2025 is set to be a monumental year for DC's flagship Batman comic. Chip Zdarsky's run concluded with Batman #157, setting the stage for Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee's much-anticipated Hush 2 storyline in March. Following Hush 2, DC will relaunch Batman with a new #1 issue, featuring a new writer and a fresh costume.
As announced at the ComicsPro retailer event, the new volume of Batman will be penned by Matt Fraction, known for his work on Uncanny X-Men and The Invincible Iron Man. Jorge Jimenez, the current Batman artist, will continue his role, collaborating with Fraction to introduce a new costume and Batmobile. Batman will don a vintage-inspired blue and gray suit, moving away from the traditional black and gray. Here's a glimpse of the new Batsuit:
"I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Batman. It was the first comic I ever read," Fraction shared. "Jorge and I have a very superhero-forward kind of take on Batman. We’ve got a new Batmobile, a new costume, new characters, and a lot of old ones too—good and bad; all the stuff that makes Batman the coolest character in comics. We want to celebrate it all."
Batman #1 is slated for release in September 2025.
In addition to the Batman news, DC provided further details on the future of the Superman line during ComicsPro, as part of the ongoing "Summer of Superman" event. Supergirl is set to receive a new series and a new costume designed by Stanley "Artgerm" Lau. Sophie Campbell, known for her work on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, will both write and draw the new book, which will see Kara returning to Midvale.
"I came up in the comics industry doing mostly graphic novels that I wrote and drew myself, so doing the same with Supergirl feels like I’m returning to my storytelling roots," Campbell explained. "My main touchstones to Kara Zor-El were the stories and the wild costumes from the 70’s, the 1984 Supergirl movie, and The CW show, which I was a huge fan of. In creating this version of Supergirl, I’ll be drawing on some of those influences as the series unfolds."
Supergirl #1 will hit the shelves on May 14.
Action Comics is also getting a new creative team, with Mark Waid, writer of Justice League Unlimited, teaming up with Resonant artist Skylar Patridge. The series will focus on Clark Kent's teenage years in Smallville, delving into his journey of mastering his powers as Superboy.
"I start the book with Clark as a 15-year-old boy, learning to be a superhero for the first time," Waid stated. "What is that like, learning to use your powers at that age? What kind of challenges are you facing? Skylar and I are also bringing Smallville a little more up to date—it still has that rustic feel to it, but farms don’t look like that anymore."
Waid and Patridge's run will begin with Action Comics #1087 in June.
Lastly, DC has announced that Krypto will star in his own five-issue miniseries, Krypto: The Last Dog of Krypton, as part of the DC All In initiative. The series, written by Ryan North of Fantastic Four fame and drawn by Mike Norton of Revival, will explore Krypto's origin story in unprecedented detail.
"Krypto's origin has always been done at kind of a high level," North remarked. "The little guy starts out on Krypton, ends up on Earth, and helps Superman fight crime. The chance to really define Krypto—to show what a little lost dog would go through if he landed all alone on a strange alien world named Earth—was really enticing. And I also fell in love with the idea of treating Krypto as the actual dog he is: he doesn't talk, and we don't cheat by reading his thoughts in balloons either. Mike Norton’s art captures exactly what needs to be ‘said’ in every scene."
Krypto: The Last Dog of Krypton #1 will be released on June 18.
