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Batman: The Knight #1-10
Batman: Il Cavaliere
Le origini di Batman e la sua lotta senza fine contro il crimine a Gotham City fanno parte della mitologia, ma come ha iniziato la sua storia il Cavaliere Oscuro? Come ha fatto un ragazzino arrabiato e ferito a trasformarsi nel migliore detective del mondo? Comincia tutto a Parigi, dove un giovane Bruce Wayne si addestra mentre viene a contatto con un serial killer che prende di mira l'élite della città. Una prova letale per l'uomo che sta per diventare Batman, dalla coppia d'eccezione formata da Chip Zdarsky e Carmine Di Giandomenico.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2022
158 people are currently reading
673 people want to read
About the author
Chip Zdarsky
871 books859 followersChip Zdarsky is a Canadian comic book artist and journalist. He was born Steve Murray but is known by his fan base as Chip Zdarsky, and occasionally Todd Diamond. He writes and illustrates an advice column called Extremely Bad Advice for the Canadian national newspaper National Post's The Ampersand, their pop culture section's online edition. He is also the creator of Prison Funnies and Monster Cops.
Source: Wikipedia.
Source: Wikipedia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 285 reviews
April 14, 2024
Minkoha & Bruce?!?! I know what you are.
January 5, 2026
I love this book. I had high expectations from the concept of the book to Chip Zbarsky's awesome run on Daredevil. I am happy to say it really delivered for me.
Bruce Wayne made a promise the day his parents died. He put himself on a path to make himself the best. What does that mean? Even though he is not sure, he will learn from the best and worst people. He is intense, driven, but also young, inexperienced, and a bit naive. He will make mistakes but never the same one twice. He will make life-long enemies, rivals, and friends, but can he find what he is looking for without losing himself or getting himself killed?
Everything about this book is spot on the story, the characters, the artwork, and the action. Follow Bruce around the world, learning and constructing the armour for the knight he is to become. The book finishes with a variant cover gallery.
Bruce Wayne made a promise the day his parents died. He put himself on a path to make himself the best. What does that mean? Even though he is not sure, he will learn from the best and worst people. He is intense, driven, but also young, inexperienced, and a bit naive. He will make mistakes but never the same one twice. He will make life-long enemies, rivals, and friends, but can he find what he is looking for without losing himself or getting himself killed?
Everything about this book is spot on the story, the characters, the artwork, and the action. Follow Bruce around the world, learning and constructing the armour for the knight he is to become. The book finishes with a variant cover gallery.
May 18, 2023
A re-hashing of Bruce's travels before becoming Batman that adds a lot (maybe even a little too much at times) to the already rich history of the character. For the most part, it's interesting, but there are moments which feel overly bloated and self indulgent. The art definitely helps to carry the more tedious narrative sections, and whilst it's not a perfect experience, there's still a lot to like.
September 26, 2023
Batman: The Knight
In this origin story, Chip Zdarsky shows in each issue how Bruce trained for each of the skills that make Batman the greatest detective and crime fighter in the world.
From the beginning, Bruce Wayne has a drive to become the best, at pretty much everything that has to do with crime fighting, to prevent the murder of any other little kid's patents. So, in order to learn the necessary skills, he leaves his home and he travels around the world to learn from the very best. From thieves and detectives in Paris, to martial arts masters in Korea and Ra's al Ghul, for various different reasons everyone agrees to train young Bruce. Early in his travels, he finds a friend, Anton. With their companionship and the antagonism that it creates, they travel together, until it's time to learn from the world's greatest marksman. There Anton's true side is revealed. The side that doesn't hesitate to kill. So, after he kills their trainer and he has a huge, violent fight with Bruce, he leaves, forcing Bruce to continue alone.
This was a very interesting and unique take on Batman's origin. First of all, something that's always very important to me, in any Batman comic, is Bruce's relationship with Alfred. I was very happy to see that, even if it doesn't play a very big role in the story, Zdarsky was able to write it incredibly well. It resembles a very intimate father-son relationship, filled with love and respect. Something else that I love to see in any Batman comic, is a focus on the lines that Batman refuses to cross (for example, killing). Since this is a story of Bruce slowly becoming Batman, there's a pretty big focus on that. Maybe not as deep as I would've wanted, but it's still a very interesting part of the story and I like the way that Zdarsky attempts to explain this aspect of Batman's character. Also, he perfectly showcases how these lines (limits) are what truly makes Batman who he is and seperate him from the rest. Furthermore, Chip Zdarsky's signature amazing narration is present in each issue, as well as his great dialogues that we got used to in his Daredevil run. Talking about Daredevil, even though Batman starts this comic in a very dark place, emotionally, it's less dark than Zdarsky's work on the main Batman title (at least in the first volume that I've read so far) and of course, way less dark than his Daredevil run. That being said, this comic still has a lot of dark and depressing aspects. Bruce learns to love the darkness (inside and outside of him) and he understands that his path will have to be a lonely one. Unfortunately the life of a crime-fighter is one filled with solitude. In general, Batman seems incredibly self destructive in this comic. He's unable and unwilling to let go, choosing to live with pain, realising that the love for his parents and the anger that their death creates inside him is one of his biggest strengths. All of these ideas seem pretty dark, but somehow the comic remains very enjoyable. All the travels and the training make this a fun adventure story, with a lot of erotic undertones, between Bruce and Anton.
The artwork, by Carmine Di Giandomenico is absolutely incredible. It took me a few issues to get used to it, because it's very unique, but once I did, I absolutely loved it. The action scenes are fantastic and amazingly dynamic, the exterior scenes (especially the ones in the snowy mountains) are beautiful and the use of perspective is very interesting and functional.
Overall, this is a great Batman origin story for the modern age. I'm not going to compare it with classic masterpieces, like "Batman: Year One", since Chip Zdarsky attempts to do something very different (and succeeds), but I'm going to say that this is for me an essential read for anyone who wants to get into Batman.
9.5/10
In this origin story, Chip Zdarsky shows in each issue how Bruce trained for each of the skills that make Batman the greatest detective and crime fighter in the world.
From the beginning, Bruce Wayne has a drive to become the best, at pretty much everything that has to do with crime fighting, to prevent the murder of any other little kid's patents. So, in order to learn the necessary skills, he leaves his home and he travels around the world to learn from the very best. From thieves and detectives in Paris, to martial arts masters in Korea and Ra's al Ghul, for various different reasons everyone agrees to train young Bruce. Early in his travels, he finds a friend, Anton. With their companionship and the antagonism that it creates, they travel together, until it's time to learn from the world's greatest marksman. There Anton's true side is revealed. The side that doesn't hesitate to kill. So, after he kills their trainer and he has a huge, violent fight with Bruce, he leaves, forcing Bruce to continue alone.
This was a very interesting and unique take on Batman's origin. First of all, something that's always very important to me, in any Batman comic, is Bruce's relationship with Alfred. I was very happy to see that, even if it doesn't play a very big role in the story, Zdarsky was able to write it incredibly well. It resembles a very intimate father-son relationship, filled with love and respect. Something else that I love to see in any Batman comic, is a focus on the lines that Batman refuses to cross (for example, killing). Since this is a story of Bruce slowly becoming Batman, there's a pretty big focus on that. Maybe not as deep as I would've wanted, but it's still a very interesting part of the story and I like the way that Zdarsky attempts to explain this aspect of Batman's character. Also, he perfectly showcases how these lines (limits) are what truly makes Batman who he is and seperate him from the rest. Furthermore, Chip Zdarsky's signature amazing narration is present in each issue, as well as his great dialogues that we got used to in his Daredevil run. Talking about Daredevil, even though Batman starts this comic in a very dark place, emotionally, it's less dark than Zdarsky's work on the main Batman title (at least in the first volume that I've read so far) and of course, way less dark than his Daredevil run. That being said, this comic still has a lot of dark and depressing aspects. Bruce learns to love the darkness (inside and outside of him) and he understands that his path will have to be a lonely one. Unfortunately the life of a crime-fighter is one filled with solitude. In general, Batman seems incredibly self destructive in this comic. He's unable and unwilling to let go, choosing to live with pain, realising that the love for his parents and the anger that their death creates inside him is one of his biggest strengths. All of these ideas seem pretty dark, but somehow the comic remains very enjoyable. All the travels and the training make this a fun adventure story, with a lot of erotic undertones, between Bruce and Anton.
The artwork, by Carmine Di Giandomenico is absolutely incredible. It took me a few issues to get used to it, because it's very unique, but once I did, I absolutely loved it. The action scenes are fantastic and amazingly dynamic, the exterior scenes (especially the ones in the snowy mountains) are beautiful and the use of perspective is very interesting and functional.
Overall, this is a great Batman origin story for the modern age. I'm not going to compare it with classic masterpieces, like "Batman: Year One", since Chip Zdarsky attempts to do something very different (and succeeds), but I'm going to say that this is for me an essential read for anyone who wants to get into Batman.
9.5/10
November 29, 2022
Easily one of my favorite Batman books of all time. This is the story of Bruce traveling around the world as a young adult to become Batman. It's so frikkin good!! I highly recommend it to any comics fan. 5/5 stars and a new favorite.
December 4, 2023
I will start with something, I liked art and that's it. Ghost-Maker is character I don't care about, or his faux yaoi. He is what blue checks Batman is. Writing for Talia was classic misogyny. I need Chip away from her.
March 25, 2023
4.25
Interesting stories that connect to a larger story. It feels like Zdarsky's Daredevil treatment of Batman, which I'm sure is what DC wanted.
Interesting stories that connect to a larger story. It feels like Zdarsky's Daredevil treatment of Batman, which I'm sure is what DC wanted.
December 7, 2023
fuck my stupid life why am i a batman guy now
August 14, 2025
aghhh trop bien omg
December 19, 2022
I like it. The first three issues start Bruce on his journey, where he learns how to be a criminal. He meets Ducard and learns how to be a detective. And then in issue three stops a serial killer and discovers the darkness inside of him.
I liked that they explain how Bruce finds his trainers by getting a list from Ducard.
The last two issues introduce Ghost-Maker, I think, which is exciting. For a story about a part of the Batman mythos that is normally glossed over I found it very intriguing. Bruce fails a lot in his journey. He's awkward and young. It's clear he's not Batman and I find that interesting.
I liked that they explain how Bruce finds his trainers by getting a list from Ducard.
The last two issues introduce Ghost-Maker, I think, which is exciting. For a story about a part of the Batman mythos that is normally glossed over I found it very intriguing. Bruce fails a lot in his journey. He's awkward and young. It's clear he's not Batman and I find that interesting.
August 27, 2023
This origin felt off to me. I really didn’t like the addition of “Anton” into Bruce’s story. I felt like this character took away the focus from the main story, which is Bruce learning from all kinds of different masters. Bruce has enough internal conflict that I don’t think we needed this dramatic side story. Bruce needed to go on this journey solo, not have some tag along that stunted the plot by making it bloated and predictable.
September 22, 2023
While exciting at moments, the pacing seemed to slog for me, and the artwork was unnecessarily dark. Readable but not great.
Read
August 27, 2024Of all the Batman origin stories—across comics and movies alike—Batman: The Knight is the finest one we've ever seen, easily wiping the floor with the bleak and bland Batman: Year One. This ten-issue comic books takes readers back to before Bruce Wayne became Batman, beginning with his reckless schooldays before taking us on a globetrotting journey, on which he will learn from the deadliest killers and the smartest thieves, in order to become unbeatable.
My full thoughts: https://booksandbao.com/best-batman-c...
My full thoughts: https://booksandbao.com/best-batman-c...
August 11, 2023
Very good origin story. Very well-written with great artwork.
July 21, 2025
‧₊˚⚔️✩ ₊🦇⊹
4⁺˖✧
4⁺˖✧
July 13, 2025
(4.5) most goated training montage of all time and im not just saying that cause bruce is bi-curious in this one
April 25, 2025
He's the GOAT
October 10, 2023
Нарешті прочитав лімітку "Batman: The Knight" від Здарскі та Ді Джиандомініко.
Ця лімітка розповідає про молоді роки Брюса у той період коли він втік з Ґотему та подорожував світом у пошуках різних вчителів. Як на мене то ідея створити таку лімітку непогана, все таки ��а цьому етапі в житті Брюса не часто зосереджуються, а тут автором ще й є автор основної серії. Що може піти не так?
Як виявилося багато чого. По-перше це подарунок від Тайніна яким є Ґоустмейкер. Персонаж сам по собі непоганий і я спочатку радий був його бачити, але досить швидко він мене почав бісити, Здарскі його прописав як штампованого френемі суперника. Сам Брюс мене тут також бісив, але тут можливо це так і було задумано, хоча я не впевнений. Він тут прописаний як пацан який через свій вік вчиняє необдумані рішення, то в незаконних боях візьме участь то з дому втече нічого не сказавши Альфреду. Тема з тим, що він поступив імпульсивно і чи не кинути йому це все тут досить часто з'являється і якщо перший раз це було норм то далі воно швидко набридає. Ну і найбільше мені в цій лімітці не сподобалося це те, що вона банально нудна. За місцевими подіями було досить нецікаво спостерігати.
Єдині номери які мені сподобалися це 2,3 та 7. В 2 і 3 номері Брюсі прибуває в Париж в якому зустрічає місцеву крадійку Сіру Тінь та починає вчитися у неї, далі їх знаходить Генрі Дюкард і разом вони ловлять місцевого вбивцю. А 7 номер розповідає про те як Брюс поки вчився у Затари дізнався про існування магії. Номер взагалі непогано показав стосунки Брюса та Затанни і кінцівка з тим як Брюс та Джон сидять та просто розмовляють мені дуже сподобалося. Здарскі тут також вкинув цікаву ідею з тим, що Джон Затара був хорошим другом Вейнів і що Брюс та Затанна разом виросли, це мені нагадало стару історію про зустріч Брюса та Кларка коли вони були ще малими. З хорошого також можу виділити непоганий малюнок Кармайна Ді Джиандомініко.
В результаті "Batman: The Knight" вийшов досить прохідним тайтлом, читати звісно можна, але це найслабше з того, що виходило від Здарскі по Бетмену.
Ця лімітка розповідає про молоді роки Брюса у той період коли він втік з Ґотему та подорожував світом у пошуках різних вчителів. Як на мене то ідея створити таку лімітку непогана, все таки ��а цьому етапі в житті Брюса не часто зосереджуються, а тут автором ще й є автор основної серії. Що може піти не так?
Як виявилося багато чого. По-перше це подарунок від Тайніна яким є Ґоустмейкер. Персонаж сам по собі непоганий і я спочатку радий був його бачити, але досить швидко він мене почав бісити, Здарскі його прописав як штампованого френемі суперника. Сам Брюс мене тут також бісив, але тут можливо це так і було задумано, хоча я не впевнений. Він тут прописаний як пацан який через свій вік вчиняє необдумані рішення, то в незаконних боях візьме участь то з дому втече нічого не сказавши Альфреду. Тема з тим, що він поступив імпульсивно і чи не кинути йому це все тут досить часто з'являється і якщо перший раз це було норм то далі воно швидко набридає. Ну і найбільше мені в цій лімітці не сподобалося це те, що вона банально нудна. За місцевими подіями було досить нецікаво спостерігати.
Єдині номери які мені сподобалися це 2,3 та 7. В 2 і 3 номері Брюсі прибуває в Париж в якому зустрічає місцеву крадійку Сіру Тінь та починає вчитися у неї, далі їх знаходить Генрі Дюкард і разом вони ловлять місцевого вбивцю. А 7 номер розповідає про те як Брюс поки вчився у Затари дізнався про існування магії. Номер взагалі непогано показав стосунки Брюса та Затанни і кінцівка з тим як Брюс та Джон сидять та просто розмовляють мені дуже сподобалося. Здарскі тут також вкинув цікаву ідею з тим, що Джон Затара був хорошим другом Вейнів і що Брюс та Затанна разом виросли, це мені нагадало стару історію про зустріч Брюса та Кларка коли вони були ще малими. З хорошого також можу виділити непоганий малюнок Кармайна Ді Джиандомініко.
В результаті "Batman: The Knight" вийшов досить прохідним тайтлом, читати звісно можна, але це найслабше з того, що виходило від Здарскі по Бетмену.
September 6, 2025
masterpieces about the Batman beginnings with toxic yaoi in the background
August 26, 2023
This series goes back to Bruce's time before he is Batman, but traveling the world to train with various masters in the skills and methods he thinks he will need. It's one of my favorite times to read about, because I think it's ripe for new material. Zdarksy fleshes out some of this time period and more importantly giving the background of Ghost-Maker and how he and Bruce met, developed a friendship and then eventually went their own ways. Every couple of issues you see them with a different master while learning more about Bruce and why he valued "Anton's" friendship so much. There are a few masters that have been seen before (Zatarra for instance) and possibly a couple new ones (I'm not positive I've read every story from this time period.)
I'm a little on the fence with the idea that Bruce is doing all of this training while using his real identity (for the most part). Yeah, I guess his face is well-known and maintaining a disguise while training might be difficult. I guess at this point he doesn't really know the dangers of being Batman and how a secret identity may be important.
The art is solid, but the style just doesn't appeal to me. There's really nothing wrong with it, but I didn't care for it.
It's another fine addition to Bruce's formative years. As Zdarsky typically does, he adds some depth to the characters and doesn't just fill it with action scenes.
I'm a little on the fence with the idea that Bruce is doing all of this training while using his real identity (for the most part). Yeah, I guess his face is well-known and maintaining a disguise while training might be difficult. I guess at this point he doesn't really know the dangers of being Batman and how a secret identity may be important.
The art is solid, but the style just doesn't appeal to me. There's really nothing wrong with it, but I didn't care for it.
It's another fine addition to Bruce's formative years. As Zdarsky typically does, he adds some depth to the characters and doesn't just fill it with action scenes.
July 3, 2023
Маєте бажання почитати черговий ориджин Бетмена? Якщо так, тоді тримайте лімітовану серію коміксів «Бетмен: Лицар» #1–10 від Чіпа Задрскі та Карміне Ді Джандоменіко.
Брюс після своєї трагедії вирушає в подорож, щоб набути різноманітних навичок від різних людей у своєму прагненні стати Бетменом. Спочатку це виглядало, як багатообіцяюче дослідження його характеру. Аналізуючи різні аспекти особистості Брюса в інших людях, ми могли б ретельно проаналізувати ці риси під різними кутами зору. Однак другорядні персонажі, зрештою, не змогли реалізувати цей потенціал, що призвело до простого переліку навичок, яких він навчився, перебуваючи в тій чи іншій країні, від тих чи інших особистостей.
І все би було гаразд, адже це просто ще одна історія становлення Бетса із хорошим малюнком Карміне Ді Джандоменіко. Яку можна було б читати, або пройти повз. Але ж ні, потрібно було впихнути цілий випуск із кацапією, який мене вибісив до не можливості. Тим самим, зіпсувавши узагалі будь-який позитивний бік цього коміксу. У результаті маємо, такий ориджин, де є частина з кацапами, і гарну візуальну частину, яка допомогла дочитати цю серію коміксів до кінця. І ще виглядає так, що ця серія матиме продовження.
Одним словом, можу не кривлячи душею, радити пропускати цей комікс і почитати натомість щось інше.
Брюс після своєї трагедії вирушає в подорож, щоб набути різноманітних навичок від різних людей у своєму прагненні стати Бетменом. Спочатку це виглядало, як багатообіцяюче дослідження його характеру. Аналізуючи різні аспекти особистості Брюса в інших людях, ми могли б ретельно проаналізувати ці риси під різними кутами зору. Однак другорядні персонажі, зрештою, не змогли реалізувати цей потенціал, що призвело до простого переліку навичок, яких він навчився, перебуваючи в тій чи іншій країні, від тих чи інших особистостей.
І все би було гаразд, адже це просто ще одна історія становлення Бетса із хорошим малюнком Карміне Ді Джандоменіко. Яку можна було б читати, або пройти повз. Але ж ні, потрібно було впихнути цілий випуск із кацапією, який мене вибісив до не можливості. Тим самим, зіпсувавши узагалі будь-який позитивний бік цього коміксу. У результаті маємо, такий ориджин, де є частина з кацапами, і гарну візуальну частину, яка допомогла дочитати цю серію коміксів до кінця. І ще виглядає так, що ця серія матиме продовження.
Одним словом, можу не кривлячи душею, радити пропускати цей комікс і почитати натомість щось інше.
January 29, 2023
This was SO good.
I've seen some people complain about Bruce having a partner during his training arc because they feel like it makes Bruce "less special" but honestly I completely disagree. If anything it makes him even more special in my eyes. As Bruce said in #10, Minhkhoa is hollow. He doesn't have Bruce's compassion or love and no amount of training will turn Minhkhoa into the hero Bruce is. That's something unique to Bruce.
Anyway their dynamic was super fun, I just recently read Tynion's Batman run where they joined forces so I can't wait to see them work together in future comics hehe
Also a veeery big fan of all the bi!Bruce hints lol make Batman canonically bisexual you cowards
I've seen some people complain about Bruce having a partner during his training arc because they feel like it makes Bruce "less special" but honestly I completely disagree. If anything it makes him even more special in my eyes. As Bruce said in #10, Minhkhoa is hollow. He doesn't have Bruce's compassion or love and no amount of training will turn Minhkhoa into the hero Bruce is. That's something unique to Bruce.
Anyway their dynamic was super fun, I just recently read Tynion's Batman run where they joined forces so I can't wait to see them work together in future comics hehe
Also a veeery big fan of all the bi!Bruce hints lol make Batman canonically bisexual you cowards
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2024
*2.5*
Esta crónica de Zdarsky, se centra en la juventud de Bruce Wayne y en su iniciático (?) viaje por diferentes lugares del mundo, donde especialistas en distintas disciplinas lo modelan para su futuro batiheroico. El esquema se repite varias veces por lo que llega a hacerse reiterativo, pero lo que realmente es preocupante es como muchos guionistas recurren a este planteo episódico, del cual poco importa el orden de capítulos cuyo vinculo es escaso, intentando hilvanar un relato con pretensiones de clásico.
En relación al arte, el dibujo de Di Giandomenico no es lo mio, parece artificial, como encargado por un ilustrador sin tiempo, a una de estas tecnologías que están muy en boga últimamente.
Esta crónica de Zdarsky, se centra en la juventud de Bruce Wayne y en su iniciático (?) viaje por diferentes lugares del mundo, donde especialistas en distintas disciplinas lo modelan para su futuro batiheroico. El esquema se repite varias veces por lo que llega a hacerse reiterativo, pero lo que realmente es preocupante es como muchos guionistas recurren a este planteo episódico, del cual poco importa el orden de capítulos cuyo vinculo es escaso, intentando hilvanar un relato con pretensiones de clásico.
En relación al arte, el dibujo de Di Giandomenico no es lo mio, parece artificial, como encargado por un ilustrador sin tiempo, a una de estas tecnologías que están muy en boga últimamente.
November 23, 2025
48%
Oof… not the worst thing ever, but I had a few issues. The first, like, half of this or so was actually alright - showing Bruce’s early training around the world, going to different cities and learning from various masters. It’s cool to see his mindset and skills develop as he travels more, so that was a part of this I appreciated.
But the writing for this graphic novel was all over the place. Especially the character writing for Bruce himself, which is a bit iffy. But ESPECIALLY ‘Anton’, the friend Bruce trains with earlier in the book. Why did this guy have to exist😭 to farm for female readers who like Yaoi, Zdarksy?? He did a whole bunch of stuff including straight up murder and even almost killing Bruce himself, and his actions are played off as ‘self-defence’ and Bruce goes along with that. Yeah… alright, man. That whole sequence at the end of Bruce’s training at the psychologist guy’s house was just disjointed as all hell, honestly. I thought it was a dream sequence at first with how weird it played out.
The ending kinda somewhat lands, I guess? I just wish the trainee friend guy didn’t exist, or got killed off at some point - cuz to have him as a new part of Bruce’s pre-Batman lore is kinda goofy to me.
Also, the writing occasionally felt like a YA comic, if that makes sense? Not necessarily detrimental, but I think it didn’t quite align to the slightly grittier vibe I was hoping to get from a Batman story that follows his early training.
Overall it was kinda meh though, with a few fun scenes and backstory on Bruce’s training to becoming Batman, but most of it involved a character I had absolutely no interest in. At least the art was alright too, though, I suppose?
Oof… not the worst thing ever, but I had a few issues. The first, like, half of this or so was actually alright - showing Bruce’s early training around the world, going to different cities and learning from various masters. It’s cool to see his mindset and skills develop as he travels more, so that was a part of this I appreciated.
But the writing for this graphic novel was all over the place. Especially the character writing for Bruce himself, which is a bit iffy. But ESPECIALLY ‘Anton’, the friend Bruce trains with earlier in the book. Why did this guy have to exist😭 to farm for female readers who like Yaoi, Zdarksy?? He did a whole bunch of stuff including straight up murder and even almost killing Bruce himself, and his actions are played off as ‘self-defence’ and Bruce goes along with that. Yeah… alright, man. That whole sequence at the end of Bruce’s training at the psychologist guy’s house was just disjointed as all hell, honestly. I thought it was a dream sequence at first with how weird it played out.
The ending kinda somewhat lands, I guess? I just wish the trainee friend guy didn’t exist, or got killed off at some point - cuz to have him as a new part of Bruce’s pre-Batman lore is kinda goofy to me.
Also, the writing occasionally felt like a YA comic, if that makes sense? Not necessarily detrimental, but I think it didn’t quite align to the slightly grittier vibe I was hoping to get from a Batman story that follows his early training.
Overall it was kinda meh though, with a few fun scenes and backstory on Bruce’s training to becoming Batman, but most of it involved a character I had absolutely no interest in. At least the art was alright too, though, I suppose?
November 17, 2023
Batman: The Knight collects issues 1-10
Of the DC Comics series written by Chip Zdarsky, drawn by Carmine Di Giandomenico, and colored by Ivan Plascencia.
A teenage Bruce Wayne sets forward on a mission to be the best he can possibly be against criminals. The only problem is that to be better than the world’s best criminals, he first needs to be taught everything they know. Bruce travels the world to learn from the likes of Henri Ducard, Avery Oblonsky, Master Kirigi, Giovanni Zatara, Luka Jongo, Ra’s Al Ghul, and more who are each the master of their criminal craft.
Am I crazy or is this just a rehash and fleshed out origin of young Bruce Wayne from Tynion’s run on Batman when he introduced Ghostmaker? I swear I have read some of these stories before. Zdarsky gives up an updated origin of Bruce Wayne on his journey that will eventually lead him to become Batman. The problem is we know where it is all heading. There isn’t much you can add to make this stand out from any previous young Bruce Wayne stories because it all leads to Bruce Wayne completing his training, returning to Gotham, and taking up the mantle of Batman. This book only serves to add Ghostmaker to the equation, but again, Tynion already accomplished this. The book could have easily cut a couple issues as there are some very repetitive ideas in the maxi-series.
Giandomenico’s art is strong throughout the series and helps the book stay visually interesting when the story isn’t doing the job. I especially liked the art in the Zatara and Zatanna issue.
Overall, if you have read Tynion’s run, I do not think you really need to read this book. If you did miss out, you can give this book a read before diving into some of the recent Batman events.
Of the DC Comics series written by Chip Zdarsky, drawn by Carmine Di Giandomenico, and colored by Ivan Plascencia.
A teenage Bruce Wayne sets forward on a mission to be the best he can possibly be against criminals. The only problem is that to be better than the world’s best criminals, he first needs to be taught everything they know. Bruce travels the world to learn from the likes of Henri Ducard, Avery Oblonsky, Master Kirigi, Giovanni Zatara, Luka Jongo, Ra’s Al Ghul, and more who are each the master of their criminal craft.
Am I crazy or is this just a rehash and fleshed out origin of young Bruce Wayne from Tynion’s run on Batman when he introduced Ghostmaker? I swear I have read some of these stories before. Zdarsky gives up an updated origin of Bruce Wayne on his journey that will eventually lead him to become Batman. The problem is we know where it is all heading. There isn’t much you can add to make this stand out from any previous young Bruce Wayne stories because it all leads to Bruce Wayne completing his training, returning to Gotham, and taking up the mantle of Batman. This book only serves to add Ghostmaker to the equation, but again, Tynion already accomplished this. The book could have easily cut a couple issues as there are some very repetitive ideas in the maxi-series.
Giandomenico’s art is strong throughout the series and helps the book stay visually interesting when the story isn’t doing the job. I especially liked the art in the Zatara and Zatanna issue.
Overall, if you have read Tynion’s run, I do not think you really need to read this book. If you did miss out, you can give this book a read before diving into some of the recent Batman events.
May 31, 2024
Solid read as a young Bruce Wayne sets out around the world to study under mentors...the absolute best in their fields.
It starts off with the premise of whether Bruce is motivated by vengeance or actually justice..and I felt it kind of wandered off that path.
It starts off with the premise of whether Bruce is motivated by vengeance or actually justice..and I felt it kind of wandered off that path.
August 16, 2025
that anton and bruce situationship was a little too insane
February 1, 2025
I love Batman.
August 7, 2025
“I’m scared the lightness isn’t long for me.”Most people have a general idea of what led Bruce Wayne to become Batman after his parents’ death, traveling the world, and training himself to peak form. It’s been touched on numerous times in popular media, such as in Chris Nolan’s Batman Begins movie. But this feels like the most comprehensive take I’ve seen, with Chip Zdarsky turning all of his focus on Bruce’s early years while traveling the world.
It was exciting to see Zdarsky really build an updated, more detailed history for Bruce, incorporating classic Batman mentors like Henri Ducard, while also introducing new characters that I hope become canon as it enriches Bruce’s history and character. Each issue deals with a different type of training for Bruce, and as each chapter went by, I started to see more and more his gradual transition into the Dark Knight.
June 25, 2024
4.5 Stars
Nearly flawless. Bruce Wayne's training montage is a well tread story, but me being a novice Batman reader It was perfectly familiar and filled in some extra details that acted as a nice expansion on Bruce's formative years. And let's face it Zdarsky is an excellent writer and the main reason I picked up Batman again in the first place. While I really like the art I find there is a struggle at times to tell who is who especially in the action sequences and there is a struggle with form. Overall the art is very consistent, but I think to take this series over the top...
Anyways it's a great take, and would recommend to someone wanting to get back into Batman or as a good starting point for the modern reader.
Nearly flawless. Bruce Wayne's training montage is a well tread story, but me being a novice Batman reader It was perfectly familiar and filled in some extra details that acted as a nice expansion on Bruce's formative years. And let's face it Zdarsky is an excellent writer and the main reason I picked up Batman again in the first place. While I really like the art I find there is a struggle at times to tell who is who especially in the action sequences and there is a struggle with form. Overall the art is very consistent, but I think to take this series over the top...
Anyways it's a great take, and would recommend to someone wanting to get back into Batman or as a good starting point for the modern reader.
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