(1986)
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–Detective Comics #566-567
January. Someone sends a threatening letter (via Commissioner Gordon) to Batman, prompting he and Robin to peruse the Bat-Computer’s crime-files in search of a suspect. Unable to discern who has threatened them, nor a place or time the threat will rear its head, Batman and Robin simply move on, waiting for the inevitable.
Detective Comics #567 by Harlan Ellison, Gene Colan, Bob Smith, & Adrienne Roy (1986)
January. The final issue of Detective Comics in the Silver/Bronze Age is upon us—a classic written by the legendary Harlan Ellison, no less! Batman patrols, coming across a mugging, but he isn’t needed as the would-be victim is already holding his would-be mugger at gunpoint. Batman also isn’t needed as another would-be mugger is able to defend herself against an attacker. Later, Batman tries to save a suicide jumper, but the cops already have it under control. Batman then busts up a drug deal only to learn he’s ruined a ten-yearlong undercover police sting. Batman continues scouring the city for crime, but the city is safe and quiet for a change. Batman can’t even get a chance to bust a litterbug! A little after 4 AM, Batman returns to Wayne Manor, telling Alfred it has been the worst night of his life.
Batman #400 by Doug Moench, Brian Bolland, & Adrienne Roy (1986)
–Batman #400
January. It’s the 19th anniversary of the debut of Batman! The mystery attack promised in Detective Comics #566 still hasn’t come, so—despite lamenting wasting a second night on it—Batman sits down in attempt to figure out who could be making the threat. Of course, it’s Rā’s al Ghūl, who blows a hole in both Arkham Asylum and Gotham State Penitentiary, releasing all the inmates—including Joker, Two-Face, Cavalier, Dagger, Deadshot, Killer Croc, Killer Moth, Mad Hatter (Jervis Tetch), Black Spider, Catman, Clayface (Preston Payne), Black Mask, Riddler, Poison Ivy, Penguin, Calendar Man, Crazy-Quilt, Mr. Freeze, Tweedledum, Tweedledee, Mirage, Dr. Double X, Signalman, Cluemaster, Captain Stingaree, Mirror-Man, Dr. Phosphorus, Scarecrow, and Night-Slayer. Acting on the orders of Rā’s al Ghūl, the villains unite and begin enacting a master plan. Scarecrow kidnaps Julia Pennyworth. Poison Ivy kidnaps Harvey Bullock. Riddler and Black Spider kidnap Vicki Vale. Rā’s al Ghūl visits Batman face-to-face to gloat. The Demon’s Head tells Batman to join him and, together, they can execute his entire Rogues Gallery. Batman tells him to piss off. While the Dynamic Duo heads to Stick Chuvalo’s greasy spoon to fight some baddies, Killer Croc kidnaps Alfred. At the restaurant, Batman and Robin take down Catman and Black Spider, but they let Riddler, Poison Ivy, and Scarecrow walk after learning about the hostages. Across town, a bunch of villains led by Joker and Penguin take over police HQ. Talia meets with Batman and Robin, offering to help them defeat her father once and for all. Catwoman attempts to rescue Bullock, but she gets captured by the villains as well. Batman returns to Chuvalo’s place and beats up Chuvalo and his henchmen. Batman finds evidence points him in the direction of an abandoned arboretum. (Batman mentions Poison Ivy’s “Exotica” scheme from “months ago,” but that was actually two-and-a-half-years ago! Time flies, eh?) At the arboretum, Batman finds the hostages. He frees Catwoman and, together, they bust Poison Ivy, Killer Croc, Scarecrow, and Riddler. Batman, Catwoman, Robin, and Talia then bust the six villains at police HQ, freeing all the cops. The heroes then enter Rā’s al Ghūl’s lair to witness the villain emerge from a Lazarus Pit full of vim and vigor. As an explosion crumbles everything around them, Batman fights Rā’s al Ghūl, tossing him back into the Lazarus Pit. The heroes leave Rā’s al Ghūl for dead, escaping just as the structure collapses. Later, Batman, Robin, Alfred, Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Catwoman, Vicki Vale, and Julia Pennyworth celebrate Batman’s 19th anniversary in the Batcave (with cake)! But Batman doesn’t celebrate long, for there are still criminals roaming the streets of Gotham. He ascends from his cave and into the night, uttering a sinister greeting and warning to all evildoers: “Hello again. Beware… forever.”
–NOTE: And that’s all she wrote, folks! Batman will commit to his daily routines for the rest of the calendar year. To see what lies in store for Batman’s future, check out the Silver/Bronze Future section (link below).
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<<< Year Nineteen <<< | >>> The Future >>>
Congrats on finishing/completing the whole Silver/Bronze Age section, its quite an amazing achievement! I was following your progress (the last years) on a daily basis and I must admit, its really a remarkable accomplishment that you did in record time!
If you don’t mind asking, what’s your next plan besides maintaining the current Rebirth list? Maybe revisiting some portions of the Modern Age/Golden Age? Or something totally new that soon to be seen? Overall how can I follow your work if something new come up/being updated?
Hey thanks! I can’t believe it myself! A celebration is definitely in order. I’ve catalogued every Batman comic from 1939 through 2020. Only took me about eleven years to do it, but we made it. Thanks for your support!
My plans for the site involve a lot of copy-editing and clean-up stuff. Adding a Change Log as well, hopefully! Since I’ve just done Crisis (and redone it for the Modern Age), I might re-read Zero Hour, Infinite Crisis, and Final Crisis and do updates where necessary. I will also be closing-out the Rebirth Era section, which will likely (probably?) be ending soon. As for the future of the site beyond that, who knows what’ll happen. I’ll keep you posted though!
Hm, the Crisis tetralogy sounds like a good plan!
Thank you for your response and as always keep up the good work!
Congrats Collin! Perhaps the work of a life you have just achieved 😉 the change log will be a good idea.hey i was thinking…now you have finished you can work in that dozen and more timeline you have talked last time lol i joked as well.like i said before it always a pleasure too to follow your work 🙂
So happy to see this finally be finished. I didn’t love a lot of the last few years of this era, but there are still some great gems here, and it’s great that you’re finally complete. Cheers, man, thanks for all your amazing work.
Congrats!
I do feel the need to point out that it would only be Batman’s 19th anniversary, though.
You know what’d be a cool idea to do?
Add a section for each timeline about all the women Batman has been with, from the most important ones to the flings, that’d be a neat piece of trivia. It could also be quite cool to do one for the villains as well, though that one I feel might be even more intense hahaha
I’ve been planning a deep dive into this very subject for years now—”The Love Life of Bruce Wayne/Batman,” but it’s a big topic! Even bigger if you add other characters and get into six degrees of separation. I’m always looking for content on the blog. If you are interested, take a crack at it. Would love to host. Otherwise, I might pitch this to PurpleGlovez, who just did a stellar four part article about Gotham City Mayors. Check it out if you haven’t already—and leave some comments while you are there!
Crazy how Silver Age Batman is the one that started the youngest (at age 21, tied with the current version) and ended fairly young too, with 39 years of age at the time of Crisis, compare that to the Modern Age, started at 25 ended at 48 with Flashpoint, the Golden Age, started at 24 and retired to raise Helena at 46, and the current version is 42 right now.
Definitely an interesting observation, and one that is not lost on me. Might be a nice footnote to compare them all in the current continuity section. Although, I will say, Crisis may narratively end the Silver Age, but Batman does have a career beyond Crisis, which continues into at least the 2000s (as per Batman #300). Likewise, Damian: Son of Batman shows us that Bruce retires at age 50 in the Modern Age.
But to your point, yes Silver Age Batman’s adventures prior to continuity ending were indeed quite short compared to other timelines!
Yes i was definetly referring to when they “ended” as in the present day stories, in a way the Modern version’s “present day” ends closer to his retirement than the Silver Age version, considering that Bruce during Batman #300 was in his 50’s but hadn’t retired yet (Batman #300 being implied as his last adventure before doing so), so there’s more of the history of the Silver Age Batman we didin’t see, there’s at least a full decade of unseen bat-activity.
Personally i like how the ending of #300 is ambiguous, we never see him actually retire, or who the girl he was about to propose was, or even how his eventual death was, something that we did get indications of in other continuities, but in this timeline? Nothing.
Regarding Dick’s family i like to think the woman he had Bruce and James Grayson with was Barbara, seeing as how it would explain why his kid has Gordon’s name, how he returned to the Robin identity, kind of leaving the Nightwing role as a phase (defined as his time with the New Titans instead of at Batman’s side, with the return to the Robin mantle potentially indicating a renewed partnership with Batgirl), and would pay off the slowly building romantic tension between the two that got cut off by the arrival of New Teen Titans monopolizing Dick Grayson’s time lol.
Sorry i ended up rambling headcanon ideas, but that future is fun to ponder on, the oh so distant future of the 2000’s lol.
No worries, love the ramble. And your hypotheses for the future make a lot of sense. I’ll add them as a footnote if you don’t mind! Thanks for the comments 🙂