A new grounded Batman maxi-series is coming just in time for the holidays. Written by Dan Watters (Nightwing), art by Hayden Sherman (Absolute Wonder Woman), colors by Tríona Farrell (Women of Marvel), and lettering by Frank Cvetkovic (DC’s How to Lose a Guy Gardner in 10 Days), Dark Patterns is set during the early days of the Dark Knight’s career as he has to solve four twisted trials during a period when his tendency to spread fear among criminals also extended to the general populace of Gotham City. Each case will get its own three issue story arc, with each being a stand-alone tale featuring the World’s Greatest Detective as he does some detective work and comes to accept his role in the city he’s sworn to protect. The first of these, called “We Are Wounded,” deals with a series of murders that Batman has to determine if it’s the work of a serial killer… or something more sinister.
Here’s the full press release from DC, including what Dan Watters had to say about the series:
There Is a Dark City and the Knight That Protects It:
DC Announces Batman: Dark Patterns
A new series of lo-fi, mystery-focused Batman stories
The Artist of Absolute Wonder Woman and the Writer of Nightwing Present Four Deadly Mysteries from Batman’s Early Years
New Twelve Issue Limited Comic Book Series Launching in December by Dan Watters, Hayden Sherman, Tríona Farrell and Frank Cvetkovic
Today, DC announced new twelve-issue comic book series by creators Dan Watters and Hayden Sherman, Batman: Dark Patterns, focused on a new cycle of crimes for the World’s Greatest Detective to crack. Set during the early years of Batman’s career, Batman: Dark Patterns delves into four mysterious cases as he attempts to cement his place as Gotham City’s protector while the city itself fights back against him. This is the Dark Knight Detective at his most stripped-down core, a man relying on his wits, his skills, and little else as he tackles some of the most twisted mysteries Gotham City and its protector have ever encountered.
“I love the strangeness of Batman. A man dressed as a huge, gothic bat, solving crimes in a hostile city of black magicians, mad scientists, and superstitious, cowardly criminals. I’ve always wanted to write a series of mystery stories that would home in on that aspect of the character—a dweller in the shadows of Gotham’s towering, delipidated spires,” said Watters. “After watching The Batman, this desire was reaffirmed. Batman: Dark Patterns explores the pulpiest part of the Dark Knight’s rich history and gives readers an entirely new perspective on the early years of DC’s Dark Detective.”
Batman: Dark Patterns will be told as a series of four self-contained, street level, evergreen Batman mysteries exploring the early days of Batman’s place within Gotham City and his healing presence within its streets.
The first case and story arc, “We Are Wounded,” involves a series of sickeningly gruesome murders sending shock waves through Gotham City. Are these the random works of a serial killer, or is there something more sinister at play? Across these first three issues of Batman: Dark Patterns, Batman attempts to get to the bottom of the mystery before any more victims are claimed.
“Each case is born from Gotham and its people adapting to the horrors they’ve been subjected to over recent and not so recent years—from Joker poisoning the water supply to the Falcone gang war. The criminals are superstitious and cowardly… but how could the whole city not be superstitious and afraid?” continued Watters. “And Batman’s role as a wounded healer shrouded in urban myth, who seeks to give hope to the hopeless.”
Batman: Dark Patterns follows the tradition of books such as Year One, The Long Halloween, and Dark Victory. Writer Dan Watters (Nightwing) teams up with the incredible Hayden Sherman (Absolute Wonder Woman) to tell a series of three-part, standalone mysteries set in the early days of Batman’s career, as the detective comes to accept and embrace his own place as a new part of the mythology of Gotham.
Batman: Dark Patterns #1, written by Watters, art by Sherman, color by Tríona Farrell and lettering by Frank Cvetkovic, will publish on December 11 with covers by Sherman and a variant cover by Stevan Subic. Visit your local comic book shop for more details and pre ordering.
Batman: Dark Patterns #1 hits stores on December 11.
English (US) · 