DC’s Titans: Beast World event series is set to kick off at the end of this month, and the publisher is already hard at work preparing readers for what’s to come after the storyline’s conclusion. Today DC released new details about how the series ties in to the overall Dawn of DC initiative, and about the “Trinity of Evil” waiting to face the heroes of the DCU in Beast World‘s aftermath next year.
The “Trinity of Evil” in question is made up of Amanda Waller, who has played a key role in the overall Dawn of DC storyline since the conclusion of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths; the Brainiac Queen, a character first revealed at last month’s New York Comic Con as the central villain of an upcoming Superman storyline; and The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, the Dark Knight’s ‘pure’ alternate personality who has been a key player in the current run of Batman. From DC PR:
Titans: Beast World Launches Amanda Waller’s Plans for the DC Universe!
Amanda Waller, DC’s Queen of sinister operations, will play a key role Titans: Beast World. As the Super Heroes and Super-Villains of the DCU struggle to remain human, “The Wall” will seize this opportunity to rid humanity of metahumans once and for all, and at any cost. Furthermore, Waller is not above using those same metahumans to achieve her goals.
Waller’s scheming begins in Titans: Beast World Tour Metropolis#1, on sale December 5, and Action Comics #1060, on sale December 12. She plans to recruit Super Heroes and Super-Villains for a new Task Force X, with Nia Nal, aka Dreamer, playing a vital role. What that role is, and who else will be enlisted is still shrouded in mystery, but fans will find out what Amanda Waller has planned for Dreamer and the rest of this new team when new series Suicide Squad: Dream Team launches in March.
The launch of a new Suicide Squad series has felt inevitable since the ending of Dark Crisis, but Dreamer’s involvement is an unexpected curveball. The “Squad Dreams” story in Action Comics #1060 is written by Nicole Maines & Steve Orlando, with art by Fico Ossio & Luis Guerrero and letters by Rob Leigh. Here’s a preview of pages from that story (click to enlarge):
The same creative team is also behind “Primal Pain,” the Dreamer story in the Titans: Beast World Tour Metropolis #1 one-shot. Here’s an interior preview for that one:
No word on a creative team yet for Suicide Squad: Dream Team, but it’s a safe bet team mainstay Peacemaker will be joining Dreamer as part of the roster.
The Brainiac Queen Dominates Superman, Action Comics, and the House of Brainiac
Announced at New York Comic Con as part of the “Superman Superstars” takeover of Action Comics, Superman, Brainiac, and the Brainiac Queen will play crucial roles in DC’s 2024 plans.
“House of Brainiac” is a story in six parts, told between Action Comics and Superman, in addition to a Superman/Brainiac special one-shot. Superman’s world-collecting foe will finally launch the attack teased in Titans: Beast World Tour Metropolis, the current Superman run by Joshua Williamson, and August’s Superman Annual #1, starting with his release of Czarnians (Lobo and Crush’s species) to attack the Earth. With the subsequent introduction of the Brainiac Queen, the “House of Brainiac” storyline will result in a major confrontation between Superman (and the entire Superman family) Lobo, Brainiac, and the Green Lanterns.
Brainiac’s always been one of my favorite Superman villains, so this one’s especially exciting for me personally. I’m not sure why Brainiac needs a Queen, though, but she looks cool, and I’m willing to go with writer Joshua Williamson on this one. Rafa Sandoval is joining Williamson for the “House of Brainiac” storyline.
Batman Continues The Evolution of Zur En Arrh!
Beginning with December’s Batman #140 (“Mindbomb”), The Dark Knight will not only face his most brutal battle yet with The Joker, but Zur En Arrh will finally reveal his master plan in his relentless pursuit of eradicating all crime! Then, throughout the spring (“Dark Prisons,” Batman #145 – #148), Batman will have to face a terrifying figure from his past in order to survive Zur’s onslaught. And if he survives, a new enemy is waiting in the wings: Amanda Waller and the U.S. military!
Chip Zdarsky and Jorge Jimenez‘s run on Batman has felt somewhat disconnected from what’s going on in the larger DC Universe, so it’s interesting that it sounds like it’ll be dovetailing more into what Amanda Waller has going on next year. The slow build of the Zur-En-Arrh storyline has been really fun to see, and the events of The Gotham War have only complicated matters further in a really interesting way.
Along with the details above, DC also released an updated Dawn of DC timeline, including the cryptic tease that “Something evil is coming…”
Spooky!
More details on these stories and the “Trinity of Evil” are sure to come. This year’s Dawn of DC initiative has overall been incredibly strong, so hopefully DC can maintain that momentum into 2024.
