Is Batman dead? Writer says it’s “the end”

DC Comics superhero Batman is apparently dead at the conclusion of “Batman” #681, the final part in the “Batman R.I.P.” storyline.

The “Black Glove” society, a group of evil billionaires, have buried Batman alive as the comic begins.   Batman escapes, but apparently perishes, along with Black Glove leader Doctor Hurt, in an explosion.  (Just prior, Doctor Hurt claimed to be Batman’s long-thought-dead father, Dr. Thomas Wayne.)

Is Batman really dead? The upcoming storyline in the Batman comics is called “The Battle for the Cowl,” and writer Grant Morrison told the Telegraph that this issue marks “the end of Bruce Wayne as Batman.”

Still, unlike the recent comic-book death of Captain America, there’s no body seen on-panel — so whether Bruce Wayne is permanently finished as Batman remains to be seen.

UPDATE: Late on Wednesday, DC Executive Editor Dan DiDio gave further explanation of the issue to the New York Daily News.

“He’s not dead, though he’ll definitely be gone for a while,” DiDio said. “Batman and Bruce Wayne have been around long before me and they’ll be around long after me.”

– Matthew Price
Assistant Features Editor