Welcome back to Upcoming Comics! It's the start of a new era here at Batman News. As you may have seen, we've got a new batch of reviewers joining the team, and we're all excited to see what kind of work they cook up. Two of them are hitting the ground running with titles to review this week. What that means for all of you is that you'll get more content and more reviews. Good luck to our new teammates and welcome aboard!
Upcoming Comics
Batman #145
Following The Joker: Year One’s stunning reveals, Batman must engineer an escape from Zur’s prison…but what dark secret does Zur now hold that’s a game changer for the Dark Knight and the entire DC Universe?!
- Written By: Chip Zdarsky
- Penciled By: Jorge Jiménez, Michele Bandini
- Inks By: Jorge Jiménez, Michele Bandini
- Colors By: Tomeu Morey, Alex Sinclair
- Cover By: Jorge Jiménez, Tomeu Morey
Thoughts: Well now that Joker Year One is over, we get to return to Zur-En-Arrh/Failsafe, which will continue through August with the upcoming Absolute Power event. Maybe that's just the entire run: Start with Failsafe, then back to Joker, then back to Zur, Joker, Failsafe-Zur, Joker, Failsafe-Zur. And this goes on and on and back and forth for 3 or so years until the run just sort of ends.
Batman News Critic: Jackson
The Bat-Man: First Knight #1
The year is 1939. The world, still reeling from the horrors of the First World War, is on the brink of tipping into an even more gruesome conflict, as fascism is on the march-and gathering strength in America’s darkest corners. Against this backdrop, a series of violent murders has begun in Gotham, and the recent emergence of the mysterious vigilante known as The Bat-Man has the power brokers of the city living in fear of institutional collapse. All of the evidence in the murder investigation defies logic: the perpetrators are all men who died in the electric chair. But when the Bat- Man comes face to face with one of these sickening anomalies, he barely escapes with his life-throwing into question his ability to survive in a world that is brutally evolving around him! Legendary writer Dan Jurgens and superstar artist Mike Perkins return to the earliest days of the Dark Knight, retelling one of his most infamous cases through an acutely modern lens, depicting a world paralyzed by anxiety and a desperate populace crying out for release!
- Written By: Dan Jurgens
- Penciled By: Mike Perkins
- Inks By: Mike Perkins
- Colors By: Mike Spicer
- Cover By: Mike Perkins, Mike Spicer
Thoughts: I love this idea for a comic. Batman's whole vibe always felt perfect for a period piece (which is why BTAS always looked like the 1940s), and I hope Jurgens can pull of the execution.
Batman News Critic: Chip
Birds of Prey #7
Sin is alive and back with Black Canary in Gotham, and the world didn't get destroyed, but the cost was high and nobody's exactly sure what it means yet. Shocking revelations in the wake of the Birds' first mission lead Dinah to...a conspiracy against the Birds of Prey and a whole new mission. New mission, new team. Hold onto your butts.
- Written By: Kelly Thompson
- Art By: Leonardo Bastos Romero, Javier Pina
- Cover By: Leonardo Bastos Romero
Thoughts: So this new team is just Batgirls again but with Dinah as the resident blonde instead of Steph, right? Well let's see if the second try works out better than the first.
Batman News Critic: Jeremy
Poison Ivy #20
ORIGIN OF SPECIES CONTINUES! Pamela Isley’s world is spiraling out of control thanks to the influence of her professor, Dr. Jason Woodrue. But just as things seem to be at their worst, a promising new classmate arrives on the scene and threatens to steal away the few nice things left in Pam’s life. Meet Bella Garten, a.k.a.…THE GARDENER.
- Written By: G. Willow Wilson
- Penciled By: Marcio Takara
- Inks By: Marcio Takara
- Colors By: Arif Prianto
- Cover By: Jessica Fong
Thoughts: This new origin so far seems much more focused on her interpersonal relationships than previous ones, which makes sense given the tone of the series. The Gardener's role will definitely be a new twist.
Batman News Critic: Andru
Suicide Squad: Kill Arkham Asylum #2
Before the Suicide Squad sets their sights on the corrupted Justice League in the upcoming video game, they have to escape Arkham Asylum, and that’s going to require a lot more killin’ first. Good thing Deadshot is the world’s deadliest assassin. Or is that second-deadliest? Either way, he’s determined to survive the riot to end all riots, in order to live to die another day. But there’s a lot of guards standing between Deadshot and freedom. A lot of other inmates, too. Deadshot’s solution: kill ’em all! Presenting the riotous prequel to Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League!
- Written By: John Layman
- Penciled By: Jesús Hervás
- Inks By: Jesús Hervás
- Colors By: David Baron
- Cover By: Dan Panosian
Thoughts: Well from all reports it doesn't sound like the game ended up being a hit. I guess we'll see how many people are invested enough to read its tie-in comic.
Batman News Critic: Aaron
The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #3
Catwoman won’t stand by and be blamed for another string of robberies in Gotham-she’ll turn herself in first! Batman is on her side, but will Mystery Inc. fall for her innocent act? Could this all be part of an even deeper scheme?!
- Written By: Ivan Cohen
- Penciled By: Dario Brizuela
- Inks By: Dario Brizuela
- Colors By: Franco Riesco
- Cover By: Dario Brizuela, Franco Riesco
Thoughts: Always gotta love a Batman window gag.
Batman News Critic: Chip
Beyond the Bat
Welcome to Beyond the Bat, where we take a quick look at the rest of DC’s comics coming out this week.
Graphic Novel Watch
Sometimes you need more than floppies. Sometimes you want something that can sit nicely on your shelf that proudly displays your favorite stories. That’s when you turn to graphic novels. Let’s see what bat collections are coming out this week:
Ratings
Most Excited: The Bat-Man: First Knight #1- If this lives up to its potential, this could be one of the highlights of the year.
Least Excited: Suicide Squad: Kill Arkham Asylum #2- I know what you're thinking: Not Batman? Well at least Joker Year One is over, and it's not a quick tie-in to a bad video game.
Wild Card: Birds of Prey #7- New team, new adventure. We'll have to see where Thompson takes the series.
Well that’s it for this week! Let us know in the comments what comics you’re looking forward to.
