The city calm, and the night is dark, but there’s a gloom on the horizon of the newly fallen snow. It’s with this that you realize that there are very few shopping days left until the holidays are over. Well, chances are you’ve got a Batman fan in your life on some level whether they be hardcore fans, new comers or simply a casual gent or lady that enjoys the movies. Well, have I got some last minute, easy as pecan pie solutions for you! Below are several gift ideas that can be presented to your loved ones. One thing that should be mentioned about the below list is that pretty much nothing needs deep understanding of the character’s history. These are pretty safe gifts for any Batfan that you may know, no matter how hardcore. Anyway, let’s get on with this gift guide, shall we?

ABSOLUTE EDITIONS

The thing about Absolute Editions is that, even if I personally don’t like the story, I want the Absolute Edition. Does that make sense? Let me explain. Absolute Editions are presented in the giant hardcover that basically is the same size as the original art, but it’s completely colored and printed on extremely high quality paper. So, any imaginable detail in the art can be experienced, and usually only the most high profile stories with incredibly talented creative teams get the Absolute treatment. Plus, in these editions, there are loads of bonus features that liken them to the most ultimate editions of movie releases. So, with that, let’s move on to the two Batman specific ones on this list.

Early reviews for the first entry in the DC Comics brand new line of graphic novels, Superman: Earth One by writer J. Michael Straczynski and artist Shane Davis, are out and so far they’ve been pretty mixed, but one specific write-up stood out amongst the others.

In an article in The New York Post yesterday, the writer refers to Superman’s new look in Superman: Earth One as “more Robert Pattinson from the Twilight movies than Christopher Reeve from the Superman films.” I have yet to read the book yet, but oh boy… there’s so much wrong with this.

The article focuses a lot of attention on the different approaches that JMS has taken with the character in this new universe, basically calling Superman a moody hipster, which is kind of hilarious if you think about that for a second. My main problem with the article is not necessarily what is reported in the news, but what they chose to focus on. This piece is nothing more than a modern fashion article with references to hoodies and skinny ties, but DC Comics has always attempted to keep fashion relevant when updating a character (in an alternate universe in this instance).