DC Comics Expands Batman Universe With Several New Series!
SDCC 2022 and DC Comics October 2022 Solicitations Spoilers!
DC Comics reports.
DC’s Gotham Panel at San Diego Comic-Con Reveals The Return of Punchline, A Dark, Operatic Look at Gotham City, New Titles from John Ridley, and More!
During today’s Gotham panel at San Diego Comic-Con, fans heard first-hand about what makes Gotham City such a rich background for storytelling, as they were treated to some exclusive reveals of current and upcoming series. Moderator and DC Executive Editor Ben Abernathy spoke with Evan Narcisse, Ram V., Tini Howard, Sean Gordon Murphy and Jock on why Gotham is the perfect setting for a good story.
The panel began with an exclusive announcement of the upcoming comic book Batman: Gotham Knights – Gilded City written by Evan Narcisse and art by Abel, the official prequel to WB Games’ highly anticipated video game. Abernathy spoke with Narcisse about the six-issue limited series and setting the stage for the video game in what becomes Batman’s final case before his mysterious death. Both the series and the video game release worldwide on October 25.
Howard spoke with Abernathy about her current run on Catwoman including the organized crime elements of Gotham with artist Nico Leon, Caitlin Yarsky, and Sami Basri. She then dropped jaws throughout Room 6DE when it was announced that she’s bringing back 2021’s breakout character Punchline, in an all-new limited series. Available October 25, Punchline: The Gotham Game will be co-written by Howard and her husband, writer Blake Howard (Batman: Urban Legends, Vault Comics’ Vampire: The Masquerade) with art by Gleb Melnikov (Robin, Future State: Superman: Worlds At War). All of the fans in attendance received a con exclusive enamel pin of Catwoman.
Writer Ram V spoke to the fans at the panel about what they can expect as he and artist Rafael Albuquerque take Batman on a gothic opera journey with their “Gotham Nocturne” story arc in Detective Comics #1062. Ram talked about how Gotham lends itself to creating a gothic-themed story, how this arc will provide more depth and context to the Arkham family and its ties to the city, and his reaction to the special audio message/sound effect that fans and readers can hear when they see the ad for “Gotham Nocturne” hitting books on sale next week. Detective Comics #1062 arrives in comic book stores and participating digital platforms on July 26.
Writer/Artist JOCK talked with Abernathy about everything from the challenges and opportunities of being a writer and artist to what it was like to create an original story for the Dark Knight. The final issue of the critically-acclaimed Batman: One Dark Knight arrives in comic book stores on July 26, and the hardcover collection hits comic book and mass market retailers on Tuesday, September 20.
DC’s series of White Knight titles written by Sean Gordon Murphy have launched to great critical and fan reception, and the writer was on today’s panel to not only talk about the fun of being the architect of this alternate universe of characters and stories, but to also show fans that he’s far from done!
In addition to previewing content from the next issue of Batman: Beyond the White Knight, Murphy spoke about collaborating with co-writer Clay McCormack and artists Simone Di Meo and Dave Stewart on a new two-issue miniseries launching on July 26, Batman: White Knight Presents Red Hood.
Even with all this incredible news, the panel concluded with more can’t-miss Gotham City-themed titles launching in the fall! Abernathy revealed three new series for the first time ever. First was The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing, a new ongoing series written by Matthew Rosenberg with art by Carmine di Giandomenico launching on October 4.
Batman Incorporated spins out of the events of the “Abyss” storyline in Batman and the 2022 Batman Annual and is written by Ed Brisson with art by John Timms, and arrives in comic book stores on October 11.
Finally, Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Ridley and artist Stefano Raffaele explore the gritty world of Renee Montoya and the Gotham City Police Department in a new limited series launching on October 18, G.C.P.D.: The Blue Wall.
The last of DC’s must-see San Diego Comic-Con panels, “Comics Are Fun For Everyone,” is scheduled for Saturday at 12:30 in room 6DE. Fans are encouraged to attend for more breaking news about what’s to come from The World’s Greatest Super Heroes…
DC Comics further reports.
DC Announces ‘Gotham City: Year One’ by Tom King and Phil Hester
GOTHAM CITY: YEAR ONE
The crime of the century in Gotham City…generations before DC’s Dark Knight!
Tom King and Phil Hester share the secret origin of Gotham City!
There once was a shining city on the water, a home for families, hope, and prosperity. It was Gotham and it was glorious. The story of its fall from grace, the legend that would birth the Bat, has remained untold for 80 years. That’s about to change.
Eisner Award-winning writer Tom King and legendary storyteller Phil Hester team up for the first time to craft the definitive origin of Gotham City: how it became the cesspool of violence and corruption it is today, and how it harbored and then unleashed the sin that led to the rise of the Dark Knight.
“Night falls quickly in Gotham City,” said Hester. “The shadows cut across guilty and innocent alike. I feel lucky to be the artist to show you just how this city got so dark in the first place.”
King and Hester, along with Eric Gapstur, Jordie Bellaire and Clayton Cowles, launch Gotham City: Year One on October 4. Taking place two generations before Batman, private investigator Slam Bradley gets tangled in the headline-grabbing “kidnapping of the century” as the infant Wayne heir Helen disappears in the night…and so begins a brutal, hard-boiled, epic tale of a man living on the edge and a city about to burn.
“Having written a ton of Batman comics,” said King, “I can say it’s incredibly rare to write book like this, where you can add something large and essential to the mythos of the Dark Knight, as Scott did with Court of Owls or Grant did with the introduction of Damian or Frank did with, well, everything he touched. In Gotham City Year One, Phil and I will take you to a noir drenched past, where the secrets that made Gotham become Gotham, the sins that made Batman become Batman are finally and violently revealed.”
“Tom has crafted a story that will echo across Batman lore past and present,” continued Hester, “and I hope the storytelling techniques Eric, Jordie, Clayton and I are bringing to bear will augment his razor-keen approach. I’m honored to play a small part in bringing Siegel and Shuster’s landmark creation to a new audience, and in giving one of DC’s oldest legends the white-hot spotlight he deserves.”
Gotham City: Year One by Tom King, Phil Hester, Eric Gapstur, Jordie Bellaire and Clayton Cowles will debut with a variant cover by Ryan Sook and a 1:25 variant cover by David Marquez. The six-issue run will publish between October 2022 and March 2023…
Interesting.
