Batman writer may be "playing around" with Alfred Pennyworth return

Image showing the death of Alfred Pennyworth — (Image credit: DC)

Dark Nights: Death Metal #7 culminated DC's reality-altering event with a whole new status quo for the many worlds of what is now dubbed DC's Omniverse – and with a tease setting up the return of an untold number of dead DC characters, including, likely, some beloved fan-favorites.

One of those fan-favorite characters who may be on the receiving end of resurrection is Bruce Wayne/Batman's longtime ally, confidant, and ersatz father figure Alfred Pennyworth.

Pennyworth died at the hands of Batman's arch-foe Bane during writer Tom King's 'City of Bane' Batman arc. Alfred was resurrected through the power of the Black Lantern in Death Metal #7 as a desiccated corpse alongside an army of fallen heroes to challenge the Batman Who Laughs and Robin King.

Dark Nights: Death Metal #7 excerpt — (Image credit: Greg Capullo (DC))

Now, it seems the door is open for Alfred to return to the land of the living for current Batman writer James Tynion IV's run. Asked if his undead cameo and the reveal of the Infinite Frontier DC Universe status quo was setting the stage for the return of Alfred, Death Metal writer Scott Synder seemed to cue it up for Tynion.

"I don't want to spoil it for James. I feel like James is playing around with the repercussions of that beat," Snyder tells Newsarama, who went on to explain his own motivation for bringing Alfred back into the story.

"All I'd say is that, it was important for me personally, at least, to see Alfred on my way out for a moment and have the Bat-Family complete," he continues. "If you were going to raise the dead and have everyone in it together, there was no one who would put a small brat in his place the way Alfred would talk to the Robin King. It was a beat that I really wanted."

DC's main publishing line is currently in the midst of 'Future State,' a two-month publishing initiative that shows off several possible futures for the DC Universe, including the Next Batman that features a near-future where Tim Fox has become the new Caped Crusader.

Tynion's Batman run resumes in March, following 'Future State.'

With Dark Nights: Death Metal now over, could it find a place among the best DC Comics stories of all time?

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011, and now I'm the Entertainment Writer at GamesRadar+. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)