In a new preview for an upcoming issue of DC Comics' Future State: Dark Detective, two Dark Knights will collide. While Gotham and the rest of the world may believe that Batman and Bruce Wayne are dead, Wayne merely faked his own death after his attempted murder at the hands of the Magistrate. Now, he has become reborn as the Dark Detective, working in the shadows to unravel the Magistrate's fascist hold over his city. However, it looks as though his latest investigation will bring him face to face with Jace Fox, who took over the mantle of the Batman in Wayne's absence.
While the Next Batman has been working to do good and seek justice as best he can in the oppressive police state Gotham has become, it's not like he asked permission to become the new Dark Knight. For all he knows, Bruce Wayne has been dead all this time and he's filling the void he left behind. However, it seems clear that both Dark Knights will finally meet in DC's upcoming Future State: Dark Detective #3 from writer Mariko Tamaki with art by Dan Mora.
According to the preview images for the soon to be released issue, Bruce Wayne will be looking into the murder of an important member of Gotham's corporate elite. According to the Magistrate, this man's death was in connection to "recent vigilante activity" in the city, but the Dark Detective of course has his own suspicions. It also seems likely that Bruce's continued digging into this particular murder will be what brings him face to face with the Next Batman, who could be looking into the same murder himself. Here are the preview pages for the issue as well as the synopsis from DC Comics:
- FUTURE STATE: DARK DETECTIVE #3
- (W) Mariko Tamaki
- (A) Dan Mora
- In this issue, Bruce Wayne meets the next Batman! As the dark detective makes his move to put an end to the villainous Magistrate once and for all, the man who once wore the cowl encounters the next Batman—and these two have some questions for each other! Fists will fly as this explosive meeting erupts in the skies over Gotham...but with the clock ticking, can Bruce finish what he started and unlock the secrets of the fascist surveillance that plagues his city?
As the cover art and synopsis indicate, Bruce and the Next Batman are going to meet, and will likewise have an equal amount of questions and fists to offer one another. However, once the dust settles, is it possible that the Dark Detective and Next Batman might team up to solve the case together? Additionally, will Bruce Wayne give Jace Fox his blessing to continue being the new Batman, or will there be a continued animosity between the two Dark Knights once the issue ends? However it shakes out, Dark Detective #3 is going to be an issue Batman fans won't want to miss as Future State continues from DC Comics.