History ComicBook / BatmanYearOne

"Batman: Year One" is a four-issue story arc, by Creator/FrankMiller and David Mazzucchelli, of the regular ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'' title (issues 404 through 407), published in 1987 by Creator/DCComics.

The storyline follows the first year Batman begins to operate in Gotham from his disastrous first attempt in Gotham's red light district, to the battles with crime lords and corrupt cops alike, and even the first appearance of other people in tights and masks in Gotham. It also has (in Batman #404) the first appearances of mob boss Carmine "The Roman" Falcone, who would go on to have prominent roles in ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'' and ''Film/BatmanBegins'', and ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}'s protegee Holly Robinson, who would later become [[LegacyCharacter the second Catwoman]].

* UsefulNotes/TheBronzeAgeOfComicBooks: Was written at the very end of it. This story arc, along with ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'' (also by Miller) and ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'' (by Creator/AlanMoore) are often credited with starting UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks.

"Batman: Year One" is a four-issue story arc, by Creator/FrankMiller and David Mazzucchelli, of the regular ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' title (issues 404 through 407), published in 1987 by Creator/DCComics.

The storyline follows the first year Batman begins to operate in Gotham from his disastrous first attempt in Gotham's red light district, to the battles with crime lords and corrupt cops alike, and even the first appearance of other people in tights and masks in Gotham. It also has (in Batman #404) the first appearances of mob boss Carmine "The Roman" Falcone, who would go on to have prominent roles in ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'' and ''Film/BatmanBegins'', and Comicbook/{{Catwoman}}'s protegee Holly Robinson, who would later become [[LegacyCharacter the second Catwoman]].

''Batman: Year One'' is unique in the following: It was deemed the official origin story for Batman ComicBook/PostCrisis, and remained canon despite other {{Cosmic Retcon}}s until the Comicbook/{{New 52}}, where it would eventually be replaced by Creator/ScottSnyder and Greg Capullo's ''[[ComicBook/BatmanZeroYear Zero Year]]''. It is also canon to the "Dark Knight Universe", an AlternateContinuity comprised of Miller's other ''Batman'' stories, including ''ComicBook/AllStarBatmanAndRobinTheBoyWonder'', ''Dark Knight: The Last Crusade'', ''[[ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns The Dark Knight Returns]]'', ''ComicBook/TheDarkKnightStrikesAgain'', and ''ComicBook/DarkKnightIIITheMasterRace''.

Chronologically, it is followed by a sequel story arc, ''Comicbook/BatmanYearTwo''.

* ContinuityNod: "Hmf. I suppose you'll be taking up flying next, like [[Franchise/{{Superman}} that fellow in Metropolis.]]"
** The arrival board at the beginning mentions several DC universe locations: [[Franchise/TheFlash Central City]], [[ComicBook/{{Manhunter}} Empire City]], [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Fawcett City]], [[Franchise/TheFlash Keystone City]], [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Metropolis]], and [[ComicBook/GreenArrow Star City]].

* AccentUponTheWrongSyllable: Holly has an unusual way of talking to "Se-LIN-a."

[[caption-width-right:300:''[[TagLine He's out to clean up a city that likes being dirty. He can't do it alone.]]'']]

* TriggerHappy: Lt. Branden and his SWAT team who even end up shooting fellow police officers.\\

'''Selina:''' Maybe Branden's cornered a jaywalker.

* AnimatedAdaptation: As stated above, this book has a DirectToVideo movie that, while quite faithful to the book, [[AdaptationExpansion expands]] on certain scenes to clarify things a bit more.

---> '''Batman''': You can never escape me. Bullets don't harm me. Nothing harms me. But I know pain. I know pain. Sometimes I share it... With someone like you.

---> '''Batman''': Ladies. Gentlemen. You have eaten well. You've eaten Gotham's wealth. Its spirit. Your feast is nearly over. From this moment on - none of you are safe.
** Gordon deserves special mention as well:
---> '''Gordon (internal monologue):''' He's had Green Beret training. It's been a while since I had to take out a Green Beret. ''*tosses Flass a baseball bat*'' Figure I should give him a handicap.

* CanAlwaysSpotACop: {{Downplayed}} with Bruce's first night out crimefighting. [[StarterVillain Stan the pimp]] can tell he's ''someone'' in disguise, though he (understandably) mistakes Bruce for a vice cop instead of an independent vigilante.

** In a poor attempt to act [[AffablyEvil affable]], Flass gets rid of a frail Buddhist monk who's nagging Gordon for donations by picking up the monk by the collar and tossing him aside like a rag-doll. He also beats up a kid allegedly to disarm him of a switchblade. [[spoiler: It's a comb.]]

* NoKillLikeOverkill: Branden and his other SWAT officers have this as their response to basically anything they're called in to deal with. Gordon recalls an incident where they put down a park riot so violently that not even the statues were left standing. When Loeb calls in Branden to deal with Batman, his first action is to carpet bomb the apartment building Batman is in, ''five times''.

* OriginalPositionFallacy: At a dinner party at Falcone's mansion, Commissioner Loeb assures Falcone and a group of Gotham's elites that Batman is actually good for them in the long run: a vigilante beating up a few street-level thugs and drug dealers helps the city's inhabitants to feel safe, "and the safer they feel, the fewer questions they ask". Then Batman crashes the party and tells the assembled elites that he holds '''all''' of them accountable for Gotham's misery, and "none of you are safe." First thing the next morning:

** MamaBear: When a pimp is abusing Holly Bruce tries to intervene. When he attacks the pimp Holly stabs him with a knife. When Bruce knocks her aside Selina leaps from the hotel room to ''kick his ass.''

* StupidEvil: Batman jumps in on three teenagers robbing an apartment through the balcony. Unfortunately his TerrorHero persona is ''too'' effective and scares one of them so much he falls over the railing. Batman barely manages to catch him by the ankle, but rather than being thankful that Batman saved their friend from plummeting to his death, the other two robbers take the opportunity to start pummelling Batman, even through he's the only thing keeping the third from falling twenty storeys. Some friends...
* SupportingProtagonist: Especially in the film, Jim Gordon comes across as the true main character of the story, even being the first in the end credits, than the title character who is shown more as a supporting character.
* SuperHeroOrigin: The point of the story is to show off the origins of Batman, [[BadassNormal Gordon]], and Catwoman (although the last has been retconned out and in of continuity).

* TriggerHappy: Lt. Branden and his SWAT team who even end up shooting fellow police officers.

-->'''Selina:''' Maybe Branden's cornered a jaywalker.