Batman: Castle of the Bat

In this 1994 Elseworlds one-shot from DC, writer Jack C. Harris and artist Bo Hampton reimagine the Dark Knight as a hunchbacked, castle-dwelling creature of the night, blending the gothic horror of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein with the Batman mythos. The story casts Bruce Wayne as a scientist who creates a monstrous, bat-like being in his ancestral keep, exploring themes of isolation and monstrosity through a single, atmospheric issue. A striking, standalone experiment from the Elseworlds line, it showcases a bold, genre-mashing take on the character that remains a cult curiosity for fans of alternate Batman tales.