With DC Fandome about to begin DC Comics did not want to wait anymore time to announce their big plans to kick off 2022 with a fresh batch of solicitations. As was the case in 2021, January 2022 looks to once again be a Batman heavy month for DC Comics publishing calendar. From new comics to major creative teams the Batman Family continue to stay busy in the DC Universe. Though that is not to say that others in the DC Universe aren’t getting their chance to shine as a new year is right around the corner. Let’s see how DC Comics kicks off the start of a new year with their new January 2022 comic book solicitations
CHIP ZDARSKY NEW BATMAN COMIC BOOK
I know that it has become a joke how heavily reliant DC Comics has been with the Batman Family, leaning harder into the franchise even more than ever. But I would be lying if I said I was not excited for the newest comic book for the franchise releasing in January 2022 titled Batman: The Knight. The simple reason why I’m excited to read this upcoming Batman mini-series is because Chip Zdarsky is the writer of the comic book.
I’ve become a big fan of Zdarsky’s comic book work. He has delivered excellent reading experiences with Daredevil, Spider-Man: Life Story, and Justice League: Last Ride. The Justice League: Last Ride series in particular has shown that Zdarsky has a good grasp of what makes Batman tick. But where as the Last Ride Batman is an experience version of the character Batman: The Knight will feature a Bruce Wayne at the beginning of his career as the Dark Knight. While this is a well visited period in Batman’s history I believe Zdarsky will be able to add something new and enjoyable to that part of Baman’s mythology.
JUSTICE LEAGUE VS THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES
If there is one thing Brian Bendis loves writing more than anything else is superheroes fighting each other. He is bringing that mentality with the latest event he is writing for DC Comics in the form of Justice League vs The Legion Of Super-Heroes. This is honestly exactly what I expect from when Bendis is given a big event and surprised it took this long for DC Comics to launch this Civil War-style story.
At the very least we are seeing DC Comics actually spotlight the Legion of Super-Heroes. It just does not seem that DC has found the right way to present this team from the future in the modern day. They’ve tried many different iterations, including Bendis working on this version of the Legion of Super-Heroes that will take part in an event with the Justice League. Maybe we will all be surprised and Justice League vs The Legion of Super-Heroes will be a must have event. You never know.
JON KENT AND DAMIAN WAYNE REUNITE AS SUPERMAN & ROBIN
The Super-Sons is one of the best comic books DC Comics has produced in the last few years. The chemistry between Jon Kent and Damian Wayne as best friends has been magical. While they have been able to maintain a strong friendship over the years both have gone through a lot of changes as of late. Being leads of their own ongoing series we’ve see them take on even more responsibilities. With Jon he has grown older rapidly, taken on the mantle of Superman, and will have come out as bisexual by the time Superman & Robin releases. For Damian we’ve been recently seen how his ultimate destiny has come into question as he tetters between carrying the legacy of his father Bruce Wayne or grandfather Ra’s Al Ghul.
With so much happening to both characters Superman & Robin Special #1 is a well-timed comic book to be released. This one-shot will give Peter Tomasi to explore how both characters handle all that they have been through and talk it through with their best friend. It could also set the stage for an even bigger story involving Jon Kent and Damian Wayne down the line as it would not be surprising if we see their paths diverge from one another because of what they have going in their respective lives. Especially if we see Damian leaning more towards carrying the legacy of Ra’s Al Ghul could clash with Jon’s role and mission statement as Superman.
TINI HOWARD & NICO LEON TAKEOVER CATWOMAN
Ram V’s run on Catwoman has been an excellent continuation of Joelle Jones run on the series. He has added even more layers to Catwoman and found Selina Kyle her own corner of Gotham City to develop her character and the world around her more. Now it looks like Ram V’s run is coming to an end with the December 2021 issue of Catwoman.
Taking over Catwoman in January 2022 will be writer Tini Howard and artist Nico Leon. Tini Howard’s name immediately stands out in this creative team as she has been connected to the X-Men franchise for several years now. But we have seen Howard working for DC Comics more as of late. Howard is definitely a rising star in the industry so its not surprising she would be the new writer for Catwoman. This series should further help elevate her profile as fans who may not be reading her work on the X-Men comics will be exposed to her writing style.
NIGHTWING NEW COSTUME AND OFFICIAL ROMANCE
One of the big news stories out of DC Comics January 2022 solicitations is the updated design Dick Grayson is giving to his Nightwing costume. That’s right the stripes down his arms are back in an epic way. This is honestly a cool update to the Nightwing’s costume that he has been rocking for the last decade. It keeps the character evolving while maintain the iconic design of his Nightwing costume.
Another thing we could be seeing happen in Nightwing #88 is full confirmation that Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon are an official couple again. The variant cover for Nightwing #88 certainly points to their couple status being made official soon. Which is a long-time coming since Dick and Barbara have been in this weird space of “will they, won’t they” for several years now. It’s time these two got together already.
YARA FLOR LONG ROAD TO WONDER GIRL
The Wonder Girl series has been an interesting journey thus far. Joelle Jones has not rushed Yara Flor to pick up the Wonder Girl mantle right away. She has taken more of a methodical approach by building Yara’s greater connection to the Amazon mythology in all its branches. It has been a direction I’ve enjoyed as it has better integrated Yara into the Wonder Woman franchise.
Now it looks like by the time of Wonder Girl #8 that Yara will taken on the mantle previously carried by Donna Troy and Cassandra Sandsmark. Doing this by having Yara fully interact with the Amazons of South America will tie-in nicely to her greater narrative connection to the Wonder Woman franchise. It will help build out this part of the Amazon mythology and give Yara her own distinct corner of the DC Universe to explore.
MARK WAID JOINS DETECTIVE COMICS MILESTONE
Detective Comics is in the middle of a major story arc that is looking to redefine Gotham City moving forward. That is being done through the controversial construction of Arkham Tower. We know that Batman and Nightwing stand on opposite sides of whether the creation of Arkham Tower is a good or bad thing for Gotham City. January’s Detective Comics look to be diving more into the inner workings of Arkham Tower as Nightwing and Batwoman will be investigating the place from the inside. How this brings to light even more of the things we don’t know about the direction for Gotham City should be interesting to see play out.
In other big news, the Detective Comics #1050 milestone issue will also feature the return of Mark Waid to DC Comics. To mark the return Waid is going to be working on a new back-up story starring Batman and Superman titled World’s Finest. This story definitely plays in well into Waid’s strengths as a writer. Having Dan Mora as the artist for the World’s Finest back-up ensures the story will have a great visual look.
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