What are the best moments of the Batman mythology

[The Guard]

Think about all the Batman stories you've ever read, seen, heard, etc.

What are the best moments of the mythology, the ones that stuck with you, the one that every adaption should be touching on, homaging, etc?

Myself, I have a ton, but I really have a soft spot for the scene with James Gordon from the end of NO MAN'S LAND. I think that's the essence of their friendship and the conflict of it right there. It's just a beautiful, beautiful scene.

 

[batpawn]

Myself, I have a ton, but I really have a soft spot for the scene with James Gordon from the end of NO MAN'S LAND. I think that's the essence of their friendship and the conflict of it right there. It's just a beautiful, beautiful scene.

and a very very sad one too. gordon lost the person he loved the most an still he kept on fighting for the right thing. just like batman after his parent's murder. such a strong scene. you have a very good taste.

 

[Two-Face=Badass]

Though people dislike it, I've always loved the end of Knightsend, where Jean Paul takes the helmet off because of the light from the Batcave entrance Bruce fell down as a child. The parts Bruce speaks about, how he fell down there when he was a child but has never really fallen, and that maybe it's time to go the other way, I felt that was a perfect handling of Bruce right there. Metaphors, not subtle mind you, are rarely that effective in comics. I liked that he let Jean Paul go too, since it was Bruce's fault really. His calm handling of Jean Paul ripping up the Wayne portrait was also another scene I liked.

That really to me is the Bruce I pay to read comics about, which is why I mostly avoid anything from the Batd!ck era, as I just found it forced.

 

[Drz]

Everything Grant Morrison has written and continued so far, i've loved all his stories. :P

 

[ronny]

Gordon telling Batman to bring in The Joker by the book even after his daughter had been crippled and humiliated.
Sums up the battle between absolute right and absolute wrong.

 

[theMan-Bat]

Little touching moments in mostly single issue stories that many of you have probably never read because their older and not part of character shattering events in the current regular "New Earth" continuity and some of them have not been collected into trade paperbacks. The trend of long, slow soap opera stories doesn’t interest me. Shorter stories leads to more enjoyment per comic book—when you look at a story that is part three of twelve—you are getting less of an issue of the comic book. Some of the best moments that stick with me:

Batman kneeling before his parents grave and talking to his mother and father in Doug Moench's "Boneyard Blues" Batman #539 (1997) (it should be reprinted).

Batman asking the Spectre if there is a heaven and wanting to know if his parents are at peace in heaven in Doug Moench's The Spectre of Vengeance Part Two: Mask of Guilt Batman #541 (1997) (should be reprinted).

Batman taking Robin Dick Grayson to his parents grave to morn in Frank Miller's "Episode Nine" All-Star Batman & Robin #9 ('08).

Batman fighting common street crime and meeting Denny O'Neil's version of Leslie Thompkins in "There is No Hope in Crime Alley" Detective Comics #457 (1976) (reprinted in Batman in the Seventies, a good collection) without telling Thompkins why (O'Neil's version didn't raise him and doesn't know his secret idenity, that was Mike W. Barr's version). "Call it a memorial...A reminder of who I am!...Of my beginning...and my probable end!"

Bruce Wayne's talk with Molly Post about Batman being "driven, burden with a compulsion to battle crime. It isn't pretty--it's simply what he does..what he needs to do!" in Denny O'Neil's "The Batman's Burden!" Detective #451 (1975) (it should be reprinted).

The last page of Gerry Conway's "Never Scratch a Cat" with Catwoman in Batman #355 (1983) (it should be reprinted). It shows the essence of their love/hate relationship.

 

[SenseiofCheese]

My favorite moments, althought I can't remember any specific ones right now, are almost all moments between Batman and Nightwing. Their strained relationship is heartwarming, intense, infuriating, unspoken...It's great stuff when written right.

 

[ironman29758]

batman owning guy gardner with one punch

 

[ab38416]

edit

 

[Cain]

DETECTIVE COMICS # 613 - A lowlife garbage company owning criminal is harrasing an honest garbage man to get out of business and leave him without any competition. The honest garbage man refuses throughout the issue until the criminal decides the honest man must be taken out. The criminals confront the guy at a garbage dump and threaten him with a gun before deciding they'll feed him to garbage truck grinders instead. The man's son who has been watching this yells out in a last minute attempt to save his dad.

The criminals react by shooting the child dead. Batman arrives and realizes he is too late before taking on the criminals who accidentally fall into the grinders and meet a grisly death. As Batman watches a grieving father holding his lifeless son we see nothing but pain, dissapointment and sadness in the dark knight's eyes. A reminder that even The Batman is still human and not able to save every life at any given moment & that sometimes horrific events are simply inevitable.

BATMAN #459 - Jim Gordon and Sarah Essen decide to go on a movie date. The movie of choice? The Mark of Zorro. They arrive at the theatre and shortly after so does a married couple and their young son. Inside the theatre the kid becomes obnoxious he has no interest in such an old movie and is upset that the movie he did want to see has been sold out. His dad insists that it's a great movie and one that he loved as a child. As the movie begins the obnoxious child causes scenes until his parents decide that they've had enough and decide to leave. Meanwhile Batman is chasing an armed criminal through the streets of Gotham.

As the criminal races through the streets Batman notices a familiar scenario. He sees the same family we followed leave a theatre only to be threatened by the armed criminal once he comes across them. As Batman takes care of business the young boy races towards him. Being a curious kid he asks Batman how he learned "to fly and do stunts like that?" Batman responds "A lot of hard work & a lot of patience." The kid asks "but how did you start?" all Batman could answer with is "believe it or not The Mark of Zorro had a lot to do with it."

It's one of the best moments to me because it brings Batman's story around full circle. Unlike Thomas Wayne and his family this family has a hero around to look out for them and preventing such a tragedy from ever occuring again. Batman got into crime fighting so that other kids will not have their parents taken away from them in cold blood. This event was just a reminder of how far along he has come in achieving his goal

 

[Cain]

BATMAN & THE MAD MONK # 1 - As Captain Jim Gordon stands on the roof of the GCPD precint waiting on the Batman. Suddenly 3 corrupt officers arrive to shake him down under the corrupt commissioner's orders. Gordon fights back as best as he could but eventually gets overtaken. It seems things aren't looking good for good ol' Captain Gordon before his only ally arrives on the scene and decides to interfere.

As Batman takes on the corrupt cops he leaves them with a message " From now on this area is off limits to anyone but James Gordon!". This moment to me captures the loyalty and trust in the early relationship between Batman & Gordon, they will always have each other's back no matter what.

GOTHAM KNIGHTS # 6 - Set right after No Man's Land Batman was working a case with Oracle's aid. Oracle had told him that while he investigates to be aware of any paper work he may come across that belongs to her along the way. Batman does eventually come across something that may interest Oracle. A letter written to Jim Gordon that is still in an envelope.

Oracle lets Batman know that the letter was written by her mother. Her mother wanted to let Jim Gordon know that Barbara is his actual biological daughter. After a heated conversation between Oracle & Batman she ends up telling Batman that she's afraid of telling Jim because she thinks he'd react negatively to it and she'd lose him in her life.

"He's all I have" she says to which Batman responds "You're wrong. You're wrong to think you'd lose him by telling him the truth. And you're wrong to think he's all you have." The Batman may have started alone but it's moments like this that truly showcase just how important his surrogate family has become to him and just how much he really loves and values all of them and not just his "sons" & butler.

DETECTIVE COMICS #755 - Two-Face decides to crash Jim Gordon's retirement party by taking Sasha Bordeaux hostage. "You just had to do it, didn't you Harvey?" Gordon asks to which Two-Face responds "With you after all our years together? the only question is how permanent do I make this farewell." "Straight fifty-fifty chance Jimmy. Let's see what the coin says..." he continues. Batman is watching all this and decides to lurk in the shadows as Two-Face flips his coin to determine what he will end up doing next.

When the coin lands we see Two-Face hand his gun over to a cop, step to the podium and speak fondly about Jim Gordon. He talks about the differences Gordon has made to Gotham, a partnership that ended before it's time. He spoke calmly, never raised his voice. When he was finished speaking he gave Gordon a hug and shook his hand before turning himself in to the cops to face justice.

A lot of writers tend to like to overplay the conflict between Two-Face's personalities but many of them like to side with the darker sideand they ignore Harvey. Outside of No Man's Land this was one of the rare examples in modern comics at the time (2000) that we got to see that no matter what happens, Harvey Dent will never truly die. It's one of the best moments because it is so touching to see.

 

[super85]

As far as single issues go, BATMAN: SHADOW OF THE BAT #13 written by Alan Grant and with art by Norm Breyfogle. Probably my alltime favorite single issue Batman story.

 

[ronny]

When The Joker shoots Sarah Essen in No Mans Land. No single picture captures how grim Gotham is as the unsmiling, bitter clown leaves the dead woman in a pool of blood as a roomful of babies sit watching.

 

[Jorriss]

Batman and Superman's moment at the end of Kingdom Come.

 

[Alastor]

Batman kicking White Martian ass in Grant Morrison's first arc on JLA. "He's only one man!" indeed.

I'm new and dont want to screw up so I'll put some spoilers.

Spoiler

And most recently, I have to say stopping an Space God of Evil and saving all existences is a pretty badass moment.

"Gotcha".

 

[deathfromabove]

"im practically blind without my glasses" jim gordon to bruce wayne in year one.



one thing i would love to see nolan do before he is finished is show batman on a horse. i just always loved that scene from TDKR.

 

[SuperFerret]

Batman kicking White Martian ass in Grant Morrison's first arc on JLA. "He's only one man!" indeed.

Love that moment, especially 'cause it shows he can work as a team.

 

[Alastor]

Haha, its been awhile since I've read that run, but if I remember correctly, Batman took out most of the White Martians out himself, at least 4 of them.

Another great moment would be Batman interrogating Flass in Batman Begins. I love that movie, even more than Dark Knight, because the design of Gotham added something that was not present in the sequel. Buuuut, and I know I'm beating an old drum here, but Heath? Nailed it. Wish he was in the first.

 

[Hiddensymbols]

Don't know if anyone agrees, or for that matter if anyone cares but a moment that is not part of mainstream continuity that sent chills down my spine was in the DCAU show Justice League Unlimited, episode "Epilogue" Which was a makeshift series finale for Batman Beyond the whole ordeal with Ace (the girl not the dog) and the way amanda talked about him. The world needs a batman she said and that resonates with me. Also In justice league the lightning saga when he says "I thought it was someone else" or something along those lines.

 

[CaptainClown]

 

[The Joker]

^^^ LMFAO!

 

[JackN]

Can we have sad moments if so it's probably the new delux edition of Killing Joke Also included is a colored version of Bolland's "An Innocent Guy" in An Innocent Guy batman is shot by a gotham civilian it is really sad because you see him smiling on a roof top and then BLAM!! the picture of batman getting gets shot me every time because this could be his fate when his job is all done gotham is safe he dies in peace it is just so touching I cried like a baby it is really emotional

 

[Temple Fugate]