'Batman and the Outsiders' Comic Book Series to Launch in December

The revival of the Dark Knight's other super-team spins out of the current 'Detective Comics' storyline.


The Dark Knight’s calendar is going to get a lot busier very soon, with DC Entertainment on Wednesday confirming rumors that it will relaunch the Batman and the Outsiders comic book series before the end of this year.


The new series will be written by Bryan Edward Hill, with art by Dexter Soy, and spin out of Hill’s five-issue run on Detective Comics, which ends with Wednesday's No. 987. Alongside Batman, the new series will feature the Signal, Orphan, Suicide Squad member Katana and Black Lightning, in his most high-profile comic book role since the debut of the CW series based on the 1970s character.


Speculation about a new Outsiders series has been circulating since the announcement of Hill’s Detective storyline, which was titled "On the Outside" and guest-starred Black Lightning — who was part of the original Batman and the Outsiders run, which started in 1983. Confirmation came via The Washington Post, with Hill telling the paper, "All I’ll say is, it is a team book with Batman in it, but the safety is off. Hopefully it will be surprising and thrilling in ways that I don’t think people will quite expect. I’m becoming known a bit for a certain kind of intensity in my work and I think this Outsiders project will also continue on in that pathway."


Unlike the original Batman and the Outsiders series — which saw Batman quit the Justice League in order to hang out with his new friends, with the cover of the first issue featuring the hero helpfully yelling, "I’ve had enough of your two-bit Justice League! From now on, there are my new partners!" while pointing to his co-stars — this time around, the World’s Greatest Detective will pull double duty, maintaining membership in both groups.


Although the Post left the launch date of the new series unstated, DC editor Chris Conroy has revealed that the title will launch in December.