November 4, 2021 The Earth-16 Comics Wire

‘Dark Knights of Steel no. 1’ makes it’s medieval debut with some crazy twists

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

When it was announced that comic writer Tom Taylor (“Superman: Son of Kal-El,” “DCeased,” “Nightwing”) was going to pen the series “Dark Knights of Steel,” something told me that I had to read this story. Something also told me that I was going to be in for a treat.

And sure enough I was.

“Dark Knights of Steel,” is not just a retelling of the origin stories of our favorite heroes and villains of the DC Universe in the vein of a medieval epic like “Game of Thrones.” In some ways, it is a story about family. In other ways, it is a story about a sinister conspiracy involving kingdoms. I feel that it is also a story about one man’s birthright and another man’s revenge.

When I read this “Dark Knights of Steel no. 1,” there were several twists I did not see coming.

The first twist is when Taylor takes us back to the fateful moment of the planet Krypton’s doom. We see Jor El and his beloved wife Lara, the parents of Superman, lament their planet’s impending destruction. You know how this story goes: the rocket ship blasts off from an exploding Krypton and it ends up on a grassy field on planet Earth. At this point, you’d think that this is where Jonathan and Martha Kent come into the picture to see a little curly-haired boy, who would become Earth’s greatest champion, stretching his arms out to them in a loving gesture. However, we see that Ma and Pa Kent are nowhere to be found and even more surprising,we see that Jor and a pregnant Lara are the occupants of the crashed spaceship. And what is even crazier is that Lara is about to give birth. Jor-El, notices a group of knights on horses surrounding him. As Jor-El tries to get help for his pregnant wife, the knights shoot their bows and arrows at him and suddenly, he kills the assailants with his heat vision. After that,Jor El and Lara welcome their son Kal-El to the world that they now call their home.

19 years later, the Els would establish their own kingdom alongside Thomas and Martha Wayne (a king and queen who would mysteriously die leaving their son Bruce an orphan). Both Kal-El and Bruce would become princes of the Kingdom of El. However, not everyone is happy to welcome the family of strange visitors from a dying world. Hence comes the second twist.

The El’s arrival is foreseen in a doomed prophecy by a young John Constantine and King Jefferson (aka Black Lightning). King Jefferson’s fear that the Els would take over the world causes him to send assassins who wield magic to assassinate them. This causes Jor and Lara to outlaw magic and forbid Kal from accompanying the Bat-Prince Bruce Wayne on his mission to fight the magic wielders.

Prince Kal-El, like his original counterpart that we know and love, is always eager to help much to the annoyance of Bruce. We see that he has a sense of justice and holds all life (innocent or evil) sacred. This is shown when he questions Bruce and his father on how to treat the captured Banshee (Dinah “Black Canary”Lance). While he seems to be a bit of a boyscout, he also has a bit of a chip on his shoulder as he brushes off the fact that Bruce is only an orphan when Jor El suggests that the Bat-Prince sit on the throne. When I read the interaction between Kal and Bruce, I saw that Kal may see Bruce as a rival for the throne since it is his birthright. This brings us to the third twist which involves Bat-Prince.

Bruce the Bat-Prince is every bit as Batman as Batman can be. He is stoic. He is as Harley in this universe would put it “ dark and brooding.” And like the original Batman, he has help in the form of his trusty friend (and occasional servant) Alfred and his “Robins” (Dick, Jason, Duke, and Stephanie). And comes the twist that drops the bomb: Bruce Wayne is a product of a tryst between Jor-El and Martha Wayne. That’s right, Jor-El reveals to the shocked readers and Batman that the Dark Knight is his son which makes him Superman’s Kyptonian-Human hybrid half-brother in this universe. And while Bruce is processing the revelation, Jor-El is assassinated by Green Arrow and the “Green Man” (Green Lantern) which causes a grief stricken Bruce’s eyes to turn into the familiar heat vision red. And that is when the story of “Dark Nights of Steel” actually begins.

Tom Taylor wrote an epic comic book story with the perfect ingredients: the DC Comics and medieval archetypes! And the twists in this first issue were the chef’s kiss! And I suspect that there are more twists and turns to come.

Another thing I enjoyed about the comic was illustratrations and coloring done by Yasmine Putri. Purtri’s art was the icing on the cake for this medieval DC epic. My favorite scene in the first issue is where Bruce and Jor-El are having their talk at the castle. The lightning is a common trope used in the Batman mythos and also serves an ominous omen for things to come. Another favorite drawing is the half splash of Bruce cradling his father Jor-El in his arms. It is here where we will really see him become the Bat-Prince, full-circle, and with Kryptonian powers which makes him more dangerous.

Overall, it is a retelling that would make everyone who has ever read, watched, or heard the stories of the heroes and villains of the DC Universe talk about this story for years to come. I’m serious when I write this! I am already looking forward to reading issue no. 2 and to see where it goes from there.

“Dark Knights of Steel no. 1” is available at your local comic book shop or wherever comic books are sold!

“Dark Knights of Steel no. 1”

Writer: Tom Taylor

Artist: Yasmine Putri

Colorist: Yasmine Putri

Letterer: Wes Abbot

Publisher: DC Comics

An entire medieval world will be forever changed when a spaceship crash-lands from a doomed planet. Monarchs will die, kingdoms will rise, and what seemed the end of the world for many…was only the beginning! An epic high-fantasy story set in a DC Universe where nothing is what it seems… From worldwide bestselling writer Tom Taylor (DCeased, Superman: Son of Kal-El) and acclaimed artist Yasmine Putri comes a generational tale of good and evil within a brand-new DCU!

October 5, 2021 The Earth-16 Comics Wire

The DC Superheroes go medieval in ‘Dark Knights of Steel’

From Tom Taylor, the creator of the DC Comics zombie horror ‘DCeased,’ comes “Dark Knights of Steel,” a new Batman universe set in the medieval times.

The news of the comic being created was announced in an article from “Entertainment Weekly” Magazine. The issue will span 12-issues and Taylor will be teaming up with artist Yasmine Putri, who previously worked with him on “DCeased” .

“I’ve spent the last two years creating a new epic fantasy universe for DC Comics, and Dark Knights of Steel is an absolute dream come true,” Taylor told Entertainment weekly.

According to Taylor, “Dark Knights of Steel” is going to be a “tale of war and love, of despair and hope, of betrayal and improbable alliances forged in battle.” He also noted that his work is a combination of his love for fantasy and DC superheroes.

I’ll confess, I haven’t read too much of Tom Tyalor’s work but with the many alternate DC stories or universes he is creating, I am looking forward to reading this one, along with “DCeased” (since I also like horror comics like “The Walking Dead.”

I am a fan of medieval folklore and tales such as the stories of King Arthur, Robin Hood (Check out one of my reviews on Mad Cave Studios’ Nottingham), and the Lord of the Rings. My first brush with medieval stories was watching “Robin Hood: Men in Tights (Yep, a classic!),” “Conan The Barbarian,” and “Braveheart” when I was young. The sword fights, the conflict between good and evil, and chivalry displayed by the heroes and support characters seeped well into my childhood.

We are going to see our favorite DC heroes in medieval form. But this is not the first time we have seen medieval retellings of the DC heroes. The DC Elseworlds comic “Superman: Kal,” written by Dave Gibbons (“Watchmen”) tells the story of Kal-El’s rocket ship landing in Middle Ages England where he is raised by farmers but grows up to become a blacksmith who catches the attention of Lady Loisse Layne (Lois Lane). This Superman goes head-to-head against Baron Luthor (Lex Luthor) who kills Loisse after assaulting and beating her.

In addition, Batman also has a medieval counterpart in the comic “Batman: Dark Knight of the Round Table,” written by Bob Layton (“Batman: The Hollywood Knight”) in which Bruce Wayne and his family are exiled by King Arthur for the prophecies foretold by Morgan Le Fey. Le Fey has prophesied that “Bruce of Waynesmoor” would bring about her demise.

In “Dark Knights of Steel,” we are going to see almost, if not all, the DC characters in medieval form. We will see characters Wonder Woman, Nightwing, Black Lightning, Spoiler, Signal, Robin, and Red Hood.

“Dark Knights of Steel” will be out on Nov. 2. at your local comic book shop or wherever comic books and graphic novels are sold.

August 27, 2020 The Earth-16 Comics Wire

Batman: The Three Jokers – A Classic Villainous Sidekick Returns

Spoilers Ahead

Gaggy Returns – Photo Courtesy of DC Comics

“Batman: The Three Jokers” #1, written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Jason Fabok had brought back several throwbacks from the Batman comics including the Hawaiian shirt Joker seen in Alan Moore’s “Batman: The Killing Joke” and Batman’s light up symbol, or “Bat-light,” on his chest. The comic also brought back an original henchman of the Joker.

Gagsworth A. Gagsworthy, or Gaggy, made his return in Three Jokers #1 to lead an army of thugs to take on Batman, Red Hood, and Batgirl in the Gotham Aquarium.

Gaggy’s Debut in Batman#186 – Photo Courtesy of DC Comics

Gaggy, who debuted in “Batman” #186, was the Joker’s court jester and the original sidekick of the Joker before Harley Quinn took on that role. The villainous and mischievous Gaggy was seen as the antithesis to the heroic Robin, Dick Grayson. The stooge hated the Boy Wonder so much, he had a Robin punching bag in which he would vent his anger out on much to Joker’s amusement. In addition, both Gaggy and Grayson were brought up in Haly’s circus.

After Batman and Robin defeated Joker and Gaggy, due to a miscommunication which involved Joker accidently clobbering his new sidekick, the villainous duo ended up in jail.

Gaggy vs Harley Quinn – Photo Courtesy of DC Comics

Gaggy is not seen again until Paul Dini’s “Gotham City Sirens” #6 where he is disguised as his former boss to lure Harley Quinn and get revenge on her for making Joker becoming psychotic. The comic has a flashback into a Gaggy’s relationship with the Joker during their time in prison after their defeat at the hands of Batman and Robin. Gaggy told Harley that he had tried to cheer Joker up but eventually, the Clown Prince of Crime was sent to Arkham Asylum and the former court jester ended up getting out of jail. After returning to the streets of Gotham, Gaggy decided to start his criminal life over and relive his past that he had with Joker. He tried to entactt his revenge on Harley but, with the help of Catowman and Poison Ivy, Harley was able to defeat Gaggy by blasting him off with a rocket from Joker’s lair. After being blasted off into a harbor, Gaggy swore revenge against Harley the next time they crossed paths.

In “Three Jokers,” Gaggy and his goons are unable to subdue Batman and his team. And the court jester seemingly ends up becoming lunch for a Joker-ized shark after the Red Hood uses his pistol to shoot an aquarium tank housing it. Although it can be assumed that the shark enjoyed his meal is “Batman: The Three Jokers” the last we have seen of Gaggy?