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Batman: Black and White (Collected Editions) #4
Batman: Black and White, Vol. 4
The legendary, Eisner Award-winning series
Batman: Black & White
returns in a brand-new volume featuring tales of The Dark Knight by some of comics' greatest writers and artists such as Chip Kidd, Michael Cho, Neal Adams, Joe Quinones, Maris Wicks, John Arcudi, Sean Murphy, Sean Murphy, Rafael Albuquerque, Howard Mackie and Chris Samnee!
192 pages, Hardcover
First published May 1, 2014
11 people are currently reading
255 people want to read
About the author
Mark Chiarello
97 books16 followersMark Chiarello was born on Halloween in 1960. His book "Heroes of the Negro Leagues" (Abrams Publishing) was named the second best sports book of 2007 by Amazon.com. A graduate of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY, Mark was fortunate enough to have as roommates, Kent Williams, John Van Fleet, and George Pratt. He worked as an illustrator for DisneyWorld for a short time in the 1980’s, then went on to work for Marvel Comics and ultimately DC Comics, where he is currently Art Director.
Mark lives in Maplewood, NJ with his wonderful wife Catherine and wonderful kids, Jack and Rose, and his almost wonderful dog, oscar.
Mark lives in Maplewood, NJ with his wonderful wife Catherine and wonderful kids, Jack and Rose, and his almost wonderful dog, oscar.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
February 6, 2015
The whole concept behind Batman Black & White began in the mid-1990s when DC asked several artists and writers to collaborate on stand alone stories featuring the Caped Crusader - using only black and white of course. Since it sold better than expected, a second and third series would soon follow. Lying dormant since 2007, DC resurrected the series for a fourth volume with the trade paperback hitting comic shop shelves this past January.
Before writing this review, I went back and read my thoughts on the first two volumes. I found myself agreeing more or less with what I had said about the preceding books - several bright spots amongst a few passable duds. That being said, I felt Howard Mackie and Chris Samnee’s “Head Games” stood out. “A Place in Between” from Rafael Albuquerque as well as “Silent Knight, Holy Knight” from Michael Uslan and Dave Bullock were also memorable.
My biggest issue is that while some artists did wonderful work with the black and white concept, many chose to seemingly strip the color from what could have been your average Batman visuals, similar to watching a movie on a black and white TV. This isn't meant to be a slight against the talented men and women involved, I just would have preferred a more imaginative approach to some of the stories.
If you’re a fan of the series, the editors at DC will give you what you've come to expect from this unique project. The fourth volume of Batman Black and White continues to explore the Dark Knight’s rich history while serving up a few stories that will stick with you beyond their often short six page length.
Also posted @ Every Read Thing.
Before writing this review, I went back and read my thoughts on the first two volumes. I found myself agreeing more or less with what I had said about the preceding books - several bright spots amongst a few passable duds. That being said, I felt Howard Mackie and Chris Samnee’s “Head Games” stood out. “A Place in Between” from Rafael Albuquerque as well as “Silent Knight, Holy Knight” from Michael Uslan and Dave Bullock were also memorable.
My biggest issue is that while some artists did wonderful work with the black and white concept, many chose to seemingly strip the color from what could have been your average Batman visuals, similar to watching a movie on a black and white TV. This isn't meant to be a slight against the talented men and women involved, I just would have preferred a more imaginative approach to some of the stories.
If you’re a fan of the series, the editors at DC will give you what you've come to expect from this unique project. The fourth volume of Batman Black and White continues to explore the Dark Knight’s rich history while serving up a few stories that will stick with you beyond their often short six page length.
Also posted @ Every Read Thing.
February 14, 2014
The black and white Batman short story anthology, imaginatively titled Batman: Black and White, returns for a fourth volume. Like the other three books, Black and White’s stories are very uneven with some standouts out of many duds but as is also the case with this series, the art is by far the selling point of these books.
The most memorable story here is Neal Adams’ “Batman Zombie” where a zombie Batman shuffles through Gotham witnessing the effects of a recession on ordinary men and women. He wakes up having experienced a Christmas Carol-ish dream and decides he could do more good as Bruce Wayne the billionaire than Batman the vigilante, and goes out to spread the wealth. It’s great to see Adams’ art but man, that is a completely nutso storyline! I guess we couldn’t expect less from the guy who brought us Batman: Odyssey, right?
Continuing the theme of having artists writing their own stories is Rafael Grampa’s “Into the Circle” where Joker is recruiting gangs to rob Wayne Manor – but Batman is waiting in the shadows to stop them. Why are Batman and Joker working together? Blair Butler and Chris Weston’s “I Killed the Bat” is an interesting riff on the sensational tabloid stories of yesteryear as a madwoman murders a man whom she believes to be Batman. Weston’s art is absolutely first class and his time with Grant Morrison drawing The Filth serves him well especially when things start to get meta towards the end.
Ivan Brandon’s “Hell Night” shows Batman’s yearly attempt to break into Wayne Manor to test its defences, which was a pretty clever and enjoyable short, and Olly Moss and Becky Cloonan’s “Bruce” takes the perspective of the many hot women Bruce “dates” for appearances’ sake and what their take on the “billionaire playboy” is. Cloonan’s art is her usual stunning best and the story is an original angle for looking at Bruce that you rarely see.
These kinds of shorts – a certain idea, often very small, about Batman explored in roughly 6 pages – are the ones that work best rather than the ones trying to fit in a full mystery/case within a short frame. Though looking at the book as a whole, it’s clear to see Batman’s not at his best in the short story format and the character works better in long-form narratives.
The rest of the volume is filled with mediocre, forgettable stories with one particularly awful one by Dan DiDio called “Manbat Out of Hell” where Manbat’s kids get molested!!! JG Jones’ art is terrific, it’s just a shame he got the short straw to draw this crummy, utterly horrible story.
But if the stories are generally unremarkable, the art more than makes up for it. Jim Steranko’s absolutely confusing cover where a Jesus-esque Batman is standing above jigsaw puzzle pieces and giant ants is as well drawn as it is baffling, and Amanda Conner’s cover of Batman is also eye-catchingly beautiful. Artists who drew the interiors include Chris Samnee, Michael Cho, Rafael Albuquerque, Dave Bullock, Lee Bermejo, Damion Scott, Sean Murphy, Michael Allred, along with the aforementioned Becky Cloonan, Chris Weston, and Neal Adams. It really is a murderer’s row of first class comics artists!
Batman Black and White Volume 4 isn’t a must-read Batman book but if you’re a fan there’ll be enough here for you to enjoy and there’s certainly a lot more here than the shorts I’ve mentioned – just remember to skip over Dan DiDio’s story!
The most memorable story here is Neal Adams’ “Batman Zombie” where a zombie Batman shuffles through Gotham witnessing the effects of a recession on ordinary men and women. He wakes up having experienced a Christmas Carol-ish dream and decides he could do more good as Bruce Wayne the billionaire than Batman the vigilante, and goes out to spread the wealth. It’s great to see Adams’ art but man, that is a completely nutso storyline! I guess we couldn’t expect less from the guy who brought us Batman: Odyssey, right?
Continuing the theme of having artists writing their own stories is Rafael Grampa’s “Into the Circle” where Joker is recruiting gangs to rob Wayne Manor – but Batman is waiting in the shadows to stop them. Why are Batman and Joker working together? Blair Butler and Chris Weston’s “I Killed the Bat” is an interesting riff on the sensational tabloid stories of yesteryear as a madwoman murders a man whom she believes to be Batman. Weston’s art is absolutely first class and his time with Grant Morrison drawing The Filth serves him well especially when things start to get meta towards the end.
Ivan Brandon’s “Hell Night” shows Batman’s yearly attempt to break into Wayne Manor to test its defences, which was a pretty clever and enjoyable short, and Olly Moss and Becky Cloonan’s “Bruce” takes the perspective of the many hot women Bruce “dates” for appearances’ sake and what their take on the “billionaire playboy” is. Cloonan’s art is her usual stunning best and the story is an original angle for looking at Bruce that you rarely see.
These kinds of shorts – a certain idea, often very small, about Batman explored in roughly 6 pages – are the ones that work best rather than the ones trying to fit in a full mystery/case within a short frame. Though looking at the book as a whole, it’s clear to see Batman’s not at his best in the short story format and the character works better in long-form narratives.
The rest of the volume is filled with mediocre, forgettable stories with one particularly awful one by Dan DiDio called “Manbat Out of Hell” where Manbat’s kids get molested!!! JG Jones’ art is terrific, it’s just a shame he got the short straw to draw this crummy, utterly horrible story.
But if the stories are generally unremarkable, the art more than makes up for it. Jim Steranko’s absolutely confusing cover where a Jesus-esque Batman is standing above jigsaw puzzle pieces and giant ants is as well drawn as it is baffling, and Amanda Conner’s cover of Batman is also eye-catchingly beautiful. Artists who drew the interiors include Chris Samnee, Michael Cho, Rafael Albuquerque, Dave Bullock, Lee Bermejo, Damion Scott, Sean Murphy, Michael Allred, along with the aforementioned Becky Cloonan, Chris Weston, and Neal Adams. It really is a murderer’s row of first class comics artists!
Batman Black and White Volume 4 isn’t a must-read Batman book but if you’re a fan there’ll be enough here for you to enjoy and there’s certainly a lot more here than the shorts I’ve mentioned – just remember to skip over Dan DiDio’s story!
March 8, 2015
Im afraid this volume shows the Batman Black And White Series have jumped the shark. This was just disappointing. There were a few highlights. Neal Adams story had good art, but it was basically a social commentary. (Probably my two favorite comic artists of all time are Berni Wrightson and Neal Adams.) I liked the JG Jones art in his piece, but the story was a bit too dark. Micheal Uslan and Dave Bullock had a good story that was set up like an old time silent movie. Lee Berjemo had a good story with great art. There was a good Killer Croc story.
Overall, though, the volume was subpar. The stories were mostly too wordy, like the writers were trying to cram as much into the few pages they had to work with as possible. It also seemed like everyone was going for artsy and avant garde type stories. Just tell a good Batman story, it doesn't have to be so "fancy." This made several of the stories come across as pretentious.
The series ran hot and cold, but really it just all turned out lukewarm. I would skip this unless you like really avant garde type stories, or you a REALLY die-hard Batman fan.
Overall, though, the volume was subpar. The stories were mostly too wordy, like the writers were trying to cram as much into the few pages they had to work with as possible. It also seemed like everyone was going for artsy and avant garde type stories. Just tell a good Batman story, it doesn't have to be so "fancy." This made several of the stories come across as pretentious.
The series ran hot and cold, but really it just all turned out lukewarm. I would skip this unless you like really avant garde type stories, or you a REALLY die-hard Batman fan.
January 18, 2020
Batman Black and White can be broken up into three sections: the first miniseries, the series that ran as a backup story in issues of Gotham Knights, and the second miniseries, all collected across four volumes. While this volume just collects the second miniseries I'll be reviewing it more as a whole throughout all installments.
I really liked it, obviously as an anthology series it has ups and downs but overall I think it's magnificent. A lot of the times the stories are deeper and practically character studies of what Batman or other characters in his gallery represent. Then some are just fun stories about Batman solving mysteries or fighting goons. For the most part they're by some great writers and artists, and to my surprise volume 4 has a story written and drawn by Neil Adams and it was actually really cool and had like rough almost sketch art that was nice to see for his style.
My copy of this volume kinda smelled funny so that definitely knocked some points off but throughout the whole series like four stories are written by Paul Dini so that brings the points back up. So probably a 4 or 4.5
it's great and I'm happy DC is reprinting it in a big omnibus even though I won't buy it since I have the trades I hope some people do and that pushes DC to do another series, maybe even mix it up and do Black and White for different characters
I really liked it, obviously as an anthology series it has ups and downs but overall I think it's magnificent. A lot of the times the stories are deeper and practically character studies of what Batman or other characters in his gallery represent. Then some are just fun stories about Batman solving mysteries or fighting goons. For the most part they're by some great writers and artists, and to my surprise volume 4 has a story written and drawn by Neil Adams and it was actually really cool and had like rough almost sketch art that was nice to see for his style.
My copy of this volume kinda smelled funny so that definitely knocked some points off but throughout the whole series like four stories are written by Paul Dini so that brings the points back up. So probably a 4 or 4.5
it's great and I'm happy DC is reprinting it in a big omnibus even though I won't buy it since I have the trades I hope some people do and that pushes DC to do another series, maybe even mix it up and do Black and White for different characters
April 7, 2016
This was an interesting buy for me. It is a black and white anthology of short batman tales by a variety of writers and artists. As with any such endeavor the overall feeling is a sum of all the parts. Considering everything it comes in at a solid 4/5. It's not perfect since A few of the stories (but really only 2 or so) fell flat. It was an overly humorous, cheesy (think Adam West Batman) art style compounded by a weak story. The rest of the stories range from very good to amazing. The artwork is all across the board as well. Some styles are great, other are ok and some I didn't like at all. But with the brief length of each story and the variety of styles of story and art displayed in this single issue, I am glad to add this to my collection of Batman tales-any fan of the Dark Knight should do the same.
March 14, 2015
It was a fun collection to read and with some of the artists you could see how much detail they put into it because it had no color. I liked that the stories were short but I wished some of the stories could of been longer because they had a great concept. I will definitely go back and read the other volumes!
July 8, 2014
4,5
En general me ha encantado aunque, si que es cierto que algunas historias son mejores que otras, todo depende del lector.
Lo que más me ha gustado a sido poder conocer a nuevos dibujantes. Un libro muy interesante para ver a Batman bajo diferentes focos y muchos y variados estilos.
En general me ha encantado aunque, si que es cierto que algunas historias son mejores que otras, todo depende del lector.
Lo que más me ha gustado a sido poder conocer a nuevos dibujantes. Un libro muy interesante para ver a Batman bajo diferentes focos y muchos y variados estilos.
September 12, 2024
This is another solid volume of the Black and White series. I feel like it’s a more average volume, but it skews on the better side as they’re mostly quality Batman stories, except that last one.
"Don't Know Where, Don't Know When" written by Chip Kidd, art by Michael Cho 3.5 Stars
Just a genuinely good Robin story.
"Batman Zombie" by Neal Adams 3 Stars
Adams’ response to the neverending stream of Batman comics and possibly the recent wiping of his comics from continuity with the New 52? The last page kind of makes it more mediocre, but I like my other reading.
"Justice is Served" written by Maris Wicks, art by Joe Quinones 4 Stars
A fun story with great character work. It’s like a good episode of The Animated Series.
"Driven" written by John Arcudi, art by Sean Murphy 3.5 Stars
I smirked.
"Head Games" written by Howard Mackie, art by Chris Samnee 2.5 Stars
I feel like I’ve seen this before.
"Manbat Out of Hell" written by Dan Didio, art by J. G. Jones 3.5 Stars
Huh, I liked a Didio story. The art’s pretty cool, and Manbat is somewhat underrated.
"Into the Circle" by Rafael Grampá 2.5 Stars
It’s a little predictable, but some of the art is neat.
"A Place In Between" by Rafael Albuquerque 2 Stars
I should’ve kept a tally on fear gas stories. Cool art, though.
"Winter's End" written by Jeff Lemire, art by Alex Nino 3.5 Stars
Lemire brings the personal with some great use of white by Nino.
"Silent Knight... Unholy Knight!" written by Michael Uslan, art by Dave Bullock 3.5 Stars
It’s kind of style over substance, but the art is so good!
"Rule Number One" by Lee Bermejo 3 Stars
It’s a cute little comedy bit.
"Hall of Mirrors" by Damion Scott 3 Stars
It looks cool, but it’s something that’s definitely been done.
"An Innocent Man" written by Marv Wolfman, art by Riccardo Burchielli 3.5 Stars
It’s the kind of Batman tale that will grow more relevant as the character ages. Guilt and Innocence are not simple concepts.
"Batman: Babel Comes to Gotham" by Rian Hughes 3.5 Stars
It’s a cool meta throwback with some excellent supporting art.
"Role Models" written by Paul Dini, art by Stéphane Roux 4 Stars
I love this. It’s always weird to look back at how Harley and Ivy were represented before they got hugely popular. This is right at the cusp.
"Ghost of Gotham" written by Nathan Edmondson, art by Kenneth Rocafort 3 Stars
Neat, though I’ve seen the Animated series episode.
"Tea-Minus Party" written by Michael Allred & Lee Allred, art by Michael Allred 3.5 Stars
I am always down for Michael Allred art, and his brother Lee provides a simple, but effective Detective puzzle.
"Long Day" by Dustin Nguyen 3.5 Stars
I loved seeing Descender creator Dustin Nguyen in here. The ending really makes this one, and I definitely love the art.
"Even in the Darkest Moments" written by David Macho, art by Rubén Pellejero 3.5 Stars
This one is super cute, and it has another more positive look at Batman.
"Missing in Action" by Sean Galloway 2 Stars
This one could have used a few more pages.
"Hell Night" written by Ivan Brandon, art by Paolo Rivera 4 Stars
This one is kind of insane, but I rather love the insanity. I mean, Batman does prepare for extreme situations, so…
"Cat and Mouse" written by Keith Giffen, art by Javier Pulido 2 Stars
Giffen is going for funny Batman, and I’m a big fan of Pulido’s weird style, but this just kind of bored me.
"I Killed The Bat" written by Blair Butler, art by Chris Weston 3 Stars
Too meta for me, but with cool art.
"Flip Side!" written by Len Wein, art by Víctor Ibáñez 3 Stars
Kinda standard Two-Face story with good art.
"Hope" written by Jimmy Palmiotti, art by Andrew Robinson 4 Stars
Another great Bruce Wayne story. I feel like this is a little rich benefactor, but I like utilizing Bruce as a character.
"Clay" by Cliff Chiang 4 Stars
This is a look at Robin’s point of view, and I quite appreciate it!
"Bruce" written by Olly Moss and Becky Cloonan 4 Stars
A look at the random women Bruce dates and what it must be like trying to engage with half a person.
"The Batman: Hiding in Plain Sight" by Dave Taylor 3 Stars
Another one saved by some cool old-school Science Fiction influenced art.
"She Lies at Midnight" by Adam Hughes 3 Stars
I have mixed feelings about this. I feel like Catwoman is unnecessarily cruel here, but I like the idea behind the ruse. Also, not sure Hughes’ pinup style art is the best way to show this story.
"To Beat the Bat" by Dave Johnson 1 Star
What the… Like, I thought the story was rote, and then… This is just a rather tasteless use of suicide.
"Don't Know Where, Don't Know When" written by Chip Kidd, art by Michael Cho 3.5 Stars
Just a genuinely good Robin story.
"Batman Zombie" by Neal Adams 3 Stars
Adams’ response to the neverending stream of Batman comics and possibly the recent wiping of his comics from continuity with the New 52? The last page kind of makes it more mediocre, but I like my other reading.
"Justice is Served" written by Maris Wicks, art by Joe Quinones 4 Stars
A fun story with great character work. It’s like a good episode of The Animated Series.
"Driven" written by John Arcudi, art by Sean Murphy 3.5 Stars
I smirked.
"Head Games" written by Howard Mackie, art by Chris Samnee 2.5 Stars
I feel like I’ve seen this before.
"Manbat Out of Hell" written by Dan Didio, art by J. G. Jones 3.5 Stars
Huh, I liked a Didio story. The art’s pretty cool, and Manbat is somewhat underrated.
"Into the Circle" by Rafael Grampá 2.5 Stars
It’s a little predictable, but some of the art is neat.
"A Place In Between" by Rafael Albuquerque 2 Stars
I should’ve kept a tally on fear gas stories. Cool art, though.
"Winter's End" written by Jeff Lemire, art by Alex Nino 3.5 Stars
Lemire brings the personal with some great use of white by Nino.
"Silent Knight... Unholy Knight!" written by Michael Uslan, art by Dave Bullock 3.5 Stars
It’s kind of style over substance, but the art is so good!
"Rule Number One" by Lee Bermejo 3 Stars
It’s a cute little comedy bit.
"Hall of Mirrors" by Damion Scott 3 Stars
It looks cool, but it’s something that’s definitely been done.
"An Innocent Man" written by Marv Wolfman, art by Riccardo Burchielli 3.5 Stars
It’s the kind of Batman tale that will grow more relevant as the character ages. Guilt and Innocence are not simple concepts.
"Batman: Babel Comes to Gotham" by Rian Hughes 3.5 Stars
It’s a cool meta throwback with some excellent supporting art.
"Role Models" written by Paul Dini, art by Stéphane Roux 4 Stars
I love this. It’s always weird to look back at how Harley and Ivy were represented before they got hugely popular. This is right at the cusp.
"Ghost of Gotham" written by Nathan Edmondson, art by Kenneth Rocafort 3 Stars
Neat, though I’ve seen the Animated series episode.
"Tea-Minus Party" written by Michael Allred & Lee Allred, art by Michael Allred 3.5 Stars
I am always down for Michael Allred art, and his brother Lee provides a simple, but effective Detective puzzle.
"Long Day" by Dustin Nguyen 3.5 Stars
I loved seeing Descender creator Dustin Nguyen in here. The ending really makes this one, and I definitely love the art.
"Even in the Darkest Moments" written by David Macho, art by Rubén Pellejero 3.5 Stars
This one is super cute, and it has another more positive look at Batman.
"Missing in Action" by Sean Galloway 2 Stars
This one could have used a few more pages.
"Hell Night" written by Ivan Brandon, art by Paolo Rivera 4 Stars
This one is kind of insane, but I rather love the insanity. I mean, Batman does prepare for extreme situations, so…
"Cat and Mouse" written by Keith Giffen, art by Javier Pulido 2 Stars
Giffen is going for funny Batman, and I’m a big fan of Pulido’s weird style, but this just kind of bored me.
"I Killed The Bat" written by Blair Butler, art by Chris Weston 3 Stars
Too meta for me, but with cool art.
"Flip Side!" written by Len Wein, art by Víctor Ibáñez 3 Stars
Kinda standard Two-Face story with good art.
"Hope" written by Jimmy Palmiotti, art by Andrew Robinson 4 Stars
Another great Bruce Wayne story. I feel like this is a little rich benefactor, but I like utilizing Bruce as a character.
"Clay" by Cliff Chiang 4 Stars
This is a look at Robin’s point of view, and I quite appreciate it!
"Bruce" written by Olly Moss and Becky Cloonan 4 Stars
A look at the random women Bruce dates and what it must be like trying to engage with half a person.
"The Batman: Hiding in Plain Sight" by Dave Taylor 3 Stars
Another one saved by some cool old-school Science Fiction influenced art.
"She Lies at Midnight" by Adam Hughes 3 Stars
I have mixed feelings about this. I feel like Catwoman is unnecessarily cruel here, but I like the idea behind the ruse. Also, not sure Hughes’ pinup style art is the best way to show this story.
"To Beat the Bat" by Dave Johnson 1 Star
What the… Like, I thought the story was rote, and then… This is just a rather tasteless use of suicide.
November 1, 2018
Batman: Black and White, Vol. 4 is a Batman anthology featuring black-and-white Batman short stories. Written and illustrated by various writers and pencilers, Batman: Black and White, Vol. 4 is an anthology of thirty short stories compiled in six issues of five stories. This trade paperback collects all six issues from the 2013–2014 series.
For the most part, I really like most of these entries – the black and white gave the dark noir feeling that this anthology was trying to capture. Like most anthologies, there are weaker contributions, but that is only comparatively speaking, as even the mediocre stories were quite good.
With many writers, graphic artists and colorist it rather difficult to rate this anthology. For the most part, I rather enjoyed the narrative and penciling throughout – DC Comics has chosen their best luminaries and have them develop a short story. The penciling is a tad inconsistent, but it was not a problem as each story was rather short and the dislike of any penciling or writing style would be over quite quickly.
All in all, Batman: Black and White, Vol. 4 is a wonderful collection of short stories detective noir stories featuring Batman or one of his associates written and penciled by the crème de la crème of DC Comics best.
For the most part, I really like most of these entries – the black and white gave the dark noir feeling that this anthology was trying to capture. Like most anthologies, there are weaker contributions, but that is only comparatively speaking, as even the mediocre stories were quite good.
With many writers, graphic artists and colorist it rather difficult to rate this anthology. For the most part, I rather enjoyed the narrative and penciling throughout – DC Comics has chosen their best luminaries and have them develop a short story. The penciling is a tad inconsistent, but it was not a problem as each story was rather short and the dislike of any penciling or writing style would be over quite quickly.
All in all, Batman: Black and White, Vol. 4 is a wonderful collection of short stories detective noir stories featuring Batman or one of his associates written and penciled by the crème de la crème of DC Comics best.
October 1, 2018
Another of DC's periodic black and white Batman anthologies, featuring short stories by creators from Neal Adams to Marv Wolfman. They vary in quality, of course, with Adams' contribution being particularly strange as a zombie Batman shambles around, powerless to stop real-world problems. What a commentary! It's probably one of the best in the set.
Others I enjoyed included Rafael Albuquerque's story of Batman's fears, with a nice cameo by Deadman, the Allred's story of the Penguin manipulating another villain to try and commit the perfect crime, Keith Giffen and Javier Pulido's playful use of Bats and disguises to learn information, and Cliff Chiang's story of Robin proving himself.
All in all, a pretty solid collection that lets a lot of creators play in the sandbox without worrying about continuity. Definitely fun for Batman fans who don't want the monthly grind.
Others I enjoyed included Rafael Albuquerque's story of Batman's fears, with a nice cameo by Deadman, the Allred's story of the Penguin manipulating another villain to try and commit the perfect crime, Keith Giffen and Javier Pulido's playful use of Bats and disguises to learn information, and Cliff Chiang's story of Robin proving himself.
All in all, a pretty solid collection that lets a lot of creators play in the sandbox without worrying about continuity. Definitely fun for Batman fans who don't want the monthly grind.
November 10, 2020
Another collection of short black and white Batman stories by a ton of creators, not always associated with Batman or DC. While some are interesting, most seem like fillers. That's the crux of a book like this. No matter how much I enjoyed a story I don't know if any of these tales will stick with me. The creators here are all talented but I wished they had more room to work. Overall, a solid idea without enough meat.
February 6, 2023
No me canso de las historias de estas antologías de Batman en blanco y negro. Son todas increíbles. Y como ya dije sobre los tomos previos, la mezcla, la combinación de estilos (artísticos y narrativos), la profusión de personajes y enemigos, la variedad de tonos, de tipos de historias, de artes e ilustraciones, le dan una vitalidad y una energía única a estas recopilaciones de breves historias de enorme calidad. Ojalá los sigan sacando por siempre.
November 5, 2018
A mix of short Batman stories by different artists and authors in their own different style. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy these stories as much, as I much prefer the longer, mystery oriented Batman stories. Further, some of the Batman stories seemed inconsistent to character, for example when Batman lets Manbat kill a criminal.
A real mixed bag here.
A real mixed bag here.
July 18, 2021
Make ->x<- amount of cuts and you have ***** EASILY. It's even masterpiece shelf worthy if you make a few more.
With a savory international roster:
->Brazil
->Canada
->England x2
->France
->Italy
->Japan
->Philippines
->Spain x3
That's how you reach higher, gain acclaim and most importantly (for capes & tights)-> keep it fresh!
With a savory international roster:
->Brazil
->Canada
->England x2
->France
->Italy
->Japan
->Philippines
->Spain x3
That's how you reach higher, gain acclaim and most importantly (for capes & tights)-> keep it fresh!
July 20, 2023
Writers and artists collaporate to produce a variety of short Batman tales.
Despite the long list of top tier creators this is a mixed bag of stories, with some better than others. The art is the real winner in most cases with the short strips varying from throw away jokes to surreal adventures of the Dark Knight.
Despite the long list of top tier creators this is a mixed bag of stories, with some better than others. The art is the real winner in most cases with the short strips varying from throw away jokes to surreal adventures of the Dark Knight.
August 31, 2025
Not got a lot to say about this book. Some good issues, some boring ones. But it has the same issue as previous volumes; the stories are all way too brief. Some of the issues had good pencils, some others were bland.
Couldn’t recommend this one. Felt like a chore to finish and I skipped a lot of the stories.
Couldn’t recommend this one. Felt like a chore to finish and I skipped a lot of the stories.
November 21, 2025
Like every book that collects short stories, this one had some absolute bangers and some not so great stories. But it's always interesting to see how people write the universe of Batman and what they focus on in the few pages that they have for their stories. This series is also a good way to just see how many types of art style and writing style there is out in the world of comics.
February 23, 2019
Oh boy I can't keep any of these straight anymore. They all had one or two pretty good stories and then a number of fair stories.
What's interesting is how many of them focus on Scarecrow and how few focus on the Joker. Also, few Robins.
What's interesting is how many of them focus on Scarecrow and how few focus on the Joker. Also, few Robins.
January 2, 2020
As with any anthology, there are hits and misses, which brings everything to an even middle. Some of the artists don't seem to be very familiar with working in the black-and-white realm, which makes the art confusing at times, since colour isn't present to give more clarity to their storytelling.
July 27, 2020
Lots of short Batman stories told by many different writers and authors, but all in only black and white. Tone inconsistent: Some cartoonish, some flat, some good, some excellent. “She lies at mid nite” and “I killed the bat” were highlights with big powerful twists.
January 14, 2023
Great selection of 30 very short Batman vignettes from an amazing collection of writers and artists. They are fun and fast. Don't expect anything groundbreaking, just admire the art and revel in Batman.
November 18, 2025
Another great collection of artists. A few more stories work in this one than most of the other DC and Marvel black and white collections. Still better to flip through for the art rather than read though.
May 6, 2017
sad to be the last , overall they are all great !!!
March 10, 2018
Probably the most consistent volume of the B&W series, with some real top-shelf talent on board.
May 11, 2018
After four volumes, the gimmick is pretty well played out.
May 2, 2020
Many great stories. Love the varying styles.
July 24, 2023
ask and you shall receive. dick robin, nightwing, jason robin, a tim mention?? volume five i have high hopes for a full-on batfam story let's go
January 19, 2024
Toujours aussi plaisant à lire!!
March 31, 2025
Big fan of this format, stories to the point with above average art. By far my favorite: The First Rule.
April 7, 2024
Four volumes down, one more to go! My thoughts:
-"Batman Zombie" was weird, but Neal Adam's artwork is nice.
-I liked "Head Games." It showed how care about each other. I think too many people too often overlook the character, but he's not (always) a pushover.
-"ManBat Out of Hell" is one of my favorites in this volume. It is heartwarming and a good reminder that Batman won't kill you, but he doesn't have to save you (especially if you abuse children). Plus, the artwork by J.G. Jones is beautiful.
-"A Place in Between" is another one of my favorites. How could I not love it when it combines Greek mythology and my favorite DC villain?
-I don't think I understood "Into the Circle."
-"An Innocent Man" is very interesting. A criminal is supposed to be executed in 24 hours, but Batman thinks he might be innocent of the murder and works hard to save the man. It just so happens that the criminal on death row is the Joker.
-"Role Models" is another heartwarming comic. Even the villains hate those who hurt children.
-Other stories I liked are "Ghosts of Gotham", "Even in the Darkest Moments", "Hell Night", and "Flip Side!"
-"She Lies at Midnite" made me so angry at Catwoman.
-"Hope" is so good. Words do not do it justice. 10/10
-"Batman Zombie" was weird, but Neal Adam's artwork is nice.
-I liked "Head Games." It showed how care about each other. I think too many people too often overlook the character, but he's not (always) a pushover.
-"ManBat Out of Hell" is one of my favorites in this volume. It is heartwarming and a good reminder that Batman won't kill you, but he doesn't have to save you (especially if you abuse children). Plus, the artwork by J.G. Jones is beautiful.
-"A Place in Between" is another one of my favorites. How could I not love it when it combines Greek mythology and my favorite DC villain?
-I don't think I understood "Into the Circle."
-"An Innocent Man" is very interesting. A criminal is supposed to be executed in 24 hours, but Batman thinks he might be innocent of the murder and works hard to save the man. It just so happens that the criminal on death row is the Joker.
-"Role Models" is another heartwarming comic. Even the villains hate those who hurt children.
-Other stories I liked are "Ghosts of Gotham", "Even in the Darkest Moments", "Hell Night", and "Flip Side!"
-"She Lies at Midnite" made me so angry at Catwoman.
-"Hope" is so good. Words do not do it justice. 10/10
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