DC Finest: Batman: The Curse of Crime Alley

Some scars fade. Crime Alley never does. Denny O’Neil (Batman), and Len Wein (Swamp Thing) headline a run that fuses crime noir, gothic horror, and raw emotion.

Night after night, Gotham throws its worst at Batman: killers who freeze their victims, arsonists who turn the city into a burning maze, mystics and vampires haunting alleys, assassins sworn to Ra’s al Ghul, and a clown prince who treats murder as performance art.

This era also marks the pivotal debut of Lucius Fox, a figure who will become essential to both Bruce Wayne’s personal and corporate life. Threaded through it all is Bruce Wayne’s ritual return to the place where it began—Crime Alley—and the allies and enemies who remind him why he can never stop.

Guided by Denny O’Neil (Green Lantern/Green Arrow) and Len Wein (Detective Comics), and including “Wanted: Santa Claus—Dead or Alive!”—a crucial early Batman story by award-winning writer-artist Frank Miller (Batman: Year One)—this era pairs hard-hitting scripts with striking art from Don Newton (Detective Comics),  Irv Novick (The Flash), Ross Andru (Action Comics), and more. 

Collects Batman #307–324; Detective Comics #482–490; DC Special Series #21; and The Brave and the Bold #159.