Some scars fade. Crime Alley never does. Denny O'Neil (Batman), and Len Wein (Swamp Thing) headline a run that fuses crime noir, gothic horror, and raw emotion. Night after night, Gotham throws its worst at Batman: killers who freeze their victims, arsonists who turn the city into a burning maze, mystics and vampires haunting alleys, assassins sworn to Ra's al Ghul, and a clown prince who treats murder as performance art.
This era also marks the pivotal debut of Lucius Fox, a figure who will become essential to both Bruce Wayne's personal and corporate life. Threaded through it all is Bruce Wayne's ritual return to the place where it began--Crime Alley--and the allies and enemies who remind him why he can never stop.
Guided by Denny O'Neil (
Green Lantern/Green Arrow) and Len Wein (
Detective Comics), and including "Wanted: Santa Claus--Dead or Alive!"--a crucial early Batman story by award-winning writer-artist Frank Miller (
Batman: Year One)--this era pairs hard-hitting scripts with striking art from Don Newton (
Detective Comics), Irv Novick (
The Flash), Ross Andru (
Action Comics), and more.
Collects
Batman #307-324;
Detective Comics #482-490;
DC Special Series #21; and
The Brave and the Bold #159.