The Further Adventures of Batman by Martin H. Greenberg

The Further Adventures of Batman Reviews

• 
  Craig

  This is a prose collection of Batman stories that was edited by Martin H. Greenberg, who virtually owned the short fiction market outside of the genre magazines of the time, that was ostensibly published to honor the 50th anniversary of the Caped Crusader's first appearance but was probably timed to capitalize on the popularity of the new film franchise. It's a somewhat mixed bag of a book, with stories set at different times reflecting different takes of the character from the early crook-fighter through the silly sci-fi jaunts of the 1950's up to the contemporary Dark Knight vision at the time of publication. The authors represent the fields of science fiction (Asimov, Resnick, Silverberg, Sheckley, etc.) and mystery (Hoch, Collins, Wellen, Gorman, etc.) almost equally. Too, there are several different story-telling devices from diary entries to straight narrative to epistolary. There's a very short and amusing story from Mike Resnick about a costume maker that surely influenced Netflix's Daredevil, a Black Widowers tale from Isaac Asimov that didn't really fit too well, and my two favorites were by George Alec Effinger and Joe R. Lansdale.
• 
  Dovile

  This collection of 14 stories will have something for every kind of Batman fan, from those who prefer them dark and gothic to those who enjoyed the cheesy comics and TV series of the 60s and 70s:
  
  1) 'Death of the Dreammaster' by Robert Sheckley (Bruce Wayne starts seeing his dead enemies alive and must uncover if they're real or not) - apart form a very shocking and gruesome first scene, this story is mostly OK, well written, but nothing exceptional.
  
  2) 'Bats' by Henry Slesar (after Robin's death, Batman apparently goes bats) - told by Alfred and it's pretty good.
  
  3) 'Subway Jack' by Joe R. Lansdale (Batman must stop a demon-possessed serial killer) - this one's a paranormal story which is not my personal favorite for Batman stories (I prefer him dealing with realistic enemies), and it's quite dark and gothic, and made up of something like a comic script, diary and case files entries and some parts are told from Gordon's point of view.
  
  4) 'The Sound of One Hand Clapping' by Max Allan Collins (Joker falls in love with Mime, a pretty criminal) - this one reminded me a lot of the Batman Animated series, especially Joker, even though this story was written a few years before the series aired. Reads like a 20-minute episode too.
  
  5) 'Neutral Ground' by Mike Resnick (heroes-and-villains outfitter Kittlemeyer has a few customers) - a very short story (just 5 pages), but one of the best in the book, although it will be more interesting for those better familiar with Batman and his adversaries.
  
  6) 'Batman in Nighttown ' by Karen Haber and Robert Silverberg (a Batman-clad thief robs Wayne's guests)- well-written, but some of the plot twists made me wince. More of Bruce's life as Wayne rather than Batman was interesting though.
  
  7) 'The Batman Memos' by Stuart M. Kaminsky (a Hollywood studio is looking into making a movie about Batman, when one of their actresses goes missing) - my favorite of the whole anthology. A very realistic and entertaining story, written entirely as a collection of memos between the studio executive and some of his colleagues, also Bruce Wayne who's mediates between the studio and Batman, a psychiatrist presenting Batman's psychological profile, and the studio's lawyer firm. Definitely recommended.
  
  8) 'Wise Men of Gotham' by Edward Wellen (the Riddler again) - nothing special, reminds the Batman comics of the 80s.
  
  9) 'Northwestward' (Black Widowers #61) by Isaac Asimov (the Black Widowers interview a man called Bruce Wayne who has a comics character named Batman based on his life) - A crossover with the Black Widowers series. Despite the big name, I just didn't care for this one. A lot of characters are from the BW series, and I've read only one BW book a very long time ago, didn't particularly liked it and don't remember much, so I didn't know who the interviewers were and that was confusing. No tights and capes here either.
  
  10) 'Daddy's Girl' by William f. Nolan (Robin meets Joker's daughter) - mostly a Robin story and quite predictable. Style is as in 60s-70s comics/Tv (no deep plot, a damsel in distress, including insta-love, evil robots, sound effects and all). Won't miss anything if you skip it.
  
  11) 'Command Performance' by Howard Goldsmith (Dick Grayson vs. a hypnotist who makes teens to steal for him) - another Robin (albeit out of costume) story, although a better written and not cheesy like the previous one.
  
  12) 'The Pirate Millionaire's Cove' by Edward D. Hoch (modern pirates steal from rich yacht owners) - without depth and quite predictable too.
  
  13) 'The Origin of the Polarizer' by George Alec Effinger (just what it says in the title - a guy supplying Wayne electronic parts figures out his secret identity and gets carried away trying to best Batman out) - despite the not-so-original premise this one is quite well written and really interesting. Before you read this one, I advise to look up the term 'plasmonics' if you don't know what that is.
  
  14) 'Idol' by Ed Gorman (a psychopath, as in killing-his-mother-psycho, tries to kill someone who he think is an impostor of himself) - I really don't know what this one is doing in this collection. If it's wasn't included in an a collection of Batman stories, you'd never tell it had any relation to Batman. Including this story as the last one, left a bad taste. I'd recommend reading this one first, if at all, and then getting on with better and more Batman related stories.
  
  Kudos to you if you read this far:)
• 
  Rob

  I've been looking for this book forever. I have only a vague memory of the stories contained within. I must have purchased this sometime around when it came out, making me ten or eleven. I think I purchased it at a pharmacy. I remember an extremely dark and gruesome story with the Joker. The reading was a little difficult for me at that time. Actually, I remember something about his body, the Joker's, being crushed in gears and cogs? Now that I've found the book's proper title, I will read it again, and review it further.
• 
  Mimi

  Death of the dreammaster / Robert Sheckley
  Bats / Henry Selsar
  Subway Jack / Joe R. Lansdale
  The sound of one hand clapping / Max Allan Collins
  Neutral ground / Mike Resnick
  Batman in nighttown / Karen Haber and Robert Silverberg
  The Batman memos / Stuart M. Kaminsky
  Wise men of Gotham / Edward Wellen
  Northwestward / Isaac Asimov
  Daddy's girl / William F. Nolan
  Command performance / Howard Goldsmith
  The pirate of Millionaires' Cove / Edward D. Hoch
  The origin of the Polarizer / George Alec Effinger
  Idol / Ed Gorman.
• 
  Jacqueline

  This is an anthology by the king of genre anthologies, Martin H. Greenberg, as such - some of the stories are quite good, others are so-so, and one was really pointless. This collection of fourteen stories has a disappointing line-up of authors.
  
  I also found this book in a box of old paperbacks of mine - and it dates from 1989, and man does it show. Computers built with vacuum tubes and operated with punch cards? It's unfamthomable! And Batman's tech should be slightly futuristic not hopelessly out of date. But it wasn't just the tech that was out of date - several of these stories seemed to be based on the old 60s TV series Batman rather than the comics, and certainly not the Nolan films. It's both understandable (the book pre-dates the Nolan films by two decades plus) but it also pre-dates many of the more serious events in the history of the Batman comics books and DC comics in general.
  
  These are short stories, a couple of which are novella length, but not graphics. I liked "Death of the Dreammaster", "Bats" was unique, and "Subway Jack" though gross did a better job of pitting Batman against a reincarnation of Jack the Ripper than I've seen before. "The Sound of One Hand Clapping" could have been really good but it fell flat. I couldn't help but compare Joker's would-be paramour to Harley Quinn and find her (The Mime) lacking. "Neutral Ground" was cute but seemed pointless - and I always figured that Bruce and Alfred made Batman's costumes and gadgets. "Batman in Nighttown" seemed totally pointless. "The Batman Memos" was cute and at least was a unique approach to story-telling. "Wise Men of Gotham" - a good mystery. "The Pirates of Millionaires Cove" - not only does the title sound like the title of a Hardy Boys Mystery - it really read like one, predictable outcome and all. "The Origin of the Polarizer" was very much like a 60s TV Batman adventure. "Idol" was really awful. It was terrible and left a bad taste in my mouth that spoiled the whole book. Honestly, it would have been better if the editor had cut the story completely. "Daddy's Girl" and "Command Performance" both feature Dick Grayson in a starring role, and I liked them both. "Daddy's Girl" was slightly predictable - and there's one scene with Batman that should have been a bit more emotional, but both were pretty good.
  
  Overall, one should not search high and low for a copy of this no doubt out-of-print book, even if one is a big Batman fan.
• 
  Brian Martinez

  I read this when I was younger and I remember a few of the stories making an impression on me. I recently bought a used copy to check it out again and it's been fun revisiting the material. The one that always stood out to me the most was the one written in screenplay form, which was an interesting choice and the first time I was exposed to that format of writing.
• 
  Erik

  I remember this book being really good, and very dark in some spots. The list of authors included is pretty eclectic, including a Batman story penned by the most prolific non-fiction science author of all time, Isaac Asimov. Talk about two of my favorite things rolled into one.
• 
  Fraser Burnett

  I first read this little chappy in 89. I would have been just turning seventeen, and an avid Batfan, especially post-Dark Knight/Miller/Moore period.
  
  I remember being vastly unimpressed with the book back then, but for two of the tales. I also remember a little brouhaha over the graphic content of the first tale, raising a mention in English tabloids.
  
  Cut to now, twenty eight years later, and a re-reading, and I find that my feelings haven't changed. The majority of the book is shite, and the two stories that I originally enjoyed, have retained their magic. Oh joy.
  
  'Neutral Ground' by Mike Resnick. Allusive, subtle, and almost gentle.
  'Subway Jack' by Joe R. Lansdale. Bats meets the God of the Razor. Love it!
  
  The Lansdale story is only available here, or in the more expensive, and rarer edition of A FIST FULL OF STORIES.
  
  You know what to do...
  
• 
  Donald

  "Fourteen All-New Adventures of the Caped Crusader"
  Well, new thirty years ago! :-)
  Joe Lansdale’s “Subway Jack” featuring the God of the Razor is far and away the best story in this collection! GOTR is one of my favorite "bad guys" and I loved reading another story about "him"!
  I also enjoyed "Idol" by Ed Gorman. Two authors I like, Isaac Asimov and Max Allan Collins, have stories in here, but I didn't like them. The other ten are a mixed bag of good, ok, and not so good.
  For me, I think I prefer Batman in comic form. I definitely missed the artwork. But this was an interesting aside, and Lansdale's story made it well worth it!
• 
  Scott Williams

  This is a rather eclectic collection of short stories. They span different time periods and deal with Batman’s different styles and personalities through the ages. There’s an interesting variety of formats from letters and diary entries to scripts, and more standard third person narratives. Most of the stories are fairly odd. There’s even a particularly strange one by Issac Asimov.
  
  It feels like the book might have been rushed out to capitalize on Tim Burton’s first Batman film. Certainly it could have used some more proofreading.
• 
  Jesse

  I picked this up for Isaac Asimov's story "Northwestward" and it unfortunately was completely stupid. It references Batman but not really in a meaningful way. And as a mystery story goes, it had the least interesting twist, after a really boring bunch of exposition and dialogue. Other stories in here are probably better, but I doubt I'll get around to reading them. If I do, I may change my review.
• 
  Greg Kerestan

  I've always loved themed anthologies, particularly ones where recognize authors and novelists all tackle a topic or setting they wouldn't normally do. Though not all the stories in this anthology land (partially because Batman has been reimagined so many times that he can be almost anything to anyone), many of them are quite effective, particularly a surrealist supernatural horror installment in which Batman is pitted against an eldritch abomination that inspired Jack the Ripper.
• 
  David Phipps

  This is a book of Batman short stories that I'm pretty sure I acquired in the 90's. I have volumes 2 and 3 as well. I wanted to read this again to see if deserved to be kept and the answer is no. Most of the stories were OK but I didn't think any of them were great. Some were campy and set in the 1950s I think. Some stories featured Robin as an active sidekick or as a dead character. I still may try to read volumes 2 and 3 but the plan is to get rid of these books.
• 
  Ronald Wilcox

  Collection of fourteen short stories by different authors set in Gotham City. Like most anthologies, some are very good and others not so much. Weird ordering though because there are stories written after Robin has died followed by other ones where he is involved in the storyline. Worth the time though for Batman fans.
• 
  Christopher Dodds

  Their were several good and not so good stories in this book. The ones I think I enjoyed the most were the ones where I knew who the characters were both the good and the evil were in story were well written and fleshed out, whereas the ones where they tried something different with the story to me did not kind of work.
  But overall the book was enjoyable to read.
• 
  James Elkins

  I’m not, as a rule, a fan of short stories which is why it took me 20 years to finish this book. The stories range not just in writing style but in style of Batman. One would hope that this book, published in 1989, would have been the Further Adventures of Tim Burton’s Batman. Instead it’s a collection of Golden Age to Bronze Age Batman stories of varying qualities and genres.
• 
  Kylee

  2.5/5
• 
  Andrew

  This book caught my eye – 14 authors from “traditional” publishing backgrounds tackle the subject of The Batman, including ones I was already familiar with: Max Allan Collins, Stuart Kaminsky, and Isaac Asimov.
  
  Unfortunately, as I read through the book, I found it to be like most anthologies – some stories are excellent and really appeal to me, while others make me feel like my time would have been more productively spent watching butterflies flutter in a meadow.
  
  Let's look at Bats, by Henry Slesar, as an example. In this tale, Batman publicly acts a little quirky, perhaps crazy. I don't think it will be much of a spoiler to reveal that the hero has a reason, and a plan. However, the Batman I've encountered in prior readings would not undertake this behavior for tactical gain, realizing that the long term implications to his reputation might be strategically unwise.
  
  On the other side of the coin, I did enjoy “The Pirates of Millionaires' Cove” by Edward D. Hoch and “Death of the Dreammaster”, by Robert Sheckley. Both feature mysteries in which the Batman must use his problem-solving skills, coupled with his intimidation factor and combat skills.
  
  Give it a read. Your opinion may agree or diverge with mine on any given story, but I'm sure there will be something in this collection that every Batman fan will like – but be warned, there will probably be something that the same fan will not enjoy.
  
  RATING: 3 stars. Some stories are a 4 to 5, others a 2.
• 
  Kacey

  Some of the stories in this collection are actually a pretty good read, but most of them are fairly sub-par.
  
  Still, the collection provides an amusing enough read, if the awkward prose for some stories can be overlooked. A couple of the stories feel out of place, such as "Idol" or "Northwestward" which don't help the book any.
  
  For the most part, characterization is pretty good from most of the authors; Dick Grayson reads particularly reminiscent of his Animated Series self, despite these stories having been written prior to the show's debut. The title man is a bit more hit-and-miss with his characterization, something which is not aided by most of the authors' tendency to muse a little too much on what (I think) is considered pretty common knowledge about Batman.
  
  All in all, not a bad little book. Far from a stellar read, but for the $2.00 I got it for, I'll let it pass with three stars. (Which, is more than I've given some of the Batman comic storylines.)
• 
  Chad Van deren

  Enjoyable, but overall mostly forgettable. I'm a big Batman fan so I enjoyed all of the stories in this collection (certainly some more than others). There seem to be a concentrated effort on the writers to shy away from the major villains. The Joker makes a few appearances (one as a side character, another as the main villain). Some readers may find this as a positive. I found that the stories I enjoyed the most were the small, quirky ones. Neutral Ground, The Batman Memos, Northwestward, and Idol were my favorite chapters. In a nutshell, I'd say Batman fans would enjoy this book, but the non-fan may not be moved by it at all.
• 
  Andrew Bates

  It was oh kay. Some of the stories were really good, especially the ones with Robin. A lot of the writers seem unfamiliar with the mythos, and to a certain extent if you are more familiar with the mythos than they are, you might find some of the more blunt commentary annoying--he's not a superhero! He's super prepared, except when he's surprised! His parents are dead! Etcetera. But generally, it's probably worth it. I didn't like Isaac Asimov's story when I first read it. Now that I've thought about it, I like it a lot.
• 
  Brian

  I love Batman. I love science fiction. I really thought this would be a great read. I mean, How can you go wrong with some of the best science fiction writers writing short stories about this awesome character? Obviously some of these writers should stick with what they know best and leave comic characters to the experts. Not that it was a bad book. Just had some dull stories that did nothing for the character. Surprisingly, the best shorts stories actually centered around Robin. I can't say that I would ever recommend this book to comic fans.
• 
  Dan Thomas

  An instantly forgettable bunch of stories which simply fail to honour the character. Some start off promisingly but descend into dreck, others are non-starters.
  
  The best story here, "The Batman Memos" is a novel approach to telling a Batman story, and while it's compelling throughout even this entry fails to stick the landing.
  
  As an Asimov fan, I was disappointed that his contribution is cribbed from an old pulp crime anthology and really only a Batman story by a technicality. I suspect his "Northwestward" was only included in order to benefit from the author's starpower.
  
  Overall, avoid.
• 
  Jon

  I dug this old collection out with nostalgia coursing through my soul. Some things are better left in childhood.
  
  This is a miserable collection of stories. Most are just prose versions of an average Batman comic circa 1972, cheesy and shallow and owing as much to the campy tv show as anything else. The few stories that try to do something different don't really work either, like Isaac Asimov's "Northwestward," an interesting take on a "real life" Bruce Wayne that ends on a confusing and indifferent note.
  
  There are a couple good stories here but this collection is best forgotten.
• 
  Larry Kenney

  I read this as a kid, and absolutely loved it. I was at a flee market right after college and came across the book again and snapped it right up. I enjoyed the stories just as much the second time. I love the dark and brutal Batman world that is portrayed in a lot of the stories. The story with Spring Heeled Jack is still one of my favorite short stories as well...
• 
  Seth Kenlon

  This is a collection of short stories about Batman, each by a different author, with a different spin. It's an excellent volume, filled with a great variety of stories that you can read in one sitting each. Highly recommended if you're at all interested in Batman, or want to be interested in Batman.
• 
  Shaun

  Fourteen fun stories portraying the adventures of the Dark Knight from the forties to the late eighties. Each author takes a different spin on Batman from the campy Adam West Batman to a brooding Batman of the eighties after the second Robin's death. I liked each story and I highly suggest this collection to any Batman fan.