By Zack Quaintance — The Batman Universe Hardcover found its way into my hands just before the COVID-19 crisis and quarantine began, taking a long path to get there. The history is that it was part of a DC Comics initiative a couple of years back (has it been that long? wow) to get superhero comics outside of comic shops and into Wal-Marts. To do this, the publisher created a series of 100-page giant comics that retailed for $4.99, consisting mostly of new-audience friendly reprint material...and a handful of new stories, one of which was Batman Universe.