BATMAN: UNSEEN, five-issue comic-book miniseries written by Doug Moench and illustrated by Kelley Jones and published from 2009–2010. “A lost tale of Bruce Wayne as Batman,” the series follows Batman’s investigation into an increasingly invisible antagonist, Dr. Nigel Glass.
In the first issue, “Meat-Man,” Black Mask, a longtime enemy of Batman’s, invests in a lab for Dr. Glass, a scientist who has just been fired from his job at WayneTech for a breach of ethics. Dr. Glass is on a quest to become invisible, injecting himself with what he calls Translux serum, his own invention. At first Dr. Glass succeeds in making his skin invisible, revealing swollen, reddened muscles. As he continues the injections, he becomes progressively less visible, layer by layer. With only his skeleton and inner organs visible Dr. Glass then robs a store and murders the clerk. The detectives are dumbfounded by descriptions of a “Meat-Man” suspect and, thinking it must be Gerald Moss, a crony of Black Mask’s, share their theory with Batman, who barges into a gang meeting in search of Moss but comes away empty-handed. By the end of the installment Dr. Glass is completely invisible and Batman is unable to locate Gerald Moss.
In the second issue, “Translux,” Dr. Glass, enamored with his newfound powers, embarks on devious rampages against unassuming civilians. Back at his lab, he learns that Translux serum alters brain chemistry—specifically dopamine and serotonin levels. Meanwhile Batman, still in pursuit of Gerald Moss, struggles with the awareness that his notoriety and mystique have waned now that people realize he’s not invincible. Black Mask gets wind of Dr. Glass’ successful experiments and sends Moss and Josef Homolka to give him more money. In response to their reservations about Dr. Glass and the invisibility project, Black Mask scolds, “You idiots, the best mask of all—is the mask that cannot be seen!” Following a different money trail, Batman is led to a loft rented out in Moss’ name that is serving as Dr. Glass’ lab. Before Batman gets to the lab, Moss, while attempting to pay for the serum, is murdered by Dr. Glass, who appears to have turned on Black Mask. Homolka is forced by Dr. Glass to bring him to Black Mask, where Homolka is shot and later dumped in the river by Dr. Glass.
Issue three, “Ghost-Killer,” begins with the standoff between Black Mask and Dr. Glass. With a gun to his head, Black Mask reveals that Bruce Wayne acquired WayneTech by settling Black Mask’s lawsuits, and Black Mask manages to convince Dr. Glass that they both desire the same thing: revenge against Batman. In the meantime, Dr. Glass’ rampage continues after he injects himself with more serum and goes after a landlord who evicted him and an ex-lover who dumped him. In exploring the abandoned lab, Batman locates the serum and recalls a memo about the firing of a doctor at WayneTech. Returning to his day job as Bruce Wayne, he interrogates the employee who wrote the memo, learning more about the nature of Dr. Glass’ experiments. Following a hunch, Batman stakes out the home of Dr. Glass’ former boss at WayneTech, whereupon he discovers the invisible Dr. Glass inside the house. They fight, and Dr. Glass barely manages to escape.
At the beginning of issue four, “Blur,” Homolka’s body is discovered floating in the river, his hand clutching a mask. Batman and the police make the connection between Meat-Man and Black Mask. This leads Batman to go to the abandoned costume storage unit, where he discovers Black Mask, bound and beaten. An invisible Dr. Glass is in the room during the interrogation of Black Mask and attacks Batman, constraining him with a metal chain. Black Mask, seeing an opportunity for freedom, reaches for a gun, but Dr. Glass quickly shoots him in the back. Batman and Dr. Glass lock horns in a lengthy fight, during which the effects of the Translux serum begin to wear off, gradually revealing Dr. Glass’ bones and muscle. Confronted with his visibility, Dr. Glass hastily escapes, leaving Batman and a barely alive Black Mask. Batman begins developing and constructing special lenses for the eye slits in his cowl to help him see the invisible man.
In the final issue, “Vanished,” Batman, setting a trap for Dr. Glass, uses the media and his position as CEO to announce the launch of a new product, Translux, to be unveiled after a planned executive ski retreat. The enraged Dr. Glass takes the bait. Still weak from his recent battles with Dr. Glass, Batman takes Translux serum before staking out the lodge in the snow, where he is led to Dr. Glass by footprint tracks. Making it to the lodge, Dr. Glass discovers no executives there, only armed undercover police. By now Batman is detectable only by his Bat Cape and cowl; otherwise he is completely invisible. His special lenses, however, allow him to see Dr. Glass by “isolating the subtle warp of his rounded transparency.” Dr. Glass, losing the fight badly, runs away in the snow as the serum begins to wear off. Seeing his target in the flesh, Batman decides to shed his cloak and render himself completely invisible, turning the tables on Dr. Glass. Batman beats Dr. Glass to within an inch of his life; the police eventually intervene to stop Batman from killing him. As the police finally take away the convict, Batman is left shocked by the serum’s effect on his mind and soul—even after just one dose. As he returns to his lair and regains his visibility, Batman shatters the last vial of Translux serum, but his mind is forever changed, his soul forever chilled.