Written and illustrated by Matt Wagner. Writer/Artist Matt Wagner has written his fair share of Batman books between the Trinity and Dark Moon Rising series and the Batman/Grendel books, as well as the Legends of the Dark Knight arc Faces, all of which are worth reading. Batman and the Monster Men is still his best. Set not long after the origin story of Frank Millers Year One, Batman battles Professor Hugo Strange for the first time, dealing with genetically-engineered beings that are nearly beyond comprehension. Hes still new to the game, Robin-less, Batmobile-less, and on unsure footing with Gordon and the Gotham Police, and Wagners nostalgic art ties into this old-timey Batman feel brilliantly. Batman and the Monster Men finds itself a worthy successor to Year One, and thats a hard act to follow.
34. Duel (1991)
Written by Dennis O'Neil, illustrated by Jim Aparo. Legends of the Dark Knight is such a fantastic series of Batman books that its little wonder the first annual issue manages to make this list, slim as it is in terms of pages and storyline. Much of this book is spent confusing the reader as Batman battles a giant demon, then suddenly finds himself fighting a dragon, then insectoid aliens (yep), and so on and so forth. Is he dreaming? Drugged and hallucinating? Is this even Batman were reading right now? Ive heard the ending of this one chalked up as a cop-out, but with a deft twist and a surprise appearance by a major Bat-baddie, Duel presents a satisfying ending to a hell of a wild ride.
33. War Games (2004-05)
Written and illustrated by various. Gotham gangsters aren't generally on the Okay To Trifle With list, whether we're talking the '40s gangsters of "Nine Lives", Jeph Loeb's Godfather-esque crime families, or the more violent gangs found in "War Games". With the establishment of masked vigilantism and superhumans walking the Earth, it's understandable that the gangs would exercise their theatrical bents, too. Black Mask does just that, taking control of the Gotham underworld when a massive gang war erupts. Stephanie Brown plays a major role here, and the fan-favorite alter-alter-ego of Bruce Wayne, Matches Malone, is a big part of the opening act as well. "War Games" is just what the title suggests, pitting heroes and villains against each other in a deadly chess game in the streets of Gotham.
32. Noël (2011)
Written and illustrated by Lee Bermejo. What happens when Charles Dickenss classic tale A Christmas Carol is told within the confines of the DC Universe? Writer/artist Lee Bermejo brings us along to find out with his holiday one-shot Noël. Bermejo is the artist behind 2008s excellent Joker, and his hyper-real vision is again applied to every square millimeter of this beautiful book. The story, as you may expect, is a tad predictable. But the art is fascinating, and Bermejos style even recalls the legendary Alex Ross at certain points.
31. Ego (2000)
Written and illustrated by Darwyn Cooke. With such a long publication history to draw upon, the temptation is there for every writer that gets a hold of Bruce Wayne to delve into his psyche and determine, once and for all, what drives the Batman. Obviously, this attempt meets with success, failure, or something in the middle and writer/artist Darwyn Cooke meets success with Batman: Ego. An injured Bruce Wayne is confronted by his own id, fighting to break through and control the Dark Knight with the use of lethal force.
