With Dark Nights: Metal, the legendary team of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo brewed up a bombastic comic book event which was full of crazy ideas. Beginning with with something lurking in the shadows of reality, it quickly escalates into threat of massive proportions which introduces the Batman Who Laughs and the Dark Multiverse in the process. The result is a comic book event which is a lot of fun while also being a cornerstone in in DC Comics continuity.
Big events, especially ones with lots of tie-ins, can be confusing to new readers and veterans alike. To help reading easy I’ve put together the Dark Nights: Metal Reading Order Checklist. Not only does it give the reading order to this massive story, but also tie-ins, creative teams, background reading, and other helpful notes.
Soon you’ll able to dive headfirst into Dark Nights: Metal and thoroughly enjoy it without worry. Happy reading!
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Do I Need To Read The Tie-Ins?
Short answer: No.
Longer answer: As you’ll see below, there are a hell of a lot of tie-ins for this event. But just because they’re listed there doesn’t mean you need to read them all. They’re totally optional side stories which add a little extra to the main story but shouldn’t be required to get a full story.
Here are a few options you can take when it comes to reading Dark Nights: Metal:
- Read Dark Nights: Metal #1-6 (That’s the main story)
- Read the Dark Days: The Forge and Dark Days: The Casting (Those are prelude issues) + Dark Nights: Metal #1-6
- Read Dark Nights: Metal #1-6 + Prelude Issues + any tie-in that appeals to you
- Everything
It’s totally up to you on how much you read, based on your enjoyment and interest in the story plus your budget.
Background Reading
Want to read hints and comics which inspired Dark Nights: Metal? Then you should check out these comics.
Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman Run
While not essential reading to understand what’s going on, there are many references to Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman run in the preludes. Bleeding Cool has collected some of the scenes that were referenced from their run here. WARNING: There may be spoilers so it’s up to you if you want to be spoiled.
Dark Knight, Dark City (Batman #452-454)
Written by Peter Milligan. Art by Keiron Dwyer.
This story from 1990 introduced the Bat-Demon Barbathos (the big bad of Dark Nights: Metal) into the DC mythology.
The Return of Bruce Wayne #1-6
Written by Grant Morrison. Art by Chris Sprouse, Frazer Irving, Yanick Paquette, Georges Jeanty, Ryan Sook, and Lee Garbett.
The Return of Bruce Wayne is a 6-issue miniseries which spins out of Final Crisis #6. This features the other appearance of the Bat-Demon Barbathos.
Hawkman: Endless Flight (Hawkman (2002 series) #1-6 and Hawkman Secret Files #1)
Written by Geoff Johns and James Robinson. Art by Rags Morales, Michael Bair, Patrick Gleason, and Christian Alamy.
For those who want to know more about the Hawkman mythology.
Nightwing #17
Written by Time Seeley. Art Javi Fernandez.
Detective Comics #950
Written by James Tynion IV. Art Marcio Takara.
Both of these have hints to Dark Nights: Metal.
Prelude
The following comics act as a prelude to Dark Nights: Metal.
Dark Days: The Forge
Written by Scott Snyder and James T Tynion IV. Art by John Romita Jr. and Andy Kubert.
Dark Days: The Casting
Written by Scott Snyder and James T Tynion IV. Art by John Romita Jr., Jim Lee and Andy Kubert.
NOTE: Dark Days: The Forge and Dark Days: The Casting have also been packaged together in a Director’s Cut edition, with never before seen extras.
Dark Nights: Metal Reading Order
Below is the recommended reading order for this massive comics book event.
Dark Nights: Metal #1 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Dark Nights: Metal #2 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Teen Titans #12 (tie-in – Gotham Resistance – Part 1)
Written by Benjamin Percy. Art by Mirka Andolfo.
Batman: The Red Death (tie-in)
Written by Joshua Williamson. Art by Carmine Di Giandomenico.
Nightwing #29 (tie-in – Gotham Resistance – Part 2)
Written by Tim Seeley. Art by Paul Pelletier.
Batman: The Murder Machine (tie-in)
Written by Frank Tieri. Art by Ricardo Federici.
Suicide Squad #26 (tie-in – Gotham Resistance – Part 3)
Written by Rob Williams. Art by Stjepan Sejic.
Batman: The Dawnbreaker (tie-in)
Written by Sam Humpheries. Art by Ethan Van Sciver.
Green Arrow #32 (tie-in – Gotham Resistance – Part 4)
Written by Benjamin Percy. Art by Juan Ferrerya.
Dark Nights: Metal #3 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Batman: The Drowned (tie-in)
Written by Dan Abnett. Art by Philip Tan.
Batman: The Merciless (tie-in)
Written by Peter J. Tomasi. Art by Francis Manapul.
The Flash #33 (tie-in – Bats Out Of Hell – Part 1)
Written by Joshua Williamson. Art by Howard Porter.
Batman: The Devastator (tie-in)
Written by Frank Tieri. Art by Tony S. Daniel.
Justice League #32 (tie-in – Bats Out Of Hell – Part 2)
Written by Robert Venditti and Joshua Williamson. Art by Liam Sharp.
Batman Lost (tie-in)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Doug Mahnke, Jamie Mendoza, Yanick Paquette, and Jorge Jimenez.
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #32 (tie-in – Bats Out Of Hell – Part 3)
Written by Robert Venditti. Art by Ethan Van Sciver.
The Batman Who Laughs (tie-in)
Written by James Tynion IV. Art by Reilly Rossmo.
Justice League #33 (tie-in – Bats Out Of Hell – Part 4)
Written by Joshua Williamson. Art by Tyler Kirkham.
Dark Nights: Metal #4 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Hawkman Found (tie-in)
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Bryan Hitch and Kevin Nowlan.
Dark Nights: Metal #5 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Dark Knights Rising: The Wild Hunt (tie-in)
Written by Scott Snyder, Grant Morrison, James Tynion IV and Joshua Williamson. Art by Doug Mahnke, Ivan Reis, Howard Porter and Jorge Jimenez.
Dark Nights: Metal #6 (of 6)
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
Spinning Out Of Dark Nights: Metal
Want to know what to read after Dark Nights: Metal? Here are a few comics which will be picking on threads of this massive event.
New Age of DC Heroes
DC Comics will be launching a batch of new series spinning out of Dark Nights: Metal, and will feature brand new characters and teams. These characters will appear in some capacity in Dark Nights: Metal or another. These new comics will have the banner of “The New Age of Heroes.”
Fans of The Batman Who Laughs will want to check out The Immortal Men #3, with the character featuring in that issue.
Justice League: No Justice
Written by Joshua Williamson, James T Tynion IV, Scott Snyder. Art by Francis Manapul, Riley Rossmo, and Marcus To.
Spinning out of Dark Nights: Metal, No Justice is a weekly miniseries running through May 2017. It’s also the catalyst for the a new era in Justice League and Teen Titans comics known as New Justice. Scott Snyder’s Justice League in particular would take a lot of ideas that come out of Dark Nights: Metal and run with them.
Hawkman #1
Written by Rob Vendetti. Art by Bryan Hitch.
In this new solo series, the first in many years, Hawkman is on a mission to discover the purpose of his many reincarnations.
Aquaman #35
Written by Dan Abnett. Art by Robson Rocha.
Events from Dark Nights: Metal will be felt in Atlantis with a story which begins in Aquaman #35.
The Batman Who Laughs #1-7
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Jock.
If you want to know what’s next for The Batman Who Laughs after Dark Nights: Metal then check out this miniseries.
Dark Nights: Death Metal
Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo.
This is an upcoming sequel to Dark Nights: Metal from the same creative team. Check out the reading order.
Dark Nights: Metal Collected Editions
For those who prefer to read the who thing in a collected edition(s), here what you’ll need to read.
Dark Nights: Metal
Collects: Dark Nights: Metal #1-6
Dark Nights: Metal: The Resistance
Collects: Teen Titans #12, Nightwing #29, Suicide Squad #26, Green Arrow #32, Batman: Lost #1, The Flash #33, Hal Jordan And The Green Lantern Corps #32, Justice League #32-33 and Hawkman: Found #1
Dark Nights: Metal: The Nightmare Batmen
Collects: The Red Death #1, Batman: The Devastator #1, Batman: The Merciless #1, Batman: The Murder Machine #1, Batman: The Drowned #1, Batman: The Dawnbreaker #1, The Batman Who Laughs #1 and Dark Knights Rising: The Wild Hunt #1
Dark Nights: Metal Omnibus
Collects: Dark Days: The Forge, Dark Days: The Casting, Dark Nights: Metal #1-6, Teen Titans #12, Nightwing #29, Suicide Squad #26, Green Arrow #32, Batman: Lost #1, The Flash #33, Hal Jordan And The Green Lantern Corps #32, Justice League #32-33, Hawkman: Found #1, The Red Death #1, Batman: The Devastator #1, Batman: The Merciless #1, Batman: The Murder Machine #1, Batman: The Drowned #1, Batman: The Dawnbreaker #1, The Batman Who Laughs #1 and Dark Knights Rising: The Wild Hunt #1
Recent DC Reading Orders:
The Button | Injustice Comics | The Lazarus Contract | Justice League Vs. Suicide Squad
Will You Be Reading Dark Nights: Metal?
Will you be reading DC’s latest event? Have you found the Dark Nights: Metal Reading Order Checklist helpful? Let me know in the comments below or via Facebook or Twitter.
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Bummed that Batman Lost was bundled into The Resistance book, that issue is basically Dark Nights Metal #4.5.
I wish there was a book done just for me, with Dark Days The Casting, Dark Days The Forge, Batman Lost, Hawkman Found and Dark Knights Rising: The Wild Hunt.
That would be a great concise companion to the main book Dark Nights Metal.
Yeah, it is a bit strange how they have bundled Batman Lost. I suspect that there will be a massive omnibus with everything eventually, but that’s probably a few years down the track.
You forgot Batman #39 & 40 also continue it.