Batman: The Greatest Stories Ever Told by Various

8/10

Since 1939, in Gotham City, one man has ruled the night, striking fear into the hearts of the venal, the superstitious, the cowardly - the Batman! This all-new collection of action-packed tales, spanning the Dark Knight's sixty-plus years and some of the finest creative teams ever to write his adventures, is a must for all Bat-fans! Featuring Robin and Batgirl, as well as many of the Gotham City hero's most famous and fearsome foes, you'll thrill to the tales of detection, daring and deadly danger! Ideal both for readers unfamiliar with Batman's many years of adventures and Bat-aficionados, these truly are some of the greatest Batman stories ever told!

As most of us know, Batman has been the main superhero in comics since the nineteen-forties, and he is still going strong today with books, movies and TV series created in his honour. This particular graphic novel has ten separate comic stories from 1940 to 2003 showing how the legacy of Batman has lasted over the years and how comic art colouring has progressed with the new and sophisticated use of computer software to give it more of a professional look.

Starting with 'Secret Origins Starring the Golden Age Batman' by Roy Thomas, pencilled by Marshall Rogers and Inked by Terry Austin, they tell the story of a Bruce Wayne in-between his parents being murdered and before he dies at the hands of a ruthless criminal. A young Bruce copes with his life without his loving, socialite parents and with uncle Philip looking after him plans his revenge against all criminals for when he gets older. He finds love, when he plays a stint on the stage, but knows he is meant for bigger things when he studies criminology and becomes detective.

In 'All My Enemies Against Me,' by Gerry Gavas, Don Newton and Alfredo Alcala, Batman's greatest foes arrive at a pre-selected meeting place wondering why they have been brought there until a certain villain shows up unannounced to say he's the one who organised it all, the one criminal who has become the most infamous of all.

In 'Citizen Wayne,' by Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Gaydos, Jamie Chiang and Patricia Mulvihill is a six-page noir of the dark days when Bruce Wayne finally dies and at his deathbed has only one word to say - Rosebud, yet no one who knew him knows what it actually means.

These stories have most of the main characters from the original comics in it including The Penguin, The Joker, The Riddler and Cat -Woman. From an old looking detective series to science-fiction these stories are true to the legend that is Batman and though it is an old graphic novel by today's standards it still has all the ingredients to be read by teens and adults alike. Batman remains one of the best crime-fighters in the business. There are others not mentioned here that are noteworthy stories and those that aren’t but those that stand out drag you into the thick of the atmosphere, and everyone will have their favourites. Some stories don't stand out as good due to the story being poor, yet the comic art is always interesting to see over the years and as the quality improves as the sequential art proves.