Warning! Contains spoilers for Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Special Edition's special material!It looks like the seminal "Hush" storyline of Batman is getting a sequel after all these years. A special epilogue included in the Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Special Edition, along with an interview with the story's creative team, implies a follow-up is closer than ever before.
Batman: Hush is a storyline that ran in the main Batman title and features the Dark Knight facing off against his rogues' gallery as a master criminal plans Bruce Wayne's destruction in the background. The lauded storyline was notable for several game-changing reasons. Not only did it confirm the Riddler had figured out Batman's secret identity, but Batman and Catwoman finally took the biggest step in their relationship and began seeing on another romantically. Not to mention, it introduced the titular villain Hush, aka Tommy Elliot, Bruce's childhood friend and now-recurring Batman antagonist. Since its initial publication Batman: Hush has remained an evergreen title for DC Comics.
While the original story has stood on its own for years, it seems that plans for a direct sequel are in the works. In Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Special Edition, the short story "Prologue: The Aftermath" by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee is included, and picks up where Batman’s “Hush” storyline left off. Since his last confrontation with Hush, Batman has been scouring the river, searching for clues to where his nemesis could have gone. The World's Greatest Detective stumbles upon a ship with a lead hull, something that would have easily given Elliot cover from Superman's X-ray sweep. Batman has indeed stumbled upon Hush's hideout, but the rogue is long gone, leaving nothing behind but bullets and bandages. Unfortunately for Hush, his escape may not be that easy, as his retreat has brought him directly to the mercy of Joker and Harley Quinn.
Batman: Hush 2 Is All But Confirmed
If that’s not enough to convince fans that Batman’s adventure with Hush is getting a follow-up tale, words from the story’s creative team may be the tipping point. Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Special Edition contains an interview with Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee as they reflect on “Hush” two decades after its publication. Loeb mentions that he and Lee have discussed a potential sequel often and implores fans to read the new material provided in the new edition. But before he can go further, Lee silences Loeb with a comical “Hushhhhh!”.
It seems that it’s simply a matter of when and not if, fans will be seeing a sequel to Batman: Hush in the future. But there are questions that remain regarding a potential sequel. Would it be like the new prologue and take place immediately after the original story? Will the sequel run in the main Batman title or receive a standalone release? And what impact could this new story have on the Batman corner of the DCU? There are a lot of questions raised by this mysterious teaser, and it looks like fans will have to be patient for a potential sequel to Batman: Hush to have them resolved.