Grayson Tier Patreon backer John Wickham joins us to talk about a very of its moment story of Catwoman getting involved with Gotham's mayoral race, Bruce Wayne going to Washington to try to stop the No Man's Land (tl;dr: he fails) and a race for mayor in the animated series universe Catwoman Election Night Special # 1Mr. Wayne Goes to Washington (Batman V.1 # 560-562)Mayor Mayhem (Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 2 # 5-7)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
James Robinson might be best known for writing the 90s classic, Starman, but he's written a bunch of Batman too. And this week, Josh Weil stops by to talk about three of Robinson's stories. We have a Pulp Heroes annual, and two tales of Two-Face. There are some unfortunate sexy corpses, questionable editing and the question of when a story really deserves a sequel. Pardon the sound on the back half here; there were some technical difficulties and I cleaned them up as best I couldI Am a Gun (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Annual #7)Face the Face (Batman V.1 #651-654, Detective Comics V.1 #817-820)Deface the Face (Detective Comics V.3 #988-993)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I kind of can't believe we made it this far, but here it is: episode 100! And for that, we're hitting one of the last legendary Batman stories we haven't touched, and one we've slowly been building towards for many of these 100 episodes, the culmination of the first act of Grant Morrison's epic run: Batman R.I.P. We're also including a couple Golden and Silver Age stories that inspired the story. Plus, listener questions! This is the longest episode of BatChat ever, so strap in for a wild ride.Batman, The Superman of Planet X (Batman V.1 #113)Robin Dies at Dawn (Batman V.1 #156)Batman R.I.P. (DC Universe #0, Batman V.1 #676-681)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We've done episodes before that look at three versions of one story. But of there's one story that has seemingly been retold more than any other, it's the first Batman story, "The Case of the Chemical Syndicate." This week, we're reading four versions of that story over three issues, plus some other stories in an anthology. It's a wild ride, featuring hippies, supervillains and some really lazy editing.The Cry of Night Is-- Sudden Death (Detective Comics V.1 # 387)The Cases of the Chemical Syndicate (Detective Comics V.1 # 627)Detective Comics V.2 # 27Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Joker is Batman's most dedicated foe. Ra's al Ghul is the deadliest. The Penny Plunderer is the most ridiculous (that's up for debate, but he's my pick). But no criminal is more integral to the Batman mythos than Joe Chill, the man who killed the Waynes (except in Batman '89, but the point still stands). This week, we're closing out the unofficial early years trilogy with Batman: Year Two, as well as two other stories about Batman meeting the man who killed the Waynes.
Batman: Year Two (Detective Comics V.1 # 575-578) The Origin of Batman (Batman V.1 # 47) Fear Itself (Batman Adventures V.2 # 17)
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BatChat religion correspondent Robert "Bobby TwoBucks" Secundus is back this week, and he's brining with him Jean-Paul Valley, the vigilante and sometimes fanatic known as Azrael. We chart the journey of Azrael from the beginning of his ongoing to his most recent mini-series, with a stop off in an alternate world that is... something. We have one of the widest gulfs in the show's history, with a top fifty book and one that is very much not. Watch as we return to the Murphyverse, see Denny O'Neil start Azrael on his path to redemption, and see Dan Watters pay that off thirty years later.
Batman: Curse of the White Knight # 1-8 Fallen Angel (Azrael V.1 # 1-7) Sword of Azrael (2022) # 1-6
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While Gotham City is an integral part of the Batman mythos, Batman is an international hero, and there are plenty of stories that take Batman out of the grim confines of his home city and out into a wider world. This week, we read three such stories: one a tour of the great cities of Europe with the Joker by Batman's side, one a tale of Batman's visit to his ancestral lands of Scotland, and a Bronze Age tale that stretches across much of the world and shows just how much a character can change from his first appearance to a slightly later one and how much he can turn back later.
Batman: Europa # 1-4 Batman: The Scottish Connection The Lazarus Affair (Batman V.1 # 332-335)
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Commissioner James Gordon has existed literally as long as Batman has, having appeared in Detective Comics #27, the first appearance of Batman. Over the years, he has changed and evolved as many comic characters have. Originally mostly a deskbound civil servant who was just here to turn on the Bat Signal, Gordon has become an important part of Gotham's police, leading from the front as the incorruptible beacon of law and order. This week, we're reading stories featuring Jim Gordon, including one detailing the tragedy of his son, and animated series style tale where Gordon tries to save an undercover officer, and a Golden Age tale that helped inspire Grant Morrison's epic run
The Black Mirror (Detective Comics Vol.1 # 871-881) Badge of Honor (Batman Adventures V.1 # 15) Commissioner Gordon Walks a Beat (Detective Comics Vol.1 # 121)
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Welcome to the first episode of our new Oppenheimer podcast. This first episode investigates how director Christopher Nolan's film deals with the Trinity Nuclear Test.
What?
It's still a Batman podcast?
It's about Batman meeting Superman and Wonder Woman, the other members of DC's trinity?
OK, I guess that's cool too.
World's Finest (World's Finest Vol.2 # 1-3) Gods of Gotham (Wonder Woman V.2 # 164-167) Trinity (Batman/Superman/ Wonder Woman: Trinity # 1-3)
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It's taken three episodes, but we've finally covered every story in the original Batman # 1. That means this week, we're covering the first appearance of Catwoman, and so we're also covering a couple other Catwoman stories, one a story that's place in continuity is weird even by DC Comics standards, and one that started off so promisingly, before it became a big sprawling mess later in its run.
The Cat (Batman V.1 # 1) Catch as Catscan (Detective Comics V.1 # 569-570) Rooftops (Batman V.3 # 14-15)
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There are plenty of superheroes you could talk about where the issues of copaganda in 2023 don't come up. I'm sure there are. But Batman isn't one of them. We've had episodes talking about Jim Gordon and the main detectives of the GCPD before and had to look at those questions, and this week, we're back again. Only this time one of the stories is asking them along with us.
Officer Down (Batman V.1 # 587, Robin V.2 # 86, Batgirl V.1 # 12, Birds of Prey V.1 # 27, Catwoman V.2 # 90, Nightwing V.2 # 53, Detective Comics V.1 # 754, Batman: Gotham Knights # 15) Motive (Gotham Central # 3-5) The Blue Wall (GCPD: The Blue Wall # 1-6)
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I was going to do some parody of that God awful Nicole Kidman commercial that airs in front of every movie at AMC Theatres (why are you advertising the movie chain to people already in their seats?!?!?!?), but you're listening to this episode, so I love you and wouldn't subject you to that. This week, we're looking at three comic book stories that tie into Batman media outside comics: the Burton Batman universe, the animated series through a sequel to Mask of the Phantasm and a prequel comic to the Audio Adventures podcast.
Shadows (Batman '89 # 1-6) Shadow of the Phantasm (Batman & Robin Adventures Annual # 1) Batman: The Audio Adventures Special # 1
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We're back to the three series we've been covering arc by arc. This time, Will actually likes a Grant Morrison story in his run on Batman! The Penguin has a rough day in No Man's Land! And a reasonable number of artists draw an arc of Injustice! It's a miracle all around! Well, except for Penguin. That guy kinda sucks and gets what's coming to him.
Batman Dies at Dawn (Batman V.1 # 672-675) Bread and Circuses (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 117, Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 85) Injustice: God's Among Us Year 2 Vol.1 (Injustice God's Among Us Year 2 # 1-6)
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The Mad Hatter is one of Batman's oddest major foes. While all of the rogues who have existed since the Golden Age have gone through various permutations, few are as wildly different. Sometimes he is obsessed with hats. Sometimes he is a mind control scientist. Sometimes he is obsessed with Alice In Wonderland and has a creepy obsession with young girls he deems his Alices (super creepy). And we have read very little featuring the character for this show. So, our buddy Josh Weil is back to remedy that. Find out what other classic character debuted in the same story as the Hatter, read some great Greg Rucka and hear Will get apoplectic about a book that competes for the bottom spot on the Big Board.
The Scoop of the Century! (Batman V.1 # 49) Unknowing (Detective Comics V.1 # 758-760) Mad (Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 # 16-21)
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He has been many thing to Batman over their time together. Butler. Healer. Confessor. But above all else? Father. Alfred Pennyworth has been a part of the Batman legend since the 1940s, but with the advent of Crisis on Infinite Earths, and the change making Alfred a part of Bruce's life from his earliest memory, Alfred has become an indispensable ally to Batman. This week, as we get near Father's Day, we spend time reading three stories about Batman's father figure.
Captive Audience (Batman: Gotham Adventures #16) Oblation (Batman: Gotham Knights #7) Father's Day (Batman Vol. 3 Annual #3)
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They stalk the night. When they have your name, you are as good as dead, so pray that you never draw their attention. They are the League of Assassins. Whether they serve Ra's al Ghul, his daughter Talia, the Sensei or any other master, the League has been a thorn in the side of Batman for decades. This week we read a team-up between Batman and Deadman as they face the League, a civil war between two of its leaders and the return of on one of the Dark Knight's greatest foes to the land of the living.
You Can't Hide From a Deadman (The Brave and the Bold # 86) The War of the Assassins (Detective Comics V.1 # 485, 489-490) The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul (Batman V.1 # 670-671 & Annual # 26, Robin V.2 # 168-169 & Annual # 7 [Back-Up], Nightwing V.2 # 138-139, Detective Comics V.1 # 838-840)
Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The beauty of DC's Elseworlds concept, rather than a more traditional What If? or imaginary story, is the variety it opened up. This wasn't a simple small recasting of one event, butterfly effect style, but creators imaginations could go wild and choose different times, places, and even twist the most basic concepts of the character that was starring in the book. And sometimes those stories got a bit... spooky. This week, we're reading three Elseworlds inspired by classic horror. See Batman fight the Elder Gods, create life, and confront the Masque of the... Purple Death?Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham #1-3Batman: Castle of the BatBatman: MasqueCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Of all superheroes, Batman seems to have spawned more characters that are dark reflections of him than any other. Sure, Superman has Bizarro, and Spider-Man has Venom, but Batman has a legion of the them: Killer Moth, Bane, Hush, Owlman (the Lincoln March one), Wrath, Prometheus. There are enough to fill multiple episodes, so we have to start somewhere. This week, it's the two most directly anti-Batman dark mirrors from DC comics, but an intercompany crossover with the character who might just be the ultimate dark mirror of Batman.Batman/Grendel (Batman/Grendel: Devil's Riddle, Batman/Grendel: Devil's Masque)... The Player on the Other Side (Batman Special # 1)Prometheus (New Year's Evil: Prometheus, JLA # 16-17)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
While there are plenty of stories with Bruce Wayne in them, how many are really about Bruce Wayne? Not Batman, the Dark Knight, but captain of industry, philanthropist and playboy Bruce Wayne? At least three, as this week we look at the story of Bruce's problematic return to health after Knightfall, a 150 year old corpse at Wayne Manor, and a day in the life of Bruce WayneKnightquest: The Search (Justice League Task Force # 5-6, Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 21-23, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 59-61)Wayne Manor: Anatomy of a Murder (Batman: Shadow of the Bat #45)24/7 (Batman: Gotham Knights #32)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman's allies are known for many things. Their brains. Their fighting skills. Their dedication. And while Dr. Leslie Thompkins, the woman who comforted Bruce Wayne the night his parents were killed is lacking in the second of those three attributes, she more than makes up for it in the first and third. Leslie is a strict pacifist in a world that runs on tights and fights, and so provides a point of view that we rarely see. This episode we talk about Leslie's first appearance, a story that might fill the timeline between Year One and Dark Knight and why calling out your usage of racist stereotypes doesn't make using them any better.There Is No Hope in Crime Alley (Detective Comics V.1 # 457)Faith (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 21-23)The Surrogate (Detective Comics V.1 # 791-793)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Wouldn't it be great to go to school in Gotham City? Well, it probably wouldn't be scarier than anywhere else. This week, Mrs. Abigale Heartbalm, Esq. stops by, and we talk Gotham Academy and two other school centric Batman related stories. We talk about how Gotham Academy successfully brings manga tropes to Gotham, question how far an AU story can diverge from canon before it breaks established readers' view of the world, and what exactly a MacGuffin is.Welcome to Gotham Academy (Gotham Academy # 1-6)Bruce Wayne: Not Super OGNTree of Knowledge (Batman Adventures V.1 # 26)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Every time Will has complained about how much he hates Hush, Matt or someone else said, "Well, read 'Heart of Hush.' That might change how you feel." And this week he did. And, well, it was the best story of the week, and the best story centered around Hush as the primary antagonist (since the original "Hush" story is a Riddler story in the end). We discuss why Hush doesn't seem to work, more of Paul Dini's psychology, and the one good page in the third story we wish was the entire comic.Pushback (Batman: Gotham Knights # 50-55)Heart of Hush (Detective Comics V.1 # 846-850)Tales from the Dark Multiverse: Batman- HushCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
From her first appearance, Barbara Gordon was a dynamic and exciting addition to the Batman family. Brilliant, tough and strong willed, Barbara has faced more adversity than most superheroes, dealing with trauma and coming out stronger for it. This episode, we read three stories that trace her evolution from the dominoed dare doll, Batgirl, to the seer of heroes, Oracle.The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl (Detective Comics V.1 # 359)The Last Batgirl Story (Batgirl Special # 1)Oracle: Year One- Born of Hope (Batman Chronicles # 5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
The Gotham City Police Department, or GCPD for short, has been part of Batman's world since his first appearance, which also happened to be the first appearance of Commissioner James Gordon. And while the members of the GCPD focused on in the comics have shifted over the years, the presence of it has been a constant, although Batman's good standing has been anything but. This week, we're reading three stories that focus on the three most important members of Gotham's police force: Renee Montoya, Harvey Bullock, and Jim Gordon. We also wrestle with the question of how, in 2023, you can read these stories and reckon with the questions of copaganda and police protagonists. But don't worry, there's your usual quotient of funny voices, off color humor, and SHARK WATCH!Half a Life (Gotham Central # 6-10)A Bullet for Bullock (Detective Comics V.1 # 651)Loyalties (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 159-161)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
There are many great supporting characters in the Batman mythos. Alfred. The myriad Robins and Batgirls. Jim Gordon. Leslie Thompkins. And then, there is Bat-Mite, the 5th Dimensional imp who claims to be Batman's biggest fan. And he is, in the same way that Annie Wilkes is to Paul Sheldon (that's a Misery reference for those who don't know their Stephen King). Dan Grote wanted us to talk about Bat-Mite, so here we go, three very different stories about a magical floating imp in a Batman costume.Legends of the Dark-Mite/Mitefall (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 38/Batman: Mitefall)Bat-Mite's New York Adventure (Detective Comics V.1 # 482)Crisis of Infinite Scoobys! (Scooby-Doo Team-Up # 50 [Digital Chapters 99-100])Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Linewide crossovers are a big part of comics, and Batman has often been a big part of these kind of events. But our buddy Josh Weil comes back on the show to talk about three crossovers form the 90s where Batman doesn't play a big part. So we talk about Batman, sure, but also about Hal Jordan, Blue Devil, Trickster, and the Legion of Super-Heroes. Will gets introduced to all sorts of madness, and Matt relives his younger days, and thus turns slightly more into dustZero Hour: A Crisis in Time (Zero Hour #4-0, Batman V.1 #511)Underworld Unleashed (Underworld Unleashed #1-3, Underworld Unleashed: Devil's Asylum #1, Underworld Unleashed: Patterns of Fear #1)Final Night (Final Night #1-4, Parallax: Emerald Night #1)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
I have been having a hard time saying that this month marks the 40th anniversary of the first appearance of Jason Todd. It just doesn't seem like to could be that long ago, but it absolutely is. And so, to celebrate the anniversary of the angriest Robin (well, Damian does give him some competition), we're looking at three stories from Jason's long history, from his first appearance to his return from the dead.CW: Sexual assault; self harm; suicideEnter Jason Todd & Killer Croc (Batman V.1 #357-359/Detective Comics V.1 #524-526)Consequences (Batman V.1 #424-425)Daedalus & Icarus: The Return of Jason Todd (Batman V.1 Annual #25)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's over! We have made it through the entirety of our giant sized, three part 75th episode, which means we have reached the end of the 52 issues of Batman Eternal. We discuss the ending, which Will admits to misremembering, how the preview issue of Batman fit in, and how the series worked as a whole.Batman Eternal # 35-52, Batman V.2 #28Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
We're back with the second part pf our 75th episode and the second chapter of Batman Eternal. And this one is... not as exciting. There's a whole lot of Hush this time. Like, a whole lot. Plus the supernatural stuff takes over a lot, and most of the cool crime stuff is forgotten. As is pretty much everything else. So if you're a big fan of Hush, you might enjoy this. Or probably not, since neither Matt or Will are.Batman Eternal # 22-34Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
So, Will has been asking for it since about episode 3, and this week, it begins. For our 75th episode, we are covering the year long, weekly series Batman Eternal. But because it's so long, this isn't a normal episode. The series was collected in three trades, so we're covering it as three stories in a three part episode, mostly so the Big Board remains evenly divisible by 3. This week, Jim Gordon has a bad day, the Roman returns and Penguin wears his Batman Returns onesie to murder a bunch of dudes. Plus, more plotlines than you can shake a Batarang at.Batman Eternal # 1-21Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
So, because of a combination of vacations and heavy workload, editing a proper BatChat did not happen this week. Instead, we're taking an episode of our Patreon exclusive content from behind the pay wall. Tune in to hear a tribute to the man who defined Batman for a generation: Kevin Conroy. And if you like it, follow that Patreon link at the bottom of this post to get plenty of more of this even crazier than our normal episodes show.Batman: The Animated Series- Perchance to DreamThe Batman- A Matter of FamilyBatman: The Brave and the Bold- Chill of the NightJustice League Unlimited- EpilogueJustice League Action Shorts- Good Cop, Bat CopCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Hey look, it's Valentine's week! And since Grant Morrison once called Batman a, "hairy chested love god," who are we to argue? That means it's time for three tales of the Dark Knight and romance!Strange Apparitions (Detective Comics V.1 # 471-476)The Return of Scarface (Batman V.1 # 475-476, Detective Comics V.1 # 642)Perchance... (JLA # 90)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Hugo Strange is one of Batman's first recurring nemeses. And when Strange appears, he often brings with him his Monster Men, evil science experiments that Strange uses for his twisted plans. This week, in another thrice told tale, we see three versions of Batman confronting Strange and his creatures. The Giants of Hugo Strange (Batman V.1 #1)Batman and the Monster Men (Batman and the Monster Men #1-6)Night of the Monster Men (Batman V.3 #7-8, Nightwing V.4 #5-6, Detective Comics V.3 #941-942)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Of the many writers who have written tales of the Dark Knight over the past 15 years, few if any have left their mark as much as Scott Snyder. Creator of the Court of Owls, with an impressive 52 issue run on Batman proper, not counting many other series and mini-series, Snyder explores the fears of modern society, and specifically his own, in his writing. This week, it's time to read three stories written or plotted by Snyder, and see how fear and history tie into the heart of Gotham and BatmanThe Court of Owls (Batman V.2 #1-11)Batman: The Gates of Gotham #1-5My Own Worst Enemy (All-Star Batman #1-5)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
A sinister laugh over the airwaves. A threat. And death with a rictus grin. Those are aspects that each version of Batman's first encounter with his greatest foe, the Joker, have in common. But as with many tales from the Golden Age of comics, this is a story that he been told and retold numerous times. This week, we look at three versions of that story, where the Dark Knight first crosses swords with the Clown Prince of CrimeThe Joker/ The Joker Returns (Batman V.1 # 1) Images (Batman: Legend of the Dark Knight # 50) Batman: The Man Who LaughsCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Batman, as I think this show has proven, is a character who exists, and works, in an infinite number of permutations. And of all of those, one of the most famous is that of the campy Batman '66. But does that Batman work with other characters from other franchises, or is his bright world a little too bright and weird for that. It's the question asked and answered in this week's episode, where we look at three crossovers between Batman '66 and characters from other series, TV and comic alikeBatman '66 Meets Wonder Woman '77 #1-6Batman '66 Meets the Man From U.N.C.L.E. #1-6Batman '66 Meets the Legion of Super-Heroes #1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
So, this is, to quote Will, by far our stupidest episode ever. But it's episode 69, so Will wanted to go wild with it, and Matt really didn't want to find a new co-host, so he agreed to this. It's three Batman stories with panels that have spawned internet memes. Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles # 1-6The Joker's Comedy of Errors (Batman V.1 # 66)The Clash of Cape and Cowl (World's Finest Comics # 153)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
One of the earliest foes that Batman ever faced was the vampire known as The Monk who, at the end of his first storyline, Batman killed. With a gun. It was the Golden Age. But death has never kept a comic book character down, and with alternate Earths and reboot, The Monk has returned in very different forms multiple times. Patreon backer Tim Rooney asked us to cover the Bronze Age Monk story, and so we tossed in the original Monk story and another Monk appearance to make this vampirific episode.Batman Vs. the Vampire (Detective Comics V.1 # 31-32)Nightmare In Crimson (Batman V.1 # 349-351, Detective Comics V.1 # 517)Batman Vs. The Mad Monk # 1-6Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's time to say goodbye to the old year and ring in the new one with three new takes on Batman in this year's Elseworlds episode! Now granted, one of these Batmans is pretty familiar and one is an old Batman, but one is certainly very different. And hey, it's tradition, so there we go. Happy new year to one and all, and we look forward to another year of chatting Bat.Kingdom Come # 1-4Batman/Dark Joker: The Wild OGNBatman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
OK, so if you've listened to this podcast, you know that your intrepid hosts love a good tangent. This week, well, the tangents take over for a while. You get your standard moments of Star Trek (what are the actually good episodes of TOS), but you also get ten minutes on the oeuvre of a band it turns out both Matt & Will love and they didn't realize it until recording: The Barenaked Ladies. Oh, and there are three Batman Christmas stories that get discussed too. But we know you're here for the Star Trek and 90s Canadian rock band talkBatman Adventures Holiday Special # 1The Search for Santa Claus (Batman V.1 # 33)Batman: Noel OGNCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Damian Wayne remains a character who is controversial around these parts; Will can't stand him, and Matt, well, he's the kid who beat up Tim Drake, so there remains some beef there. But there are all sorts of stories of Damian, and many of them are stories of Damian in possible futures or alternate worlds, and this week we're diving into three of them. This one goes out to our youngest fan, Alexander; one of these stories is his favorite, so this is an an early Christmas presentBatman in Bethlehem (Batman V.1 # 666)DCeased: Hope At World's End # 1-15The Kingdom: Son of the Bat # 1Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Fellow ComicsXF writer Tony Thornley joins us this week just in time for the new Batman/Spawn crossover to talk about other times that Batman has met characters from across the comic book omniverse. Batman meets alien hunters, an arachnid themed hero and the hellspawn he'll be meeting again. Intercompany crossovers are a weird and wild beast, and these stories are no different.Batman Vs. Predator (Batman Vs. Predator V.1 # 1-3)Spider-Man/BatmanSpawn/BatmanCheck out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Welcome to teen hero comics of the 90s. It's a very very mixed bag. For all the charm that some have, some... don't. Friend of the show and Patreon backer Josh Weil really wanted to talk about Impulse #50, so we found some other stories of teen heroes in the 90s and Batman, specifically the teen heroes of Young Justice. This gave Will his first non-Star Trek exposure to two time GLAAD award winning writer Peter Allen David and another go around with Joe Kelly. And he was not too happy about it. But a good time was had by all in the talking, and that's what really countsYoung Justice: Origins (Young Justice V.1 # 1-6)First Fool's (Impulse # 50)Silent, But Deadly (Superboy V.4 # 85)Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logoFollow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's Thanksgiving, and we here at BatChat are the giving types. So we want to give you something you can share with your whole family to drown out the talk of politics and sportsball of various sorts this American turkey day. So we are once again digging into all ages Batman stories. This episode we see team ups with Superman, Scooby-Doo and (kinda sorta) Encyclopedia Brown!
Batman's Mystery Casebook OGN Super Friends (Batman Adventures V.1 # 25) Who's Scared? (Scooby-Doo Team-Up # 2 [Digital Chapters 3-4])
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He's muddy. He's powerful. He's... a lot of different people, actually. Because there have been many villains named Clayface, and this episode we look at three stories featuring different permutations of that particular rogue. Also, a brief tribute to the mate, great Kevin Conroy.
The Mud Pack (Detective Comics V.1 # 604-607) The Great Joker/Clayface Feud (Batman V.1 # 159) Larceny, My Sweet (Batman Adventures V.1 # 8)
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Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
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It's another Patreon request, as Abigale Heartbalm returns. She wanted to talk about the original Venom story, and after we realized she meant the Legends of the Dark Knight arc about the super steroid and not a DC/Marvel crossover we didn't remember, it was decided that this week's theme would be Batman and drugs.
Venom (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #16-20) Leaves of Grass (Batman: Shadow of the Bat #56-58) Flying Hi (Detective Comics V.1 #561)
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So, this week, it's Matt's birthday recording, and as opposed to Will, who picked stuff based on gut instinct (and who must have had a stomach ache based on what we got), Matt went with three stories from his younger years that he remembers really liking. The results are considerably better. We get some Grant and Breyfogle, John Ostrander writing a comic within a comic, and rare Brian Stelfreeze interiors.
The Nobody (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 13) Dark Genesis (Detective Comics V.1 # 622-624) Fool's Errand (Detective Comics V.1 # 726)
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Batman and Halloween: two great tastes that taste great together. This week, we're going back to a creative team that we have read a lot of work by, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, for their first collaborations on Batman, and the last we have to cover, the Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials. They're spooky and gorgeous, but can they top the previous stories by these creators who made such a stamp on the history of Batman?
Choices/Fear (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special # 1) Madness (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special # 2) Ghosts (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special # 3)
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We recorded this episode mere days before the Will's birthday, and so it was up to Will to pick the stories. So he satisfied his curiosity about the story where Scarecrow kills his dean, adds in some more Moench and Jones and closes a narrative loop for the podcast. The results for the Big Board are... Well, my mom always said if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Fortunately this episode doesn't follow that maxim, or it would have been a very short episode.
Scarecrow- The Master of Fear (Batman V.1 Annual # 19) Unseen (Batman: Unseen # 1-5) Batman Vs. the Undead (Batman Confidential # 44-48)
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In another moment that makes Matt feel like he's not so slowly turning to dust, "Hush," the Jeph Loeb/Jim Lee neo-classic, is turning twenty years old this week. Or is it a classic? That is what Matt and Will are looking at this week, with three stories starring the Batman villain most likely to make you want to punch him in his arrogant jerk mouth, the Riddler.
Hush (Batman V.1 # 608-619) Remarkable Ruse of the Riddler (Batman V.1 #171) E. Nigma, Consulting Detective (Detective Comics V.1 #822)
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Ed Brubaker is one of the best crime writers in comics, and before going over and writing some of the best comics on the market for Image, he did runs on various Batman and Batman family titles. This week, we're reading three stories from three different runs on those titles.
Fearless (Batman V.1 # 582-583) Made of Wood (Detective Comics V.1 # 784-786) Soft Targets (Gotham Central # 12-15)
CW: Suicide, Realistic gun violence
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This is the one Matt has been waiting for. To tie in with the first issue of his new ongoing series, we're looking at three stories from the history of the best Robin, and Matt will brook no argument on this one, Tim Drake. See his origin, his return to Gotham from training, and his dark night of the soul.
A Lonely Place of Dying (Batman V.1 # 440-442, New Titans # 60-61) Shadow Box (Batman V.1 # 467-469) A Lonely Place of Living (Detective Comics V.3 # 965-968)
Interested in listening to the episode of Titan Up the Defense Matt guested on talking about part 3 of A Lonely Place of Dying? Listen to it here: https://www.audacy.com/podcasts/titan-up-the-defense-60117/episode-353-titan-up-the-defense-279-batman-441-1422972947
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It's another Patreon request this week! John Wickham, Jason Todd tier backer wanted us to talk about the story where Swamp Thing comes to Gotham and turns the city into a jungle, so we are, as well as two other stories where Batman meets Swamp Thing.
The Garden of Earthly Delights(Swamp Thing V.2 # 52-53) The Brave and the Mold (Batman V.3 # 23) The Delta Connection (The Brave and the Bold V.1 # 176)
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Batman: The Animated Series turned 30 years old last week, and with it, the show's most popular addition to the Batman canon, Harley Quinn. Harley went from Joker's henchgirl to starring in her own comics, animated series and movies, making her easily one of the two most popular characters in all of comics over the past 35 years. So this week, we're looking at three stories that track Harley's evolution in the comics, from her first print appearance, to her introduction to the DCU proper, to her finally settling her score with the Joker.
Batgirl: Day One(Batman Adventures V.1 # 12) Batman: Harley Quinn Twenty-Five Big One$ (Harley Quinn V.2 # 25)
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He's a billionaire who fights crime with nothing but his wits and his training. He has a family of sidekicks. He is known for having all sorts of emotional baggage and issues. He is... Green Arrow. This week, we sit down with Patreon backer Josh Weil to talk about three stories where Batman meets an Emerald Archer.
It Takes Two Wings to Fly (Detective Comics V.1 #559) The Brotherhood of the Fist (Green Arrow V.2 #134-135, Detective Comics V.1 #723, Robin V.2 #55, Nightwing V.2 #23) The Arrow and the Bat (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #127-131)
Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
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Who would have thought we'd have made it to 50 episodes? But we did it! This week, for the first time ever, Matt & Will were in the very same place, Matt's dining room, where they discussed three stories that wrap up in big number anniversary issues to tie in with this special anniversary.
Knightfall Part 2: Who Rules the Night? (Batman V.1 # 498-500, Detective Comics V.1 # 664-666, Showcase '93 # 7-8) Resurrection Night (Detective Comics V.1 # 566, Batman V.1 # 400) Blind Justice (Detective Comics V.1 # 598-600)
Check out our current ranking list at www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/
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Time takes us all. And as the comics we grew up with grow older, so too do the people who made them, and with time, comes other things, sadly. Recently, Alan Grant, legendary co-creator of many of the great Bat villains of the 80s and 90s, passed away, having been preceded a couple of years ago by his regular collaborator, artist Norm Breyfogle. So this week, we celebrate this legendary team with three stories by them, one from each of the Bat titles they worked on together.
Anarky in Gotham City (Detective Comics V.1 # 608-609) Sisters in Arms (Batman V.1 # 460-461) The Last Arkham (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 1-4)
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This week, we're returning to three series/arcs/runs that we have started in previous episodes. See Batman rub testosterone all over himself in the next arc of Grant Morrisons' Batman. Witness the Scarecrow play mind games in the second arc of "No Man's Land." And gaze in wonder as Alfred beats the ever loving hell out of Superman in the second half of Injustice: Gods Among Us Year One
The Three Ghosts of Batman (Batman V.1 # 664-665) Fear of Faith (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 116/Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 84/Batman V.1 # 564/Detective Comics V.1 # 731) Injustice: Gods Among Us Year 1 V.2 (Injustice: Gods Among Us # 6-12, Annual # 1)
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Friend of the show and Patreon backer Dan Grote came at us hard with his new request this week: the out of print and utterly bonkers computer generated graphic novel, Batman: Digital Justice. So this week we dig into three schway stories of Batman of the future.
Batman: Digital Justice OGN Grounded (Batman Beyond V.2 #1) Batman: Year 100 #1-4
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So, Matt spent most of his long drive into work trying to come up with a Batman version of the Green Lantern oath, but he's not a poet, so instead we're admitting that here. This week, we're reading three stories where Batman wields a power ring. One of these books is far and away the comic with the most problematic creators, if not content, that we've ever read, so buckle up for that one!
Universe (Batman Giant V.1 # 3-14/Batman: Universe # 1-6) Batman: In Darkest Knight Fear of the Dark (Batman: The Dawnbreaker # 1)
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Batman has a complicated relationship with religion. He is a rationalist living in a world with real angels and demons. So what happens when Batman intersects with religion?
Well, we don't really answer that specific question. But we do have three stories where Batman confronts people and creatures with specific religious ties. And we're joined by ComicsXF's resident expert of religion, Rob Secundus, to discuss them. All we'll say? The curse of guests showing up for episodes with all bad stories is broken!
Batman: The Cult # 1-4 The Golem of Gotham (Detective Comics V.1 # 631-632) A Savage Innocence (The Spectre Vol. 3 # 51)
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One of the artists most represented on the big board, and probably, if we arrogated based on number of stories and story placement (and that would be higher if Matt got his way with "Blades"), one of the favorite artists we have, comics lost a major talent with the passing of Tim Sale last month. So Matt and Will looked at his catalog of work, and this week, we are featuring three other stories by Tim Sale
Solo # 1 The Misfits (Batman: Shadow of the Bat # 7-9) Batman: The Long Halloween Special # 1
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Doctor. Philanthropist. Vigilante? Killer?
For a character who was introduced to be killed and be the motivation to drive his son into a life of crime fighting, Thomas Wayne has worn a lot of hats (and cowls, for that matter). This week, we're reading three stories that are about Thomas Wayne and his legacy.
The First Batman (Detective Comics V.1 # 235) Cold Case (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 201-203) Flashpoint: Batman- Knight of Vengeance # 1-3
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This week, Chip Zdarsky becomes the regular writer on the flagship Batman title, so we're looking at three of his earlier stories writing the Dark Knight.
Cheer (Batman: Urban Legends # 1-6) Last Ride (Justice League: Last Ride # 1-7) Batman: Black and White # 1-6 (2021)
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So, this week was supposed to see the release of the final issue of James Tynion IV's ongoing Joker series, a series Matt & Will have unabashedly loved over on the BatChat column. But whether it's supply chain shipping issues or something more related to the production of this particular issue, the comic has been pushed back a week. But time, tide and ranking lists wait for no man, and so we are moving forward with this episode regardless. This week, well, we're going to make some enemies, because we are talking about three more Joker stories, including what many consider the greatest Joker story of all time: The Killing Joke. Matt & Will... do not agree. And as the title suggests, there is some rough content in here around sexual violence, so we want you to be aware. Batman: The Killing Joke Joker OGN The Joker's Double Jeopardy (Joker V.1 # 1)
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Jason Todd tier Patreon backer Kyle Still asked us to cover Knightfall, and so we decided to do it (and by decided, I mean that we live up to our word). But Knightfall has a nice clean point where we can divide it. Back in the day, when trades were still a rarity, Knightfall was divided into two trades, and so this week we read what was that first trade, called The Broken Bat, along with two of the comics that lead into what is one of the most central Bat events of all time.
Batman: The Vengeance of Bane # 1 Batman: The Sword of Azrael # 1-4 Knightfall Part 1: The Broken Bat (Batman V.1 # 491-497, Detective Comics V.1 # 659-663)
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Dick Grayson-tier Patreon backer Josh Weil is back this week, and he brings with him a heck of a story. War Games was the early 00s crossover where a huge gang war breaks out in Gotham, and so, we get a 25 park crossover! That's the longest single story we've covered in here. Can we make it? What do we cover for the other two stories? How many problematic elements are in this story? You'll just have to listen to find out.
War Games (Batman: The Twelve Cent Adventure # 1, Detective Comics V.1 # 797-799, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 182-184, Nightwing V.2 # 96-98, Batman: Gotham Knights # 56-58, Robin V.2 # 129-131, Batgirl V.1 # 55-57, Catwoman V.3 # 34-36, Batman V.1 # 631-633) Night of the Penguin (Detective Comics V.1 824) The Little Red Book (Batman Adventures V.1 # 9)
Content Warning: I usually save these for the episode, and we added an intro to the beginning for those who don't read this text, but this week, we needed to call this out up front. We record these episode a month out, so sometimes, situations change and we can't really shuffle the episodes around because of ranking. This week's episode features a story where a school shooting is central to the action. This has become even more triggering than usual over the course of the time since the episode was recorded, so while it is not something discussed in detail, it is present and we wanted to let you know, in case you wanted to skip the first 40 minutes or so of the episode.
Also, Matt and Will have decided to donate all the Patreon revenue for this month to the Violence Policy Center (vpc.org), a non-profit that "works to stop gun death and injury through research, education, advocacy, and collaboration." If you haven't joined the Patreon yet, this might be a good month to kick in a dollar, listen through the back catalog of bonus stuff, and if you want to drop off after July 1st, we completely understand, but know that this month your money is going to something bigger than our silly little show. Or stick around and listen to more of our silly little show. Up to you. But we feel like we need to do something because things need to change. And superhero comics are inherently political, no matter what anybody might say.
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This week, Matt and Will are joined by the Carrie Kelly to Matt's grumpy old Bruce Wayne, singer/storyteller/myth scholar and previous guest of WMQ&A, Veronica Biatrise, to talk about one of her favorite characters, Poison Ivy, just in time for Ivy's new mini-series to debut this week. We have classic Ivy, modern Ivy and animated Ivy in this week's episode, and it's is a deep one, filled with stories that aren't too great but serve as a jumping off point for discussions that make this by far the most political, and queerest, episode of BatChat yet!
Beware of- Poison Ivy (Batman V.1 # 181) Harley & Ivy # 1-3 Everyone Loves Ivy (Batman V.3 # 41-43)
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There are some creators who left us too soon, and left us at the height of their creative output. One of those creators was Darwyn Cooke, whose work balanced on a tightrope of nostalgia and modernity, who could tell a story with the best of them. Cooke's output included many Batman stories, and thanks to Patreon backer Sam Hopper, Matt and Will are going to dig into three of them this episode
Batman: Ego Batman/The Spirit DC: The New Frontier
We recorded this episode in early May, at the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Month, and as a trigger warning, the first story this week deals with self harm and suicide. If you are feeling hopeless, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
Also, there are some audio issues early in this episode. Sorry about that. They smooth out over time in there. Thanks for listening even when things aren't going as smoothly as I'd like.
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They are the World's Finest Team, but when things go wrong? Batman and Superman make a deadly pair of enemies. This week, we're reading three stories of Batman Vs. Superman
Injustice: Gods Among Us V.1 (Injustice: Gods Among Us # 1-6 [Digital # 1-18]) Execution 2001 (Superman V.2 Annual # 3) Superman's Secret Kingdom (World's Finest Comics # 111)
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Jason Todd is probably the unluckiest Robin (with apologies to Stephanie Brown): seemingly orphaned, lived on the streets, taken in by Batman only to be killed by the Joker only to be resurrected as a homicidal vigilante. But for decades, it was Jason's death, not his life, that defined him as a character and added a new layer of tragedy to Batman's life. This week, we're looking at two stories about the (many) death of Jason Todd, and one story where Jason has a much better go of it.
A Death in the Family (Batman V.1 # 426-429) The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade For the Man Who Has Everything (Superman V.1 Annual #11)
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Hey look at that! They said it couldn't be done, but we have actually gotten up to 100 stories on the big board! To celebrate, Matt & Will just... picked stuff they wanted to talk about. So this week we finish the Vampire Batman trilogy, we go back to the world of The Long Halloween to see what Catwoman was up to off-panel for most of Dark Victory, and in a bit of synergy, we read an all-ages graphic novel from creator Jeffrey Brown, the guest on this week's episode of Matt's other show, WMQ&A.
Batman: Crimson Mist OGN Catwoman: When in Rome # 1-6 Batman & Robin & Howard OGN
Note: with the passing of both Neal Adams and George Perez in the past two weeks, it's important to remember that many comics creators exist in a world where they have no safety net. If you want to help, you can check out The Hero Initiative, a charity that helps creators in their time of need, here: https://www.heroinitiative.org/
Batman's most significant female nemesis. His true love on many Earths. The best thief in Gotham. A star of screens, both small and big, with numerous famous actors having portrayed her. An icon. All of these describe one character: Selina Kyle, a.k.a. Catwoman. This week, we're looking at three stories starring Catwoman
Your Face is Your Fortune (Batman V.1 # 15) Her Sister's Keeper (Catwoman V.1 # 1-4) Anodyne (Catwoman V.3 # 1-4)
Check out our current ranking list at https://www.comicsxf.com/batchat-rankings/
Note: There's a long tangent in the middle of the episode about the Hollywood blacklist and a notable director who named names before the House Unamerican Activities Committee, and during this entire five minutes, neither Matt or Will actually say his name. That is Elia Kazan. Sorry for the lack of context in the episode.
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As The Batman is now streaming on HBO Max, Matt and Will thought it was time to look at one of the stories that served as a prime inspiration for this year's blockbuster Bat movie- Batman: Earth One. And to go with it? Two other stories of Batman's origins and early years.
Batman: Earth One Vol. 1 OGN The Untold Legend of the Batman # 1-3 My Beginning... And My Probable End... (Detective Comics V.1 # 574)
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This week was supposed to mark the real and true and totally final death of Batman in Justice League #75's "Death of the Justice League," issue, but the vagaries of comic scheduling in a pandemic have forced that issue back a week. But still, that would not have been the first time Batman died, and this week, we're looking at three other deaths of Batman: some literal, some metaphorical.
To Kill a Legend(Detective Comics V.1 # 500) The Untold Legend of the Batman # 1-3 Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? (Batman V.1 # 686, Detective Comics V.1 # 853)
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Among Batman's many foes are serial killers, madmen and monsters. But few are the type of villain who seeks to dominate or control the world. The one who is, possibly the foe that Batman respects and fears the most, is Ra's al Ghul, the Demon's Head. Seemingly immortal, Ra's wants to return the world to a pristine sphere, under his control, and only after wiping out much of humanity. This week, as Ra's faces his final death in the "Shadow War" even in the current line, we look at three stories of the birth and Death of Ra's al Ghul.
The Demon's Quest (Batman V.1 # 232, 235, 240, 242-244) Batman: Birth of the Demon OGN Death and the Maidens (Batman: Death and the Maidens # 1-9, Detective Comics V.1 # 783 [backup])
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Another week, another Jason Todd tier Patreon backer choosing violence. This time, Will's fiancee, Abigale Heartbalm, chooses Batman: The Widening Gyre, Kevin Smith's incomplete Batman masterpiece (?). So, this week's theme? Hollywood folks writing Batman. We get that story, the beginning of one of the most ambitious Batman stories ever, and a recent anthology with a story written by an actor with some major Bat cred.
Batman: The Widening Gyre # 1-6 No Law and a New Order (Batman: No Man's Land #1, Batman: Shadow of the Bat #83, Batman #563, Detective Comics #730) Gotham City Villains Anniversary Giant #1
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When you back the podcast at the Jason Todd tier of $10 a month, you get to select a story for Matt & Will to read. As much as they don't want to read it. And this week? We get our first Jason Todd tier request. Previous guest of the show, co-host of the other show Matt does each week, WMQ&A, and writer/editor/podcaster triple thread Dan Grote decided that the guys have to read Batman: White Knight, a story Will has... strong feelings about, and boy after rereading it Matt does too. To go with this particular story, we have selected two other stories where the Joker is restored to sanity, if ever so briefly.
Batman: White Knight # 1-8 Going Sane (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 65-68) Luthor- You're Driving Me Sane (The Joker V.1 # 7)
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Starting out as one of the main writers on Batman: The Animated Series, the platonic ideal of Batman, Paul Dini has gone on to write Batman in nearly every medium: TV, movies, video games, and, of course, comics. And since we're a podcast that focuses on Batman comics, well, we're going to look at some Dini comics, and we have three very different ones here: an animated series universe story, one set in the main DCU, and a bit of autobiography.
Going Straight/Laughter After Midnight (Batman Adventures V.1 Annual # 1) Trust (Detective Comics V.1 # 833-834) Dark Night: A True Batman Story OGN
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They're darkness and light. One is the champion of the city of tomorrow, one is the hero a corrupt and fallen city needs. They have been rivals, allies and sometimes friends. They are Batman and Superman. This week, a new volume of World's Finest, the classic Batman/Superman team-up book, launches so Matt and Will are joined by noted Superman expert and writer at Women Write About Comics and ComicsXF, Cori McCreery to discuss three versions of early Batman and Superman meetings.
The Mightiest Team in the World (Superman V.1 # 76) One Night in Gotham City (Man of Steel V.1 # 3) Stop Me If You've Heard This One... (Superman/Batman V.1 Annual # 1)
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Did you know, if you back us on Patreon, you can come on the show? Yes indeed, if you are a Dick Grayson tier backer you can. And our first Grayson backer is here with us today! Josh Weil, podcaster at X is for Podcast, stops by to talk about a couple stories he picked, and one Matt added in to round out the episode, that all feature scenes or full stories of Bruce Wayne training to be Batman.
Blood Secrets (Detective Comics V.1 Annual #2) Grounded Part 8 (Superman V.1 #710) Shaman (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #1-5)
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We've talked about them before on multiple episodes, but few writers cast a longer shadow over the canon of Batman than Grant Morrison. Big ideas, dark stories and characters that are polarizing are central to Morrison's opus on Batman. This week, Matt & Will read three Batman stories by Morrison, one from before their long run on Batman, one from it's beginning, and one from it's middle, as Matt exposes Will to more Morrison, and while they don't fight, well, let's just say there are some compromises made on the ranking list this week.
Gothic: A Romance (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 6-10) The Club of Heroes (Batman V.1 # 667-669) Batman Reborn (Batman & Robin V.1 # 1-3)
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Look, anyone with any knowledge of comics history knows that comics creators in mainstream American comics are, well, pretty darn white. And Batman is no exception; there are no truly long runs by creators of color on any of the flagship Batman titles. But there are some good stories by Black writers on Batman, and so, as this is February and Black History Month, Matt & Will wanted to look at some of those stories. And they brought along ComicsXF writer Corey Smith, so there was an opinion that wasn't just a pair of white guys.
Blink (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 156-158) On the Outside (Detective Comics V.3 # 983-987) I Am Batman Begins/Fear State (I Am Batman # 0-3)
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We've already had one episode dedicated entirely to the origin of Dick Grayson, the first Robin. Now it's time to move on to stories featuring the early days of three of the next Robins (no, we're not taking part in Stephanie Brown erasure; she'll just get a focus in a Batgirls episode, we promise). See the origin of Jason Todd (and not the knock off Dick Grayson one), Tim Drake take up the mantle of Robin, and Damian Wayne enter Batman's life.
The Post-Crisis Origin of Jason Todd (Batman V.1 # 408-411) Identity Crisis [No, not THAT one] (Batman V.1 # 455-457) Batman and Son (Batman V.1 # 655-658)
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We're less than a week from Valentine's Day, and what says love more than a guy in a Bat costume pursuing a woman in cat themed leather or a beautiful assassin? Or a disastrously dysfunctional relationship between two clowns? Talking about those things with thee ones we love, of course. That's why this week, Matt and Will are joined by Will's better half, Abigale Heartbalm to discuss three stories of romance in Gotham. Well, two stories of romance and one that is most assuredly not.
Batman Adventures: Mad Love Only Takes a Night (Catwoman V.3 #32) Batman: Son of the Demon OGN
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Wow, we've made it to 20 episodes! To celebrate, Matt and Will are looking at three stories from three volumes of one of their self-confessed favorite series, the legendary (see what I did there) anthology, Legends of the Dark Knight. Will they gush about the original volume? Will they complain about DC not giving the most recent volume a shot? You better believe it.
Mask (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 39-40) Riddler in the Dark (Legends of the Dark Knight V.1 # 53-55) Haunted (Legends of the Dark Knight V.2 # 7-8)
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It only took us 19 episodes to swing back to ground we've already tread; it's not like there are 80 years of completely unrelated Batman stories to talk about. But this is our podcast, and we'll do what we like (unless you back us on Patreon, and then we'll do what you want). Anyway, this week, Matt & Will are reading three stories that are direct sequels to stories that they have read on earlier episodes.
Batman: Bloodstorm OGN Batman: Master of the Future Batman: Dark Victory #0-13
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Continuity is a cruel mistress. DC's ever rebooting universe has meant most characters have at least two completely distinct histories. And amongst the Batfamily, no character's two histories are more different than the Huntress. Introduced as the daughter of the Batman and Catwoman of Earth-2, Crisis on Infinite Earths wiped out the alternate Earths and instead made her the daughter of mobsters who were killed by a rival family. And the New 52, well, we aren't gonna talk about that in this episode so you'll just have to wait for us to get there. Instead, here are three stories featuring Huntress just in time for her to step back into the Batfamily spotlight over in Detective Comics' "Shadows of the Bat" storyline
From Each Ending... A Beginning (DC Super-Stars # 17) Days of Rage (Huntress V.1 # 17-19) Cry for Blood (Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood # 1-6)
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If there's one thing you need to know about Batman, it's that Batman works alone.
Except for Robin
And Alfred
And Jim Gordon
And the rest of the Bat family
And the Justice League
OK, it's pretty obvious that Batman is not the lone avenger of the night after all. And since, this week, Matt and Will are talking about stories where Batman is a part of the Justice League, they figured it was time to add in a guest for this titanic team-up. Enter Armaan Babu, writer over at the pod's internet home of ComicsXF. Enjoy three stories of Batman's adventures with the JLA
New World Order (JLA # 1-4) Tower of Babel (JLA # 43-46) Bouncing Baby Boy (JLA # 65)
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It is a mad house. It is the home to terror, both supernatural and all too irrational. Arkham Asylum is one of the most recognizable locales in Gotham City, if not the entire DC Universe. This week, as "Shadows of the Bat," the tale of the new Arkham Tower, begins in Detective Comics, Matt & Will take a look at three stories set around Arkham Asylum and its inmates
Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth OGN Madmen Across the Water (Showcase '94 # 3-4) Living Hell (Arkham Asylum: Living Hell # 1-6)
Editor Matt's Note: Last one with the janky sound! We will soon return you to your regularly scheduled listening
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
2021 is winding down, and as we look forward to 2022, we're dipping back into the well of alternate reality Batmans (the proper plural), to look at three new takes on the character for the new year: one is a 60s more swinging but far more real (and bleaker) than the one from the classic TV show, one in the American Civil War and one who made a very different choice the night of his parents' murder.
Happy New Year from Team BatChat! We look forward to much more Batman talk in the coming year.
Thrillkiller (Thrillkiller # 1-3/Thrillkiller '62 # 1) The Blue, the Grey, and the Bat (Batman: The Blue, the Grey, and the Bat # 1) A Grim Knight in Gotham (The Batman Who Laughs: The Grim Knight # 1)
Editor Matt's Note: Still some mic issues on my end this week. One more episode after this and things will be back to normal, I swear.
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
It's the week of Christmas, and even the Dark Knight has taken time out to celebrate the holidays. This week, Matt & Will are looking at three Christmas stories in Gotham. Happy holidays to one and all, and we hope your Christmas doesn't involve the Joker. Trust us in this one.
Death Casts the Deciding Vote/The Silent Night of Batman (Batman V.1 # 219) Favorite Things (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 79) Slay Ride (Detective Comics V.1 # 826)
Editor Matt's Note: Apologies on my sound this week and the next couple. My mic had switched from headset to laptop without any logical reason, and I didn't pick up on it for a bit, so the next couple episodes I sound a bit echoey. Sorry about that!
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
Sometimes it's hard to judge a story. Sometimes you might need to... flip a coin. Yes, that is a labored wordplay to get to something to tie into this week's subject, Batman's (possibly) second greatest foe, former district attorney Harvey Dent, best known as Two-Face. Fortunately, these stories didn't require any coin tosses for their ranking.
Half an Evil (Batman V.1 # 234) Faces (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 28-30) The Long Halloween (Batman: The Long Halloween # 1-13)
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
With DC continuity a mess of Crises, reboots, Rebirths and New 52s, some stories get rewritten and some stories get retold. Batman's first year has been rewritten numerous times. But his first meeting with Dick Grayson, the first Robin? That one gets retold, and each time it's tinkered with just a little. This week, Matt and Will look at three versions of that very first meeting, comparing and contrasting what stays the same, what changes, and what makes them better or worse.
Robin, The Boy Wonder (Detective Comics V.1 # 38) Batman: Year Three (Batman V.1 #436-439) Robin: Year One (Robin Annual V.2 #4)
Thanks to Geri Nonnewitz for our podcast logo
Follow the show on Twitter @BatChatComics and support the show on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/batchatwithmattandwill
As Fear State wraps up in the current comics, Matt and Will go back and look at three stories starring the Master of Fear, the Scarecrow. It's an eclectic mix, one quirky, one a bit off the mark, and one with a story that talks about, "an uncontrollable butt frenzy," which would have made the title of this episode but it was deemed a bit too much.
Fear for $ale (Detective Comics V.1 # 571) Scarecrow (Batman V.1 # 523-524) Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham
It's Thanksgiving week here in the States, so Matt & Will are dipping back into all ages stories for three Batman books you can talk about around the dinner table with one and all. Hear about the story that would have introduced a major Bat villain to the classic TV series, the cutest Batfamily in comics, and what makes a good comic vs. a good Batman comic.
Batman '66: The Lost Episode Batman: Li'l Gotham (Batman: Li'l Gotham #1-12) Batman: Overdrive OGN
Will takes the reins this week, with a little ill advised help from Matt's knowledge of 90s Batman stories. Will picked three stories that he figured would have art he'd love and, well, two out of three ain't bad.
Six Fingers (Legends of the Dark Knight V.1 # 85-88 [Digital]) Chasing Clay (Batman V.1 #550) Batman: Black and White V.1 # 1-4
This episode: Batman loses!
I know, I know, it's blasphemy. But Batman's not perfect, and sometimes, a story doesn't go his way. This week, we're looking at three very different takes on Batman not coming out ahead at the end (or in one case the beginning) of a story.
Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia Superheavy (Batman V.2 # 41-50) Cold Days (Batman V.3 # 51-53)
He's Batman's greatest nemesis. He is as mutable as his foe, appearing sometimes as a whacky criminal clown, sometimes as a terrifying homicidal maniac, and sometimes as an urban terrorist. He is the Joker. And this week, Matt and Will look at three single issue Joker stories in their first villain spotlight episode.
The Joker's Five-Way Revenge (Batman V.1 # 251) A Clash of Symbols (Detective Comics V.1 # 617) The Clown at Midnight (Batman V.1 # 663)
It's Halloween week, so it's time to dig into three of Batman's encounters with the supernatural: One great, one good, and one oh so very bad. Try to figure out which before you listen; I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Batman/Dracula: Red Rain The Secret of the Waiting Graves (Detective Comics V.1 # 395) Superman and Batman Vs. Vampires and Werewolves (Superman and Batman Vs. Vampires and Werewolves #1-6)
Dan Grote, Matt's co-host on his other show WMQ&A, stops by to talk about four stories (one of these comics is a twofer) of an all-ages Batman teaming up with other heroes.
Batman: The Brave and the Bold # 20 Batman Adventures Annual (V.1) # 2 Batman: Gotham Adventures # 6
There are many ways to describe Batman. Superhero. Martial Artist. Scientist. Adventurer. But for your hosts, Matt & Will, one beats all the rest: Detective. This week, we look at three stories that have a theme of Batman as the Dark Knight Detective.
Blades (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight # 32-34) The Doomsday Book (Detective Comics V.1 # 572) Beautiful People (Detective Comics V.1 # 821)
If Batman is anything, it's malleable. There are plenty of alternate Batmans (that's the plural and I'm sticking to it) out there, and this week, Matt & Will are looking at three of them.
Batman: Gotham by Gaslight Batman: Holy Terror Superman: Speeding Bullets
We're back with episode 2, the final episode!
Nah, just kidding. But we are focusing on three last Batman stories this episode.
The Dark Knight Returns (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns # 1-4) Some of These Days (Batman Annual V.3 # 2) The Last Batman Story --? (Batman V.1 # 300)
The inaugural episode of our new podcast, BatChat with Matt & Will, a podcast where we take every Batman story ever, read them, and rank them on a big list from best to worst. This week, we look at three different first Batman stories.
Batman: Year One (Batman V.1 # 404-407) Zero Year (Batman V.2 # 21-27, 29-33) The Case of the Chemical Syndicate (Detective Comics V.1 # 27)