Batman Year One

''Batman: Year One'' is an American comic book story arc written by Frank Miller and illustrated by David Mazzucchelli. ''Year One'' was originally published by DC Comics in ''Batman'' #404-407 monthly issues format in 1987. The story recounts Batman's first year as a crime-fighter as well as exploring the life of recently transferred Gotham police detective Jim Gordon, building towards their first encounter and their eventual alliance against Gotham's criminal underworld.

Publication history

Development

In an effort to resolve continuity errors in the DC Universe, Marv Wolfman and George Pérez produced the 12-issue limited series ''Crisis on Infinite Earths''. Wolfman's plans for the DC Universe after ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' included relaunching every DC comic with a new first issue.

During the production of ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', Frank Miller was the writer of Marvel Comics' '' Daredevil'' where he finished his long run with the character in issue #191. He went on to work for DC and produced the influential four-issue limited series '' Batman: The Dark Knight Returns'' (1986). Dennis O'Neil who was the editor for Miller's run on ''Daredevil'' took over the duty as the regular writer with David Mazzucchelli as the artist. In 1985, Miller briefly returned to Marvel as the writer of ''Daredevil'' only for issue #219 while also fully committed himself into developing ''Dark Knight Returns''. By the time the ''Daredevil'' series reached to issue #226 in 1986, Miller and Mazzucchelli collaborated for the first time due to O'Neil left Marvel to work for DC again. They collaborated again on the critically acclaimed seven issues #227-233 which eventually titled as '' Daredevil: Born Again'' in the collected edition. Mazzucchelli also departed from Marvel to pursue personal creative endeavour.

The contract Miller signed to produce ''Dark Knight Returns'' also required him to write a revamped Batman origin story. Year One was originally conceived as a graphic novel. O'Neil, who had been asked to edit several issues of ''Batman'', was friends with Miller and was able to learn of the story. Reflecting on poor sales of ''Batman'', O'Neil caught Miller one day while on a walk in Los Angeles and convinced him and Mazzucchelli to serialize the story in the ongoing series. Miller was initially reluctant; he felt this would be hard because he had to ensure the story stayed canonical to the DC Universe, something he did not have to worry about when writing ''Batman: The Dark Knight Returns''. In addition, Miller's pacing would have to be altered because of ongoing series' relatively small page counts. O'Neil reasoned that ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' had completely remade the DC Universe, so Miller would be able to have the same creative freedom that ''Dark Knight Returns'' provided. He also reassured Miller that he and Mazzucchelli "weren't going to lose anything" by serializing it.

Miller has said he kept Bob Kane and Bill Finger's basic story for Year One but expanded it. In writing the story, Miller looked for parts of Batman's origin that were never explored. He left the core elements, such as the murder of Bruce's parents, intact, but reduced them to brief flashbacks. Bruce's globe-trotting adventures were removed, as Miller found them uninteresting. Rather than portraying Batman as a larger-than-life icon as he had in ''The Dark Knight Returns'', Miller chose to characterize Batman in Year One as an average, inexperienced man trying to make a change in society because Miller believed a superhero is least interesting when most effective. Examples of this include Batman underestimating his opponents, getting shot by police, and his costume being too big. The story's violence was kept street-level and gritty, emphasizing noir and realism.

Artwork

Miller's past projects for ''Daredevil'' overwhelmed him since he had to handle both writing and illustration duties simultaneously. For ''Year One'', he once again relied on a comic book artist for illustrations while he simply wrote the story and the script. Mazzucchelli signed on to illustrate the artwork after accepting Miller's offering to do Batman. The team also consisted of Mazzucchelli's wife Richmond Lewis who was in charge of coloring, Todd Klein as the story's letterer, and O'Neil editing the overall story.

In illustrating, Mazzucchelli sought to make Year One look grimy, dark, and muted. His interpretation of Gotham City was designed to symbolize corruption, featuring muddy colors that gave the impression of the city being dirty and needing a hero, so Mazzucchelli took on Year One with a more grounded and darker approach. Newsprint used in most ''Batman'' titles served as the printing paper for Year One during its monthly issues run. In 1988, Year One was published in the collected edition format with Mazzucchelli specifically opted to change the printing paper from newsprint into the process color paper that was used in Miller's ''Dark Knight Returns''. He felt this paper material is designed to print lots of colors, more than what newsprint was capable of. With many sets of color available from the color hue, Lewis recolored the entire story in order to match the visuals printed on the paper.

Publication

In accordance with Wolfman's plans, O'Neil initially saw "Year One" as the start of the second volume of ''Batman'' and expected the first part to be its first issue. However, Miller rejected this idea. He explained: "I don't need to slash through continuity with a sharp blade as I thought. Doing ''The Dark Knight Returns'' has shown me there's been enough good material... I didn't feel that fleshing out an unknown part of Batman's history justified wiping out 50 years of dventures" Thus, the four "Year One" issues bear no continuity to past issues of ''Batman''.

Collected editions

Following the completion of the 404–407 monthly issues run, Year One received several reprints over the years: collected edition in hardcover and trade paperbacks, several deluxe editions in hardcover and paperback format, an ''Absolute Edition'', and an Artist's Edition published by IDW Publishing.

In 1988, Year One was published as collected edition in hardcover () and trade paperback (). Both Warner Books () and Titan Books () also published trade paperbacks in 1988.

In 1989, Longmeadow Press published ''The Complete Frank Miller Batman'' (), collecting ''Year One'', '' Wanted: Santa Claus - Dead or Alive!'', and ''The Dark Knight Returns''.

In April 2005, DC released the "Deluxe Edition" of ''Year One'' in hardcover () to coincide with the release of ''Batman Begins''. This edition reuses the printing paper from the 1988 collected edition with Mazzucchelli supplying the promotional and unseen Batman art, Lewis' color samples, some of the original penciled artwork, and some pages of the original script as bonus materials. The cover was designed by Mazzucchelli and graphic designer Chip Kidd. The trade paperback () was later published in Feb 2007.

The hardcover deluxe edition () was re-released in March 2012. Mazzucchelli clarified that DC never contacted him to design this edition. Having been sent a copy of the book by DC, Mazzucchelli was unhappy with the quality and opined that "Anybody who's already paid for he bookshould send it back to DC and demand a refund.".

In November 2014, to celebrate Batman's 75th anniversary, DC released a sample of Year One as a part of its ''DC Comics Essentials'' line of promotional comics.

In 2015, DC released a hardcover () of Year One which included its 2011 animated film adaptation on both DVD and Blu-ray.

In November 2016, DC released a 288-page Absolute Edition of Year One (). This edition comes in a slipcase with two hardcover books. Book One features a whole new scanning from the original artworks by Mazzucchelli and remastered coloring by Lewis, while Book Two features scanning pages directly from the physical copies of the 404-407 monthly issues. Over 60 pages of bonus materials are also included, including Miller's complete scripts in Book Two.

In September 2017, the hardcover deluxe edition () was re-released again, this time with the same printing paper and coloring as Book One of the 2016 Absolute Edition.

In March 2022, to coincide with the release of '' The Batman'', DC released ''The Batman Box Set'' (), collecting trade paperbacks of ''Year One'', ''The Long Halloween'', and '' Ego and Other Tails'' in a slipcase with art by Jim Lee. Director Matt Reeves cited the three graphic novels as the major influences for the film.

In August 2024, IDW Publishing published the Artist's Edition () of Year One in a 144-page hardcover. Mazzucchelli personally supplied the artworks for scanning with Chip Kidd serving as the designer of the book

The 250 copies limited edition (

was exclusively available only for pre-ordering on the IDW's official website; this version includes a slipcase, a variant design of the front cover, and Mazzucchelli's personal signature printed in an interior page.

Plot

Billionaire Batman, Bruce Wayne returns home to Gotham City after twelve years abroad, training for his eventual one-man war against crime. James "Jim" Gordon moves to Gotham with his wife, Barbara, after a transfer from Chicago. Both are swiftly acquainted with the corrupt and violent atmosphere of the city. Gordon tries to focus on purging corruption from the Gotham City Police Department after witnessing his partner, Arnold Flass, abuse his power as a cop. Unfortunately, several officers led by Flass beat him on orders from his superior, Commissioner Gillian Loeb. In revenge, Gordon tracks Flass down, beats him, and leaves him naked and handcuffed in the snow.

Bruce believes he is still unprepared to fight against crime despite having the skills he learned abroad. He goes in disguise on a surveillance mission in Gotham's red-light district but is reluctantly drawn into a brawl with several prostitutes, including Holly Robinson and Selina Kyle. Two crooked police officers shoot Bruce on sight and take him away in their patrol car. Bruce breaks free, subdues the cops, flees from the scene, and returns to Wayne Manor barely alive. He sits before his father's bust, requesting guidance in his war against crime. A bat suddenly crashes through a window and settles on the bust, inspiring Bruce to save Gotham as Batman.

With Bruce striking as Batman for weeks, street crime significantly declines. Even Flass is attacked while in the middle of accepting a bribe from Jefferson Skeevers, a drug dealer of Carmine Falcone. Sometime later, Bruce infiltrates the mansion of Gotham's mayor as Batman where he threatens all the dinner party guests, including Loeb and Falcone. Loeb immediately orders Gordon and GCPD Sergeant Sarah Essen to arrest Batman. The two cops and Batman eventually cross paths as they separately prevent an incident of an old lady getting hit by a runaway truck from happening. Soon after, Batman is forced to flee into an abandoned building where Loeb orders a bomb dropped on. A SWAT team led by a trigger-happy commander, Branden, is sent in to kill any survivors left in the building. Batman uses a signal device to attract a swarm of bats from the Batcave as his only route to escape.

Gordon and Essen have a brief affair and they date for two months. Essen, however, chooses to end the relationship upon learning Gordon is going to be the father of Barbara's child. Gordon eventually confesses his affair with Essen to Barbara when they're leaving Wayne Manor after the failed attempt in investigating Bruce's connection to Batman since Bruce uses his playboy charms to divert suspicion. War against corruption within GCPD continues with Flass and Skeevers under interrogations. Skeevers gets bailed with the help of a hired lawyer but is attacked by Batman shortly after, who convinces him to testify against Flass. In retaliation for everything, Loeb uses proof of Gordon's affair with Essen as his own leverage to blackmail Gordon. Skeevers is drugged with rat poison as an attempt of assassination so that he remains silent about the ties between Loeb and the mafia, although Skeevers ultimately survives.

Bruce sneaks into Falcone's manor as Batman and overhears the private conversation between Falcone and his nephew, Johnny Viti. He surmises their intent to target Gordon's family, so he disguises himself as a motorcyclist to help Gordon. Gordon leaves home on Loeb's orders but becomes suspicious and turns back, only to discover Viti and his men already holding his family hostage. Viti flees the scene with Gordon's infant son. Gordon chases after him on Bruce's motorcycle. The two men end up fighting on a bridge until the baby falls. Bruce catches up in time and leaps over the bridge's railing to save the baby. Gordon thanks Bruce for saving his infant son's life and lets him go. Flass supplies Assistant District Attorney Harvey Dent with the evidence and testimony needed to implicate Loeb, who resigns in disgrace. Gordon is promoted to captain and prepares to meet with Batman to investigate a potential plot orchestrated by a criminal calling himself the Joker.

Reception

Popularity

DC's post-''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' revamp was a major success, raising sales 22% in the first year, and DC beat Marvel in direct market sales for the first time in August and September 1987. The four "Year One" issues were no exception to this. Two years before the relaunch, ''Batman'' had all-time low sales of 75,000 copies per month; "Year One" sold an average of 193,000 copies an issue, numbers not seen since the early 1970s. Despite this, it did not outsell other books like ''Uncanny X-Men'', and the collected edition sold well but never matched the sales of ''The Dark Knight Returns''. The story, with the noir-inspired narrative and ultra-violent tone, quickly caught the attention of readers. The ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote that "Year One" offered an interesting and entertaining update to the origin of Batman.

Critical response

''Year One'''s characterization of Batman and Gordon has been praised. Hilary Goldstein (''IGN'') compared their journey to friendship to the plot of the film ''Serpico''; they found that the two characters' respective story arcs—with Gordon's "illustrat ngthe corruption in Gotham" and Batman's detailing "the transformation from man to myth"—offered an exploration of Batman's world like no other. Glenn Matchett (''ComicsVerse'') wrote that, unlike ''The Dark Knight Returns'', Batman in Year One is more vulnerable and inexperienced, which made the story more memorable. Nick Roberts (''Geek Syndicate'') thought the characters seemed believable, and comics historian Matthew K. Manning called the characterization realistic and grounded.

The story's depiction of Gotham and darker, realistic, mature and grittier tone and direction, compared to other contemporary Batman comics at the time, has also been acclaimed. Journalist James Lovegrove described "Year One" as a "noir-inflected pulp tale of vigilantism and integrity, focused on a good man doing the right thing in a dirty world" and noted the brutality of the fight sequences. Jason Serafino (''Complex'') wrote that by ignoring many of Batman's trademark gadgets and villains and focusing in the core essentials of the titular character, Miller managed to present Batman in a relatable and thrilling way, which felt both fresh, unique and reinvigorating, while still being faithful to the spirit of the character. Goldstein found every moment memorable, writing "Miller does not waste a single panel" in presenting a gritty and dark story. Matchett agreed; he offered particular praise for the scenes depicting Batman clashing with the police, calling them the moment Batman began to become a legend.

Mazzucchelli's art was noted as a standout by many, praising the minimalistic, noir-influenced and realistic art-work.

Continuity

Before The New 52 continuity reboot in 2011, ''Batman: Year One'' existed in the mainstream DC continuity, and in the same continuity as the other storylines in Miller's "Dark Knight Universe", consisting of ''The Dark Knight Returns'', its sequels ''The Dark Knight Strikes Again'', '' The Dark Knight III: The Master Race'', ''The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade'', ''Spawn/Batman'', and ''All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder''. Following The New 52 reboot, '' Batman: Zero Year'' replaced ''Year One'' as the official origin for Batman and ''Year One'' was relegated to the continuity of the other Miller storylines. However, following the DC Rebirth initiative, elements of "Year One" were gradually returned to the mainstream DC continuity.

After ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', DC rebooted many of its titles. ''Year One'' was followed by '' Batman: Year Two'', but the 1994 '' Zero Hour: Crisis in Time'' crossover erased ''Year Two'' from continuity. In another continuity re-arrangement, ''Catwoman: Year One'' (''Catwoman Annual'' #2, 1995) posited that Selina Kyle had not actually been a prostitute, but, rather, a thief posing as one to commit crimes.

Launched in 1989, following the success of the film ''Batman'', the title '' Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight'' examines crime-fighting exploits primarily, not exclusively, from the first four to five years of Batman's career. This title rotated in creative teams and time placement, but several stories directly relate to the events of ''Year One'', especially the first arc "Batman: Shaman". In 1996 and 1999, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale created '' Batman: The Long Halloween'' and '' Batman: Dark Victory'', two 13-issue maxiseries that recount Batman's early years as a crime-fighter following the events of Miller's original story and retold the origins of Two-Face and Dick Grayson. The ''Year One'' story was continued in the 2005 graphic novel '' Batman: The Man Who Laughs'', following up on Gordon informing Batman about the Joker, and thus recounting their first official encounter. Two other stories, ''Batman and the Monster Men'' and ''Batman and the Mad Monk'' tie into the same time period of Batman's career, filling in the gap between Year One and the Man Who Laughs. The comics '' Robin: Year One'' and '' Batgirl: Year One'' describe his sidekicks' origin stories.

Sequels

Two sequels, titled '' Batman: Year Two'' and '' Batman: Year Three'', were released in 1987 and 1989.

Adaptations

Film

Joel Schumacher's ''Batman Forever'', although set during another timespan, adopts some elements directly from the graphic novel. Schumacher claims he originally had in mind an adaptation of Miller's ''Batman: Year One''. The studio rejected the idea as they wanted a sequel, not a prequel, though Schumacher was able to include brief events in Batman's past.

The DC Animated Universe film '' Batman: Mask of the Phantasm'' adopted elements of the storyline, depicting flashbacks of how Bruce Wayne became Batman and also combines it with elements of ''Batman: Year Two'' and shows Batman's personal connection with original character Phantasm inspired by the Reaper, another character in the comics with a connection to Batman.

After the critical failure of '' Batman & Robin'', several attempts were made to reboot the Batman film franchise with an adaptation of ''Year One''. Joss Whedon and Joel Schumacher both pitched their own takes. In 2000, Warner Bros. hired Darren Aronofsky to write and direct ''Batman: Year One''. The film was to be written by Miller, who finished an early draft of the script. The script, however, was a loose adaptation, as it kept most of the themes and elements from the graphic novel but shunned other conventions that were otherwise integral to the character. It was shelved by the studio in 2001, after an individual who claimed to have read Miller's script published a negative review on ''Ain't It Cool News''. In 2016, Miller explained that the film was canceled because of creative differences between him, Aronofsky, and Warner Bros:

In 2005, Christopher Nolan began his series with the reboot film ''Batman Begins'', which draws inspiration from "Year One" and other stories. ''Batman Begins'' and its sequel ''The Dark Knight'' are set during the same timespan and adopt several elements directly from the graphic novel. Major characters like Gillian B. Loeb, Arnold Flass, and Carmine Falcone are featured prominently in ''Batman Begins''. Film critic Michael Dodd argued that with each major motion picture focused on the Dark Knight's origins, the odes and references to the ''Year One'' comic increased. Comparing '' Mask of the Phantasm'' with ''Batman Begins'' he noted that "...Phantasm was a Batman story with ''Year One'' elements, while ''Batman Begins'' was a ''Year One'' story with added features". The film's end scene, with Gordon revealing the Joker's arrival in Gotham, mirrors the end of ''Year One''.

Director Matt Reeves cited ''Year One'' as one of the inspirations for '' The Batman'', with Robert Pattinson portraying a younger Bruce Wayne who is in his second year as a crime-fighter.

Animation

In 2011, an animated adaptation was released as a DC Universe Animated Original Movie. It was produced by Bruce Timm, co-directed by Lauren Montgomery and Sam Liu. It features the voices of Benjamin McKenzie as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Bryan Cranston as James "Jim" Gordon, Eliza Dushku as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Katee Sackhoff as Sarah Essen, Jon Polito as Commissioner Loeb, and Alex Rocco as Carmine 'The Roman' Falcone. The movie premiered at Comic-Con, with a Catwoman short shown in October.

Video game

The Year One batsuit was available as one of the DLC skins for '' Batman: Arkham City''.

While not a direct adaptation, the video game '' Batman: Arkham Origins'' takes some inspiration from ''Batman: Year One'' and features a younger, less-experienced Batman in his second year of crimefighting. Set eight years before '' Batman: Arkham Asylum'', the prequel follows Batman encountering eight of the world's greatest assassins as they attempt to claim Black Mask's $50-million bounty on him, all while being hunted by the Gotham City Police Department for his vigilantism.

Television

The second half of the fourth season of the Batman-based television series '' Gotham'' is inspired by ''Batman: Year One''.

Audio

''Batman: Year One'' was adapted as the first four episode of '' DC High Volume: Batman'', a weekly scripted podcast which adapts seminal Batman comics from across the years. The cast includes Jason Spisak as Batman, Jay Paulson as Jim Gordon, Reba Buhr as Selina Kyle, Adam O’Byrne as Harvey Dent, Mike Starr as Carmine Falcone, and Simon Vance as Alfred Pennyworth.

References

External links

Batman: Year One movie official site

Batman: Year One @ The World's Finest

Current edition at DC Comics


Deluxe Hardcover edition at DC Comics

{{Millerverse
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