Okay, I need to set one thing straight! I’m a BIG Batman fan — always have been, always will be! Of course, I’m thrilled with the incredible storytelling of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo in Batman along with the other wonderful comics featuring the Dark Knight these days. There’s not a bad one in the bunch!
What some folks may not realize is that there’s a digital-first “comic” being released by DC with shorter stories that give some creators who haven’t been known to work with Batman their chance to give us their take on the character. And it certainly seems to be doing very well!
Now, some books like Batman Beyond Unlimited and Smallville Season 11 have been appearing in digital format before they are collected into a monthly comic. (I do love that first one especially, by the way!)
Recently, the company revived a previous Batman title with Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight and re-invented it for the digital age. Here’s the description: “On Thursdays beginning in June, a new digital Batman series will showcase stories of the Dark Knight outside of regular DC Comics continuity and feature artists and writers such as Ben Templesmith, Steve Niles, B. Clay Moore, Nicola Scott and Joshua Hale Fialkov. One all-star issue teams writer — and Lost co-creator — Damon Lindelof with artist Jeff Lemire (Animal Man, Sweet Tooth).” Each chapter retails for .99 cents.
“Our goal has always been from the very beginning to have something for everyone. The opportunities that digital opens up, it really allows us to go for as wide an audience as possible,” said Hank Kanalz, DC’s senior vice president for digital. It’s great to read a short story instead of a much longer tale, which happens nearly all of the time in comics these days.
The first issue released, “The Butler Did It.” was a pretty interesting look at Batman’s motivations. Then Amazo took on the Dark Knight in “All Of The Above,” which I also enjoyed a lot. “The world’s greatest detective preemptively stopped the world’s dumbest criminal” in “The Crime Never Committed.” Then the Joker convinced ordinary citizens that they’re actually Batman so they’d try to take down Killer Croc! That last one was the first multi-part story!
It’s tough to pick out one that I preferred above the others, but the Joker story has the most unexpected twists and turns. But hey, that doesn’t mean the rest are bad! Far from it!
And there’s even more Legends of the Dark Knight coming! Here’s some of the official announcement:
“We’re excited to announce upcoming dates and the creator line-up for all-new chapters of the hugely popular digital-first series LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT. An all-star line-up of writers and artists teamed up to continue the series of one-shot stories that chronicle the most famous detective.
“Here’s the full schedule and creator line-up through the fall:
August 9— “A Game to Die For” written by TJ Fixman with artwork by Christopher Mitten
August 16— “Slam!” Part 1 written by Joshua Fialkov with artwork by Phil Hester & Eric Gapstur
August 23— “Slam!” Part 2 written by Joshua Fialkov with artwork by Phil Hester & Eric Gapstur
August 30— “Slam!” Part 3 written by Joshua Fialkov with artwork by Phil Hester & Eric Gapstur
September 6— “Bat-Man: The Movie” written by Andrew Dabb with artwork by Giorgio Pontrelli
September 13— “Together” written by Jonathan Larsen with artwork by Tan Eng Huat
September 20— “Gotham Spirit” written by Jeff Parker with artwork by Gabriel Hardman
September 27— “Dungeons & Dragons” writing and artwork by Mike Oeming
October 4— “Look Inside” written by Rob Williams with artwork by Juan Ryp
October 11— “Arkham’s Ghost” Part 1 written by Joe Harris with artwork by Jason Masters
October 18— “Arkham’s Ghost” Part 2 written by Joe Harris with artwork by Jason Masters
October 25— “Arkham’s Ghost” Part 3 written by Joe Harris with artwork by Jason Masters”
For those who have more patience than I do, these stories soon will be collected and available at local shops in a monthly comic. But every Thursday, I now have a new ritual … to pick up the newest digital Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight! If you like Batman, short stories or digital comics, you should make it part of your routine as well! You can purchase, download and read your “copies” here!
