Batman Sidekick Duke Thomas Gets His Own Comic

The Signal will do what Batman can't.

By Jesse Schedeen

Batman's current sidekick, Duke Thomas, will be the star of a new comic mini-series titled Batman and the Signal. This series will build on recent developments with the character in books like All-Star Batman and Dark Days: The Casting and establish his new role in Gotham City's ever-growing superhero community.

As revealed by Heat Vision, Batman and the Signal will be co-written by Batman veteran (and Duke's co-creator) Scott Snyder along with newcomer Tony Patrick, a recent graduate of DC's New Talent Development Workshop. The mini-series will be drawn by Cully Hamner (Black Lightning: Year One).

Batman and the Signal #1 cover by Cully Hamner. (DC Comics)

The new series opens as Duke has completed his rigorous training process and embraces his new costumed identity. Unlike most Batman books, Batman and the Signal will take place mostly during the day, with Duke confronting new villains in the light while Batman continues his own crusade by night.

"I brought up Duke Thomas in the course," Patrick told Heat Vision. "During the course, I said to Scott, 'You have this African-American teen character, what're you going to do with him? What's going to become of him?' And Scott said, 'I'd love to do a series about him in the future, and I'm looking for someone to help me write it!'"

Duke Thomas art by Declan Shalvey. (DC Comics)

DC also announced the lineup of this year's New Talent Development Workshop today. The class of 2017 features Sanya Anwar (1001), Ryan Cady (Big Moose), Robert Jeffrey (Radio Free Amerika), Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Last Sons of America), Magdalene Visaggio (Kim & Kim) and former IGN Comics editor Joey Esposito (Pawn Shop). DC also confirmed they'll be publishing another New Talent Showcase special featuring new stories from previous graduates.

Batman and the Signal will run for three issues and will make its debut in November 2017. For more on the big changes impacting Duke Thomas, here are five ways Dark Days: The Casting changed the DCU.

Jesse is a mild-mannered writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.

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