The Joker is a supervillain who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson, and first appeared in the debut issue of the comic book Batman on April 25, 1940. Credit for the Joker's creation is disputed; Kane and Robinson claimed responsibility for his design while acknowledging Finger's writing contribution. Although the Joker was planned to be killed off during his initial appearance, he was spared by editorial intervention, allowing the character to endure as the archenemy of the superhero Batman.
Robin is the alias of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson to serve as a junior counterpart and the sidekick to the superhero Batman. As a team, Batman and Robin have commonly been referred to as the Caped Crusaders and the Dynamic Duo. The character's first incarnation, Dick Grayson, debuted in Detective Comics #38. Conceived as a way to attract young readership, Robin garnered overwhelmingly positive critical reception, doubling the sales of the Batman titles. Robin's early adventures included Star Spangled Comics #65–130 (1947–1952), the character's first solo feature. He made regular appearances in Batman-related comic books and other DC Comics publications from 1940 through the early 1980s, until the character set aside the Robin identity and became the independent superhero Nightwing.
The Penguin is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character made his first appearance in Detective Comics #58 and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. The Penguin is one of Batman's most enduring enemies and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up Batman's rogues gallery.
Nightwing is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The most prominent is Dick Grayson, who takes the name when he leaves his role as Batman's partner and sidekick Robin in his adulthood.
Catwoman is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, she debuted as "the Cat" in Batman #1. She has become one of the superhero Batman's most prominent enemies, belonging to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery, as well as Batman's best known and most enduring love interest, with many stories depicting their complex love–hate relationship. Since 1993, Catwoman has had her own ongoing series, Catwoman.
James W. "Jim" Gordon Sr. is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane as an ally of Batman, the character debuted in the first panel of Detective Comics #27, Batman's first appearance, making him the first Batman supporting character ever to be introduced.
Bane is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Chuck Dixon and Graham Nolan, the character first appeared in Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1. He has become one of the superhero Batman’s most enduring enemies belonging to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery.
The Crime Syndicate are teams of supervillains from one of DC Comics' parallel universes where they are the evil counterparts of the Justice League. The original team was specifically known as the Crime Syndicate of America and is sometimes abbreviated as CSA. This first superpowered Crime Syndicate team appeared in Justice League of America #29 in August 1964. The primary successive incarnation, known as the Crime Syndicate of Amerika, first appeared in the 2000 JLA: Earth 2 graphic novel.
Superman & Batman: Generations is the umbrella title of three Elseworlds comic book limited series published by DC Comics in the United States, written and illustrated by John Byrne. A major concept of the series is the avoidance of so-called comic book time; it places Superman, Batman, and the other members of the DC Universe in a single timeline, showing the characters aging and being replaced by their progeny.
Owlman is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. A supervillainous alternate-universe counterpart of Bruce Wayne / Batman, he is depicted as the adult version of Wayne's deceased older brother, who in most iterations dies as a child, before Bruce is born. In The New 52, the primary continuity Owlman, originally depicted as the asylum-bound Boomerang Killer, is retroactively revealed to be still alive, stolen from his parents as a child, and working in the service of the Court of Owls under the name Lincoln March.
Harvey Bullock is a fictional detective appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #441 and was created by Archie Goodwin and Howard Chaykin. In animation, he appeared throughout the DC Animated Universe, voiced by Robert Costanzo. He debuted in live-action in 2014 on Fox's television series Gotham, portrayed by Donal Logue.
The Psycho-Pirate is the name of two supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
"Batman: No Man's Land" is an American comic book crossover storyline that ran for almost all of 1999 through the Batman comic book titles published by DC Comics. The story architecture for "No Man's Land" and the outline of all the Batman continuity titles for 1999 were written by cartoonist Jordan B. Gorfinkel.
The Batman & Dracula trilogy consists of three American graphic novels—Batman & Dracula: Red Rain (1991), Bloodstorm (1994), and Crimson Mist (1998)—written by Doug Moench and penciled by Kelley Jones. The books were published by DC Comics as a part of its Elseworlds line of comics. Moench created the concept for the first installment and convinced Jones, of whom he was a fan, to join the project. Red Rain's eventual popularity resulted in DC commissioning sequels.
Amygdala is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, who is an opponent of Batman. He has reduced mental capacity, near superhuman strength and endurance, and is prone to outbursts of violence due to medical experimentation on his brain, chiefly the removal of his amygdala. Amygdala is briefly referenced in an article by Joseph LeDoux, a neuroscientist and expert in the role of the anatomical amygdala in fear processing, as testament to popular interest in the brain area.
The character of Superman was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and has been continually published in a variety of DC Comics book titles since its premiere in 1938. There have been several versions of Superman over the years, both as the main hero in the stories as well as several alternative versions.
"Dark Nights: Death Metal" is a 2020–2021 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous central miniseries by writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, and a number of tie-in books. The seven-issue miniseries was released from June 16, 2020, to January 5, 2021. The crossover was received with acclaim, with critics praising the unique plot, the art, the action, and the ending. It serves as the conclusion of the five-year Dark Multiverse Saga, taking place near the end of the New Justice era.
Infinite Frontier is a 2021 relaunch by the American comic book publisher DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic book titles. It is the follow-up to the 2018 New Justice relaunch. The relaunch and event was shepherded by writer Joshua Williamson. The continuity and repercussions established by Infinite Frontier continue into the 2023 Dawn of DC relaunch.
