Superstar writer/artist Frank Miller is returning to the bleak future world of his most famous work, ‘The Dark Knight Returns.’ Teaming with Brian Azzarello, Miller is set to release ‘The Dark Knight III – The Master Race’, in honor of the 30th anniversary of the original series. It is due to arrive in comic shops in the fall of 2015. ‘The Dark Knight III’ is slated as an eight-issue miniseries.
Miller announced, “Batman remains my favorite comic book hero and a sequel to Dark Knight is going to be daunting, but we’ll do our best.”
Azzarello added, “It’s been an amazing experience collaborating with Frank these past six months. I think we have an epic story that these characters truly deserve.”
1986’s ‘The Dark Knight Returns’ is one of the most beloved and influential comic book stories of all time. Written and illustrated by Frank Miller, the tale starred a retired, battle weary Batman who must return to action to save a decaying Gotham City in the shadow of an atomic war threat from the outer world.
The bleak tone of the story (originally printed as a prestige format miniseries, and then collected as what we now refer to as a graphic novel), marked the official graduation of comics as a disposable method of entertaining kids to a literary force aimed at adults.
For decades, Miller’s dystopian yarn has been one of, if not THE most respected comic stories of all time.
Alas, as is frequently the case, they couldn’t leave well enough alone and in 2001, DC and Miller felt the need to slap together a sequel that not only showcased Batman, but many of the other heroes of the DCU recast in this still flawed future landscape, with the three-part ‘The Dark Knight Strikes Again’. It… sucked. Reviews were universally mediocre to poor.
Luckily, the sequel is largely forgotten and didn’t tarnish the esteem fans still have for the original book.
But are DC and Miller looking to redeem themselves with this third installment? We’ll have to wait a few months for the official verdict, but even with the misstep of ‘The Dark Knight Strikes Back’ I think most fans will be willing to at least check out the first issue before passing judgement.
DC co-publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee announced, “The story [Miller] and Brian have crafted is an astounding and triumphant conclusion to this seminal body of work which influenced and shaped generations of readers and creators alike.”
Are you excited to see Miller back on Batman? Will you be checking this miniseries out this fall?
Source: DC Comics
