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DC is celebrating Tuesday, November 30's 'fifth week' new comic book day in style with a celebration of the Batman family in five 48-page annuals - including Detective Comics, Batman, Nightwing, Robin, and the Joker - and a few other specials.
A 'fifth week' is the four times every calendar year when a publisher has five weekly new comic days as opposed to four. For Marvel and DC those days are often populated by annuals and specials so that regular monthly series aren't just spread thinner over the extra-long month.
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In Detective Comics 2021 Annual #1by writers Mariko Tamaki and Matthew Rosenberg and artist David Lapham, the 'Shadows of the Bat' story arc begins with a special prelude story.
The preview pages flashback to the Wayne family pre-Crime Alley, in an incident in which a pre-teen Bruce sees death for the first time, and his father's heroic efforts to stave it off.
The annual also sets the stage for the debut of Arkham Tower, the centerpiece of the 'Shadows of the Bat' storyline.
Detective Comics 2021 Annual #1 has a cover by Viktor Bogdanovic and a variant by Jason Fabok.
Check out the previews and covers here:
In Batman 2021 Annual #1, writer James Tynion IV continues to wind down his tenure as Batman writer in a story (and main cover) drawn by Ricardo López Ortiz.
The Annual as a conclusion to Tynion's six-part Ghost-Maker serialized back-up story from Batman #107-#111.
Batman's frenemy has fought his way to Devil Skull Island, where he faces every villain from his own rogues' gallery all at one time.
Batman 2021 Annual #1 also features a variant cover by Kamome Shirahama.
Check out the previews and covers here:
In Robin 2021 Annual #1 by series writer Joshua Williamson and artists Roger Cruz and Victor Olazaba.
The story features the origin of all the new the League of Lazarus characters from Robin including XXL, Respawn, and Flatline, a character introduced by Williamson earlier this year in Detective Comics #1034.
Sort of a grimmer version of Marvel's Taskmaster - Flatline can absorb the skills (including the fighting skills) of people as they die.
Jorge Corona provides the cover along with a variant by Crystal Kung.
Check out those preview pages and covers here:
In Nightwing 2021 Annual #1, series writer Tom Taylor and artist Cian Tormey team up Dick Grayson and Jason Todd, Batman's first two Robins (unless the new Robins series rewrites that) in a story that seems designed to highlight the different approaches of the characters to crimefighting.
Red Hood has recently vowed to stop using guns and to reconsider his more violent approach to criminals and expect the story to deal with the progress (or lack thereof) Jason is making.
The cover is by Nicola Scott with a variant by Max Dunbar.
Check out those preview pages and covers here:
Finally, the Clown Prince of Crime stars in his own Annual along with regular series co-star Jim Gordon by Tynion and co-writer Matthew Rosenberg with art and a main cover by Francesco Francavilla.
Dan Hipp draws a variant cover.
The story is set in the past in the first year of James Gordon's tenure as commissioner of the GCPD, as he battles corruption in the ranks, marriage troubles, and the first appearance of Batgirl. So of course, this is the moment that the Joker pounces and according to DC "unleashes hell".
Check out those preview pages and covers here:
Check out all the Batman-related titles on sale on November 30 and in the upcoming months in Newsarama guide to all the new Batman comics, graphic novels, and collections arriving in 2021 and beyond.
