In comics, it’s been a week.

Between the Neil Gaiman situation, Diamond Distributors (my nemesis) filing for bankruptcy, and the looming threat of tariffs potentially supremely fucking up the publishing industry, a lot’s going on. So, let’s talk about Batman. I’ve still got a pile of comics to work on—and this one dates back to 2021—and the best way to get through is by focusing elsewhere for a moment. So let’s focus on Batman: Black and White.

This particular volume of Batman: Black and White brings us six issues of five stories, each highlighting Batman himself, his rogues, his friends, or another look at the characters and what can be done with them in the hands of different artists. The range runs wide between hard-boiled detective pieces, fantastical re-imaginings, full ghost stories, and choose-your-own-adventures that break through their own mold. These are the stories that happen outside of the mainline series and major events—the small, everyday cases and conflicts that are condensed down perfectly into just a dozen or so pages. The writers, artists, and letterers working on these all absolutely had a Batman story in their heads, and so we get to finally enjoy them.

As a record I’m not broken, but I’m definitely skipping every time I write about anthology series. Small stories, lower stakes, new talent, areas of experimentation and expression not typically found in larger works, etc. But there’s a distinct kind of fun to anthologies that comes from working with a world and a character so ingrained in popular culture. Getting to add to the canon means working to create something new with it. But then that’s the benefit of the versatility of the anthology format and Batman as a character. There’s only a few pages to fill, so the story has to fit within specific confines, both on the page and in the comic’s world. We’re in Gotham, there’s an entire city full of characters and rogues to play around with and so many of these creators go outside of what we may expect from a Batman short story. Even seeing Gordon confronting ghosts of his past or Dick reflecting on his career as he careens through the Gotham skyline gives us the world and character building that we don’t have an opportunity to see in the longer series. This is one of the best arguments for more anthologies with fun limits: more stories, more characterization, and just more fun for any reader. 

Batman: Black and White is just one of many volumes of this series since the 90s, but it’s the kind of format that works so well it does need that occasional revival. Like I’ve written a dozen times in the past on anthologies, they really do help showcase what strong comics can look like from a variety of people. Keeping them around just keeps good stories coming. 

Get excited. Get dark.

Drew Barth (Episode 331, 485, 510, & 651) resides in Winter Park, FL. He received his MFA from the University of Central Florida.