Batman Villain Ra's al Ghul Revived for New Comic Book

Comic book legend Neal Adams is returning to one of his most famous creations.


DC has announced the August launch of Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul, reviving the immortal assassin also known as the Demon’s Head for one more attempt to save the world — in his eyes — while undoing the good work of Bruce Wayne’s alter ego in the process.


The six-issue series will be written and drawn by Adams, continuing a recent trend of his revisiting characters he’s famously worked on before; prior to Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul, he was responsible for 2010’s Batman: Odyssey, 2016’s Superman: The Coming of the Supermen, and 2017’s Deadman, which included appearances by both Ra’s al Ghul and the Dark Knight; to return the favor, Deadman will show up in this new series.


The plot of Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul is at once simple and complicated, as the master villain’s latest mission has the straightforward ambition of killing Batman once and for all, but a complicated execution that involves helping the city of Gotham when it’s under attack from a group of terrorists, although there’s more to them than meets the eye. (Of course.)


Tying in with the launch of the new series, DC will release a facsimile edition of Batman No. 232, the first appearance of Ra’s al Ghul, with art by Adams and Dick Giordano, and a story by Dennis O’Neil. The release launches a new line of facsimile editions of classic DC comics, which will include debuts of fan-favorite characters as it continues.


Both Batman No. 232 Facsimile Edition and Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul No. 1 will be released August 21.