I've noticed that there are a lot of people who are interested in Batman but don't know where to start, so I thought that I would bring my Batman "expertise" in and try to construct a simple visual guide of all the Batman books in chronological order. Well, that project sort of expanded quite a bit into an attempt at breaking down all the Batman books that I know of/have read and try to distill them to only the most important moments (in my opinion) and then present them in chronological order to give a rough sense of how Batman's career has changed over time. Since this is comic books, continuity is never 100% accurate and things are very rough, but using the best of my own detective skills, I feel I've managed to construct a fairly accurate time-line presented visually, as is appropriate for comic books. This is the first installment of (what I hope to be) a five part series and I hope you enjoy.

Once again, as I stated below in the image, I do not own Batman or any associated characters and I made this solely for fan purposes. Please don't sue me DC Comics.

If there is anything that I loved about this era, it would be the clear influence that the animated series had upon the visual style of these comics. That being said, it can't be stressed enough that these comics are far more brutal then the animated series, though it comes out in understated ways at first such as Robin being beaten nearly to death in Robin: Year One a woman being caught on fire in Batgirl: Year One. Personally, I feel that they were necessary, however, since it builds on the underlying notion that even though everything seems bright and colorful, the Bat Family is on a course towards tragedy.

Summary:

With the inclusion of Robin, the second half the dynamic duo, Batman tries to balance his responsibilities to his mission and his responsibility as a father all while his focus is moved from the street level to the global level as he learns more about the international crime organization, The Demon, and its mysterious leader, Ra's Al Ghul. It will require new allies to face these larger threats, including Superman and Wonderman, and the inclusion of new family members at home. But for how long can Batman turn his attention away from Gotham? And is the recent lull in crime just the calm before the storm?

Recommendations:

If I had to recommend the Top Five Best and Most Important books to read from this era, they would be:

1. Batgirl: Year One
2. Batman: Ego
3. Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth
4. The Killing Joke
5. A Death In the Family (It's not my favourite book, but it is a very important one.)