Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Greg Capullo and Rafael Albuquerque
Inkers: Danny Miki and Rafael Albuquerque
Colourists: Fco Plascencia and Dave McCaig
Letterers: Nick Napolitano and Taylor Esposito

A boy and his parents.

Crime Alley.

Gunshots.

Boy grows up.

Batman comes to Gotham City.

Now, let’s fill in the gaps.

Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Greg Capullo and Alex Maleev
Inkers: Danny Miki and Alex Maleev
Colourists: Fco Plascencia and Brad Anderson
Letterers: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt, and Dezi Sienty

Previously, in Batman: The return of the Joker and the relentless assault of Talia Al Ghul’s Leviathan organization has damaged Batman’s relationship with his allies almost beyond repair. Retreating into himself after the death of his son Damian, Batman feels the need to tackle all of his problems alone. This includes trying to find out who has been committing robberies in the guise of Bruce Wayne – obviously, it is not him. Batman deduces that the culprit is Clayface, but when he confronts the villain, Clayface attempts to choke him to death.

And in our back-up story, Batman reluctantly accepts Superman’s aid when a mysterious light is seen inside a tenement building, alongside reports that numerous people have entered the building and not been seen or heard from again. Superman’s enhanced senses allow the duo to track down a survivor, who tells them that ‘it’ won’t let them leave. Concealed on the ceiling is a monstrous supernatural beast – which renders Superman’s advantages moot.

Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Greg Capullo and Alex Maleev
Inkers: Danny Miki and Alex Maleev
Colourists: Fco Plascencia and Brad Anderson
Letterers: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt, and Dezi Sienty

Previously, in Batman: The Joker returned to Gotham City, and waged war on the Bat-Family. Despite eventually triumphing against the Clown Prince of Crime, Batman’s allies no longer trust him the way that they used to, and this has shaken the Bat-Family to its core. Even Alfred no longer trusts Bruce Wayne in the same way that he did before.

And during the war between Batman Incorporated and Talia Al Ghul’s Leviathan organisation, Bruce Wayne’s son Damian, also known as the current Robin, was murdered by the Heretic. Bruce was sent into a spiral of depression, lashing out at criminals and going days without sleep. Only the intervention of Harper Row was enough to convince Batman that he needed to stop and mourn his son properly. After the assault from the Court of Owls, the Joker’s re-emergence, and now the death of Damian, it has been a horrible year for Batman.

Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Andy Kubert and Alex Maleev
Inkers: Sandra Hope and Alex Maleev
Colourists: Brad Anderson and Nathan Fairbairn
Letterers: Nick J. Napolitano and Carlos M. Mangual

Previously, in Batman: The Joker returned to Gotham City and declared war on the entire Bat-Family. Launching simultaneous assaults on anyone who wears a bat on their chest, the Joker’s attack culminated in the kidnapping of the entire family and attempting to force Batman to kill them all. Batman rescued the family, defeated the Joker, and rescued Alfred who had been captured by the Clown Prince of Crime. But the ordeal has shaken the faith that the family had in Batman, and nothing will be the same between them.

Meanwhile, Batman has been fighting an all out war with Leviathan, the organization run by his ex-lover, Talia Al Ghul, the mother of his child, Damian. When Talia attacks Gotham City head on, Batman calls on the entirety of his Batman, Incorporated allies to fight back. During the battle, Damian battled the Heretic, Talia’s overgrown clone of Damian, who killed Damian with a sword through the gut. Batman has lost both his Robin, and more importantly, his son.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Colourist: Fco Plascenica
Letterers: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt

Warning: This review contains mild spoilers.

Previously, in Batman: The return of The Joker to Gotham City has caused complete upheaval for Batman and his allies. As The Joker targets the entire Bat-Family with his own brand of chaos, keeping them from Batman’s side, the Clown Prince of Crime launches a volley of attacks against Batman himself too, culminating in the complete takeover of Arkham Asylum.

Batman infiltrates the Asylum and runs The Joker’s gauntlet, including numerous villains from his rogues’ gallery, such as Mister Freeze, Clayface, the Penguin, and the Riddler. Once he finally confronts The Joker, Batman finds himself in an impossible situation, and must give himself up in order to save the lives of his friends. He takes a seat in an electric chair, and The Joker pulls the lever…

Writer: Scott Snyder
Pencillers: Greg Capullo and Jock
Inkers: Jonathan Glapion and Jock
Colourists: Fco Plascenica and David Baron
Letterers: Richard Starkings, Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt, and Taylor Esposito

Previously, in Batman: The Joker has returned, and he is taking Gotham City (and the Bat-Family) by storm. With his deranged philosophy that Batman’s allies make him weak, the Joker sets out to kill them all with the most twisted schemes possible, promising Batman that he will be the one to finally end their lives. For the Joker has uncovered something sinister –- he has the identities and secrets of all of Batman’s friends and family, and that makes him even more dangerous than before.

Batman tracks the Joker to Arkham Asylum, and enters it in search of the Joker to end his reign of terror once and for all. But Arkham is no longer as it once was; the Joker has been secretly remodeling the asylum under Batman’s very nose for the past few months, and now the Bat must face an entirely new Arkham, with the Joker at the end of the maze.

Writers: Scott Snyder, and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Greg Capullo, and Jock
Inkers: Jonathan Glapion, and Jock
Colourists: Fco Plascencia, and David Baron
Letterers: Sal Cipriano, and Taylor Esposito

Previously, in Batman: The Joker has returned after a prolonged absence. He has stolen into the Gotham City Police Department, killed numerous police officers, and retrieved his face, which was brutally removed by the Dollmaker before the Joker’s departure from Gotham. The Joker has also put Commissioner Gordon in intensive care, after a vicious prank leaves his life hanging in the balance.

Batman tracks the Joker to the Gotham Reservoir after a battle with Harley Quinn. There, Joker reveals that he has already killed numerous Gotham civilians, and an even darker secret — Joker knows everything about the Bat Family. Not just their secret identities, but their habits, hobbies, and intimate details that could cripple them all. Now, Joker is launching his revenge, and vows that Batman himself will be the one to kill every ally that he has.

Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencillers: Greg Capullo and Jock
Inkers: Jonathan Glapion and Jock
Colourist: Fco Plascencia and David Baron
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt, and Sal Cipriano

Previously, in Batman: The Joker has been missing for too long. His last appearance in Gotham City caused a confrontation with the villainous Dollmaker, who literally peeled the Joker’s face away from his skull. Since then, the Clown Prince of Crime has been nowhere to be found — until now.

Attacking the Gotham City Police Department with reckless abandon, the Joker has recovered his lost face from the evidence room and murdered multiple police officers, as well as tricking Batman into a vat of acid with the help of Harley Quinn. With the Caped Crusader out of the picture, the Joker is free to attack Wayne Manor, and more precisely, the Wayne family butler, Alfred Pennyworth.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Colourist: Fco Plascencia
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt

Previously, in Batman: Bruce Wayne has defeated the Court of Owls and his supposed brother, Thomas Wayne Jr. He thinks that this is the toughest battle he has fought for a long time. He is wrong. There is another, someone who Batman has battled numerous times, each more chilling and depraved than the last. And he hasn’t heard from this person in months, which can only mean one thing—the Joker is planning something.

The last time the Joker was in Gotham, he had a run-in with the Dollmaker, a strange villain who literally peeled the face off of the Clown Prince of Crime. Since then, he has been missing but now he has returned, and the Bat-Family must beware.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Colourist: Fco Plascencia
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt

Previously, in Batman: Bruce Wayne, son of billionaire philanthropists Thomas and Martha Wayne, was taken to see the Mask of Zorro at a theatre in the seedy part of Gotham City. Taking a shortcut through the area that would eventually become known as Crime Alley, Bruce’s parents were brutally shot down by a criminal attempting to steal their valuables. Bruce, however, survived.

Bruce left Gotham City, to train and discover a way in which to inspire fear in his enemies, so that he could defend Gotham as its protector. Now it is time for him to return, to begin his crusade against the criminal underworld that infects Gotham like a cancer. But to stand the best chance of success, Bruce is going to need a little technological help.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Becky Cloonan
Inker: Sandu Florea
Colourist: Fco Plascencia
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy B

Previously, in Batman: Before the assault by the Court of Owls, Bruce Wayne was pushing his new initiative to revamp the less desirable areas of Gotham City. Part of his scheme was to create new buildings and tear down some of the already existing ones in these sections of Gotham.

Whilst trapped in the Court of Owls’ labyrinth, Batman was rescued by a mysterious girl called Harper, who saved his life and made sure he did not freeze to death. Who is the enigmatic Harper Row, and what is her tie to Batman?

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Colourist: FCO Plascencia
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy B

Previously, in Batman: The Court of Owls has been defeated, but not at the hands of Batman. On his way to exact revenge for their attack on his city, Batman discovered almost the entirety of the Court dead, poisoned at the hands of another. As he started to turn his back on the case, which was all but closed, the realization struck him as to who the true culprit behind the events that have plagued him in recent days.

Tracking the villain to their hideout, it was revealed that Lincoln March, the supposedly dead mayoral candidate was actually Thomas Wayne Jr., Bruce’s long-lost brother. The stage has been set for the final deciding battle for the fate of Gotham City – Bat versus Owl, brother against brother, no holds barred.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Colourist: FCO Plascencia
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy B

Previously, in Batman: Bruce Wayne has fought the battle of his life over the past few hours. After discovering a mysterious organisation known as the Court of Owls has been manipulating Gotham City from the shadows for years, Bruce was targeted by their Talons, assassins trained to murder those who threaten the Court’s power.

With Batman as their target, the Court unleashed all of their accumulated Talons across the city. With help from his allies, Batman was able to subdue as many as possible, and with help from Lincoln March, discover where the Court of Owls has been hiding out. Now Bruce is out for revenge, and the Court of Owls will face the vengeance of the Bat.

Writers: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Artist: Jason Fabok
Colourist: Peter Steigerwald
Letterer: Sal Cipriano

Previously, in Batman: When Barry Allen, the Flash, changed the past in order to save his mother, he fragmented the timelines in what has become known as the Flashpoint. He eventually corrected his mistake and fixed the timestream…or so he thought. Things are not as they once were, though they are remarkably similar. As a result, some heroes and villains have undergone some changes to their origins and motivations. One of these characters is Batman’s long-time foe, Mister Freeze.

Having provoked the Court of Owls, a mysterious organisation that has run Gotham City from the shadows since before its construction was completed, Batman must deal with the Talons – assassins who will do the bidding of the Court, even if it means their death. They have been set across Gotham to take down key figures in the city, and Batman and his allies have made it their mission to stop them. This is the Night of the Owls.

Writer: Scott Snyder
Penciller: Greg Capullo
Inker: Jonathan Glapion
Colourist: FCO Plascencia
Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Jimmy B

Previously, in Batman: The Court of Owls, a mysterious organisation that claims to run Gotham from the shadows has targeted Batman for death. After escaping their labyrinth and capturing one of their Talon assassins, Batman returned to Wayne Manor to recuperate and plan his next move.

Giving him no time to breathe, the Court has launched all of their Talons into Gotham City, targeting important citizens. The Bat-Family is working together to battle them, whilst the main force of Talons has attacked Wayne Manor head on. Batman and Alfred are holed up in the Batcave armory – it’s time to clean house.