2014 marks the 75th anniversary of Batman’s first appearance in Detective Comics issue 27 in 1939. Throughout the year We The Nerdy will be covering several events from Batman’s storied history. Be sure to check back often for more on 75 years of Batman!
One of the most well-known insignias in the world is the bat-symbol. It has been said that if you show it around the world, there’s a good chance people will attribute it to Batman. For 75 years, Batman has gained recognition around the world in films, television, toys, comics, and other media. Before he became a pop culture icon, he started out as a comic book character depicted in Detective Comics #27.
DC Comics, then National Allied Publications, had a hit on their hands with the first comic book hero, Superman. National Allied Publications wanted lightning to strike twice for them. The editors at the comic book company let out a notice that they were willing to hand over a lot of money for a new ‘Superman’. One weekend, Bob Kane and Bill Finger developed the character that would become Batman, or, at that time, “The Bat-man.” The Bat-man’s first adventure, “The Case of the Chemical Syndicate,” would be featured in Detective Comics #27, May 1939.
When I first bought The Batman Chronicles Volume 1, I wasn’t too excited about reading the first Batman story. The reason I bought the book was for a research paper I wanted to do about Batman, and I figured that if I claimed to be a big fan of Batman, I should at least read his very first story. To be honest, it surprised me how good the story was. I was expecting some run of the mill story, and it wasn’t. It’s not the Batman we know, but the prototype on which the Batman mythology was built on. The story itself is genius. You can really see that Kane and Finger really struck gold with their first Bat-man story. The story itself is only six pages long. I mean really, Batman, one of the greatest superheroes around, got his break in a six-page story?
Detective Comics #27 begins with Commissioner Gordon entertaining his socialite friend, Bruce Wayne, with drinks and pipe-smoking. The Commissioner is interrupted by a phone call about a murder, and as the commissioner investigates the crime, a shadowy figure appears behind some criminals in the middle of their crime. The Bat-man shows up in the fashion you’d expect him to, surprising them from behind. This moment itself has inspired many scenes and panels from Batman media. Think about when Batman gets the jump on the criminals in the Batman: The Animated Series intro. Batman then subdues the criminals, moving on to the next part of the case.
Batman arrives at a warehouse where he encounters the mastermind behind the whole case. Batman brawls with him, then punches him off a rail into an acid tank, killing the man. Now, this moment right here is very interesting. Batman purposely kills the mastermind with almost no remorse. Also, the whole falling into acid tanks thing becomes a popular motif for Batman mythology, such as the Joker.
The story ends with commissioner Gordon briefing the seemingly uninterested Bruce Wayne about how the case was solved. The Commissioner leaves and remarks how boring Bruce Wayne’s life must be since he always seems bored. In his dressing room, Bruce Wayne leaps out in his costume revealing himself to be the Bat-man.
The story itself is brilliant. I know that some comic book writers find it hard to write a story, let alone write a new character in 20-30 pages, but Bill Finger managed to write a great story in six pages. That story would create the legend, Batman. It’s seriously a great story.
The art is divisive. Bob Kane does illustrate some great Bruce Wayne panels; the part where his art is a little weird is in the Batman panels. The head placement of Batman always seems a little awkward. Even though some of the Batman panels are awkward, it still doesn’t take away from some of the iconic panels that will be drawn over and over.
Conclusion: If you’re a big fan of Batman, you really owe it to yourself to buy Detective Comics #27 in digital form, or the collective version of The Batman Chronicles Volume 1, which also includes Detective Comics #33: The Origin of Batman, Detective Comics #38: The Introduction of Robin, and Batman #1. You can find the paperback edition for about $14 US Dollars, which is worth it, in my opinion. If you have comments about the story, the panels, or even some of my thoughts on Detective Comics #27, please share your thoughts below.
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