History ComicBook / GothamByGaslight

''Gotham by Gaslight'' (full title: ''A Tale of the Batman: Gotham by Gaslight'') was written by Bryan Augustyn and penciled by Creator/MikeMignola, and became the first AlternativeContinuity Graphic Novel under Creator/DCComics' Creator/{{Elseworlds}} imprint. The initial printing was before {{Elseworlds}} existed, but it was later included as the first story.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Tagline}} An Alternate History of The Batman.]]]]

->''"For good or ill, it appears Gotham has found its own guardian angel...\\
...And god help us-- I suspect we're going to need him."''

->''"For good or ill, it appears Gotham has found its own '''guardian angel'''...\\
...And god help us-- I suspect we're going to '''need''' him."''

Taking place in 1889 in a Victorian-esque Gotham City, it follows the story of how Bruce Wayne became Franchise/{{Batman}} in an age without modern technology, learning from Dr. UsefulNotes/SigmundFreud and training under Literature/SherlockHolmes. During this time, he investigates the brutal murders of one UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper.

!!This mini-series contains examples of:

* WellIntentionedExtremist: Alexandre [=LeRoi=] seeks to prevent the pollution-choked future he foresees, though he privately admits he enjoys dishing out death and destruction so it's likely this is just an excuse. [[spoiler:Even [[Characters/BatmanThePenguin Cobblepot]] who's secretly backing [=LeRoi=] for the sake of his slum clearance project is revealed to be running an InsuranceFraud scam, though [[DidNotThinkThisThrough he's shocked by the scale of death involved]].]]

''Gotham by Gaslight'' was written by Bryan Augustyn and penciled by Creator/MikeMignola, and became the first AlternativeContinuity Graphic Novel under Creator/DCComics' Creator/{{Elseworlds}} imprint. The initial printing was before {{Elseworlds}} existed, but it was later included as the first story.

''Gotham by Gaslight'' was written by Bryan Augustyn and penciled by Creator/MikeMignola, and became the first AlternativeContinuity Graphic Novel in the {{Elseworlds}} series. The initial printing was before {{Elseworlds}} existed, but it was later included as the first story.

* RedHerring: Two unnamed men, described as a prince and a royal phycisian, are seen arriving in Gotham, and appear to be Prince Albert and Sir William Gull, who were put forth as as the culprits of the Ripper murders in Stephen Knight's Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution. That's the extent of their involvement.
* RescueRomance: The woman Bruce Wayne is courting becomes quite enamored of the Bat-Man after he rescues her from a mugging. After he saves her life a second time in the daylight, she gets a close enough look to realise they're the same person, and encourages him to continue acting as Gotham's savior.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard

*** The first solid one is hiring a highwayman to kill Martha and Thomas Wayne, which creates Batman when the highwayman fails to kill Bruce, who was with them.
*** The second is becoming a killer himself, specifically UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper, which would warrant the attention of a crimefighter like Batman should he start to operate in Gotham City.

*** The first solid one is hiring a highwayman to kill Martha and Thomas Wayne, which creates Batman when the highwayman fails/refuses to kill Bruce, who was with them.
*** The second is becoming a killer himself, specifically UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper, which would warrant the attention of a crimefighter like Batman should he operate in the crimefighter's territory.
*** The third is using Thomas' surgery tools in his murders, which is how Bruce figures out it's him. Being close friends with a surgeon would have given Packer access to said surgeon's tools, which would be rather sharp and excellent weapons for murder.
*** The fourth is framing Bruce for his crimes, which motivates him to try and solve the case quickly, allowing him the distraction of mind to block his bias from ruling out Jacob as the killer. In a calm environment and able to take his time, Bruce would have dismissed Packer due to the man's public persona and Bruce's personal relationship with him.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: During his SwordFight with Batman, [=LeRoi=] breaks his robot pilot Antonio (which he blames Batman for) and smashes a gaslamp. He dies when his zeppelin proceeds to crash into the ocean while bursting into flame.

* KnifeNut: Jack the Ripper, to no one's great surprise, commits his murders with a knife. [[spoiler:The specific ''type'' of knife he uses ultimately gives him away, as it belonged to the Civil War medical detachment where Jacob Packer was a doctor's assistant to Thomas Wayne.]]

* FreudianExcuse: Or so Jack the Ripper claims. [[spoiler:He made an advance to Martha Wayne and she just laughed at him, driving him to kill other women whom he feels are doing the same. However it's obvious that Jacob always had a screw loose, and that's he's just a charming sociopath who murdered the Waynes out of envy over their genuine success.]]