Skip to content

Please note that when you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Thanks!

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Thanks!

Batman New 52 Reading Order, from The Court of Owls to the end of the DC You

In 2011, a new era began in the DC Universe with the New 52 initiative–and if you are curious about it, we have a guide about reading all of the New 52 comics in order). For some heroes, it was a complete reboot. For others, this was not totally the case, as with the famous Dark Knight. When Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo took over creative duties on Batman’s main comics, they didn’t start over from scratch, picking up in a way where the post-crisis era ended. Yet, they offered Bruce Wayne a revised backstory as they built a new mythology around Gotham City.

Snyder and Capullo were not the only authors working on Batman comics. In fact, there are multiple comic book series: Batman, Detective Comics, Batman Incorporated by Grant Morrison, Batman and Robin by Tomasi and Gleason, Batman Eternal and Batman & Robin Eternal, and Batman: The Dark Knight.

What comics should you read before Batman New 52?

The DC Comics Universe rebooted as the New 52 after the Flashpoint event. Therefore, you could take a look at it before reading anything else. Also, even if New 52 was a new entry point, Batman’s story was not fully rebooted and a few comics were launched before Flashpoint. You’ll need to take a look at Grant Morrison’s Batman Incorporated volume 1 before jumping into volume 2 and Batman and Robin by Tomasi. Also, Batman: Gates of Gotham written by Scott Snyder leads into his Batman run. And if you want more, you can go through our guide to reading the Batman: The Modern Age comics in order.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

Batman New 52 Comics Reading Order:

All the New 52 Batman Omnibuses

Not all Batman comics series from the New 52 era are available in Omnibus. That said, the most important runs have been collected in this format. If you want to go through that period using those comic book collections, here is the complete least of what’s available.

  • Batman by Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo Omnibus Vol. 1
    This is the first of two omnibus collecting Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s run on Batman. This volume collects The Court of Owls storylines and Year Zero, from Batman #0-33, #23.2, and Batman Annual #1-2. Only Batman issues.
  • Batman by Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo Omnibus Vol. 2
    This second volume collects Batman #34-52; Detective Comics #27; Batman Annual #3-4; Batman: Futures End #1; DC Sneak Peek: Batman #1; Detective Comics #1000 and Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1-3.
  • Batman: Detective Comics: The New 52 Omnibus Vol. 1 (coming in 2025)
    Collects Detective Comics #0-26; Detective Comics Annual #1-2.
  • Batman & Robin by Tomasi & Gleason Omnibus
    Batman and Robin. The Dynamic Duo. The Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder. Father and son. This is the omnibus collecting Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason’s run. This volume collects Batman & Robin #20-22, Batman & Robin #0-40 From The New 52 Series, Batman & Robin Annual #1-3, Robin Rises: Omega #1, Robin Rises: Alpha #1 and a story from Secret Origins #4.
  • 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 Eternal Omnibus (2023 Edition)
    Collects Batman Eternal issues #1-52 and Batman #28.
  • Batman & Robin Eternal Omnibus
    Collects Batman & Robin Eternal #1-26 and Batman: Endgame Special Edition #1.

Your Classic Batman New 52 reading Order, Paperback Edition

As there is more than one Batman comics in publication, things can get complicated pretty easily. As usual, we have tried to make sense of what DC Comics did by following the collected editions. Here is our proposed Batman New 52 reading order based on the trade paperback editions.

The Court of Owls story (Batman #1-11) is highly popular and has been collected in other formats: an Absolute Edition, and a DC Compact Edition.

Batman Icon Reading Order

Batman: The Night of the Owls – Collects all of the tie-ins. Most of them take place after Batman #8, but some will spoil the ending. Better to read the book after. The other option is to follow our full reading order of the event.
Collects Batman #8-9, Batman Annual #1, Detective Comics #9, Batman: The Dark Knight #9, Batwing #9, Batman and Robin #9, Red Hood and the Outlaws #9, Birds of Prey #9, Batgirl #9, Nightwing #8-9, and All-Star Western #9.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

Joker Batman New 52 Reading OrderWhat’s coming next is another event called Death of the Family. This time, Joker is back in Gotham with a plan to get revenge on all the people Batman has come to rely on over the years. He wants to destroy the Bat-Family. We are recommending you go check out our guide to reading the Death of the Family comics in order.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

The Riddler Batman New 52 Reading OrderZero Year is a prequel storyline (more about that in our article about the Batman: Zero Year Reading Order) originally published after the Death of the Family event. The story takes place a few years before The Court of Owls. You can read it here or at another moment before. As usual, the trade collecting the tie-ins put together all of the issues, whatever their order. Some contain spoilers, it’s preferable to read it after, but if it doesn’t bother you, you can read it before Dark City.

(optional) The Batman/Superman comic starts with another prequel story set before the formation of the Justice League. The following stories are barely connected to the Batman universe, it’s more of a Superman book.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

Batman Icon Reading OrderAs part of the 75th-anniversary celebration of Batman, a new Batman Eternal comics maxiseries (available in omnibus) was introduced as a year-long weekly limited series written by Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV, Ray Fawkes, Kyle Higgins, and Tim Seeley.

Joker Batman New 52 Reading OrderThis is time for the Endgame storyline which is the follow-up to Death of the Family. As The Joker plays his endgame with Batman, the citizens, villains, and heroes of Gotham alike must survive his deadly antics and come to terms with who The Joker is and what he means to them. More details are available in our guide to reading the Endgame comics in order.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

Batman Icon Reading OrderDC You: Technically, the New 52 era ended here with the beginning of the DC You one. Spinning out of the Convergence event, the DC You was a new direction presented as putting “story over continuity,” a way to allow more freedom in storytelling. It was not a full-blown reboot, at all. Many notable characters also underwent status quo changes.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

Batman Rebirth: The Out of Continuity Stories

As always, Batman’s universe expands beyond the limit of the DC regular ongoing series. The following books are stories published during the New 52 era that are not considered part of the main continuity.

Batman New 52 Reading Order Icon

What Should You Read After Batman New 52/DC You?

This is the end of another era for Batman and all the other heroes of the DC Comics Extended Universe. We are entering the Rebirth Era. For The Dark Knight, this came with a new writer taking over the main Batman comics as Tom King replaced Scott Snyder.

If you want to explore a lot more of Batman’s adventures, we got you covered, just follow the guides or visit our page dedicated to all of our Batman coverage:

We also wrote reading orders for Nightwing, Jason Todd/Red Hood, Barbara Gordon, Cassandra Cain/Batgirl, Damian Wayne, Azrael, Stephanie Brown, Batwoman, Alfred Pennyworth, Azrael, and Catwoman. More to come.

Pin
Tags: