With Greg Capullo having issued his statement of leaving the artist duties for Batman back in September, it only seemed natural that Synder would depart at some point as well after the duo have been on a two year voyage of guiding Batman through his journey into Nu52 establishment.
While Synder isn’t completely calling it quits for the cape crusader, he’s switching over to Detective Comics or so the story goes according to Bleeding Cool. Synder has made a pretty large impact on the modern depiction of Batman, having been tied to the character for at least five years with notable tales as The Black Mirror while Grayson was wearing the mantle and the introduction of the Court Of Owls which has been included adapting his story elements into the latest set of Batman animated films such as Son of Batman and Batman vs Robin.
Prior to Synder, the only other writer to have such a massive modern take on the character has been Grant Morrison, having made his mark with the introduction of Damian Wayne, Batman Inc and most notably famously “killing off” Bruce Wayne which sent him through a crazy time travel experience after the events of Final Crisis. Synder had a pretty big mantle to fill and getting his start on The Black Mirror while Grayson was wearing the cowl instantly gave him the claim to fame that most likely put him in charge of Batman since the switch over to Nu52.
With the rumour mill pegging that DC wants to ship Batman as a bi-monthly title as their new direction is gearing up to be more traditional in a sense, the mantle will wear heavy on whoever takes it as there’s been no solid word on who will be replacing Synder. The looming deadline for the switch over is sometime after the 50th issue as Bruce Wayne takes over for Gordon, establishing the status quo back to normal, a fresh start for a new team.
So with that in mind, here’s my run down list of likely candidates – Here’s a pick of three writers that have the chops to take on the Dark Knight.
James Tynion IV – Notable Bat Titles: Batman/TMNT, Batman Eternal, Batman & Robin Eternal, Batman Annual, Red Hood and the Outlaws
Tynion seems like a natural fit. He’s a former student of Synder himself and when it comes to titles that involve Batman, if it isn’t Synder at the helm – It’s Tynion.
He has all the experience to write the title and this could be the chance to make his name more notable as it has for Synder. It’d be a very surprising if he didn’t take on the title as there’s no other apparent reason why he shouldn’t, this would be the moment he’s been waiting for to say the least.
Chances of Success – He’s the Damian Wayne to Synder’s Bruce Wayne, he’s been groomed for the position for awhile, it’s just a matter of when.
Tom King – Notable Bat Titles: Grayson, Robin War
King is a bit of a wild card pick. The duo of King/Steeley have redefined Dick Grayson to become the James Bond of DC, setting up a secret agent world for the former hero to become a part of. His other claim of fame is handling the main title for Robin War crossover but the biggest claim to fame is his run on Omega Men.
The biggest factor is would King be interested? While he’s dabbled with characters from the Batman universe, a straight up take on Batman doesn’t really match his style and despite the very vocal fan presence for Omega Men, the floppy sales still aren’t that strong.
Chances of Success – He’s kinda like Gordon in a way with not being a direct candidate as someone to take over the reins but stranger things have happened.
Ed Brisson – Notable Bat Titles: Batman & Robin Eternal
You might be more familiar with titles such as Sheltered, The Mantle, The Violent or even Cluster as far as being known as writer but Brisson is busy behind the scenes of many different projects. His claim to fame as being notable crime style kinda writer, he’s also taking on few different positions such as lettering such as the acclaimed series, Prophet.
While he’s busy working on a certain Canadian superhero legend, he’s managed to sneak in a few mainlining duties for the recent Batman & Robin Eternal run and let’s face it, if Synder wasn’t heading up Detective for the big switch over – it’d have Brisson’s name all over it.
Chances of Success – If anyone would fit the role of Grayson, it has to be Brisson – with Eternal being a stepping stone, Detective would have been natural lead in but with the recent announced vacancy for Batman, now would be the time to step up to take the lead.
