DC Comics has recently been building out the Batman line in unexpected ways, including the Batgirl revamp and new titles like Arkham Manor and Gotham Academy. This fall, DC will add a horror-related Batman comic to go along with the other new additions.
Over at Blastr, DC has announced Gotham by Midnight, a new series by Ray Fawkes (Constantine) and artist Ben Templesmith (30 Days of Night) that spins out of Batman Eternal and focuses on the supernatural horror aspects of Gotham City.
Described as Gotham City’s version of The X-Files, Gotham by Midnight will focus on Jim Corrigan, the human host of The Spectre and Batman’s unofficial liaison when it comes to the stranger cases in Gotham. The Spectre will be involved in the book, but not as the primary focus.
“Jim Corrigan’s terrible secret is he carries the divine judgment of God around in his body, not of his own free will,” explained Fawkes. “So he’s better motivated than anybody to get involved whenever a big, supernatural monster shows up on the scene. If he doesn’t do something, sooner or later the Spectre is going to handle it, and he has an Old Testament way of handling things. We will be seeing the Spectre here and there, but that’s usually what happens when Corrigan messes up and doesn’t get it handled in time.”
Fawkes also spoke about the new supporting cast members that he created for Gotham City PD’s Midnight Shift.
“Lisa Drake is another detective in the Gotham police force, and Corrigan’s partner in a weird sort of crew who skulk around in the night and chase ghosts,” noted Fawkes. “You will not have seen this Lisa before. There’s also a forensic investigator, Dr. Szandor Tarr, a bit of a creepy dude but very reliable. Their religious consultant is a nun, Sister Justine, who has a very peculiar and particular talent.”
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Additionally, Fawkes shared his theory that the very presence of Batman and his costumed villains in Gotham City may be tied to a deeper supernatural problem within the city.
“The tack that some of the characters in this book take is that people like the Joker, Two-Face and Batman may be symptoms of something wrong with Gotham, and that may have a supernatural root,” said Fawkes. “For me, the city is very Gothic, dark and shadowy, and it’s sort of the perfect setting for things that creep in the night.”
“I just love dark stories,” continued Fawkes. “Personally, as a writer, I feel dark stories and horror stories are a really great way to explore actual living concerns. You can really create any kind of metaphor. I just love this stuff and always want to jump into it with both hands, both feet and all tentacles.”
Gotham by Midnight will be released on Wednesday, November 26.
