Batman isnÕt the only masked crusader in town-and Arkham Asylum has many, many cells beyond those detaining the Penguin, the Joker, and Poison Ivy. But this is not the dark, dismal Arkham Asylum of old-this modern Arkham is run by the son of the original founder, Jeremiah Arkham. He is determined to improve on his fatherÕs methods, and in doing so walks perilously close to the abyss of madness himself. Can Jeremiah cure the Dark Knight when Batman is committed to Arkham for killing a cop? Writer ALAN GRANT (DETECTIVE COMICS) joins artists TIM SALE (BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN), NORM BREYFOGLE (BATMAN), and more in these stories about the men and women in shadow-the shadow of the Bat! Collects BATMAN: THE SHADOW OF THE BAT #1-12!

Spinning out of BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL, Jean-Paul Valley is a new breed of Batman. Knowing the streets of Gotham wouldn’t be safe without a Dark Knight, an injured Bruce Wayne handed Jean-Paul his cowl. With this cowl comes the responsibility of taking care of an entire city. This is a burden not all are fit to bear. Unlike Bruce Wayne, Jean-Paul’s brutality towards the denizens of Gotham’s criminal underbelly knows no bounds. Dead set upon both proving himself as the new Dark Knight and seeking revenge against Bruce Wayne’s enemies, this new Batman begins a campaign to clean up Gotham’s streets once and for all. When an epic battle with Clayface begins, Jean-Paul is pushed to his breaking point. Will Jean-Paul’s brutal methods work, or will he his new power drive him to madness? Writer Alan Grant (DETECTIVE COMICS) continues his celebrated run on BATMAN: SHADOW OF THE BAT, joined by Bret Blevins (New Mutants), Bob Smith (CATWOMAN) and others in these stories about the men and women in the shadow…the shadow of the bat! Collects BATMAN: SHADOW OF THE BAT #24-31, #0, and ANNUAL #2.

"Originally published in single magazine form as Batman: shadow of the bat 32-42"--Copyright page.

The Batman tales that tie into the epic ÒZero HourÓ storyline are now finally collected into one graphic novel in BATMAN: ZERO HOUR! Time is collapsing in on itself. The villainous Extant has ushered in a series of black holes that are swallowing the universe-past, present and future! The Bat-family, like everyone else in the DC Universe, has seen time loops affect their lives. The result? The return of Barbara Gordon as Batgirl, teenage Dick Grayson as Robin, and Bruce WayneÕs parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. Then, after the crisis in time as been averted, new details about the origins of Batman, Robin and Catwoman are revealed. Legendary comics writers Chuck Dixon, Archie Goodwin, Alan Grant and Doug Moench team up with veteran Batman artists Graham Nolan, Jim Balent, Bret Blevins and more to present the Dark Knight stories tying into the classic ZERO HOUR event, now collected here for the first time! Collects BATMAN #0, #511; BATMAN: SHADOW OF THE BAT #0, #31; DETECTIVE COMICS #0, #678; CATWOMAN #0, #74; BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #0; and ROBIN #0, #10.

A ZERO HOUR tie-in, continued from BATMAN #0. While surveying the aftermath of his decisive showdown with Azrael, Bruce Wayne looks back on his solitary youth, recalling years spent honing his body and mind for the day he would take his grief and rage to the streets of Gotham City. Continued in DETECTIVE COMICS #0.

The Last Arkham part 1 includes the first appearances of Jeremiah Arkham and Victor Zsasz! Arkham Asylum has a new warden, Jeremiah Arkham, nephew of the asylum's founder Amadeus. He has big plans for Gotham's madhouse--like incarcerating Batman!