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Batman - Santa Claus: Silent Knight (2023) #1
SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN! The four-part crossover event of a generation begins when a not-so-jolly St. Nick hits Gotham City to investigate a brutal crime in the days leading up to Christmas…What manner of man or beast could have committed such atrocities?! With the help of his former student, Batman, Santa will team up with the heroes of the DC Universe to right this wrong-or the world wakes up to coal in their stockings! A brutal, two-fisted holiday tale of hope, wonder, and monster hunting is the perfect treat to ring in the holidays-it’s Claus in canon!
27 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 5, 2023
4 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Parker
1,174 books128 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 28, 2023
Batman and various DC heroes team up with St. Nick in this 4-part series. The story goes for the Norse mythology version of Santa, so it didn't feel like the cheesy magical make-believe thing it could have been. It really made me smile though. I'm trying to make more use of my DC infinite subscription before it expires, but as a very casual comics fan, I'm never quite sure where to start. The absurdity of the title caught my eye, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading through all 4 parts on a cozy winter evening.
December 14, 2023
Okay this was super weird but still worked somehow? I enjoy the mix of characters and it somehow walks the line between silly and kinda badass.
Artwork is decent, easy enough to follow.
An interesting series that'll help you to get into the spirit of the season the DC way.
Artwork is decent, easy enough to follow.
An interesting series that'll help you to get into the spirit of the season the DC way.
December 25, 2025
the concept of batman being mentored by santa claus.. yeah this is awesome
December 24, 2024
For all four issues
December 11, 2024
As part of the DC Official Discord we are starting to read Batman - Santa Claus: Silent Knight and answer discussion questions. Here are the answers to the questions proposed:
1. Batman is usually Gotham's protector, but how does he react to the strange presence of Santa Claus in this issue? Does this challenge his usual perspective on crime and justice?
Batman takes quite a back seat in this issue. He has met Kris before and seems to have full trust and faith in him to take care of them and help guide them along to defeating this threat. Batman identifies pretty quickly that this threat is outside of his usual scope and it will take a lot more than just him and the bat-family to fight it, but it does not challenge his usual perspective on crime and justice, he is still reaching the same goal of finding the villain behind it and bringing them down. It may just go a lot differently than usual.
2. Santa Claus in this comic isn't just a jolly figure—he represents something deeper. What do you think Santa Claus symbolizes in this story? How does he contrast with Batman in terms of their methods and the way they perceive good versus evil?
I feel as though Kris represents the light in the darkness. Through his origin we see the darkness and chaos that krampus would bring with him to scare children for fun, and then right behind him would be Kris to give them a present and cheer them back up. He is there shining through the shorter days of winter to bring Joy.
Compared to Batman they have vastly different methods especially when it comes to comparing how they got started. Batman is a dark knight and uses his costume as a tool to incite fear into the criminals he takes down, while Kris started as a brash Scandinavian fighter meant to go out and hunt down the creatures of the night. Regardless, Batman does still hold a sanctity to all life, and while they don’t outright acknowledge it, there is a lot of letting Santa do the monster killing while the rest of the bat-family holds back and contains the monsters. That may change in the future, and it is curious to look at the relationship between Kris and Krampus as their original relationship contradicts my point as Kris was able to see the good within the chaotic being. But it does seem that times have changed since then.
3. This issue blends Gotham’s gritty reality with elements of the fantastical, like the magical presence of Santa. How does the magic in this story affect the tone? Does it make the world of Batman feel more grounded or more surreal? How do you think magic plays a role in this narrative?
The tone is definitely a lot more bizarre and surreal, very quickly does batman realize the stakes and pull in other magic users and even accepts Kris outright as a real entity he has encountered before. This shift is very apparent in the rest of the bat-family as they are shocked to find out that not only is santa real, but he is fighting norse vampires while riding prancer. Magic is at the complete center of this story and drives everything forward, even being so pivotal to our character’s success that the villain immediately tries to knock Zatanna out of the equation so she couldn’t get in his way. Hopefully he is not successful in that attempt, but it’s very clear how Batman and the others would be completely lost if they did not have the magic of Santa and Zatanna to help drive them.
4. How do you think the setting of Christmas and the holiday season changes the stakes of the story? Does it alter the way you perceive Batman’s actions or the threats he faces? What role does the holiday atmosphere play in the comic’s emotional impact?
I do think the setting being Christmas changes the stakes of the story, as looking at Santa’s backstory it’s clear that there is deep rooted contention between the main antagonist and Santa for the day they worked together to create and it seems that there may be a lot more to this conflict than just general chaos. The first targets were even carolers.
This setting definitely alters the way I see the threats Batman faces, as you have to start thinking a lot more through the lens of Christmas and how the villain may be influenced in his actions. It also changes the way I see batman’s action as although he continues to take a practical approach, such as when he attached the tracking device to the vampire, he still has to hold back and question himself on certain things happening around him, such as when the flower sprouted out of the vampire at the end. He could have easily attacked it immediately, but instead took a more cautious approach and instead ordered the others to stay back. Until the moment it attacked he was unsure of what it could be.
The holiday season also brings a lot more personal emotional impact to all the characters. It’s easy enough fighting vampires, they have fought man-bat before, but then to have santa roll up and know your name and the place you were raised by heart like he personally came and delivered you a present, then it hits really close to home to have so much childlike wonder confirmed at once. Even Zatanna was left speechless and impressed.
5. Were there any surprise characters that you were happy to see?
I was very surprised and happy to see Zatanna. Knowing that without hesitation Batman is able to identify a threat that she can help with, and knowing that she will be there at a moment’s notice is so heartwarming. Plus she is such an awesome and great character that her skill always enhances the story. But also every entrance Santa made was absolutely Epic! Crashing in and impaling multiple vampires with Prancer was awesome!
1. Batman is usually Gotham's protector, but how does he react to the strange presence of Santa Claus in this issue? Does this challenge his usual perspective on crime and justice?
Batman takes quite a back seat in this issue. He has met Kris before and seems to have full trust and faith in him to take care of them and help guide them along to defeating this threat. Batman identifies pretty quickly that this threat is outside of his usual scope and it will take a lot more than just him and the bat-family to fight it, but it does not challenge his usual perspective on crime and justice, he is still reaching the same goal of finding the villain behind it and bringing them down. It may just go a lot differently than usual.
2. Santa Claus in this comic isn't just a jolly figure—he represents something deeper. What do you think Santa Claus symbolizes in this story? How does he contrast with Batman in terms of their methods and the way they perceive good versus evil?
I feel as though Kris represents the light in the darkness. Through his origin we see the darkness and chaos that krampus would bring with him to scare children for fun, and then right behind him would be Kris to give them a present and cheer them back up. He is there shining through the shorter days of winter to bring Joy.
Compared to Batman they have vastly different methods especially when it comes to comparing how they got started. Batman is a dark knight and uses his costume as a tool to incite fear into the criminals he takes down, while Kris started as a brash Scandinavian fighter meant to go out and hunt down the creatures of the night. Regardless, Batman does still hold a sanctity to all life, and while they don’t outright acknowledge it, there is a lot of letting Santa do the monster killing while the rest of the bat-family holds back and contains the monsters. That may change in the future, and it is curious to look at the relationship between Kris and Krampus as their original relationship contradicts my point as Kris was able to see the good within the chaotic being. But it does seem that times have changed since then.
3. This issue blends Gotham’s gritty reality with elements of the fantastical, like the magical presence of Santa. How does the magic in this story affect the tone? Does it make the world of Batman feel more grounded or more surreal? How do you think magic plays a role in this narrative?
The tone is definitely a lot more bizarre and surreal, very quickly does batman realize the stakes and pull in other magic users and even accepts Kris outright as a real entity he has encountered before. This shift is very apparent in the rest of the bat-family as they are shocked to find out that not only is santa real, but he is fighting norse vampires while riding prancer. Magic is at the complete center of this story and drives everything forward, even being so pivotal to our character’s success that the villain immediately tries to knock Zatanna out of the equation so she couldn’t get in his way. Hopefully he is not successful in that attempt, but it’s very clear how Batman and the others would be completely lost if they did not have the magic of Santa and Zatanna to help drive them.
4. How do you think the setting of Christmas and the holiday season changes the stakes of the story? Does it alter the way you perceive Batman’s actions or the threats he faces? What role does the holiday atmosphere play in the comic’s emotional impact?
I do think the setting being Christmas changes the stakes of the story, as looking at Santa’s backstory it’s clear that there is deep rooted contention between the main antagonist and Santa for the day they worked together to create and it seems that there may be a lot more to this conflict than just general chaos. The first targets were even carolers.
This setting definitely alters the way I see the threats Batman faces, as you have to start thinking a lot more through the lens of Christmas and how the villain may be influenced in his actions. It also changes the way I see batman’s action as although he continues to take a practical approach, such as when he attached the tracking device to the vampire, he still has to hold back and question himself on certain things happening around him, such as when the flower sprouted out of the vampire at the end. He could have easily attacked it immediately, but instead took a more cautious approach and instead ordered the others to stay back. Until the moment it attacked he was unsure of what it could be.
The holiday season also brings a lot more personal emotional impact to all the characters. It’s easy enough fighting vampires, they have fought man-bat before, but then to have santa roll up and know your name and the place you were raised by heart like he personally came and delivered you a present, then it hits really close to home to have so much childlike wonder confirmed at once. Even Zatanna was left speechless and impressed.
5. Were there any surprise characters that you were happy to see?
I was very surprised and happy to see Zatanna. Knowing that without hesitation Batman is able to identify a threat that she can help with, and knowing that she will be there at a moment’s notice is so heartwarming. Plus she is such an awesome and great character that her skill always enhances the story. But also every entrance Santa made was absolutely Epic! Crashing in and impaling multiple vampires with Prancer was awesome!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2023
This is way better than it has a right to be. Batman and most of the Justice League team up with Santa Claus. I like how they lean into the Norse version of Santa making him part of the Wild Hunt. If anyone has ever read any of The Dresden Files, it uses some similar mythology. The bad guy is Krampus who has been locked away and unleashing other Norse creatures like Draug (which are Norse undead). It never feels hokey and it even spins out of the Knight Terrors event. There's a good chance I'll be digging this back out in future Yuletide seasons.
December 31, 2023
This was an odd but still somewhat fun intro to what promises to be quite a whacky story. The art is solid and the dialogue is interesting enough. I'm not into Norse mythology in the slightest but I know it comes with the territory for Santa stories sometimes. I'm curious enough to keep reading but I don't expect this to become a favorite.
December 23, 2023
What an awesome comic to finish my reading challenge with. Santa and the Bat-family have to team up against -REDACTED-. I'm not sure about the mythology story. I can't find anything that shows this as a norse myth.
January 1, 2024
2024 - Year of The Bat (366 Days of Batman)
Day 1: So much better than I expected! This will be a fun four issue romp. I like the touch that Santa identifies everyone, not just by name but address as well.
Day 1: So much better than I expected! This will be a fun four issue romp. I like the touch that Santa identifies everyone, not just by name but address as well.
December 6, 2023
Pure holiday joy
December 16, 2023
This was cute, not Santa having trained Batman back in the day. The art style is nice, wish Damien and Dick were more competent. The story is fun!
December 26, 2023
Provides the backstory about Santa Claus and Krampus.
December 26, 2023
Loved this!
December 30, 2023
Santa and the JLA vs Krampus, what's not to love?
January 10, 2024
For issues #1-4
January 17, 2024
So ridiculous…in a good way!
1963; Zatana is 60??? Nvm, seems to be a reference to her day of creation.
My cover (Rub & Smell) smells like Peppermint!
1963; Zatana is 60??? Nvm, seems to be a reference to her day of creation.
My cover (Rub & Smell) smells like Peppermint!
January 11, 2025
2.75⭐. Stand-in for the whole series. Not nearly as good as the first round of Silent Knight. A touch too outlandish for me, further reinforcing I don't love supernatural stuff in the comics I read.
January 19, 2025
Incredible! Definitely worth the read 😁😁
December 18, 2025
A Santa story in typical Batman fashion.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews