heget’s Batfam Rec List

I’ve been typing this up all day. I’m tired. I’m not sure how helpful any of my followers will find this. A mix of serious action and or introspective pieces and a  few pure humor pieces mixed in, most are hazy comic canon (pre or post Flashpoint, meh~ *jazz hands* I note the few exceptions. IDK how much canon knowledge you need- ain’t like I’ve read a ton of comics) Most are gen, some aren’t.My character bias is obvious, whatever

Down the pole into the Batcave!

These are (mostly) in no particular order. Especially not by personal preference.

Some links are for series. So there is probably a hundred fics here:

• The Longer You Stay = This is the only (well, there’s one more down this list) fic set in the universe of the film trilogy directed by Nolan. As movies they’re good, the villains, Lucius, and Alfred and Catwoman are great, but Bale never felt like Bruce Wayne or Batman. This is still not Batman, but it is BatCat and Robins. Here’s the companion series also about Bruce and Selina post-films as they find the robins and make a family
• Batman 1939: The Dangers of Being Cold = the only non-AO3 link, but this fic (and its sequel) is fantastic. A re-imagining of Batman set back during the year it was first published, action and mystery and humor and a little romance with a great Selina as well.
• All the Roofs of Uncertainty = the author took all of Jason’s pre-Flashpoint canon, including Countdown to Final Crisis, the Battle for the Cowl, and Morrison’s evil red-head villain for Dick!Bats to fight (ugh Morrison), all that terrible writing and characterization most generously described as inconsistent of comic canon, and wrote an excellent character study with multiple chapters of Bruce and Jason arguing with each other over Dick’s hospital bed and made it compelling. 
• The Til-Then From the Ever-Since = Also the same author. A writing exercise to have as many characters on-screen interacting with each other, takes that concept of characters meeting their younger selves and applies it to everyone. Everyone.
• Cirque de Triomphe =  huge series of interconnected one-shots and stories fleshing out the idea of Earth-3, aka Mirror Verse. Joker is Jokester, Batman is Owlman, emphasizes the other side of the moral dichotomy of order versus chaos. Well-written but not my favs from that author, though I do love the side story where Jokester ends up in the canon universe – and hates his counterpart.
• Wheel and Blade = Dick and Damian and family feels
• Gotham is A Mother = Jason, Bruce, “family feels” – this passage in particular: “Me, though…I’ve spent a few years away from this city, sure. And I hate the place. It’s an evil, unsalvageable devourer of lives and souls and dreams. There’s nothing worth fighting for here. But it’s home. I know it, deeper than my bones. I was born to it. I was fighting on these streets almost as soon as I could walk; Crime Alley to you was one night when you were eight, but for me it was every single day from before I can remember. “You’re married to Gotham, sure. But she’s my mother.”
• The tune without the words = Okay, last from this author. Jim Gordon around the time of the Red Hood arc. I need more Jim Gordon POV fics
• Always Another One (The Robin Recruitment Remix) = it’s a comic universe so we hand-wave the child endangerment of Robin. Here, the cops of Gotham don’t
• Cor Et Cerebrum = great series, starts with drama and character interactions, introduces an incredibly well-crafted OC, then several short fluffy with a dash of angst fics. The first is about Bruce (not)coping with a major medical problem, then about the doctor introduced in that fic integrating into the Batfam as their personal surgeon and friend. (Also anything else by this author is good)
• on a thin chain of moments and something like faith = six part series about Jason interacting and slowly integrating back into the family, has everyone, so many great lines (I adore Tam in the last fic), Cass and ballet years before B&RE
• Old haunts = same author, two part series. First fic is Bruce realizing his family moved on when he was “dead” (great snark), but the second fic is ‘everyone gets a puppy!’ ♥
• Exactly how this grace thing works = Excellent de-aged Dick Grayson fic
• New Alphabet = Excellent de-aged Jason Todd fic
• Neverland = and here’s another de-aged Jason fic, which I sometimes confuse with the one above
• Deaged Batgirls = we needed this trope with Cass and Steph too
• Blue electric angels = the only other Nolan!verse fic I read, for the same reason that it inserts the Batfamily back into that universe.
• Little Wing and Big Bird  = this feels like it could have been an arc from the eighties. Robin!Jason and Teen Titans Era Nightwing!Dick team up
• Second Generation  = I read a fic elsewhere that had the same general concept of Dick getting a ‘surprise! You have a newborn’ because of the Tarantula incident (and acknowledging that was sexual assault), dealing with the difficulties of brand-new parenthood, trauma and self-loathing issues, with added Jason just came back as the Red Hood (because this family needs more drama) The other fic I initially thought better written, but I like this one a lot more. It’s ongoing and has more Tim, Cass, and Steph, and while it doesn’t have Jason shooting Bruce in the foot in a hospital waiting room, so far the angst is better (spoiler for the other fic- no one dies yet). Also, two babies! Better than one! ♥
• “No” and other four letter words = Batfam and canon’s distressing frequency with consent issues
• Hangman is coming down from the gallows = Want to know what I live for? Jason and Steph interactions, especially when the subtext of Jason’s roaring rampage of revenge return to Gotham and targeting Black Mask is linked to Stephanie’s (reconned away) death.
• bad boys bad boys (whatcha gonna dooo) ♫ = I also live for fics staring Jason and Damian, highlighting their similarities and differences and the shared background from the League of Assassins and Jason being the personal pet project/champion/it’s complicated of Damian’s mother. So here’s an AU team-up
• Bad Life Decisions  = Jason/Steph fake date to annoy Bruce. This is my rare!pair OTP. This is beyond funny and cute. This is my feel-good favorite. ♥
• Steph and Jay’s Excellent Adventure = two-part series where Steph and Jason decide to troll Batman

(Okay next few are going to be JaySteph fics:)

• Mr. and Mrs. Hood = undercover mob power couple. I adore this fic
• and i know it’s late but i couldn’t wait = cute at a Wayne Gala
• Batgirls Like Bad Boys = it’s well-written smut of my rare!pair OTP
• 20 Questions  = the other very similar well-written smut of my rare!pair OTP
• You Only Live Twice  = like a gen version of the above two
• Just Another Kid = Stephanie is Jason’s civilian friend before he dies. I wish this was canon
• Lost = AU, another way little kid Jason could be adopted by bruce, cute cute fic, several cameos but especially Steph
• And if you’re still breathing = We interrupt the terrible War Games arc with Under the Red Hood

(Okay here’s the other fav)

• The Many Deaths of Jason Todd = ♥♥ okay so this might be my favorite Batfam fic, for the characterizations and character interactions, the underlying mystery, the action, the humor, the use of poetry. Christ of Crime Alley, the Great Corpse Caper, Dick smashing the Batmobile in anger, Steph and Tim the Troll Twins… The JayTim is very slow burn and as of chapter 22 it’s still mostly unrequited – Tim’s attraction playing mostly for humor on top of a genuine friendship. (Jason/Tim is the only m/m pairing among the robins I support because of reasons like the fact that Jason died before Tim was brought in, so no actual sibling bond. Plus designed as counterparts, idealization issues)
• Rare Avis  = same author, other series- pure gen fluff in an AU where Bruce adopts Jason but doesn’t shove him in a Robin suit. Heavy focus on actual big brother! Dick Grayson. Alfred’s disdain for cherry cola cake.
• Casebook of Detective Timothy Drake  = ok if you like JayTim, this series is my favorite for AU where one character has a different superhero id, in this case where Tim never became Robin and instead works for the GCPD. Aside from that great canon interactions, a good Steph and Dick, the focus is on the murder mysteries and action more than the romance, and the best part is Tim’s partner who used to work in Bludhaven with Dick who provides the outsider-perspective as he starts to figure out the big secret. I forget if this one gets too explicit. i’m trying not to rec all the smut fics ♥
• Doubting Gets You Places = JayTim in an AU where he works for Oracle and was never Robin and the last chapters do get explicit, but its well-written especially because it’s imperfect. Warning that Tim’s charater is still in high school. (I swear I read JayTim where Tim was also Robin)
• Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair  = alternative version to Damian’s resurrection. Frankly I de-canon that particular death, or ignore the convoluted canon explanation for this one
• Didymious = the only fic I’ve found that takes that tidbit that Cass’s mother, Lady Shiva, was one of the three candidates for Jason’s birth mother. Here they are twins
• Croc on Top = fics solely focused on Cass are hard to find. Here’s a short AU where Cass is adopted by another family.
• Chase You Down Until You Love Me = All the Batkids versus all the DC reporters
• Swimming Lessons = Young Justice universe. Makes the pairing of Cass and La’gaan work (…yes, I’m serious)
• How to become a male Batgirl = AU where Jason didn’t die and Tim doesn’t become Robin
• In Between the Pages = this is gloriously funny. Gen centered on Tim’s photography hobby among other things
• A Shared History = more good Tim gen- his parents were amateur archaeologists
• The Bat Whisperer (And Other Bizzarre Pet Choices) = Let me just give you this line: “Bruce left before Dick could explain what he named them, supposing that this alternative was still better than the ever present possibility that Dick would remember that he could, financially speaking, get an elephant.”
• (here’s where he does)
• Family is a Crisis  = bonus points for welcome to your new family, Duke Thomas (no refunds) and conniving Dick Grayson (terrible fashion taste)
• The Social Media Saga = light-hearted batfam + instagram
• The Wayne Family Ghost = fics about Damian clashing badly with his school/teachers are fun. Fics pointing out the awkwardness of formerly and still legally dead brothers are also fun.
• Everything I Do, I Do It Big = humorous slight AU – Justice League slowly learning just how many children Batman has
• Fatherhood in the New Millennium (or, Use a Great Ball, Stupid) = there was a slew of PokemonGO Batfam fics and head-canons. This is my pick.
• The Wayne’s World = Batfam meets Reality TV. Aka what this fandom really wants is not another animated action show with Batman and maybe one sidekick but something more like Keeping Up with Kardashians
• All Fun and Games = Batfamily goes to the local carnival. This is tooth-rooting sugar fluff (and bad action figures)
• Roadtrip = Batfam. Disneyland.
• I promise i’ll make y’all proud = Stephanie and the Batfam
• Batcoons = Jason adopts (is adopted by) a raccoon
• #weedhorse69 = okay this one’s more general DC than Batfam. But it’s too funny. Also the author is one of those tumblr follow for good head-canon posts
• Matches = Same author. Bruce’s disguise as Matches Malone
• Cat-sitting = Damian pet-sits for Catwoman
• Two People Who Sound Like Jensen Ackles, a Whole Lot of Spandex, and a Possessed Cassandra Cain (Everybody’s Screwed) = Look at the title.
• Bridal Chorus  = More crack, more fake dating as to cause Bruce pain. I have to rec some silly popcorn fics too
• To Catch a Mockingbird = more of  Maps Mizoguchi from Gotham Academy interacting with Damian. Live for this
• Strays  = if you want more baby Robins adopted while Dick was still Robin AUs
• We want what little love we hold = I love short little fics that highlight how Damian is coming into a family where his father chose to adopt several children and he, while the blood-son, was slow to -but eventually- accepted
• Crowded Enough  = The other Young Justice AU where all the rest of the Batfam are tiny kids living at the Manor during Season One
• By Any Other Name  = Young Justice fic that has no Batfam at all, but it’s Lois Lane showing Superboy the ropes and those are my favorite ♥
• Zombie Invasions are Boring, Let’s Play Video Games Instead = zombie apocalypse humor fic. Rec list ain’t complete without one
• Blood Borne = I’m adding this one even though it’s unfinished and I hate that, because it was building a good mystery
• Unconventional Family Reunions = It’s a crossover between comics and Batman v Superman. Also known as here’s how the DCEU won’t be doing the Under the Red Hood arc, sadly.
• Uplift of ash and an inrush of dust = Inserting Nightwing in BvS

And the bonus for sitting through all the Batman-centric DC fics, here’s a fic about Simon Baz that celebrates his religion and heritage: Courage. Also, I need more fics with him and Jessica Cruz.