Batman and the Outsiders, Volume 1

Batman and the Outsiders (Collected Editions)

by Mike W. Barr, Jim Aparo (Illustrator)

For years, the Batman has waged war on crime. Whether patrolling the streets of Gotham City or battling evil worldwide with the Justice League, he will face any foe, no matter the cost.
But wars have a way of spreading. And when a deadly conflict abroad hits close to home, the Dark Knight must abandon his old allies and form a new force for justice a team of heroes who aren t afraid to operate outside the rules.
Katana. Black Lightning. Metamorpho. Geo-Force. Halo. Some are experienced combatants who ve been driven to the fringes of the metahuman community. Others are new to their powers and the danger that comes with them. But together, under the shadow of the Bat, they will redefine what it means to be a superhero team
From comics legends Mike W. Barr (BATMAN: SON OF THE DEMON) and Jim Aparo (BATMAN: A DEATH IN THE FAMILY) comes BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS VOL. 1. Guest-starring the New Teen Titans, it s the start of the classic saga that takes the Dark Knight outside all expectations!
BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS VOL. 1 collects THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #200, BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS #1-13, and NEW TEEN TITANS #37."

Genres: Comics, Batman, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Superheroes, Comic Book, Crime

368 pages, Hardcover

First published June 6, 1984

About the author

Mike W. Barr is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels. Barr's debut as a comics professional came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444 (Dec. 1974-Jan. 1975), for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated Man. Another Elongated Man story followed in Detective Comics #453 (November 1975). He wrote text articles and editorial replies in letter columns for the next few years. By mid-1980 he was writing regularly for both DC and Marvel, including stories for Marvel Team-Up, Mystery in Space, Green Lantern, and various Batman titles.

Legion of Super-Heroes #277 (July 1981) saw him take on editorial duties at DC, while writing issues of DC's Star Trek comic, for whom he created the native American character Ensign Bearclaw and a pacifist Klingon named Konom. In December 1982, he and artist Brian Bolland began Camelot 3000, a 12 issue limited series that was one of DC Comics' first direct market projects. In August 1983, Barr created what may well be his most enduring work, the monthly title Batman and the Outsiders with art by Jim Aparo. Barr wrote every issue of the original series, and its Baxter paper spinoff, The Outsiders.

His other comics work includes Mantra and Maze Agency as well as the 1987 OGN hardcover book Batman: Son of the Demon (with art by Jerry Bingham), proceeds from which reputedly "restored DC Comics to first place in sales after fifteen years." This title, and Barr's work on Batman with artist Alan Davis have been cited by Grant Morrison as key inspirations for his recent (2006) run on the Batman title.

In 2007, he wrote a two-part story for the pages of DC's JLA: Classified (#47-48, Jan-Feb 2008), returned to the Outsiders with Outsiders: Five of a Kind—Katana/Shazam #1 (Oct 2007), contributed to Tokyopop's Star Trek: The Manga, and relaunched Maze Agency at IDW Publishing. He has also scripted many of Bongo Comics' Simpsons titles, including a Christmas story for 2010.

In May 2010, the Invisible College Press published Barr's science fiction/fantasy novel, Majician/51, about the discoveries of a scientist working at Area 51.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This held up surprisingly well. I like that the team is mostly rookies and that they don't always follow Batman's orders. In fact, Halo rarely does. The crossover with the Teen Titans was great, especially that George Perez / Jim Aparo cover. Katana's origin was very compelling. The only failure here were the villains. They were all pretty ridiculous both in design and as a challenge for the Outsiders. It was a nice touch to bring back the Cyclonic Man from Black Lightning's solo book.

Jim Aparo is THE Batman artist. I love his simple iconic look. The Outsiders all have fantastic character designs, especially Halo.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Batman and the Outsiders (1983-1988) feels very much like an attempt to recreate the magic of Marv Wolfman's New Teen Titans. You take a group of classic heroes (Batman, Black Lightning, Metamorpho), some of whom are admittedly C-list, and you combine them with new heroes (Geo-Force, Halo, Katana). Then, you focus hard on the characters and particularly the "secrets" of the newcomers.

Batman and the Outsiders is strongest in creating a great cast of characters. There's a very intriguing Katana two-parter in this volume, while Geo-Force also gets a strong arc. Meanwhile, Halo continues to be intriguing and fun (particularly in her interactions with Katana).

The comic is less successful in creating great villains. Again, it feels like it's mimicking New Teen Titans in trying to create a new villainous cast, but of all the people the Outsiders fight in this first volume, the Masters of Disasters are the only one that's particularly memorable. (With that said, the plotline of the Cryogenic Man is terrific.)

Overall, this is a solid comic, even so long later. It's great to see comics back in the day when the Big Two were able to create new characters that stuck.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an odd teamup group but somehow it work out well. With Mike Barr writing and Jim Aparo art it was for a me a an instant hit. very enjoyable reading. Recommended

[Katherine (Kat) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 Stars
Individual issues rated below -

The Brave and the Bold #200: 3.5/5

Batman and the Outsiders #1: 4/5
Batman and the Outsiders #2: 4/5
Batman and the Outsiders #3: 3.5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #4: 3/5
Batman and the Outsiders #5: 3.5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #6: 1/6 (R slur used)
Batman and the Outsiders #7: 3/5
Batman and the Outsiders #8: 2.5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #9: 3.5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #10: 3.5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #11: 3/5
Batman and the Outsiders #12: 3/5
Batman and the Outsiders #13: 2.5/5

New Teen Titans #37: 4/5

[Javier Muñoz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Básicamente la colección surge porque a batman no le dejan hacer su Santa voluntad en la liga de la justicia, así que se cabrea y se monta un grupo por su cuenta, la creación del grupo tiene todas las felices coincidencias típicas de inicio de colección de grupo.
Los personajes son una mezcla de debutantes y elenco de segunda y tercera fila de DC, el caso es que la cosa funciona, hay buena química entre algunos de ellos y muestran la personalidad suficiente para no obedecer ciegamente a batman. son cómics sencillos y entretenidos, los dibujos son muy buenos en la línea de su época. cualquiera que disfrute el cómic de pijameo de los años ochenta tiene aquí una apuesta segura, de hecho incluso sorprende lo bien que se leen y lo ligeros que son estos tebeos comparados con otras cosas de su época. Buenos tebeos de entretenimiento sin complejos

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Good: They don't make them like this anymore! These old-school comics were great fun, and it was nice to see Batman alongside superheroes outside of the Justice League. The artwork was fabulous, and the action sequences were superb. Better yet, the content was rather clean: a small amount of profanity, no blood or gore, etc.

The Bad: The problems were minor: the aforementioned occasional language, and some immodest dress both from superheroines (especially Starfire) and even some male characters. Still, that's like a Disney movie compared to modern comics.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed rereading this a lot more than I did the more acclaimed New Teen Titans. I don't know why but I found this collection of stories hold up better and are more fun than the Wolfman/Perez Titans. The tales here a pretty inconsequential but we see the building of a team with a bunch of new and old characters that really mesh together well. The villains are not big bads and are pretty lightweight really but the stories work well and the Aparo art is, of course, superb

[Ryan Solski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was simply amazed by how great this comic book is. Story was smooth, serial where needed, episodic in strength, and switched premise of POV every couple issues.

Batman is not overused, nor is he forgotten. Some really strong opinions written in here from him too.

Great Jim Aparo art too. That man was a legend in his time.

Volume 2 needs to see print! The hardcover volume 1 is printed gorgeous!!

[Robert S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Batman & the Outsiders Volume 1 captures everything great and not-so-great about comics in the 1980's. Barr and Aparo provide some memorable stories in this volume with characters who likely wouldn't get the time of day in today's comics. Although sometimes slightly skimpy on story, the action more than makes up for it in the best way possible.

[Shaun Winters · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Batman leaves the Justice League he forms a group that will live in the areas that are grey. They are the Outsiders.

This is a wonderful collection of a classic series that introduces numerous complex characters in the DC Universe, some a reintroduction. The artwork is stellar for the time period and the overall stories are engaging enough to keep you reading.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jim Aparo Batman is the best Batman. Not quite as good as the Brave and the Bold series but still a great Batman read.

[Dr Rashmit Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the details of formation of the Original outsiders and then how they became a team and then we met an intrinsic tale relating the present adventure of Outsiders with their respective past.

The book is obviously a product of it's time , with all the campiness and jerky story telling that was usual occurance in the 80s but thats not to say i didnt enjoy it . In fact , I'd say this book actually has aged well enough for one to enjoy even in this day and age , if they just keep in mind that the tales in 80s arent as well structured as they are now

[Cybernex007 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here is a collection of my thoughts throughout each issue in this collection.

Issue #1 - I feel as though I am missing a lot of context for this issue. On one hand it appears abrupt and that all of the players are getting thrown into an unusual situation and are being forced to work together without much rhyme or reason. Like Batman is struggling , why doesn’t he just “adopt” another “ward.” I’m kidding about that, primarily because part of me loves the chaos. Lucius has been kidnapped, causing Batman to be burnt out and frustrated with the league because they don’t want to cause trouble with international affairs. And then while going and deciding to deal with it himself he starts running into all the other characters. I mean he just straight up gives Halo their name in the span of 2 pages. WHAT IS HAPPENING GIVE ME MORE. Especially more of jig saw puzzle metamorpho shoved in a bag.

Issue #2 - What a way to make Bedlum the most unlikeable character ever. A literal nazi sympathizer that enjoyed grabbing as much power as possible and crushing anything that got in his way. Usually when we get introduced to Villians they do a lot of talk, and this did a great job at showing just how much I should hate him.

“A buncha outsiders like us? It might work… but we could use a name!” Get metamorpho in the dc writers room right now, if this isn’t the corniest thing ever.

So far the outsiders has been the most out of character thing ever. Seeing Batman fight in a foreign war is interesting to say the least and I did slightly enjoy it. But then him agreeing with geo force on basically just killing the Baron and throwing him to the people. I didn’t like the guy either but there is no way he survived that fall, and to see Batman take pleasure in it? What is happening?? So far these issues have also had quite quick resolutions to quick plots. There is some things that connect all of them but it seems very loosely tied together. I hope to see things more fleshed out as I continue.



Issue #3 - just seems like another quick villain of the week deal. It’s fun seeing Batman get some protégés back under his wings and his and Alfred’s little rules like using channel 7 to keep his identity a secret are campy and fun, but he keeps talking about how they aren’t ready and he will train them to help him fight in gotham, but then either immediately uses them when they show up against his orders or just drag them along to finish the issue for generic villain number 4. Of course the most interesting part is the characters of the outsiders themselves. So the small moments of dynamics they have are fun, like with katana and Halo, but seem far and few between. And GeoForce straight up jumped into a spinning helicopter blade and Katana blocked bullets on the same page 19, huh?? Also what’s with the goons that just keep giving up, these goons have no heart anymore lol.

Brave and the Bold 200 - wish there was some clue to this being the next issue, I realized it off the note in issue 4 and went back, that was until I realized it was a sneak peak snuck into the back of this issue. But I do have to admit I read the brave and the bold part of this issue with Adam West and Burt Ward’s voices. I’ve only ever heard of this era of the Batman and I hadn’t planned on going back and exploring it, but this small snippet was such a fun ride and I’m not entirely sure if this is an homage or parody of that era. An era where the goons named pinstripe and JoJo start laughing in the face of a dude named brimstone because of how easily he was bested by the dynamic duo before, but this time it will be different. As this time the Gordon’s PO Box is open to anything and we will steal the riddlers gimmick to give clues as to where we will be lol.

But then that tonal shift hits so hard. Oh that fun squabble you just saw with Batman and robin? Yeah brimstone has been comatose for years!! And when he is finally woken up his hatred for Batman is so vigorous that he transcends his world to another one that happens to have a Batman still alive so he can go after him. OMG I LOVE THIS. I resend my previous thought, as this is a total love letter to the different eras working together in a multi versal way. And for brimstone to go through all the work to try and improve his previous trap, only for the Batman of this earth to defeat him in the EXACT SAME WAY. It’s predictable but it’s quaint, funny, and perfect, and that final panel with the new Batman swinging in with the brave and the bold in the distance is perfect. And the jab at the early swamp thing by bat-mite, HAHAHAHA.

Now the Batman and outsiders issue is odd. They reference the events in issue 4 but it doesn’t feel like the current team dynamic at all. The team in this sneak peak is trained in their abilities, able to sneak about and blend in, have learned how to transfer to their costumes immediately and apparently halo encountered firefly before? When did that happen? Really just creates more questions I know will never be answered. :(



Issue 4 - every issue of outsiders does give me massive hope for the casting they did for metamorpho in the upcoming James Gunn Superman movie. Although Batman finding Halo and just having her join the team was quite abrupt, like with almost everyone here, the moments where she tries to figure anything out about herself can be quite funny.

“But where do my clothes go when I become halo.”

The villain of this issue initially started as pretty unmemorable and I didn’t even remember that Creegan showed up in a few black lighting issues. but Creegan showed himself as a great testing ground for the outsiders. With how powerful he is, it allowed the team to really go all out and try tricks they don’t usually use. It was also a good showcase of the power behind katana’s sword and a good lead up to the truth about it.

This issue also served as a good start to grounding some of the characters and finding out more about them. Whether it has to do with Katana and Halo’s relationship, Pierce’s teaching, or Metamorpho’s past lover Stagg, a lot of it is setting the groundwork to come.

And of course the real villain being the prison industrial complex is always a nice touch, glad to see Creegan got the help he needed. Oh also see metamorpho turn into a kite at the end is perfect lol.


Issue #5 I actually read this issue already while reading the new teen titans run. Pretty basic beat ‘em up comic from what I remember and it’s a shame we didn’t get more Tara and her brother, I hope there is some recognition of that in this book once she betrays the titans. Specially when they visit her grave. I know they were never actually told about her betrayal. And also to mention Dr. Jace makes a lot more sense now that I’ve been reading outsiders.

Issue #6

I am absolutely loving the relationships that are forming with each issue. Also love how much Bruce plays the playboy part of his persona on this book, especially because the outsiders know he is connected to Batman, so making them think that they are the same could be the furthest from the truth is the best move and these comics do that so well.

But I especially love the relationship between Katana and Halo.

“How strange children are! She was afraid to go to school but answering a summons that may endanger her life is “neat.”

Pierce’s current status of teacher getting back in the saddle is interesting me, and I really hope that continues to stay developed.

Rex and Geo force’s relationship is fun as well but at the moment seems more related out of their need for Dr Jace.

Onto the villain of this issue, I initially thought it was just a poor man’s Mr freeze or captain cold. But wow this character is way darker than I thought these issues would go and part way through I was hoping for a 2 parter to fully explore him. He has a similar gimmick to Mr freeze where he has loved ones frozen, but Mr Freeze I can respect as he is internally looking for a an impossible cure. This guy appears to only care about on of the people on ice and is willing to chop off parts of the others to enhance himself at the smallest wound, and he obviously thinks he is doing the right thing as he has voices in his head of the people on ice. And he is obviously willing to put himself on ice as he still thinks it’s the 50s. This guy is a certifiable nut case and I’m betting the people on ice barely know him.


Issue #7

Alright so my bet was completely wrong, and they were actually a nuclear family connected via electro waves. (And black lightning thinks he isn’t doing anything) But what a great ending to the cryonic man. The other people on ice finding out about his lies and misuse of them and then outright rejecting him and his entire purpose. All of them dying in the process isn’t the best outcome but they apparently died a long time ago anyway.

I am also glad we get to see more of Katana’s soul sword, and I really like the use of it being able to hone in on her. I also really liked being able to see more of Katana’s skills when her armor and weapon and stripped away. She can really put up a fight.

Also the slight sexism from Rex directed to Halo was a bit crappy, but his little funny modes of transportation like the flying saucer deal and the underground drill really patch that up, lol.

Issue #8

This issue felt like the outsiders were getting in the way of another heroes story. Which turns out to be the conflict between the phantom stranger and Tannarak which originally occurred in saga of the swamp thing. I do plan on reading saga of the swamp thing, so hopefully I remember this conclusion when I read it backwards down the line. But in a way having the phantom stranger stories out of order and spread across other heroes comics is very in character for the stranger.

This comic is probably the most active I’ve ever seen the stranger as he usually always takes a passive role in events and that was quite fun to see. Also fun to see was just how shocked Batman was throughout this issue, especially when he made the comparisons between his showing up and disappearing to the strangers methods. But more interestingly Halos past is so guarded that even the stranger can’t see it? What could cause that?

This comic also being set around Christmas gave us the chance to see some small happenings in the personal lives of the outsiders, and more specially all of their problems. Such as Black Lightning having a hit against put on his head or Rex having to deal with Staggs devil horn haircut. But we also see Katana deny talking about the truth behind her sword, and possibly a reference that she was a mother?


Outsiders Annual:

What in the political predictions Batman? This issue shocked me in how much accurate right wing politics it has predicted or really should I say have unfortunately stood the test of time. This issues big villain was spying on the American people like the NSA and was inspired by 1984 in the worst possible way. Legit said “make American great again” at one point, and I almost flipped a lid when they said project November 6th. And this came out in 1984??

I do have to admit the villains were funny but lackluster and were really here to make a political point. But it did feel like a lot of the focus on the outsiders and their development got pushed to the background, and it seems a lot of things happened off panel. Batman was out the issue because he was poisoned in a fight. But he was still able to inform geo force about the truth behind his sister. And what emotional response did we get to see? A costume change. Also got to see Rex’s current worse line: “The Batman said you might be feelin’ a little low tonight Brian, so here we are! Got the Ouija board warmed up?” REX HIS SISTER IS DEAD, COME ON!

Oh also Halo got a Cat!?!? When? Oh and also a date, which I assume she met at school? No clue they didn’t go into it, which would have been seeing Halo go through the situation for the first time.

Overall just seems like the annual was used to spend more time dissecting some villains of the week instead of the outsiders themselves.


Issue #9

At first I was quite annoyed that the issue got cut short for a mini issue, but it was actually super fun, and just gives room for more to explore in the next issue. But I am wondering if the writer was just being cheeky and fun or if there are actually implications that Halo’s abilities allow her to break the fourth wall, as there was that cool moment where Katana asked who Halo was talking too, which they snuck into the main issue as well.

This issue has been very good about showing how the characters abilities have grown. Such as that moment where black lightning used his Olympic skills instead of fighting the cold villain with his electric powers due to what he learned fighting the cryonic man. Halo’s entire mini issue showed how much she has developed her powers. And geo-force’s powers appear to just keep getting stronger to the point where I’m not exactly sure what he is controlling. But I was kinda confused why geo-force was stunned by a villain who can shake things. That’s a big part of geo-force’s power set?

But I digress, let’s look at the main villains for this issue. At the start coming off of the annual, I thought they were just another basic super villain team, but with how quick work the outsiders were making of them, and how they were tripping over each other, I thought they were just wildly more incompetent. But then I realized, that this is the same group that were hired by the family of that girl, that black lighting feels responsible for getting killed. And now I’m really excited that this is going over more than one issue so we can really explore this and maybe black lighting can finally have a proper conclusion to that part of his life.

Issue #10

Batman: “How do you feel, lightning?”

Black Lightning: “Hard to say…But maybe for the first time in months, I feel like waking up tomorrow…and that…that feel fine.”

This was such a good issue for black lightning, where he was able to face his biggest past mistake of letting a girl get killed in the cross fire during a fight, and face her family head on and eventually come to terms with how big of a mistake that was. Now, it did come about in one of the worst ways because the family hired a gang of super villains to kill lightning, but hey we got there in the end. And the mother, after realizing how badly black lightning felt for her daughters death and that he even knew her name realized she made a mistake and even jumped in the line of fire to save black lightning near the end of the fight.

Very necessary issue to get black lightning back some inner peace, and I hope because of this he will feel more comfortable moving back into a teachers position.

Also, really liked Batman dawning the matches Malone personality to track down lightning, and that moment where he steps out of the shadows from matches to Batman was so cool.

And final page the tease of more Katana backstory. WOOO, finally.

Lastly, the finger pointing at Batman on the first page just looks so funny to me, and did we get a boost in the art quality at least for those first few pages?


Issue #11

Part 1 of the truth behind Katana, and what an excellent issue. The outsiders in this issue are very much thriving in their personalities.

We got those amazing moments where Katana buys Halo a cat so Halo will leave her alone. Pierce is back in school as the level headed witty teacher we all know him as. I loved that moment where Halo came home from getting asked out and the dialogue is all strung together because of how fast and excited she is talking. Overall so many great moments. AND REX turns into a chair that no one should sit in.

But to get to the real meat of the issue. The truth behind Katana and her possessed sword. First off I love how her immediate reaction upon her sword being stolen is to push everyone away and deal with it on her own, but what I love 10 told about that is the outsiders reaction. Where they immediately track her down and surprise her in her hotel room, because they are a team and they are there to help no matter what. But I also love that once she confides in them about the sword and her dead husband possessing it, that everyone is shocked except for halo and Batman. Halo because she found out by accident when she touched it in a previous issue. And Batman, because he is Batman.

But what’s also interesting is the note that we are left on at the end, the enchantment the villains use to release the souls from the sword revealing all of the skilled warriors who have died by the blade and live inside of it, and now Katana’s husband will be the one to use it against her. Riveting stuff.



Issue #12

I unfortunately hate how I called that Katana was a mother at one point because of how tragic her backstory is revealed in this issue.

I do understand the ending where Katana killed the Takeo, trapping his soul in the sword. Fitting for how he originally put her husband in the sword and how he defiled it. And I am left questioning if the other souls are now freed or if they returned to the sword as well. But it does appear they are gone.

Geez Batman really just stood by and let that happen huh.

But speaking of Batman, I thought it was funny how easily the blow dart bounced off of Batman’s suit. WHELP NO IT DIDN’T, and I find out what happens next issue!



Issue #13

OOPS, just found out the annual was out of order, which makes 10x more sense because there was so much in the annual that seemed like it happened off panel.

But a bigger oops… who was that guest artist and what an absolutely crackpot plan to save Batman. The guest artist had quite some creative liberties when it came to chins. Metamorpho had it rough this issue.

But back to their plan, first they get the quickest diagnosis of all time to say make sure you keep Batman moving and the poison will run out of his body. Glad that ended up actually working.

But their entire plan was to convince him he was re-living his biggest childhood trauma, seeing his parents die over and over, just so he would start moving around again. OMG that is dark, and I absolutely know it was Alfred’s plan.

Also, Batman has non safeguards for his mask getting pulled off? Black lightning just pulled that off like it was nothing. Well we’re all outsiders now, so boom friendship prevails and we now know each others identities, and it might make it a bit easier for Bruce to hook them up with anything they may need.



Final thoughts: overall I did quite enjoy these comics after we got over a few rough patches at the start. It felt like the writer just needed to get them all together no matter what and didn’t care about why. But now that they are together and aquatinted and have had a few goofy weekly villains, now we can actually start developing and growing as characters.

[Nate Deprey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a reprinting of a mid 80s series that has some of the racial and gender issues you might associate with comics that are more than 35 years old and Batman is at times deeply inconsistent from his portrayal in other titles and eras. That said, Jim Aparo's artwork and layouts are stunning and you really feel his absence in the one issue he didn't do the art for and while I'm sure the easiest comparison for this series is to the New Teen Titans, and the two series even cross over at the midpoint of this collection, there is something new happening here. There is a natural diversity to this team, with two female members, Halo and Katana, and two members of color, Black Lightning and Katana who is, as far as I know, the first Asian female super hero in American comics. There is also a street level element to this series and an interesting working class feel to many of these characters. Black Lightning is a teacher at the same inner city Gotham school that Halo attends and Katana manages a bookstore that focuses on Japanese culture. It feels refreshing to have secret identities this well developed and it helped me care about the characters more. The bad guys are also consistently interesting and I don't know if the Masters of Disaster ever apear in another series but they were perfect, especially their post punk leader, New Wave.

[Sylvester · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Outsiders were a group of vigilantes Batman recruited on a mission in a fictional country called Markovia. I really enjoyed the quality of the story, the character development and the story telling. Black Lighting is dealing with personal guilt of accidentally killing a bystander during a mission, which made him doubt himself. Katana had a tragic past she is overcoming with the help of the team, especially Halo who is light a daughter to her. Halo is the most interesting character, a teenage who does not have the memory of who she was. Geo-Force came from royalty, which made civilian life rather difficult for him. Metamorpho is currently being ignored, but should have his storyline soon.

It was a really good read, which reminded me of what was missing in modern comics.

[Anthony Wendel · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the Teen Titans, I decided to jump back to try this other team book which came out tat the same time (the two teams crossing over was actually featured in this collection). Seeing Batman, unable to follow the rules and needing a team to help him follow his path of justice seems on point. From there its a great interaction between the different heroes (especially Halo and Katana as one has no memorya nd the other has too much pain in her past). This collection turned out to be very entertaining and I look forward to reading the rest of this series.

[Martin Maenza · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is easily my fourth reading of these issues, including when they first came out on the newsstands back in the early 80's. I really enjoyed this team as it was something new and exciting at the time. Batman quitting the JLA and starting his own group was a radical concept. Of course, I love Aparo's artwork and Barr's weaving of story elements.

[Tom Maseth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume collects BATO 1 - 13, Brave and the Bold 200, and New Teen Titans 37. The years are 1983 & 1984. It covers the origin of the Outsiders, the origin of Katana, and a team up with the Teen Titans to battle the Fearsome Five. The series was well-written by Mike W. Barr and illustrated by the late great but underappreciated artist Jim Aparo.

[Ondra Král · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hodnotím DCKK verzi, tedy jen první čtyři sešity.
Je to nuda i na osmdesátky. Nové postavy jsou nevýrazné a Báťa je místy dost out of character. Takhle se prosím vypořádá s hlavním záporákem:



DCKK vydání je docela meh, některé rámečky jsou rozextované a pár slovních hříček je divně přeloženo. EDIT: Tak ne, ono je to debilní už v originále.

[Simon Belfast · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average superhero team comics. It's fun to read, and the art is good but overally nothing special. Even though there is a lot of potentiality and good atmosphere which makes you to not abandon reading, the lack of good characters' interaction and any interesting villain makes it slow to get through pages. - 5/10

[Jefferson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular. The writing is solid, and Jim Aparo is one of the most underappreciated artists of the 1980s. While maybe not as slick or flashy as some of the '80s superstars like George Perez or John Byrne, Aparo's work is consistent, expressive and technically flawless.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS was a favorite series of mine in the '80s, and it's great to see that the stories hold up after nearly 40 years. Mike W. Barr is one of my favorite Batman writers, and he is one of the few writers whose Black Lightning is as good as Tony Isabella's.

Highly recommended!

[Dylan Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great read! Fun, fresh, developing characters. Every character has a role to play, and they play it well. It's not even as "Batman is training them" as I expected; they genuinely work as a team. Loved it.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, pretty good. I wish there were interactions with the Justice League, though. Otherwise it was basically a B-team JL. 3.5/5.

[Ali Suchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, the story and art were pretty good, but I had a hard time following it. The dialogue felt jumpy and meh. But I enjoyed it and it got better as I read it.

[Cristiano · Rating 4 out of 5]

The year is 1983, and comics were much more fun back then!

[Camila · Rating 3 out of 5]

só li até o 4 pq me deu preguiça mas é isso fé

[JD Comics · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Lucius Fox goes missing in Markovia, Batman endeavors to mobilize the Justice League for a rescue mission. However, Superman and Wonder Woman block his plan, citing Superman's commitment to the government not to interfere in this matter. This forces Batman to step down from the League, ultimately leading to the formation of the Outsiders.

In reality, the formation of this team was prompted by the cancellation of the Brave and the Bold title, coupled with DC's contractual obligations to replace it with another Batman title. Thus, the Batman and the Outsiders title was born. The team consists of both seasoned veterans, (i.e., Black Lightning and Metamorpho), and fresh faces (i.e., Geo-Force, Katana, and Halo). Exploring Batman's journey in assembling a new team was a real treat As with any new team, there were inevitable growing pains, given that most members weren't accustomed to following orders. These challenges only added to the book's charm.

My first encounter with the Outsiders came through the New Teen Titans-Outsiders crossover in Tales of the Batman: Marv Wolfman, Vol. 1, also included in this volume. Back then, I remember thinking the New Teen Titans were the more captivating team. But, being a completist at heart, I still picked up Batman and the Outsiders, Vol. 1. I'm glad I did. This book turned out to be a hidden gem.

Mike Barr and Jim Aparo form a powerhouse team. Aparo's legendary Batman art needs no praise, but Barr shines with his character development. Each character is compelling as most of them are haunted by their past. Black Lightning grapples with the ghost of a past mistake, burdened by a young girl's death. Halo's elusive memories hold cryptic clues to her unknown origins. Katana is hiding something from the team and her sword holds the key. Metamorpho is still denied access to Sapphire Stagg by Simon Stagg, and Geo-Force longs for the homeland he left behind.

My love for the Bornze Age continues. I highly recommend this book.

Chronology: I recommend reading this after Tales of the Batman: Don Newton.

Collects Batman and the Outsiders (1983) 1-13, New Teen Titans (1980) 37, and material from Brave and the Bold (1955) 200.

My Batman Collected Editions Instagram page

[El Neo · Rating 3 out of 5]

These stories are fun and the art by Jim Aparo is both dynamic and clean.

[Nate]

You’re all looking for something, and I can help you find it.

When Lucius Fox is kidnapped by freedom fighters in civil war-torn Markovia, Batman goes to the Justice League for help. But he’s shocked when they refuse to go against the UN’s order to stay out of the conflict; furious, he quits the team. Later in Markovia, Batman encounters several heroes – Black Lighting, Metamorpho, Katana, Halo, and Geo-Force – who work together to save Lucius and end the Markovian conflict. Inspired by their fortitude, Batman sees an opportunity to form his own team to crusade against rising crime in Gotham City and beyond. Thus begin …the Outsiders!

I loved this book. It’s pure great comics. The Outsiders are a winning team, each member compelling in his or her own way. To see Batman lead a group of heroes, most of them rookies, is a refreshing change of pace. It’s clear that the team was meant to mimic the then-popular New Teen Titans series, but the Outsiders quickly find their own footing. But like the New Teen Titans (with whom the Outsiders cross over for two issues), what makes these stories shine are the characters themselves. We see their struggles and triumphs working together, as well personal problems each one deals with.

I especially liked Halo’s character development, and her touching relationship with Katana; I’m excited to see where her story goes, and find out exactly how she got her powers. Katana gets an awesome arc where we learn her backstory, taking the Outsiders to Japan. Geo-Force and Black Lighting also take center stage for a few issues.

I appreciate that the team is mixture of new and old. Batman already knows Metamorpho and Black Lightning and feels like he can trust them. But the others are new to the hero game, and still have kinks to work out. What’s more, the personality dynamics cause friction with the obsessive Batman, who has to learn how to best lead this team. He has experience with the Justice League and Brave and the Bold team-ups, but never had his own group like this (save for perhaps mentoring Robin). Seeing him grow as a leader across these thirteen issues was great to see.

If there’s one weak spot in this book, it’s the villains. As someone who has a soft spot for C- and D-list villains, even I found some of them to be cheesy. Agent Orange in particular had me rolling my eyes, even if the story was solid.

All in all, the Outsiders were a great idea on the part of DC. Batman leading a team of lesser known and brand new heroes makes for compelling drama and strong, character-based stories. Even if the villains leave more to be desired, these comics hold up because the storytelling is strong, and the focus is always on the characters. Looking back in 2018, it’s heartening to see that the Outsiders – particularly Black Lightning and Katana – have become mainstays in the DC Universe.