Capitalising on the Batman craze of the 1960s, Jiro Kuwata’s manga is a fascinating piece of work. Combining the charm of Adam West with propulsive action results in a string of exciting adventures for the Dynamic Duo. Dismissing this as camp would like a disservice.  The stories may show their age but as Kuwata’s depictions of death-defying heroism are as exhilarating as any modern Bat-Book. And his panache for dreamscapes and his ability explore Batman’s subconscious mind and subjective experience tap into ideas that have become foundational to The Dark Knight’s most cerebral and acclaimed sagas over the decades.

The dialogue is often declarative and interpersonal drama is non-existent.  At the same time it is punchy and direct, with possibly the most emotionally well balanced depiction of Bruce Wayne you can find. This is a Batman who books himself a vacation if he’s stressed after solving a case so he can unwind before getting back to work.  With a cheerful and confident Robin along for the ride the legendary tag-team are having a ball.

While their characterisations are extremely broad many of the villains debuting here are incredibly charismatic. The only weak link being Doctor Faceless with his unsatisfactory runaround plot. The series begins strong with Lord Death Man; the fiendish robber’s swaggering bombast makes him a delight to read while, his eerie cackling combined with Batman’s aforementioned nightmares regarding impermanent death ensure the man in a skeleton costume is a legit menace. He has since been plucked from obscurity to appear in more modern DC titles (recently in the 2024 Robin series dating the Boy Wonder’s grandmother), yet, despite Kuwata’s flexible approach to tone, Lord Death Man is not the best villain to appear in this 350-page tome. That honour goes to the mighty Karmak, who posses the unique quality of being a funny concept that becomes increasingly terrifying while still being a good laugh. If the later volumes can maintain this quality then the BatManga will have cemented itself as an overlooked classic. But this collection alone is worth reading both as a piece of transpacific pop-culture history and as well as just being an excellent superhero comic.