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Batman: Damned

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Batman: Damned
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
FormatLimited series
Genre
Publication dateSeptember 2018
No. of issues3
Main character(s)Batman
John Constantine
Creative team
Written byBrian Azzarello
Artist(s)Lee Bermejo

Batman: Damned is a comic book limited series published by DC Comics under its DC Black Label imprint. Written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Lee Bermejo, it spans three issues and began on September 19, 2018. Though considered a standalone story, the series is a loose follow-up to the 2008 graphic novel Joker. In Damned, the Joker turns up dead, and Batman recruits John Constantine to help him find the killer.

Publication history

Development

Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo, the writer and illustrator of Batman: Damned

Batman: Damned was written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Lee Bermejo, who had previously collaborated to produce the villain-centric comics Lex Luthor: Man of Steel (2005) and Joker (2008).[1] It was the first title of publisher DC Comics' Black Label[2]—an imprint designed to allow writers to present unique takes on traditional DC Universe characters for a mature audience—and was announced alongside the line on March 8, 2018.[3][4] Bermejo and Jim Lee contributed cover art.[1] Bermejo said the project came about as a result of Joker: "Every time we do a project, that project leads us to the next project we’re going to do together. Even if we don’t know it right away."[2] Similarly, Azzarello described Damned as "a quasi-sequel to Joker." He said one did not have to read Joker to understand Damned, but if they read both they would see connections. The series' narrative is a reverse of Joker's. In Joker, Batman was not physically present until the final pages but plays a significant role; conversely, in Damned, the Joker only appears at the beginning but remains a narrative driving force.[5]

Azzarello and Bermejo sought to restore a sense of vulnerability to Batman in Damned.[5][6][7] Bermejo noted that modern interpretations of the character depict him as someone who is always ready, which renders his human side absent.[5][7] They had grown tired of this and wanted to reverse what Bermejo called "'Robocop'-ification".[6] Azzarello described Damned's Batman as a fish out of water; while the story is about him, he has no control over it.[8] The duo wanted Batman to be in a new, unusual situation,[5] and Azzarello stated it was "fun to fuck up [Batman's] head."[2] He also thought that "if ... someone else has the upper hand on [Batman], it completely changes the dynamic of the story... he’s suddenly a way more interesting character."[9] John Constantine, the narrator of the story and Batman's foil, serves as the bridge between what Batman knows and what he does not. Azzarello realized during the initial discussions for Damned that Constantine needed to be part of the story,[8] and chose him as narrator because he would leave Batman confused.[9] The series' depiction of Constantine is more in line with his original portrayal in the DC Vertigo series Hellblazer (1988—2013), in which he was depicted as a foul-mouthed conman, than his recent, family-friendly appearances in the DC Universe.[7][8] Azzarello, who wrote many issues of Hellblazer, believed the maturity was an essential part of the character.[8]

DC set up this imprint. 'Take our characters, do something mature.' When that opportunity was given to us, we decided, let's not half-ass this. Let's go all the way. We'll either go down in a blaze of glory or we hit the ball.

In addition to traditional Batman family cast members James Gordon and Harley Quinn, Damned features many of DC's supernatural characters, such as the Spectre, Etrigan, Deadman, Zatanna, and Swamp Thing.[2] The series allowed Azzarello and Bermejo to showcase their interpretations of these characters.[8] Azzarello said Deadman in particular was fun to write. He changed Deadman's abilities so he could only possess bodies for a short time and, similar to a person suffering from addiction, constantly searches for a new host. With Etrigan, the duo replaced his iambic pentameter speech rhythm with one inspired by hip-hop music. Azzarello and Bermejo named Logic, Nas, Kool Keith, Camp Lo, and Run the Jewels as inspiration.[2] The characters have their own "visual language" to make it clear when they are present; for instance, in the second issue the color palette changes when Etrigan is present.[8] The duo said their approach to magic in the story was like 1970s horror or a Dario Argento film such as Suspiria (1977), rather than an effects-driven film.[2]

Each page took Bermejo around three or four days to complete. Because he colored it himself, it made production longer than the average comic.[8] Bermejo was inspired by photography, such as the book Uncle Charlie by Marc Asnin,[5] and said that while the art is in his traditional style, he thought it was more colorful than people would expect.[2] Azzarello waited to see the finished page so he could write the script,[5] as Bermejo's art sometimes inspired dialogue changes.[7] Damned was printed on wide paper with a matte texture cover, which Bermejo thought was ideal for his style.[9] The letterer, Jared K. Fletcher, "came up with really, really interesting font" featuring free-floating captions and changing sizes, which Azzarello said helped the series stand out.[8]

Publication

The physical editions of Damned are published as prestige format comics, which are square-bound, larger than normal comics, and have higher-quality paper.[8][10] DC published the first issue of Damned on September 19, 2018,[1][10] with a cover date of November 2018.[11] The following issues experienced numerous delays. The second issue was initially scheduled to be released on November 21, 2018, but was delayed to December 5 that September so Bermejo could redraw four pages.[12][13] In November, it was delayed again to December 12.[13] Meanwhile, the third issue was rescheduled a total of five times.[14] It was initially slated for release in January 2019, before being pushed to March 13.[12] In February, DC canceled all orders of the issue[15] before announcing it would release on May 22, but it was later delayed to June 19, then again until June 26.[14] A hardcover collected edition is scheduled to be released on September 4, 2019.[16]

Synopsis

Batman: Damned is set in a different continuity from the main DC Universe.[3] In the story, the Joker is discovered dead in the water near the Gotham Gate Bridge, and Batman is the prime suspect. Batman enlists the help of John Constantine; together, they delve into the supernatural side of Gotham to find the killer.[1]

Reception

Batman: Damned received positive reviews from critics.[17] On Comic Book Roundup, a comic book review aggregator, the series holds an average rating of 7.8/10 based on 60 reviews.[18] The series sold well; the initial print run of the first issue sold out and the second issue received more preorders than the first, a rarity in the comics industry.[19]

Controversy

In the first issue of Damned, there is a scene where Batman goes to the Batcave to analyze injuries he suffered earlier in the story.[11][20] The scene quickly generated controversy because some panels feature full frontal nudity depicting Batman's penis, the first time this has happened in the character's history.[17][21] The nudity is only present in physical printings and was censored in the digital version. Around 115,000 uncensored copies were published.[22] DC co-publishers Lee and Dan DiDio attributed the lack of censorship to production errors; the colors had to be brightened to make the scene more visible, which, in turn, caused Batman's penis to become noticeable.[19] According to Comic Book Resources (CBR), while some readers accepted the scene for humanizing Batman, it left others uncomfortable.[17] The scene soon became subject to online ridicule,[21] and late night talk show hosts Seth Meyers and Stephen Colbert made jokes about it.[23]

While the controversy caused the issue's initial print run to sell out, it was embarrassing for DC;[19] DiDio said "it really took the attention away from what we thought was quality storytelling".[24] DC decided to remove the nudity from future printings[22] (causing prices of uncensored copies to skyrocket) and began to "rethink who they are as a company."[19] Editorial changes following the controversy, out of fear of a repeat,[25] led to development on other Black Label titles halting and the cancellation of the religious satire Second Coming. DC also made the second issue of Damned returnable.[19] DC's rationale that the nudity was unnecessary for the story was met with criticism from some journalists, who felt it conflicted with the mature nature of Black Label comics.[25] For instance, Inverse argued that many ignored the context of the scene,[6] while Vox said the removal "[brought] to mind some of the egregiously risqué female costumes in mainstream comics that don't seem 'additive' to the story beyond providing titillating thrills."[21]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Saavendra, John (June 20, 2018). "Batman Kills the Joker in Upcoming DC Story". Den of Geek. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Narcisse, Evan (August 16, 2019). "The Team Behind Batman: Damned Say They're Going to Fuck With the Dark Knight's Head". io9. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  3. ^ a b Lu, Alexander (March 8, 2018). "New DC prestige imprint Black Label promises legendary new stories told by stars like DeConnick, Miller & Romita Jr., free from continuity". Comics Beat. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  4. ^ Jackson, Londyn (March 8, 2018). "Azzarello & Bermejo Reunite to Kill the Joker in Batman: Damned". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Sondheimer, S.W. (August 6, 2018). "Azzarello and Bermejo of Black Label's Batman: Damned". BookRiot. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  6. ^ a b c Francisco, Eric (September 20, 2018). "Everyone Is Missing the Point About Batman's Dick". Inverse. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d Evry, Max (September 19, 2018). "CS Interview: Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo Talk Batman: Damned". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Estrella, Ernie (September 18, 2019). "Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo talk about who's showing up in Batman: Damned". SyFy Wire. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  9. ^ a b c d Francisco, Eric (September 18, 2018). "DC's Horror Comic 'Batman: Damned' Aims to Fix Batman's Biggest "Problem"". Inverse. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  10. ^ a b Schedeen, Jesse (September 19, 2018). "Art is King in Batman: Damned (Batman: Damned - Book One Review)". IGN. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Azzarello, Brian (w), Bermejo, Lee (p). "Book One" Batman: Damned, vol. 1, no. 1 (November 2018). Burbank, California: DC Comics.
  12. ^ a b Johnston, Rich (September 27, 2018). "Batpenis Strikes Again – DC Comics Won't Reprint Batman: Damned #1 – and #2 is Late". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  13. ^ a b Johnston, Rich (November 21, 2018). "LATE: Doomsday Clock #8, Batman Damned #2, Shazam #2". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  14. ^ a b Arrant, Chris (May 30, 2019). "Batman: Damned Finale Pushed Back On Schedule Again". Newsarama. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  15. ^ Johnston, Rich (February 14, 2019). "DC Comics Cancels Orders for Batman Damned #3". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  16. ^ "DC Comics May 2019 Solicitations". Newsarama. February 19, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  17. ^ a b c Dominguez, Noah (September 22, 2018). "Scott Snyder Surprised by Batman: Damned Controversy". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  18. ^ "Batman: Damned Comic Series Reviews". Comic Book Roundup. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  19. ^ a b c d e Johnston, Rich (March 10, 2019). "Batman: Damned Forced DC to Rethink Who They Were as a Publisher". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  20. ^ Johnston, Rich; Lamberti, Rod (September 29, 2018). "Comic Store In Your Future – How We Sold Batman: Damned #1". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  21. ^ a b c Abad-Santos, Alex (September 20, 2018). "Batman's penis is in a comic book for the first time ever — but not for long". Vox. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  22. ^ a b Parker, Ryan (September 20, 2018). "DC to Censor Full Frontal Nudity In Future 'Batman: Damned' Printings". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  23. ^ Martson, George (September 21, 2018). "Batman's Damned Nudity Has Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers Cracking Up". Newsarama. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
  24. ^ Polo, Susana (October 8, 2018). "Batman's nudity controversy made DC Comics publishers reassess other Black Label books". Polygon. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  25. ^ a b Pulliam-Moore, Charles (October 9, 2018). "After Revealing Bruce Wayne's Penis in Batman: Damned, DC Is Rethinking Its Black Label Imprint". io9. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
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