Today on ComicsAlliance, I’ve started ’tising the season in earnest with a look at DC Comics’ Twelve Greatest Christmas Stories! It’s a pretty solid list, covering everything from Santa’s appearance on War Rocket Ajax (seen above) to more recent hits like “Yes Tyrone, There Is a Santa Claus” (which, if I had Bruce Wayne money, I would buy the original art for every single page), but there are a few of my favorites that didn’t make the final cut.
First up, the story of Batman #285, wherein Batman kicks a bear in the face in a giant Christmas tree:
As much as this is tailored specifically for my tastes, I recognize that this story isn’t actually all that great. But it certainly does have a level of Haneyesque insanity, which you can read all about here.
The other one that springs to mind: Garth Ennis’s tale of yuletide contract murder in Hitman #22:
This one (which I covered in-depth here) is great for a lot of reasons, cheif among them the fact that it’s got Garth Ennis doing narration in Seussian rhyme, but I tend to think of it less as a great Christmas story and more as just another stellar issue of Hitman
But those two are just the tip of the DC Christmas iceberg, so click on over to ComicsAlliance and check it out!
“Silent Night of the Batman” is not only my personal favorite Christmas comic, it’s one of my all-time favorite Batman stories. It also reminds me of one of my favorite Christmas songs…
“The boys of the GCPD Choir were singing ‘Galway Bay’ and the bells were ringing out for Christmas Day!”
I’m all for character growth, but those two panels show why Bart and Max should have stayed perfect for ever and ever. And not to be “that guy”, but I’d put the Deadman story at number one, because it always always always chokes me up…
I think it’s safe to say we all have our favorites on this topic. In fact, I just left a comment over at Comics Alliance recommending the conspicuously absent Best Holiday Comic Ever. Who am I cast stones when the moment that puts a big lump in my throat is Tomar-Tu telling the story of the day Xush-Nut-Nut saw the rainbow?
Because I can’t resist playing “Ooh, Ooh, You Forgot”:
How come there are no Mike W. Barr stories on the list? “Tarry ‘Til I Come Again” (the Phantom Stranger origin from Secret Origins #10) is an often-overlooked holiday story, and you can’t swing a sleigh bell without hitting a Barr-penned Christmas story starring Batman. [Didn’t you cover “The Batman’s Last Christmas” (from Brave & the Bold #184) before? Was that on the old blog?]
I think number 12 got misplaced somewhere.
And “The Silent Night of the Batman” is my personal favorite between the fun premise of Batman hanging out at the Gotham PD with the other guys who have to work overnight on Christmas Eve waiting for an emergency and some terrific Neal Adams art.
I remain fond of the dorky issue during the Funeral for a Friend storyline in which the other heroes team up to perform Superman’s annual ritual of responding to a bunch of Christmas wishes.
I expected to see some reference to the Legion of Super-Heroes story in which they go looking for the star of Bethlehem to please Superboy, but it’s not actually any *good*.
Ditto to both Scott’s and Seth’s comments above: Mosaic, Impulse, and the Deadman story at #1.
” Yes, Tyrone, There Is a Santa Claus ” reminds me of another brilliant story that could kind of qualify (there’s a holiday-looking party at the beginning, and Batman puts on a beard to deliver a present in the snow at the end, but there aren’t any explicit Christmas references): “That’s really super, Superman!” from Bizarro Comics.
I know I should save this for when we start talking about Marvel instead of DC, but: The Great Lakes Avengers Christmas Special (GLXMas) is my favouritist ever (I even have 5 autographs on that sucker…including Laura Allred! Braggity-brag-brag!)
God bless you, Mark Waid.
I would like to see a comic where some of the Golden Age heroes team up with, or possibly fight, Hardrock and Coco and Joe.
you can’t swing a sleigh bell without hitting a Barr-penned Christmas story starring Batman. [Didn’t you cover “The Batman’s Last Christmas” (from Brave & the Bold #184) before? Was that on the old blog?]
I dug out those fourteen or so BATO Christmas Specials, but man, they are not that great.
And yep: Batman’s Last Christmas, the Christmas Story that opens with Batman yelling at his parents’ graves that they deserved to die, was covered on ISB Classic.
Sims
I can’t believe you FORGOT my single favourite DC Christmas comic ever…
Naturally, I’m referring to the Fantastic Four issue called “The Gifts of DOOM!” in which The Thing gets Alicia Masters robotic eyes so that she can see and Alicia convinces Reed to build a gadget to turn Ben human for 24 hours so that he can celebrate Christmas properly, only the robotic eyes were built by Doom so the first time Alicia uses them the laser beams incinerate Ben into ashes…
and without The Ever-Loving Blue-Eyed Thing to stop him, Doom conquers the world.
Best Latverian Christmas ever really.
Dude, now you’re just FISHING for the fried-ice cream photo.
Dang, now I have to get a realistic bear ornament that my Batman ornament can kick in the face!
You’re in luck, there’s a special on bear ornaments at Kohl’s. And according to a reputable website, they’re bat-christmas friendly.
Not related to this post, but Chris, did you see Conan O’Brien on Friday (I think)? He wandered into a comic store and ended up flipping through an issue of Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose. Seriously.
Batman kicking a bear in the face means only 19 more days until Christmas!
Er 16. I’m numberslexic.
Ah, Bat-Santa. He beats the shit out of criminals, and they love it.
“Garth Ennis doing narration in Seussian rhyme”
There is a God, and he is grand
An even better ending for Final Crisis:
Batman’s secret weapon for destroying Darkseid: Der Kringle.