Future State: Dark Detective #1

 Future State: Dark Detective #1 

**This Blog entry contains spoilers for Future State: Dark Detective #1 as well as other storylines from Future State**

To start the issue, we are viewing a rainy Gotham cemetery. Bruce Wayne is having an internal monologue discussing that Gotham is dead and that he was shot and killed in an alley last week. Bruce enters a diner where there are news articles with headlines that Batman has also been killed and the Magistrate is investigating the manner. We enter another flashback to Bruce being shot, he stumbles through Gotham where he uses that rest of his money to pay a back alley surgeon to treat his wounds. Still in the flashback, we see a news conference where Peacekeeper #1 is addressing the death of Batman. Peacekeeper #1 uses language how Gotham and the Magistrate are in a partnership and the death of Batman is good for the city.  

We follow Bruce throughout the city where his face is all over the buildings talking about his death. Bruce overhears a mugging that is taking place in another alley. He makes his way over to the situation and takes care of the muggers, who are sporting masks. While Bruce is taking care of the muggers, the Magistrate’s resources become aware of the situation and start to intervene. Bruce makes a run for it. During his attempted escape from the Magistrate, Bruce puts on the cowl and ditches his street clothes. Under his street clothes, he is wearing the Batman armor.  

The scenes that follow with Batman’s escape have Bruce continuing his monologue. We learn that somehow the Wayne Enterprises technology is what assisted in building the Magistrate. Bruce claims that he knows how to break the Magistrate and that he plans to do it. The issue ends with Peacekeeper #1 reviewing video of Bruce’s escape. The video is zoomed in on Bruce’s face.  

Thoughts: 

Batman is not dead! Well, at least not yet. It is finally revealed what Batman/Bruce has been up to in Future State. By the looks of it, things have not been going well for Bruce and Batman. It appears that he has been on the streets for sometime. We know from the other storylines from the universe, that he cannot go back to the manor. Where has he been staying? We have not found out that information as of yet. 

We do learn that Bruce was shot in an alley. Where else would Bruce Wayne be shot? Not in the middle of the street, not at a social event, but of course in an alley. Lazy writing? Meh, I will just take it for now. Even though Bruce does not die from the gunshot, the Magistrate believes that he was killed. The fact that the Magistrate then advertises a couple weeks after Batman was killed, leads me to believe that someone that has significant power within the Magistrate knows that Batman is Bruce Wayne. I am still going to squat on the take that Jason Todd is Peacekeeper #1. 

The current state that Gotham is in right now because of the Magistrate, it is best for Bruce to have the city think that he and Batman are dead. Knowing how Batman thinks, he also wants the Bat Family to think that he is dead. Bruce does reveal that the Magistrate was able to reach their level of power because of Wayne technology. Who with access to Wayne tech, was able to give it the Magistrate? Jason Todd? Is Luke Fox actually working for the Magistrate?  

Of course, Bruce/Batman cannot ignore when someone is being mugged and decides to handle the situation. Not the best idea for someone who is trying to keep the world thinking that he is dead. Now Peacekeeper #1 knows that Bruce/Batman is not dead. However, will #1 reveal that information to the rest of the Magistrate? My guess is that #1 will delete the footage and try to handle this situation on his own. Overall, Dark Detective #1 is my favorite storyline to come out of Future State so far. 

Grifter Chapter 1 

Recap: 

Grifter, Cole Cash, is in some seedy bar in Gotham. He is playing poker with a group that looks like they belong in a seedy bar. No one at the bar actually knows that this is Drifter, which he points out is a good thing. There is a confrontation between Drifter and another poker player at the table. There is a scuffle which is interrupted by two individuals that claim they are with the GCPD. The two GCPD officers use Drifter’s name, which causes the whole bar to try to get at Drifter. 

Drifter, one by one, handles the individuals. The battle with the bar spills out into the street where we find out that the Magistrate is present and is also looking for Drifter. Cash does his best to escape, but is ultimately captured by the Magistrate. He is thrown into the back of a Magistrate transport vehicle. Inside this transport, we also find Luke Fox. 

Luke and Cash have a conversation while they are riding in the back of the transport vehicle. During this conversation we learn that the Magistrate is rounding up anyone that they suspect is a mask or linked to a mask. We also learn that Lucius Fox hired Grifter in the past. Grifter knocks out Luke in the back transport vehicle and convinces one of the guards to come back. Grifter is able to subdue the guard and get his weapon. The other guard gains wind of the situation and another scuffle ensues. The transport wrecks and flips over. Grifter and Luke are able to get out. 

As Grifter and Luke are trying to escape the Magistrate, Luke says that he will pay Grifter 50K to get him out of Gotham. Grifter takes Luke to one of Black Mask’s syndicate’s hangouts. This does not go well and Drifter and Luke have to escape through a fury of gun fire. They both escape and Grifter takes them to some kind of kitchen. Luke asks Grifter where they have been taken. Grifter explains that they are in the base of the Queen of Clubs. We learn that the Queen of Clubs is the Huntress, who we see hanging from the ceiling. This is where the chapter ends. 

Thoughts: 

I was not familiar at all with Drifter prior to this story. I had to do some research on the character. Grifter has several backstories and relaunches throughout the years. In this particular case, it would appear that Grifter is some sort of assassin for hire.  

Before we go any further, I want to address the elephant in the room in regards to Grifter. We have a smart-ass, who finds himself in stressful situations because of him running his mouth. He has expert combat abilities and wears a red mask with white eyes and black around the eyes. Does this character sound familiar? Maybe an infamous character from another comic company? Grifter is DC’s Deadpool. DC did not even try to hide it. The “mask” that Cole Cash wears when he is Grifter is almost identical to Deadpool. 

Anyways, I am not sure why this story is added to the Dark Detective issue. This story only confused me more than it did anything else. My confusion lies in the whole interaction that Cash has with Luke Fox. We know from the very first story to come out for the Bat Family in Future State, that Luke Fox is now Batman. Where within the Future State timeline do these events take place? When Cash is greeted by the Magistrate outside the bar, we see some of the cybers as well as other advanced tech that the Magistrate did not have yet in the Next Batman #1. If the release order of the comics by DC is supposed to coincide with the actual universe timeline, then these events do take place after Next Batman #1.  

I am guessing that Luke Fox is allowing himself to be captured by the Magistrate because he does not want to reveal that he is the new Batman. Similar to when Bruce Wayne would allow himself to end up in situations. I did find it interesting that Cash brought up about how Lucius Fox had hired Grifter to do something. We never learn exactly the job. Did Lucius hire Grifter to assassinate Bruce? I am putting that on my hot take list.   

The whole Luke offering to pay Grifter to get him out of Gotham is a ploy to have Grifter expose some of the other characters that are still active throughout Gotham. I believe that Luke knew that Grifter could not do it on his own, but would seek out other characters throughout Gotham. We learn the Black Mask is still operating with Gotham, however they are not a fan of Grifter.  

This chapter ends with Grifter bringing us to the Huntress. Is this what Luke wanted to happen all along? Did Luke intentionally set-up Grifter to be captured because he knew that it would lead him to Huntress? Does Luke need Huntress’ help to defeat the Magistrate? 

Future State: Robin Eternal #1

 **The following blog contains spoilers to the various Bat Family stories taking place in the Future State event** 

Recap: 

The beginning of the story has Robin monitoring some members of the Magistrate discussing this new item that is going to make the cybers more powerful and they will be able to wipe out the Bat Family. Robin lowers his camo tech and starts to engage with the individuals and the cyber. There is an internal monologue taking place where the reader discovers that Robin is aware of Nightwing and Jason Todd is working for the people that killed Bruce. Robin starts to talk about Damian, but stops. Robin finds out quickly that the cybers are now not affected by EMP blasts. The scuffle between Robin and the cyber shifts to the cyber having the upper hand. That is until Spoiler, Stephanie Brown, shows up and saves the day. It is also at this point that we learn that Tim Drake is Robin.  

During the conversation between Tim and Stephanie, we learn that Stephanie hung up her cape for an extended time. Stephanie keeps pressing at Tim that he cannot stop the Magistrate on his own. Tim discusses that this convoy at this new material that the cybers are using needs to be stopped before it reaches Gotham. He asks Stephanie for help, but she insists that she is not interested. Spoiler leaves that area and Robin has an internal monologue where he says that there is only one other person that can help if Stephanie is not going to assist in stopping the convey. 

The setting shifts to the Gotham City Customs office where the focus is on a character that we later learn is Darcy. She is working as a Customs agent at the office. Darcy goes on her break where she and Tim have a conversation about the convey that is on its way to Gotham. Tim has a sample of the material that the cybers are using to become more powerful. Darcy is shocked and explains that the new material is the Lazarus Resin that is taken from the Lazarus pits by the League of Assassins. The resin has the ability to resurrect people as well as give organic healing abilities to the cybers. Tim asks for Darcy to help locate the convoy so he can destroy the resin. Reluctantly, Darcy agrees to help Tim with his mission. 

Tim and Darcy take off towards the convoy where they are unexpectedly joined by Spoiler. They are able to get on the convoy where they are surrounded by Magistrate agents and cybers. A battle ensues where the cybers appear to be winning. Robin attempts to charge a cyber, where he is grabbed and thrown into a large puddle of the resin. He is down for a minute, but then starts to get up where he is covered in the resin. This is where the issue ends. 

Thoughts: 

We are once again placed further along in the Future State timeline. It is unclear how much time has passed since we were first brought into the Future State Universe, however the Magistrate continues to develop their cybers. The Magistrate has had to make some powerful allies in order to have the resources to continue to develop their cybers. We learn that Stephanie Brown is part of the Future State Universe. I had to do some research on Stephanie Brown, as I never followed the “Young Justice” or “Teen Titans” storylines. Stephanie Brown is “The Spoiler” as well as a past love interest of Time Drake, which would make sense why she was keeping tabs on Tim. 

The internal monologue that Tim has that discusses Nightwing, Jason Todd, and Damian is very interesting and gives us a lot to unwrap. First, it would appear that Tim does agree with what Dick is going in Arkham, based solely on the language that he uses to describe Nightwing’s activities. Second, Tim mentions that Jason is working for the people that killed Bruce. Tim does not say the Magistrate. We learn in Nightwing that Dick believes that the Magistrate has killed Bruce, but the Peacekeepers hint at that the Magistrate is not directly responsible. Does Jason Todd work for the Magistrate? Is there another group that was responsible for the death of Batman? The masks that the Peacekeepers wear are eerily similar to Red Hood’s mask. This leads me to believe that Jason has an elite position within the Magistrate. 

The scuffle with the cyber, Robin, and Spoiler shows up how the cybers have developed thus far. The cybers are resistant now to EMP blasts, which is concerning because they are robots. Like I mentioned earlier, the Magistrate and their cybers are becoming more powerful with each new storyline in the universe. This leads Tim to do more research to learn about the material that the Magistrate is using for their cybers. This is where we are introduced to Darcy. However, I tried to do research on Darcy, but I could not find any information on her. Darcy does wear a cape and she has high tech hearing-aids. Darcy gives us more information on the material that the Magistrate is using for their cybers. Lazarus Resin is the material that is being used and the League of Assassins is extracting it from the Lazarus pits. Does this mean that the Magistrate is working with the League of Assassins? Is that who Jason has joined forces? Did the League kill Batman? All these questions are opened up from the discovery of the Lazarus Resin. Overall, this story did start to expand on what is going on in the Future State Universe for the Bat Family.

Future State: Nightwing #1

 **This Blog entry contains spoilers for Future State: Nightwing #1**

Recap: 

From the start, we are dropped right into the action. Nightwing is on his way to rescue two individuals who are being assaulted by Magistrate Robots. While Nightwing is approaching the situation, his location is being tracked. Nightwing handles the robots, but the reader discovers that the two individuals are actually Magistrate augmented humans. Nightwing takes out the augmented humans, but is shot in his armor by a Magistrate sniper. Nightwing finds the sniper and takes care of him. However, once Nightwing leaves the scene, the sniper radios back to the Magistrate that the mission has been accomplished. 

We move to the Magistrate headquarters where the Peacekeepers are discussing the “direct hit” on Nightwing. Two of the Peacekeepers continue to discuss how they are making good progress on wiping out the masks across Gotham. The reader also discovers that Nightwing believes that the Magistrate killed Batman. Peacekeeper-01 is holding the name plate for Commission Montoya in his hand. This would suggest that the Magistrate is now in control of GCPD. 

Nightwing has taken base at the Batcave inside of Arkham Asylum. He is discussing with Batgirl that the Magistrate is coming for them. Batgirl brings up that there are reports of a new Batman roaming around Gotham. Nightwing reminds Batgirl that there will only ever be one Batman. Nightwing has an internal monologue referencing that he feels that he failed Bruce. During this monologue, he is attacked by the New Batman. Nightwing is able to restrain the New Batman by using some of the Bat Cave’s defenses. We learn that the New Batman has come to Arkham to ask for Nightwing’s help and join the resistance that he has created. There is a young girl who the New Batman has saved, but is missing again because of the Magistrate. The alarms for the Bat Cave start going off and Nightwing confirms that the Magistrate is coming. We learn that the Nightwing knew that the bullet that he was shot with contained a tracker that lodged into his armor. Nightwing confirms that he wanted the Magistrate to come here. 

Thoughts: 

It was good to see that we still have good old Dick Grayson roaming around Gotham is the Blue and Black. Based on the presence of the Robots and augmented humans that work for the magistrate,  the cybernetic technology that was referenced in the “Outsiders” Chapter 1 has been developed. This leads me to believe that a significant amount of time has passed in the Future State universe since the introduction we received in “The Next Batman #1.” During this time, it appears that the Magistrate has increased the control that they have over Gotham. Does the GCPD still exist? We do not see any indication of the GCPD throughout this issue.  

The Peacekeepers within the Magistrate HQ are discussing the progress of the plan to wipe out all the masks. I am interested to see what masks have been wiped out. Are they referencing actual “heros” or are they referencing the gangs that we saw in the “Next Batman #1” ? I have the feeling that it is a mixture of both. I am curious to find out how powerful that Magistrate has become since we were first introduced to them in “Next Batman #1.” The peacekeepers discuss how Nightwing believes that the Magistrate killed the “real” Batman. So far in the Future State stories, the absence of Bruce Wayne has not been addressed. All that we know is that the Magistrate was not responsible for the death of Batman. 

I enjoy the irony of Nightwing taking base inside the Batcave that is under Arkham. If you remember from Chapter 1 of “Arkham Knights,” Astrid Arkham has created a gang of all the “Villains'' from Arkham and they are taking base inside Wayne Manor. This is most likely an intentional move by the writers to stress the degree to which the Magistrate has caused turmoil within Gotham.  We know that Batgirl as well as other members of the Bat Family are in communication with Nightwing. It is not clear who he is communicating outside of Bat Girl. We know from Chapter 1 of “Outsiders” that The Signal and Katana are active inside and outside of Gotham. A quick glimpse at the list of releases for Future State would show what members of the Bat Family are present during this time, however we are unaware if they are working together. Nightwing and Bat Girl discuss this new Batman that has been seen roaming around Gotham. Nightwing interjects that there will only be one Batman. This conversation also shows that the “New Batman” and the original Bat Family have not been working together up to this point. That will change very soon. 

Dick is struggling with the internal feeling that he was the reason for the death of Bruce. It is not 100% clear why Dick has this feeling. There was some event where Dick feels he could have prevented the death of Batman. I am very interested to learn about the events that lead up to the death of Batman. I am guessing that it involved Bruce sacrificing himself because he knew that it would force Dick to step up. A classic unselfish selfish move by Batman. 

Enter stage right, the “Next Batman.” Luke confronts Dick as he is getting out of the shower. A Low T move in my opinion. At least wait for him to get dressed, before you start throwing hay makers at him. We learn that Luke needs help finding a girl that he saved, but was abducted by the Magistrate to be questioned about Luke. There is something else about this ten year old girl that Luke is not sharing. Of all the people in Gotham, the Magistrate is going to abduct a ten year old girl to interrogate about Batman? This whole situation stinks. Dick agrees to join forces with Luke, but first there will be a battle at Arkham as Dick has intentionally led the Magistrate to Arkham. It would appear that we are getting ready for an “Arkham Asylum” style battle in the next issue. 

The Next Batman #1

 **The following post does contain spoilers for the first issue of The Next Batman, as well as the two additional stories found within the issue.** 

Recap:

DC launched their Future State event with “The Next Batman.” Part one of this issue puts us right into the middle of what Gotham City has become after the Metal Event. By the looks of it Gotham City has become a “police state” that is governed by the Magistrate. This Magistrate has declared a “war” on masks with an alternative police force that has the authority to shoot-on-site for any individuals wearing a mask. The Gotham City PD is put in the tough position of doing what is right, but also adhering to the Magistrate’s requests.  We are introduced to the new Batman, Luke Fox. Based on the brief dialogue between Luke and his mother, it appears that he is now representing Wayne Enterprises. It is not clearly stated what Luke’s official position is within Wayne Enterprises. Throughout the issue, we follow Luke as he balances his role as Batman and his normal life during the day. We discover he has an estranged brother and a sister in the Hospital.  

We discover that throughout Gotham City there are gangs that each have their own unique mask that members wear. The introduction of a side character presents itself with GCPD member Chubb. It is unclear what position she holds within GCPD, but based on her attire, one would assume she is a detective. The issue ends with the reader getting the first glimpse of the Magistrate’s police force as well as the introduction of another gang with their own specific mask design. 

Thoughts: 

We are shown what Gotham looks like post metal. Essentially, the city is currently in a stratocracy. The Magistrate is the “military” and they control everything that is happening within Gotham. Anyone with a mask is deemed a threat. I received some big V for Vendetta vibes when I started reading this issue. I am definitely pleased with the “new” Batman. Luke Fox is definitely a good choice to take over the reigns. The only other time we have seen the Luke Fox character brought into the Bat Family was his short stint as Bat Wing. I am assuming that Luke is now the CEO or some high position with Wayne based on the conversation that he had with his mother. We do get an insight to the current state of the Fox Family, which is new to the Batman role. With Bruce, his only family was Alfred, so the struggles that face biological families were never present. Most likely the damaged relationship between Luke and his brother will lead to further storylines. All we know now is that his brother was in a military academy for a short while and then disappeared for a while. My prediction is that we will see skeletons from Luke’s brother’s past come into play. 

The existence of the different factions or gangs throughout the city show how some citizens are standing up against the Magistrate. The fact that they all have their own specific masks shows that they are directly defying the “law” that the Magistrate has put forth. It is hinted in a brief scene that the Gotham City PD does not fully align itself with the Magistrate based on the fact that they do not shoot-on-site when a mask is spotted. We are introduced to the side character of (Detective) Chubb and a GCPD member Whitaker, who appears to have gone dirty. This is setting the foundation for a “Gordon-Batman” relationship between Chubb and Fox. ;However, through some internal dialogue with Fox, he does not have any intention of creating a strong relationship with the police. 

At the end of the issue, we get our first glimpse of what kind of fire power and technology the Magistrate’s “army” possesses. We are shown that the army has military grade weapons and gear and live true to the fire-on-site orders that they have been given. I do find it ironic that the army has the orders to shoot masks, however they wear masks as well. I am sure that was made intentionally by the writers. The interaction that Batman has with the army at the end reminds me of most Batman storylines. Batman is left protecting the “bad guys” from the “worse guys.” 

I do find it interesting in this introduction to the new Batman, we do not learn of any “villains” within Gotham City or any further details of the Magistrate. It is very clear that the Magistrate has many resources at their disposal and is trying to rid the city of the “good” and “bad” masks. 

How many “masks” has the Magistrate eliminated? That question is unclear. Where is the Batcave now? Unknown. Does Luke have an Alfred like character? As I studied the short conversation between Luke and his mother, it appears that she might know that he is Batman. Maybe that is what was meant by her comment about not becoming Bruce. For now, we will have to see how the storyline expands in the next issue. 

Outsiders 

Recap:

Within Issue #1 of “The Next Batman,” There are two additional storylines. The first of these additional storylines is “Outsiders.” The issue starts with us jumping straight into the action with The Signal, Duke Thomas, in a car chase within Gotham City with the Magistrate’s army in close pursuit. Duke has passengers within his car that appear to be the individuals that Duke is trying to rescue. The reader also discovers that Katana is supporting Duke from outside Gotham. There are interactions between Duke and Katana that suggest that the Magistrate is not supposed to have any reign outside the Gotham City limits. We discover that Duke is hosting rallies of some sort within Gotham City and Duke is rescuing individuals that were at one of his rallies. 

The story leaves Duke and we follow Katana who suspects that there are Magistrate operations going on outside of Gotham City. That suspicion was correct and Katana discovers Caliber who is assisting the Magistrate in creating an army of cybernetic soldiers. A fight between Katana and Caliber ensues where Katana nearly loses, but Black Lightning appears and saves her. We discover that Black Lightning is Jefferson Pierce, who has been missing for sometime. A token of information that Black Lightning leaves with Katana is that the Magistrate has planted a mole and that individual is with Duke. 

Thoughts: 

It was a nice surprise to have a couple different stories lines packed within Issue 1. This introduction into the Future State Outsiders helps us continue to visualize the current status of the Bat Family universe. Allegedly, the Magistrate is not supposed to operate outside of Gotham City. Quickly, it is discovered that the Magistrate is in fact operating outside Gotham and is creating some kind of super army. I am guessing that we will learn in the other storylines that the Magistrate is most likely present within most cities that make up the Bat Family Universe. 

The Signal is saving a group of individuals that were at one of his rallies and getting them out of Gotham before the Magistrate can get to them. We are not given any additional information to what kind of rallies that The Signal is having within Gotham. Based on what we know so far about the current state of Gotham, I am guessing that it is some kind of rally against the Magistrate. If Duke has to go back into Gotham to rescue a group of individuals from the Magistrate, where is “Batman?” Does Duke know about the “new” Batman and vice versa. Also, when Katana is talking with Duke there is no mention of Batman. Katana does make it clear that her and Duke should not be operating within Gotham. Obviously, Katana and The Signal are called the “Outsiders” for a reason, but it also shows that the Magistrate is very powerful and a force that some would rather not have to encounter.  

The Katana solo adventure is showing us what the Magistrate is doing outside of Gotham. Her scuffle with Caliber reveals that the Magistrate is creating some kind of super army. Why wouldn’t the Magistrate want to create this army within Gotham where they can provide better security? As the reader, we still do not have a full understanding of how the Magistrate operates within Gotham. We know that the GCPD is still present within the city. A part of me has this feeling that the Magistrate is creating a super army to take total control of Gotham and that is why they need to build these soldiers outside of the city limits. 

The appearance of Black Lightning threw me for a loop. I know very little about Black Lightning, but it appears that he will be working with Katana and The Signal. The little nugget of information that was left by Black Lighting was that one of the individuals that Duke rescued is a mole for the Magistrate. We learn that the story will continue in “The Next Batman #2,” which means that Outsiders will not be getting standalone issues. I am curious how the Magistrate leverages this mole. 

Arkham Knights 

Recap:

In the final third of Issue 1 of the Next Batman, we find the Arkham Knights Storyline. However, we are not graced with this new title until the end of this first chapter. The beginning of the issue puts us right in the middle of Gotham City following a pack of mercenaries who are taking down a Magistrate drone. The group does end up being cornered by the Magistrate’s army, until they are saved by a large group of individuals that have some familiar faces amongst the bunch. We learn that the group is being led by Astrid Arkham. She is the last daughter of the old guard. There is much monologue over the next few pages from Astrid. This monologue further explains the facist state of Gotham. Each sector of Gotham is ruled by a Peacekeeper. The peacekeeper that reigns over the current sector for this store is Peacekeeper-12.  

The story expands and we are introduced to more characters that are part of this group. Harvey Dent, Zsaz, Clayface, Dr. Phosphorus, and Dumpty are all part of this group. There is a common “target” that they are all tracking, however the Magistrate is also tracking the same target. We learn that the common “target” is Dr. Croc. Astrid asks Dr. Croc to join her group and that is when we learn the group is called the Arkham Knights. 

The story continues as we see the Knights gathered in their headquarters which is Wayne Manor. Over the next few pages we see how Astrid cares for each of the knights individually. Further explanation of how she was able to get a group of Arkham Asylum inmates to group is revealed in her monologue over the next few pages as they battle Peacekeeper-12. Astrid explains that the knights were lost in Arkham and just needed a purpose and a focus. This chapter of the story ends with the Knights defeating Peacekeeper-12. 

Thoughts: 

The final bonus story in the “The Next Batman #1” is the Arkham Knights. I actually had to do some research on Astrid Arkham because (hand up) I had totally forgot about her taking on the role of Arkham Knight in Detective Comics #1000. Anyways, we see Astrid Arkham with her posse which contains most of the “famous villains” that have been locked up in Arkham Asylum. Most of the story consists of internal monologue from Astrid explaining how she formed this group and how she cares deeply for them. This should not be a shock to anyone that remembers the introduction of Astrid last summer. She was raised in Arkham and developed a liking to the inmates who “feared” Batman.  We see Astrid take these inmates and develop them into a production bunch. 

The whole story is filled with irony. The headquarters of the Arkham Knights is the abandoned Wayne Manor. We have the “villains” who were locked into Arkham to protect Gotham, actually now fighting to protect Gotham. This leaves the question, is Batman actually protecting Gotham or satisfying his own needs? This is what this storyline wants you to think about. In her monologue throughout the story, Astrid explains that all these inmates needed was some focus and a mutual “target.” Right now, that target is the Magistrate. Astrid has managed to do what Batman has failed to do for so long, actually “fix” these inmates. 

I am interested to see how this storyline develops. I would guess that eventually the Arkham Knights will eventually make Batman their mutual “target” as Astrid has a deep hatred for the Dark Knight. The character of the Arkham Knight is meant to have the reader start questioning their allegiance to Batman. I know that I started thinking about how if Batman actually cared about “fixing” Gotham, he would have put more focus on “curing” these inmates. Rather, he continues the cycle of locking them up in Arkham. This should be an exciting storyline to see develop. I actually think that this could have developed into a standalone issue, but it appears that it will remain anchored within The Next Batman issues. 

"Snyder Cut" News

There has been much talk about this alleged Snyder cut of the Justice League. Zack Snyder has been preaching for years that the “Justice League'' placed in cinemas around the world by Warner is not the “Justice League” that he created. Initially, I believed that Snyder was trying to distance himself from the nearly unwatchable film. I did put some merit in his comments because the director’s cut of “Batman V. Superman” did make a lot more sense than the theatrical release.  

When HBO Max was announced the rumors of the “Snyder Cut” being featured on the platform soon followed. At the beginning, there was much speculation about what the “Snyder Cut” would contain. Finally, Snyder himself started to weigh in on his version of “Justice League.” One of the more shocking statements was that the theatrical release was not even his product. Snyder stated that the “Justice League” that was seen across the world, was actually the product of Joss Whedon. Snyder insists that so much of the film was changed that it almost does not contain any original shots from Synder.  

This should come as no surprise to those of you that are familiar with Warner and the films that they produce. Warner has always been focused on the bottom line and what can make the most profit. It is called show business for a reason. Ultimately, movie making is still a business and Warner wants to profit as much as possible from their films. Unfortunately, that means that sacrifices need to be made. One way that Warner tried to reduce costs in “Justice League” was reducing the length of the film to a maximum of 2 hours. This is a prime example of the idiocrasy that takes place within the ivory tower at Warner. “Justice League” was created to be Warner's answer to “Avengers.” “Justice League” was going to lay out the DC Extended Universe for years to come. This means that the talking heads at Warner thought that a single two hour feature film could contain enough character development and backstory to set-up an entire extended universe the same way four films did for Marvel. That alone should be enough evidence to justify my argument that the Batman Franchise and The DC Extended Universe will forever be doomed while Warner is involved. 

One of my friends did send the following comment found on Reddit: 

“Some frequent questions I've seen coming up is what's different with this version to the 2017 version of Justice League.

Zack Snyder shot 5 hours of assembly footage during principle photography in 2016. From that, he edited it to 214 mins(3.5 hours) and was happy to call it his director's cut. From this, he was happy to edit it down to 3 hours for the theatrical cut, and release the 3.5 hour directors cut in Blu-ray.

But WB wanted Zack Snyder to cut it to 2 hours for the theatrical cut. Which is unbelievable, since cutting 1.5 hours from a 3.5 hour movie would make it extremely unwatchable and make absolutely no sense. Snyder tried his best to negotiate with WB to release a longer cut, even made a 2.5 hour cut, which was extremely compromised and makes no sense, but WB wasn't happy. This was when Snyder suffered a family tragedy and lost the will to fight with WB for the longer cut.

He stepped down and WB(Geoff Johns) used this opportunity to hire Joss Whedon, and use the 2 months of reshoots to reshoot almost the entire film. He wrote 88 pages of reshoots, which translates to almost 90 mins of the final movie.

The original cinematographer, Fabian Wagner, and later Snyder confirmed that only 30 mins of the theatrical cut of Justice League had shots by Zack Snyder, and even those were heavily edited. The rest were shot by Joss Whedon.

So Zack Snyder's Justice League releasing next month, which is 4 hours, will contain at minimum 3.5 hours of footage we never saw.

The only new idea is the 4 mins of new footage he shot recently with Jared Leto and Joe Mangeniello, which he added since he wanted this universe's Batman and Joker meet at least once. Other than that, it's all shot in 2016.”

 Unfortunately, I do not have the source of the comment. However, I did some minor research through different articles and it appears that the comment has factual information. 

That reddit comment has my excitement level rising for the “Snyder Cut.” From the sounds of it Snyder’s “Justice League” will be a completely different film than the one that was originally released. It would be nearly impossible to make a worse film than was released by Warner, so I am ready for this version to be released. The advertised release date is March 18th of this year and it cannot come soon enough.  

The Beginning

 “Arkham Weekly” is a brain child that I dreamt up one day as I sat reading the final installment of “Dark Nights: Metal.” With the “Future State” event launched in the DC universe and HBO Max taking on the DC Extended Universe, I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to start sharing my thoughts on different storylines in the comics as well as what is happening within the DCEU.  As the name of the blog suggests, this blog will focus specifically on the storylines and DCEU aspects of the Bat Family and their “Villains.” The goal is to have a new update each week, where I discuss different storylines I have read or entertainment items that I have watched. I will not be giving a complete summary, but rather what my thoughts are about what I read or watched. Before I start diving into “Future State” and those new storylines and the news that has dropped about the DCEU, I want to give my background on how I was introduced to comics and where I found my love for the Bat Family storylines. 

Let us start with my love for the Batman and the Bat Family comics. Right about the time I was hitting the age where children start to “get into” super heroes is when “Batman Returns” was released. As a younger child, I do not remember going to the theaters to see the film, but I do remember seeing it in my living room because of the little “black box” that allowed my household to get all the movie channels. After “Batman Returns,” Warner Brother’s was more concerned about making as much money as possible instead of putting out a quality product. This led to the Batman films of the 90s, which were great for a young fan like myself, but terrible for the true Batman fans. As I reflect back on my childhood, I was the reason that Warner did whatever they could to commercialize the Batman Franchise. I was the kid that had all the Batman branded toys. As I grew older the toys found their way to garage sales and such, but my love for the Dark Knight never ceased. 

Then came the mid 2000s, and by luck I presume, Christopher Nolan signed on to do a Batman trilogy. I was a skeptic when I heard the announcement. At this point, I was nearly college aged and the films that fueled my passion in the 90s, now seemed childish. Unless you have been living under a rock, you are aware of the success of that trilogy. Sure the third movie had some opportunities, but Nolan had to adjust quickly to make up for the absence of Heath Ledger. In my opinion, the Dark Knight is the best superhero film that has ever been made. I will save the rest of my views on how Warner ruined Batman Films for another day. 

Anyways, while the Nolan trilogy was happening, I would hear my friends discuss the different Batman storylines that influenced the films. These were friends that read and had knowledge of the Batman comics. If you noticed during this explanation of my love for Batman, I have not mentioned anything about comics. That is because at this point in my journey, I have not started reading comics. When I would hear my friends discuss the comics, I was always very interested about what they were discussing and how the whole comic book universe worked. To be honest, I was intimidated about getting into this universe. 

Fast forward several years, right around the time that the first “DeadPool” finally starts production, I am at work and I overhear one of my team members discussing the DeadPool comics. I discussed, with him, how I have always been interested in comics, but did not know how to enter the universe. He kindly let me borrow some of the volumes of DeadPool that he owned. That was enough to get me hooked and get me in the door of the comic universe.  

The next step was how to get out of the trades and into the new weekly issues.. I lucked out because right about the time that I wanted to get into issues is when the “Metals” event was happening in the DC universe. However, every time I went to the comic shop closest to my apartment, they were always out of the latest issue and the clerk looked at me like I was some idiot when I asked if they had the issue. I did some more research and found a comic shop that had just opened, but was a little further away. As soon as I walked in, they were very accommodating and asked me if I would like to set up a pull list. That started the journey which has led me here.  

I have been heavily involved in the Bat Family comics for the past 5 years. I thought that it is an appropriate time to start sharing my thoughts on the direction that the writers are taking the storylines. Currently, the “Future State” event is happening within the DC universe. There are some new storylines that are coming out for the Bat Family that appear to be very interesting. 

Along with the new events happening in the comic universe of DC there are the events that are happening with the cinematic DC universe with the arrival of HBO Max. I made it clear how I felt about what Warner has done to the cinematic universe. I am optimistic that HBO will repair the damage and I will share my thoughts on films and series as they are released. 

My goal is to send out this blog weekly, thus the title, and share my thoughts on the different issues, films, episodes, and rumors . The blog will contain spoilers, but will not be a complete recap. I will give a brief summary of the item that I am covering, and give my thoughts on the topic. My goal is to have this blog simulcasted with a podcast that covers what is written in each blog. With all that being said, I hope that you find this blog interesting and thought provoking.