Posted in: Batman, Comics, DC Comics, Speculator Corner | Tagged: Batman, Batman: The Knight, catwoman, dc comics, gray shadow, henri ducard

Speculator Corner: Batman: The Knight #2 Major First Appearance?

Published Sat, 05 Feb 2022 12:57:10 -0600

by Rich Johnston

Last updated Tue, 04 Oct 2022 12:13:02 -0500

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Expanding on a little Gotham Gossip from Bleeding Cool earlier, Batman: The Knight #2, published in a week-and-a-bit, maybe a comic book speculator's dream – depending on your point of view. There are also spoilers going down, nothing that I believe will actually, genuinely spoil the comic for anyone, but if you want to remain virgin-fresh, this is where you stop reading. Batman: The Knight #2 by Chip Zdarsky and Carmine Di Giandomenico is solicited thus;

BATMAN THE KNIGHT #2 (OF 10) CVR A CARMINE DI GIANDOMENICO
(W) Chip Zdarsky (A/CA) Carmine Di Giandomenico
Bruce Wayne's journey toward becoming the Dark Knight has begun, and he has many hard lessons to learn before his education is complete. His adventure begins in the City of Lights, Paris, where he'll train with a world-renowned cat burglar and come into contact with a horrifying serial killer stalking the city's wealthy elite…
Retail: $4.99 In-Store Date: 2/15/2022

The series has been retelling Bruce Wayne's journey from an angry young man to Batman, including the global experiences he must undertake, how he deals with his own trauma, and the reactions of those around him. A SyFy preview of the issue in question quotes Chip Zdarsky saying;

We introduce Henri Ducard, the world's greatest manhunter in issue two in a hopefully unexpected way. And thanks to James Tynion introducing Ghostmaker as part of Bruce's travels, we've weaved him into this story as well, giving readers some key moments in their relationship.

One might surmise that the cat burglar mentioned is Henri Ducard. Created by Sam Hamm, and first appearing in Detective Comics #599 in 1989, A French detective, Ducard is one of Wayne's few teachers who has had a continuing presence in the comics such as The Man Who Falls and Blind Justice, having taught a young Bruce Wayne the art of the manhunt. Ducard's moral ambiguity led to future conflicts with Batman. In the movie Batman Begins, Ducard appears as Wayne's mentor in crime fighting, but it later turns out that he was actually Ra's al Ghul in disguise. In The New 52 series Batman and Robin, he trains his son Morgan in the art of assassinating under the name "NoBody". However, the solicitation for Batman: The Knight issue 3 suggests they are separate people.

BATMAN THE KNIGHT #3 (OF 10) CVR C RAFAEL ALBUQUERQUE THE BATMAN CARD STOCK VAR
(W) Chip Zdarsky (A) Carmine Di Giandomenico (CA) Rafael Albuquerque
While training in Paris with an infamous cat burglar, Bruce gets caught in a web between Henri Ducard and a serial killer known as the Foundling…will this "first test" for the young Batman prove deadly?

And the preview for Batman: The Knight #2 shows us the following;

She's also on the cover.

That is Lucie. The Gray Shadow. And Batman: The Knight #2 marks her first appearance. A French cat burglar who takes the role previously played by Ducard, in training Bruce Wayne to be the man he will become – and also seeing him fall hopelessly in love with this mysterious female burglar who runs across the rooftops avoiding getting caught by the police. You know, when Seline Kyle turns up, all the work on Bruce has already been done… Anyway, if you did want a copy, it is advised you just check with your comic store. Today if possible.

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