Detective Comics #329, July 1964
I always wanted an early Carmine Infantino Batman page, and I couldn’t resist this one: four tall vertical panels on a large-art 1964 page, from only the third issue of the “New Look” Batman.
I love the layout. Infantino uses those narrow panels beautifully, moving Batman steadily downward through the page until that terrific final shot of him dropping into the darkness. (And, as a bonus, we are essentially looking at the cover scene.)
As Robin might have said: “Far out.”
Large-art Infantino Batman pages seem much tougher to find than his Flash work. There were simply fewer of them to begin with, and unless somebody is sitting on a hidden stash, they’re pretty scarce.
This page is from Detective Comics #329, published just a few months after DC decided Batman needed a bit of an overhaul.
By 1964, most of the company’s superhero line had moved pretty decisively into the Silver Age — the Flash, Green Lantern, Atom, Hawkman, along with the Challengers, Adam Strange, Doom Patrol and plenty of others.
Batman, meanwhile, was still dealing with goofy space aliens, mutant creatures, time travel, color variations of his costume — and whatever else somebody could dream up that month.
To be clear, as a very young kid, I loved those stories in the 25-cent reprints. But sales suggested readers at the time were a little less enthusiastic.
DC handed the Batman reins to Julius Schwartz, and the result was the “New Look” — more grounded stories, a redesigned costume, and a renewed emphasis on mystery and crime.
Infantino’s art made the change feel immediate. His Batman was sleek, elegant and modern, and this page is a great example of why I’ve always wanted one.
As for the stories?
Well, of course, not long after that, the TV show came along.
Things got silly again.
But that’s another tale.
Batman Day, an annual event, is Saturday, September 19.
