Batman Beyond The White Knight #1 is published by DC Comics, written and illustrated by Sean Murphy with colours by Dave Stewart. Cover art also comes from Sean Murphy.
Issue #1 is available in print and on digital from March 29, 2022, where all good comics are sold.
Synopsis
A lot can change in 10 years, especially in Gotham! Batman, a.k.a. Bruce Wayne, may be behind bars, but the real criminals are still out there. Gotham Motors CEO Derek Powers has seized control of the Wayne family’s assets and is using them to transform the GTO and the city they’ve sworn to protect. Crime is down, but at what cost? A new Batman has emerged in Powers’s city, and only Bruce is fully aware of the dangers to come. It’s time to destroy the mantle for good, but he’ll need one of his forgotten sons’ help to do so. Enter Jason Todd…the first Robin?! In this thrilling sequel to the blockbuster comic book hits Batman: White Knight and Batman: Curse of the White Knight, writer/artist Sean Murphy invites the audience to go beyond the Gotham they know to discover an engrossing new take on the city and its heroes. Welcome to Neo-Gotham and the world of Beyond the White Knight!
Review
It’s been two years since the end of Sean Murphy’s Curse of the White Knight and almost five years since the debut of Batman: White Knight. In that time Murphy has created one of comics most original and critically lauded Elseworlds stories. The boldness of his approach to both writing and visual style proving a sure-fire hit with readers.
Returning for round three, 10 years have passed and Bruce Wayne remains behind bars after the events of Curse. The time jump brilliants resets Murphy’s Gotham across the board. Characters have moved on, Gotham has moved on. But that fearless storytelling and vision remains entirely unaltered.
As the title (and cover) suggest, this time around we’re taking a Batman Beyond approach to the White Knight world. With Bruce Wayne behind bars, the legacy of the Batman lives on in Gotham. But all is not as it seems. Murphy cleverly approaches the future chapter of Gotham by subverting expectations. Fans will no doubt be familiar with the Beyond animated series and Murphy is banking on your preconceived notions of Terry’s character.
Across this one issue Murphy is able to reset the playing the field, tee up all the pieces on the board and set in motion an exciting series of events. Terry and Bruce share the lions share of the story time equally. With Terry, we’re exploring the remnants of the Batman legacy and see his first steps towards becoming a new Dark Knight. It’s familiar territory but with a solid Murphy twist. For Bruce, the story of this issue is about his inability to let go of his self-imposed responsibility to protect Gotham.
Part of the appeal of Murphy’s world is the huge supporting cast. Over the two previous series we’ve met versions of plenty of familiar faces. Many of those manage to make an appearance here without ever making the issue feel overstuffed. Dick Grayson and Jason Todd return to broaden the world of the Bat-family. Harley Quinn also returns to pick up lingering threads from her huge plot in Curse of the White Knight.
Once again Murphy’s plotting is incredibly tight. No action or story beat feels out of place, likewise the direction of travel is clear from page one. It also goes without saying that the team of Murphy’s art and Dave Stewart’s colours is dynamite. All of the atmosphere and imagination of both previous series is in tact. Without doubt Beyond the White Knight is going to be another blockbuster title for DC.
Verdict
A tantalising return to Sean Murphy’s Gotham. The ten year time jump acts as a tremendous reset of the White Knight world, moving the characters along and making room for the introduction of Terry McGinnis and Derek Powers.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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