DC Comics

Chip Zdarsky's Batman run for the 2020s opens with Failsafe — an arc that redefines what Batman fears most. Bruce programmed a failsafe robot designed to stop him if he ever crossed the line. Now it's active, and it's unstoppable. The backup Zur-En-Arrh personality takes over, adding layers of dissociation and paranoia to the narrative. Jorge Jiménez delivers exceptional, kinetic art that makes every action sequence feel genuinely urgent. A bold, psychologically rich opening to a defining modern Batman era.

The conclusion of Tom King's 85-issue Batman run: the failed wedding arc collapses the Batman-Catwoman relationship at its most vulnerable point. Cold Days puts Bruce Wayne on a jury debating Mister Freeze's guilt. Knightmares traps Batman in an alternate reality. City of Bane brings Thomas Wayne as an alternate Batman into collision with the original. Jorge Jiménez, Mikel Janín and Tony Daniel provide spectacular art. The emotional endpoint of the most literary Batman run in decades.