Batman! Batmen? Batman Incorporated!

      Something is stirring in Gotham City these days.  If you have been keeping up with DC Comics Batman titles, you know that Bruce Wayne has been missing and that former Robin turned Nightwing, Dick Grayson has donned the cape and cowl and taken the mantle of Batman,  Batman's son Damian is now Robin the Boy Wonder. With Bruce Wayne on his way back through time to present day, he will again be taking up the mantle but this time he will have help.  There will be not one Batman in Gotham but two!  When Bruce returns he will wear the costume but so will Dick Grayson!  What you say?  After the everything that has happened to Bruce Wayne int he last few years he decides that one Batman just isn't enough and possibly two won't be either!      DC publisher Dan DiDio said "Bruce Wayne realizes that he can't just be the grim avenger he was before," DiDio said. "He wants to be more aggressive in his reach, and realizes the change that Batman as a symbol can effect around the world."

      In the new title, "Batman Inc.," Wayne does what any billionaire would: build a Starbucks-style franchise of Dark Knights.

      "Without giving too much away here, we wanted to show how Batman can have a global influence," he said.

      To avoid confusion between the two Batmen, Grayson's costume features just the black bat logo, whereas Wayne's will include the black bat over a yellow moon.
      As for Grayson, the Boy Wonder is now all grown up, DiDio said.

      "Grayson's role really is the protector of Gotham City," he said. "But we thought it only made sense for Bruce Wayne, a billionaire, to take a more global view."

Bruce Returns!

     Starting in November, DETECTIVE COMICS, BATMAN and BATMAN AND ROBIN will feature the ongoing adventures of Dick Grayson as Batman, with Damian as Robin. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne will take center stage in the pages of Grant Morrison and Yanick Paquette’s BATMAN INC. and writer/artist David Finch’s BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT.

     So DC is banking on their flagship character with five titles and expecting the buying public to keep up with it all.  It's a risky gamble but with Morrison at the helm directing the traffic of it all, it should be a wild and fun ride!  I'm not totally sure on the idea of Batman "franchising" out the mantle around the world but I'm willing to see where it goes.  Will Bruce and Dick's personalities clash?  What about the hot headed Damian who was suppose to die in the current story line until he became a fan favorite?  How will the Joker, Penguin, and Two-Face react to this when they find out?All will be revealed in the coming months in DC Comics! (Sources: ign.com, nypost.com, dccomics.com)