Well, here’s what I’m reading right now (all heavily Bat-Family focused, and they tend to tie into each other a lot):
(Alright, I lied; I already finished this first one a while back, but it’s helpful to understand some of the others) Knightfall/Knightquest/Knightsend: One of the big '90s Bat-Crossovers. Knightquest has a bit too much padding and not enough coordination between the five writers (I consider it a guilty pleasure nonetheless), but Knightfall is a classic and very effective at setting up Bane as a serious threat, while Knightsend is a great deconstruction of early '90s anti-heroes. The (much shorter) story arc Batman: Prodigal is sort of an epilogue, while the Batman: Sword of Azrael and Batman: Vengeance of Bane miniseries are the introductions for the major antagonists.
Robin (1993): It apparently got really bad after One Year Later, but as far as I’ve read (Issue #112), it’s a cool series. Probably worth reading the three Robin miniseries that came before it, though. Regardless, it’s got cool character drama and helped establish Tim Drake as a likable protagonist in his own right rather than just the kid sidekick. If you like superheroes juggling out-of-costume drama with their masked antics, that’s a major chunk of the conflict. Not my thing usually, but well-done for what it is.
Azrael (1995): This series is kind of sad, because it keeps almost being good. I find Jean-Paul’s conflict with his violent alter ego to be compelling, and some of the extended storylines are more compelling than others (the first twenty-five issues probably being the best, if kind of goofy). Both this and the Robin ongoing spun out from the Knightfall/Knightquest/Knightsend arc, so that may be helpful reading if you feel up to it. Anyway, this series has lots of great ideas, but kind of got starved by the lack of acknowledgement from other titles and being stuck with one writer for its full hundred-issue run. Denny O’Neil’s good, but there are several points that feel like they should be the end of the story and/or a transition point for a new writer to jump in, and weren’t. I know, I know, I’m supposed to be recommending it, not criticizing it. Like I said, there are a lot of cool, creative ideas, and the first twenty-five issues definitely have an interesting plot with cool intrigue and stuff. I’d say if you’re still invested in the characters at the end of that initial plot, you’ll be interested in where it goes from there, but otherwise it might be time to bail.
Nightwing (1996): Just a really, really fun series. Lots of interesting villains, solid drama, cool action, and a sense of humor. The original Chuck Dixon run is awesome, and while the Devin Grayson run is supposed to be bad, it seems like a solid continuation to me as of issue #78. If there’s an issue, it’s Scott McDaniel’s art (from the first forty issues or so), which can be a little repetitive and hard to discern what’s going on. Pre-tracing Greg Land is pretty solid, though, and the subsequent artists so far have been fairly unremarkable one way or another. Regardless, this is so far one of two candidates for my favorite series ever (discounting really long-runners like Detective Comics). The other candidate is…
Birds of Prey (1998): There were some one-shots prior to the ongoing, but honestly, those were kind of bland and repetitive compared to the ongoing itself. Either way, the ongoing is a fantastic series for pretty much the same reasons as Nightwing: it’s just a fun and exciting mix of action, drama, and humor. Plus, Oracle being awesome. I’m told I haven’t even gotten to the good part yet, either. I’m still on Gilbert Hernandez’s short run between the much longer Chuck Dixon and Gail Simone runs. Though while I’m on the subject, Casey Jones’ art on the Hernandez run is beautiful. It’s a shame that (He? She? Couldn’t find any information) didn’t do much else other than a similarly short-lived run on Outsiders, because these twelve or so issues are just lovely to look at.
Batgirl (2000): So, on the plus side, Cassandra Cain is a cool, likable character, and there are some great moments here. On the minus side, Damion Scott’s art is blobby and inconsistent, which wouldn’t be such a problem if the book didn’t rely so heavily on visual storytelling. Plus, the writing sometimes seems to just throw in some villains without any real explanation of who they are or why they’re doing what they’re doing. It’s also really decompressed, so if you don’t like it, that’s fine; you can read any given issue in about sixty seconds (that’s an exaggeration, but you get the point). Basically, if you go in just looking for a quick dose of Cass being awesome, that’s what you’ll get, but it’s a little rough around the edges.