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Batman By Grant Morrison Reading Order

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Grant Morrison’s 7-year long run on Batman remains one of the most celebrated, influential, and divisive takes on the Caped Crusader. It all started in 2005 when editor Peter Tomasi approached  Morrison about writing the monthly Batman comic. As Morrison later explained, he thought at the time he had “said most of what had to say about the character with Arkham Asylum, Gothic, and Batman’s appearances in JLA. Clearly, I was wrong.” (Batman Incorporated Special #1, October 2013).

Morrison’s work on Batman started at the end of the Modern Age and concluded at the start of New 52. His approach—treating the entire publishing history as Batman’s life story—created one of the most iconic sagas featuring the Dark Knight. It’s an epic, metaphysical tale filled with weird sci-fi elements, colorful and dangerous villains, unexpected plot twists, and, at its core, the tragic effects of trauma and broken families. As often, Bruce Wayne’s loss of his parents is still at the heart of the story, the same way that Damian Wayne, Son of Batman, is.

Structured in three parts, Morrison’s epic tale takes the reader on a wild ride, from the deconstruction of Batman’s history in the first part, to the playful spirit of adventure in the second, and finally, to the ambitious, James Bond-style story of the third. Not everything works, but there is no doubt that when it is, it is sort of magical.

With contributions from artists like Andy Kubert, J.H. Wiliams III, Frank Quitely, Yanick Paquette, David Finch, and Chris Burnham—alongside skilled inkers, colorists, and letterers—, Grant Morrison’s Batman saga left an indelible mark on the character’s history. Love it or hate it, it is simply impossible to deny how iconic and influential this run has become.

Whether you are a new or longtime reader, this guide will help you navigate Grant Morrison’s Batman run. From the stories that influenced Morrison to his earlier works on the character, and the various ways to read the complete saga—omnibus or collected editions—this guide has you covered!

Before Batman by Grant Morrison: The Black Casebook and Other Tales

This part is optional. You don’t need to do any prior reading before starting Morrison’s Batman Saga. I hadn’t read most of those stories the first time I read this run and it didn’t impact my understanding of the story. What it will give you is a better understanding and a deeper meaning of Morrison’s take on the character.

Several months after the conclusion of the first part of Morrison’s run, DC Comics released Batman: The Black Casebook, a collection of stories that inspired Grant Morrison, completed with an introduction from the Scottish writer himself! It is quite obvious this trade has been put together rather quickly. However, it doesn’t change the fact that this collection provides a good glimpse into the craziness and weirdness of the fifties and sixties. Following is a listing of those issues written by Bill Finger, Edmund Hamilton, and France Herron:

Batman #65 (A Partner For Batman! – June 1951) – First appearance of the character Wingman, a member of the Club of Heroes in Morrison’s run.
Batman #86 (“Batman – Indian Chief” – September 1954) – The debut of Chief Man-of-the-Bats and Little Raven, two other heroes inspired by Batman also part of the Club of Heroes.
Detective Comics #215 (The Batmen of All Nations – January 1955) – Meet the group of vigilantes inspired to become heroes by Batman! For this reason, they were known as The Batmen of All Nations, but they were most often called The Club of Heroes! Gaucho, Legionary, Musketeer and Ranger first appeared in this issue. Knight and Squire are also group members, though they actually debuted in Batman #62!
World’s Finest #89 (The Club of Heroes – July 1957) – The debut of millionnaire John Mayhew, ready to offer a property to the chairman of the Club of Heroes (with guest star Superman)!
Detective Comics #235 (The First Batman – September 1956) – Bruce discovers an old Bat Costume his father wore for a masquerade and goes after the man who killed his parents.
Detective Comics #247 (“The Man Who Ended Batman’s Career” – September 1957) – First appearance of Professor Milo who induced Batman with a fear of anything bat-shaped.
Batman #112 (Am I Really Batman? – December 1957) – Professor Milo is back, stripping Batman of his will to live!
Batman #113 (Batman – The Superman of Planet X – February 1958) – The only appearance of Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, a man from Planet X inspired by Batman. Or was it a dream?
Detective Comics #267 (Batman Meets Bat-Mite – May 1959) – Batman and Robin meet Bat-Mite, Batman’s Biggest Fan from the 5th Dimension.
Batman #134 (The Rainbow Creature – September 1960) – Our dynamite duo encounters the Rainbow Creature, an inhuman creature with each color representing a different power. This enemy is referenced in Batman #678. This story, and #162, found its place in this collection to offer “examples of how strange the Black Casebook could get” dixit Morrison himself as he didn’t read them and was mostly inspired by the covers.
Batman #156 (Robin Dies at Dawn – June 1963) – If you had to read only one issue before diving into Morrison’s run, this is the one! Batman volunteers to test the long-term effects of isolation on the human psyche for the military. With the first appearance of Doctor Hurt (unnamed in the issue).
Batman #162 (“The Batman Creature” – March 1964) – Batman is transformed into a rampaging creature.

The writer used other elements of the Batman mythology in the rest of his run. We invite you to explore those more recent stories, introducing Barbatos and giving the basis for Ra’s al Ghul:

Batman: Dark Knight, Dark City – From Peter Milligan and Kieron Dwyer. The Riddler is working with an occultist to drive Batman insane. This story contains the first appearance of Barbatos and was adapted by Morrison in his run. It’s also a great Batman story for beginners!
Batman: Birth of the Demon – Collects the Ra’s al Ghul trilogy, exploring the dynamic between The Dark Knight and Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul’s desire to have an heir, and the real story of the immortal villain and his drive for world domination. This can serve as a prologue to Grant Morrison’s Batman and Son with…
Batman: Death and the Maidens – From Greg Rucka and Klaus Janson comes the final days of Ra’s al Ghul.

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Morrison on Batman before The Batman Saga

Before writing his Batman Saga, Grant Morrison previously wrote several comics featuring the Cape Crusader.

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Batman by Grant Morrison, The Omnibus Collection

The easiest way to read Grant Morrison’s run on Batman is probably with the omnibus collection. It only collects Morrison’s writing, but there are some explications here and there to fill the blanks.

  • Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 1
    Collects Batman #655-658, #663-683 and stories from DC Universe #0 and #30 and #47.
  • Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 2
    Collects Batman & Robin #1-16, Batman #700-702 and Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #1-6.

    • Final Crisis Omnibus
      Collects Batman #676-683, #701-702, Birds Of Prey #118, DC Universe #0, DC Universe: The Last Will And Testament #1, Final Crisis #1-7, Final Crisis: Legion Of 3 Worlds #1-5, Final Crisis: Requiem #1, Final Crisis: Resist #1, Final Crisis: Revelations #1-5, Final Crisis: Rogues’ Revenge #1-3, Final Crisis: Secret Files #1, Final Crisis: Submit #1, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, The Flash #240-241, Justice League Of America #21, Superman/Batman #76, Teen Titans #59-60 And Terror Titans #1-6.
  • Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 3
    Collects Batman Incorporated #1-8, Batman: The Return #1, Batman Incorporated #0-13, Batman Incorporated: Leviathan Strikes #1, Batman Incorporated Special #1.

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Batman by Grant Morrison in Deluxe Edition and Other Collections

Since its publication, DC Comics has collected Grant Morrison’s epic run in multiple formats. In addition to the Omnibus collection listed above, you can also find these issues collected in Deluxe Editions (similar to the Omnibus but with fewer pages per volume) and The Absolute Edition (a premium hardcover format). More recently, DC has begun reprinting the run in a new paperback collection.

Deluxe Edition

Absolute Edition

  • Absolute Batman and Son by Grant Morrison
    Collects Batman #655-658, #663-669, #672-675, and Batman Incorporated (2012) #5, in oversize format plus a new cover, an introduction from Andy Kubert, and other extras.
  • Absolute Batman and Robin: Batman Reborn
    Collects Batman & Robin issues #1-16, Bruce Wayne The Return #1 as well as character sketches, a cover gallery and artist and writer commentary.
  • Absolute Batman: Incorporated
    Collects Batman Incorporated (vol. 1) #1–8, Batman Incorporated: Leviathan Rises, Batman, Incorporated (vol. 2) #1–13, and Batman Incorporated Special.

New Paperback collection

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Batman by Grant Morrison, The Detailed Reading Order

This run is focused on Grant Morrison’s Batman. To discover how his epic saga takes place among the other Batman titles published at the time, check out our Batman Modern Age Reading Order!

Previously on the DC Universe… When some survivors of lost realities returned to the DC Universe, a new crisis emerged and the DC Continuity was tweaked again in Infinite Crisis. During this event, Batman has a breakdown, almost killing someone. Shook by his own actions, he decided to take a step back and retraced his path to rebuild himself during the events of 52.

Part I: Batman

This part is collected in Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 1

Batman New 52 - Batman By Grant Morrison Reading Order

The 52 comic book series deals with the rebuilding of the DC Universe after the Crisis and also introduces us to the new Batwoman. Created by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid, and Keith Giffen, Batman makes a few appearances in this story in the following issues. While these are a few panels, those events are referenced during Morrison’s run.

Grant Morrison’s Batman Saga starts here! Morrison begins to explore the Caped Crusader’s past and his many facets, revisiting old concepts and ideas like Bat-Mite and the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh for a psychedelic take on some of the most improbable elements of Batman’s mythos, or the Club of Heroes for an Agatha Christie-style mystery.

  • Batman and Son
    Collects Batman issues #655-658, #663-669 and #672-675.

    • You need to stop reading this volume after #669 to pick up the crossover story The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul.
    • Batman #659-662 are not part of Morrison’s run, those issues were written by John Ostrander and penciled by Tom Mandrake.
  • The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul
    Collects Batman #670-671 (by Grant Morrison), but also Robin #168-169, Detective Comics #838-839, Nightwing #138-139, Batman Annual #26 and Robin Annual #7.

    • Not collected here, Detective Comics #840 by Paul Dini serves as an Epilogue to the story, collected in Batman: Private Casebook.
    • Once this crossover is concluded, you can finish reading Batman and Son.
  • Batman R.I.P.
    Collects Batman #676-683 and DC Universe #0. See the Batman RIP Reading Order for more information.

This is the Final Crisis! Written by Grant Morrison, with art by J.G. Jones and Carlos Pacheco, the entire Multiverse is at risk as the mysterious Libra gathers an army of the DCU’s most dangerous supervillains. While Batman plays a relatively small role in this event, its importance can’t be denied—the conclusion leads to the supposed death of Batman and sets up the new status quo for the second part of Morrison’s run. I also think reading Final Crisis makes The Return of Bruce Wayne more enjoyable, as it helps you see how Morrison ties the story’s elements together.

  • Final Crisis (DC Essential Edition)
    Collects DC Universe #0, Final Crisis #1-7, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, Final Crisis: Submit #1, Batman #682-683.
    All those issues are written by Morrison and are all you need to understand the story. For the tie-ins, check out the Omnibus edition!

Battle for The Cowl! This part can be considered more of a complementary piece to Morrison’s run. He didn’t write any of the following issues and nothing is essential reading for his run. When Following Batman’s disappearance, chaos starts to spread in Gotham City. Who will take up Batman’s mantle and restore order to the streets of Gotham?

Part II: Batman and Robin

This part is collected in Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 2.

Batman New 52 - Batman By Grant Morrison Reading Order

From issue #684 to #699, the Batman title was handled by other writers, while Morrison’s saga entered his second part with his most iconic part, Batman & Robin with his frequent collaborator Frank Quitely. He described the title in an IGN interview as a “more poppy, and more colourful, but it’s also creepier. It’s like David Lynch doing the Batman TV show.” It is an inversion of the traditional dynamic, “with a more light-hearted and spontaneous Batman and a scowling, badass Robin. Expect fireworks and violence.”

This is when Morrison stopped writing Batman and Robin. The series continued with the optional Batman and Robin: Dark Knight vs White Night, written by Paul Cornell, Pete Tomasi and Judd Winick. Then with Batman and Robin Volume 2, Peter J. Tomasi became the main writer on the series.

Part III: Batman Incorporated

This part is collected in Batman by Grant Morrison Omnibus Vol. 3.

Batman New 52 - Batman By Grant Morrison Reading Order

Batman goes international in the third and final installment of Grant Morrison’s run. Once again, Morrison shifts the series’ direction to “tackle stories that were a little more international in scope, playing up the Bond-style gadgetry aspects of Batman’s adventures” (Batman Omnibus Vol. 3). This phase features numerous team-ups, starting with Catwoman and continuing with new creation Mr. Unknown, El Gaucho, Cimarron, Batwoman, The Hood, Batwing, Nightrunner, Dark Ranger, Man-of-Bats, Raven, Oracle, and Batgirl. Batman’s relationship with Damian remains a central focus, with their dynamic explored in what could be described as the most intense divorce in comic book history!

  • Batman Incorporated
    Collects Batman Incorporated #1–8, Batman Incorporated: Leviathan Strikes! #1.

New 52!  As Morrison approached the conclusion of his run, DC entered a new era with Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo leading the main Batman title. (If you’re curious about Batman in the New 52 era, you can find a guide here.) As Morrison politely said on a AMA for Reddit, “It was a slight hurdle to continue the story while vaguely acknowledging the changes from the New 52 version of the character but we tried to take it in our stride.”

This final chapter delivers an action-packed finale, mixing spy adventures, big emotions, and bold storytelling to wrap up Morrison’s epic Batman saga with style and emotion.

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What to read after Batman By Grant Morrison?

Grant Morrison concluded his run at the start of New 52. Since the end of The Modern Age/Post-Crisis era, DC Comics soft rebooted its universe more than once. But nothing can stop The Batman in his fight against Gotham’s criminals. If you want to continue, here are the orders:

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Go back to our Batman Comics Guide

Note: The first version of this article was published in 2021 on Comic Book Treasury. This revised edition provides additional information.

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