“Batman: Year One” by Frank Miller is a comic book series that explores the origins of the Batman character in his early years as a vigilante crime-fighter in Gotham City. Not much about his actual childhood and his parents’ murders, but rather why and how he decided to be Batman. The story is told through the perspectives of both Batman/Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon, a police lieutenant new to the city.

Frank Miller managed to give Batman a new noir-influenced story for a younger audience. The plot is tightly woven and the characterizations are nuanced, with both Batman and Gordon portrayed as complex and flawed individuals struggling to make a difference in a city overrun by corruption and crime.

The characters in this volume include Batman/Bruce Wayne, Alfred (of course), Jim Gordon, Harvey Dent, Catwoman/Selina Kyle, Carmine Falcone, and a few others. No appearance by the Joker though, but I think we might see him later on in the series.

The story unfolds over the course of a year, as the title suggests, and builds up to a tense, action-packed climax that sets the stage for the ongoing Batman series.

Overall, a must-read for Batman fans.