10 Criminally Overlooked Batman Comics Fans Must Read

One of the reasons Batman has been embraced by so many is that he's relatable, which sounds strange given that Bruce Wayne is an impossibly fit rich dude. However, there's more than one way someone can be relatable.

The powerful 'Batman: Creature of the Night' by Kurt Busiek and John Paul Leon tells a grounded standalone story that just about anyone and everyone can connect with on some level.

'Creature of the Night' is about Bruce Wainwright, a kid growing up in the sixties who idolize's Batman to the point of obsession. On Halloween night his parents are murdered after walking in on a robbery and he's nearly killed himself. Unbeknownst to him, his pain manifests in the form of a shadowy bat-like creature on a bloody mission to right the wrongs of the world.

What follows is a tale about the depth in which grief can cut and how trauma, left untreated, can bring out the worst in us. But, along with that, it's also about recovery, rising above the hurt, and learning to live again after having your world torn apart. It says "it gets better" and earnestly earns that sentiment by submerging readers in both the darkness and the light, as you can't have one without the other.

Crafting such a deeply empathetic narrative that genuinely respects the severity of mental health is difficult to say the least, yet somehow Busiek and Leon manage to do just that in a way that feels truly human.