DC's May 2024 solicitations are live now and, amid the usual vast amount of new releases, one in particular stands out. We're talking about Robert Carey's main cover for Outsiders #7, which depicts Drummer wailing as she holds a silhouetted body and various DC characters, including Batman, look on in dismay. Yep, it seems like one DC hero is not long for this world, though who the corpse in question belongs to remains, for now, unclear.
The synopsis for the new issue - which has had its title redacted - is equally ominous and cryptic. It simply reads:
"A requiem is held for a fallen friend. The Guide is opened, and the truth of the world is revealed."
That this requiem is being held in #7 suggests that the death itself likely takes place in April's #6, which makes a certain amount of dramatic sense as it's the halfway point of the 12-issue series. And presumably "the Guide" in question is the Planetary Guide, as Outsiders revealed itself back in #1 to be a new take on some of the concepts from both Planetary and The Authority, with more recent issues introducing new Century Baby Jenny Crisis.
So who exactly is for the chop? Well, the cover has one notable omission... The Outsiders line-up currently is Kate Kane/Batwoman, Luke Fox/Batwing, Drummer, and the aforementioned Jenny Crisis. All of those characters are clearly visible... except for Kate Kane. It sure would be a helluva twist to kill Batwoman off, though the character's absence from the cover is so notable that it feels like it may, in fact, be a misdirect.
Whatever the case, Outsiders continues to be an intriguing deep dive into the obscure and forgotten corners of DC lore. The series is written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly and drawn by Roger Cruz.
We'll find out who is dead - and hopefully just how permanent that death is - when Outsiders #7 lands in comic shops on May 14.
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