While they're both worth reading, it's the latter book that is arguably the best vampire-related story Batman's ever been a part of.Īdapted from a story originally printed in Detective Comics #31-32, Batman and the Mad Monk follows a young Caped Crusader as he encounters the first supernatural foe in his crimefighting career, the Mad Monk, a vampire who's scheming to build his empire from a spooky manor house where he lures his prey. That effort produced both Batman and the Monster Men and Batman and the Mad Monk. In the mid-2000s, writer and artist Matt Wagner ( Mage) embarked on an effort to reimagine a couple of key early Batman stories, adapting them for modern audiences while keeping their classic, pulpy edge. Here are seven of the scariest Batman comics you should check out, from vampires to Gotham City's secret occult history. So if you're looking to set up a Batman horror comics binge, this is a great place to start. There are quite a few superheroes who fit right into horror narratives of course, but few fit quite as well as Batman.ĭC Comics' Dark Knight, who based his entire modus operandi on the idea that being a giant bat would frighten the criminals he was hoping to tame, has mined plenty of frightening corners of Gotham for our entertainment. If you're a fan of atmospheric, creepy stories to read late at night with the lights off, comic books are very fertile ground for all manner of horror tales, but while some exist in the pure horror arena, others prefer to mix their scares with some superhero fun.
It's Halloween week, and if you're a fan of spooky stories, then that means there's a good chance you're packing as much horror programming as possible onto your screens and your pages.