Article by Max Byrne
The Secret Six are coming! Following on from the groundbreaking The Batman Who Laughs, DC Comics are about to up the ante by introducing twisted, warped versions of some of their most beloved characters. Established favourites such as Supergirl, Shazam!, Hawkman and Blue Beetle will all be portrayed in the most hideous of ways. The identity of the final two heroes is a closely guarded secret, with all kinds of speculation running rife in regards to who they could be.
Remember the toxin that created The Batman Who Laughs? Well he had a little spare. Secretly introduce a little of it to our heroes, and there you have it, The Secret Six!
For more information on what is going to be one of the highlights of the year, please see the below press release direct from DC:
Corrupted by The Batman Who Laughs, Six DC Heroes
Become Nightmares for Batman and SupermanShazam!, Hawkman, Supergirl, Blue Beetle and More
Transform Into the World’s Finest’s Worst EnemiesSina Grace, Joe Bennett, Dennis Hopeless and Freddie Williams II
Deliver Two Spectacular November One-ShotsRobert Venditti, Pat Olliffe, Marc Andreyko and Eduardo Pansica
Tackle Tie-Ins Revealing Infections from DC’s Dark MultiverseSix corrupt versions of DC’s Super Heroes are coming to terrorize Earth this November and December, as DC today teased early details of a series of six comics running parallel to the story unfolding in Batman/Superman by writer Joshua Williamson and artist David Marquez. Each one-shot or tie-in special spotlights a corrupt version of Shazam!, Supergirl, Hawkman and more, known within the DC Universe as The Infected. These six issues star DC’s beloved heroes, revealed to be secretly infected by The Batman Who Laughs with a toxin that violently transforms them into the worst versions of themselves. Their buried frustrations and pent-up anger will boil to the surface, unleashing dangerous results.
Kicking off these spotlight, one-shot issues is The Infected: King Shazam! #1 on November 6th by writer Sina Grace (Iceman,Go Go Power Rangers) and artist Joe Bennett (The Terrifics, The Immortal Hulk), to be followed by The Infected: Scarab #1 on November 20th, written by Dennis “Hopeless” Hallum (Sea of Stars, The Astonishing Spider-Man) with art by Freddie E. Williams II (Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, He-Man/Thundercats). Both issues will feature covers by David Marquez and Dean White. One is a story of a hero whose soul has been turned black and who has something to prove to the old guard, the other a tale of a hero fighting the evil inside him, with his friends and family about to pay the price…and then some.
While fans got hints of The Infected in The Batman Who Laughs by Scott Snyder and Jock and have seen the brutality of a jacked-up, Dark Multiverse-infected Shazam! in previews of Batman/Superman, the scope of the deadly pathogen unleashed by The Batman Who Laughs, himself a twisted Dark Multiverse version of Bruce Wayne, has yet to be realized.
Rounding out November are The Infected tie-in issues Hawkman #18 on November 13th, written by Robert Venditti with art by Pat Olliffe and Tom Palmer, and Supergirl #36 on November 13th, written by Marc Andreyko with art by Eduardo Pansica and Julio Ferreira. Hawkman #18 cover art is by Tyler Kirkham while Supergirl #36 cover art is by Dan Mora.
Through all this, neither Superman nor Batman know who’s been infected, they don’t know who has turned, and they don’t know who’s a sleeper agent for The Batman Who Laughs. Can they even trust each other? All six of The Infected will be revealed when Batman/Superman #4 by Joshua Williamson and David Marquez, with an acetate cover by Emanuela Lupacchino, hits shelves on November 27th!
The final two victims of The Batman Who Laughs’ toxins, no spoilers here, will hit shelves with spotlight one-shot issues of their own in December 2019. Pick up The Batman Who Laughs (HC) by Scott Snyder and Jock along with Batman/Superman#1 by Joshua Williamson and David Marquez on August 28th at your local comic shop for clues to who the other two heroes turned by The Batman Who Laughs’ influence might be!
For more news and updates on the World’s Greatest Super Heroes, visit www.dccomics.com, the DC YouTube channel or follow @DCComics on social media.
The Secret Six are going to be leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. One thing is for certain, the DC Universe will never be the same again!
Who do you think are going to be the final two members? Could they be big names, or more leftfield choices? Who do you want to see corrupted beyond all recognition? How do you think it will all play out? Let us know your thoughts below.
