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Batman Comics, Classic Tales from the Golden Age through Bronze Age!

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Holy Batman! The Cape Crusader is one of the most popular comic book superheroes out there and at Comic Book Treasury, but we – until now – didn’t explore his glorious comics past! And by that, I mean the publication from the Golden Age to the Silver/Bronze Age, before the famous Crisis on Infinite Earths and the start of the modern Batman era.

As you know, Batman made his first appearance in Detective Comics #27 (1939) and became so popular that he soon had his own ongoing series with his name on it. And only one year after his debut, he was joined by the most iconic sidekick, Robin!

From the 1940s to the mid-1980s, there have been many Batman (and Robin) adventures, and DC Comics has reprinted them in different collections. This article is here to help you navigate all those collections (some only available second-hand, very pricey or not), and explore those old colorful times for Batman!

Pre-Crisis Must Read Batman

As you know, you don’t have to read every story, as most tales are stand-alone! It is also no secret that the Pre-Crisis era is not everyone’s cup of tea! So, we first start with a recommended reading list of some Batman Classic Stories, considered the best of Batman before the modern Age:

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Batman DC Omnibuses Pre-Crisis Era

Want to collect all the Batman stories there are out there? You can’t miss the DC Comics Omnibus Collection of Batman that reprints in publication order the adventures of the Cape Crusader, which is featured in Detective Comics, Batman as well as World’s Finest Comics.

You’ll find all the seminal elements of Batman today with the introduction of Robin, the Boy Wonder as well as many of his adversaries such as the Joker, The Penguin and Scarecrow. You’ll see the debut of the first Batwoman in the Silver Age era and many of Batman’s greatest team-ups with Superman, Wonder Woman and more!

Also, this is a good place to indicate that DC Comics has collected in an Omnibus the work of artist Neal Adams, considered one of the greatest Batman artists of all time (also present in our must-read list!):

  • Batman by Neal Adams Omnibus
    Collects Detective Comics #395, 397, 400, 402, 407, 408, 410; Batman #219, 232, 234, 237, 243–244, 251, 255; World’s Finest Comics #175, 176; The Brave and the Bold #79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 93; Batman: Odyssey #1–6 and Batman: Odyssey (vol. 2) #1–7; covers from Detective Comics #370, 372, 385, 389, 391, 392, 394, 396, 398, 399, 401, 403, 405, 406, 409, 411, 412, 413, 414, 415, 416, 417, 418, 419, 420, 421, 439; Batman #200, 203, 210, 217, 220, 221, 222, 224, 225, 226, 227, 229, 230, 231, 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 240, 241, 246, Annual #14; World’s Finest Comics #174, 178, 179, 180, 182, 183, 185, 186, 199, 200, 202, 211, 244, 245, 246, 258; The Brave and the Bold #75, 76, 86, 88, 89, 90, 93, 95, 99; Heroes Against Hunger #1; Limited Collectors Edition C-51, C-59; The Saga of Ra’s al Ghul #4; pages from Detective Comics #600, Limited Collectors’ Edition C-25; Robin II: The Joker’s Wild! #1 and Batman Black and White #4; plus various extras

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

Batman Other Early Collected Editions

Batman DC Archive Editions

Published between 1989 and 2014, the DC Archives Editions were a line of hardcover books printed on high-quality archival paper. DC Comics collected the Detective Comics stories in the Batman Archives volume, while the Batman series was reprinted in the Batman: The Dark Knight Archives volumes. Several World’s Finest Comics Archives have also been released. In the Silver Age, the collection collected Batman and Detectives Comics together, in the Dynamic Duo Archives.

The Batman Archives Editions of the Golden Age Era

The Batman Archives Editions of the Silver Age Era

The Batman Chronicles Collection

Not to be confused with the comic book series of the same name! The Batman Chronicles was a book collection planned to reprint every Batman adventure in chronological order and color in accessible trade paperbacks. The line was canceled after eleven volumes.

Showcase Presents

Published from 2005-2016, Showcase Presents was a line of large black-and-white paperback comic books of over 500 pages of reprinted stories

Batman newspaper comic strip collections

Batman started to have some adventures in newspapers in the Batman comic strip in 1943. In total, it had several series in this format: the first one ran from 1943 to 1946; the second was published on Sunday only in 1953; the third series ran from 1966 to 1972. Those dailies have been, in part, reprinted in the books:

Batman also appeared in the strip The World’s Greatest Superheroes (1978–1985) during the pre-crisis era.

Batman Decade editions

A great way for readers to explore Batman’s early Decades, this collection collects the best stories from each decade, from Batman’s debut, the introduction of Robin, the Joker Catwoman and more iconic characters in the forties to the addition of Batwoman in the fifties and many fun adventures in the Sixties before the stories took a darker turn in the seventies and finally, the emergence of Nightwing and the creation of The Outsiders in the eighties.

  • Batman in the Forties
    Stories from Batman #7, 15, 20, 31, 37, 47, 49; Detective Comics #27, 38, 49, 80; Real Fact Comics #5; Star-Spangled Comics #70; World’s Finest Comics #30
  • Batman in the Fifties
    Stories from Batman #62, 81, 92, 105, 113, 121, 128; Detective Comics #156, 168, 185, 216, 233, 244, 252, 267; World’s Finest Comics #81
  • Batman in the Sixties
    Stories from Batman #131, 144, 148, 155, 179, 181, 200, 217; Batman Kellogg’s Special #6; Detective Comics #298, 341, 349, 369, 388, 391
  • Batman in the Seventies
    Stories from Batman #232, 237, 260; Batman Family #1; DC Super Stars #17; Detective Comics #407, 410, 442, 457, 481
  • Batman in the Eighties
    Stories from Batman #321, 348, 374; Batman Special #1; DC Sampler #3; Detective Comics #500, 518, 519, 571; The New Titans #55. Some issues in this collection are post-crisis.

Writers/artists collected editions

Several writers and artists have left their marks on the Batman mythos, from their trailblazing art to their innovative story-telling for the time. Naturally, Neal Adams has his own collection, while the Tales of Batman and the Legends of the Dark Knight collections offer a great way to explore the work of a specific artist/writer on Batman.

Neal Adams collections

These three volumes have been reprinted in an Omnibus.

Tales of Batman

  • Tales of the Batman: Carmine Infantino
    Collects Detective Comics #327, 329, 331, 333, 335, 337, 339, 341, 343, 345, 347, 349, 351, 353, 357, 359, 361, 363, 366, 367, 369, 500; The Brave and the Bold #172, 183, 190, 194; DC Comics Presents: Batman #1. Reprints stories from May 1964 to September 2004.
  • Tales of the Batman: Archie Goodwin
    Collects Detective Comics #437–443, Annual #3; Showcase ‘95 #11; Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #132–136; Batman: Knight Cries; short stories from Batman Black and White #1, 4. Reprints stories from November 1973 to December 2000.
  • Tales of the Batman: Steve Englehart
    Collects Detective Comics #439, 469–476; Batman #311; Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #109-111; Batman: Dark Detective #1–6; Legends of the DC Universe #26-27; a short story from The Batman Chronicles #19. Reprints stories from 1974 to 2005.

  • Tales of the Batman: Gerry Conway Vol. 1
    Detective Comics #463–464, 497–499, 501–504; Batman #295, 305–305; World’s Finest Comics #250, 269; The Brave and the Bold #158, 161, 171–174; Man-Bat #1; Batman Family #17. Reprints stories from 1976 to 1981.
  • Tales of the Batman: Don Newton
    Collects Batman #305–306, 328; Detective Comics #480, 483–497; The Brave and the Bold #153, 156, 165. Reprints stories from November 1978 to December 1980.
  • Tales of the Batman: Gerry Conway Vol. 2
    Collects Detective Comics #505–513; Batman #337–346, 348; World’s Finest Comics #270. Reprints stories from July 1981 to June 1982.
  • Tales of the Batman: Gene Colan Vol. 1
    Collects Batman #340, 343–345, 348–351; Detective Comics #510, 512, 517, 523, 528–529. Reprints stories from October 1981 to August 1983.
  • Tales of the Batman: Gerry Conway Vol. 3
    Collects Detective Comics #515–526; Batman #349–359. Reprints stories from June 1982 to May 1983.
  • Tales of the Batman: Gene Colan Vol. 2
    Collects Batman #373; Detective Comics #530–538, 540–544; World’s Finest Comics #297, 299. Reprints stories from September 1983 to October 1984.

Legends of the Dark Knight Collection

  • Legends of the Dark Knight: Jim Aparo Vol. 1
    The Brave and the Bold #98, 100–102, 104–122. Reprints stories from November 1971 to October 1975.
  • Legends of the Dark Knight: Jim Aparo Vol. 2
    The Brave and the Bold #123–136, 138–151. Reprints stories from November 1973 to January 1974.
  • Legends of the Dark Knight: Jim Aparo Vol. 3
    Detective Comics #444–446; Batman Family #17; The Brave and the Bold #152, 154–155, 157–162, 168–170, 173–178, 180–182; The Untold Legend of the Batman #1–3. Reprints stories from January 1975 to January 1982.
  • Legends of the Dark Knight: Michael Golden
    Detective Comics #482; Batman #295, 303; Batman Special #1; DC Special Series #15; covers from Detective Comics #625–626, 628–631, 633, 644–646; Batman #484–485; Nightwing #66–67, 129–130; a story from Showcase ’93 #4; a short story from Batman: Gotham Knights #22; a page from Who’s Who in the DC Universe #12. Reprints stories from January 1978 to June 1984, with one story from December 2001

Batman Reading Order - Logo 1998

What to read after those classic tales of the Caped Crusader?

For more oldies in the Batfamily, you can explore Robin’s classic pre-Crisis adventures or learn more about Kathy Kane, the first Batwoman.

As for Batman, everything changed for DC Comics and our heroes following the Crisis on Infinite Earths event. It’s time for the Modern Batman!

Looking for an Amazon alternative? Find Batman comics, toys, and collectibles on Forbidden Planet.

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