Batman Damned #3 Orders Cancelled By DC Comics

DC's big finale for its Black Label series Batman Damned has been pushed back, with all orders being cancelled.

Batman Damned has sold quite well for DC, a book that was the initial offering from DC's Black Label mature readers line, though fans will have to wait a bit longer for the finale, which now has been pushed back to May (via Bleeding Cool). Written by Brian Azzarello and drawn by Lee Bermejo, the book courted some big responses from fans and the mainstream media when the first issue featured a look at Batman's penis, and though it became the talk of social media DC scrubbed it from digital versions of the book and did not reprint it.

Batman Damned #2 was subsequently delayed due to scenes in the issue now being scrutinized, causing Bermejo to have to paint new ones. Batman Damned #3 is likely facing a similar redo of scenes, especially since DC has canceled all orders of the issue and solicited the issue for May. That gives time for Bermejo to craft new art for the book, but is this possibly more than a delay?

That's the big question, as DC has recently had other comic controversy that resulted in cancellations. The Jesus Christ superhero teamup Second Coming was recently cancelled after also generating some controversy and evidetntely a great deal of hate mail.

Writer Mark Russell took to social media to clear the record about why the book was cancelled. "DC/Vertigo's cancellation of the orders for Second Coming, just so you know, DC did not do anything untoward to me," Russell tweeted. "I asked for the rights back and they gracefully agreed. They've been a pleasure to work with and it will still be released, albeit with a different publisher."

While Second Coming's cancellation looks to have been creator-driven, it's still a lot of backlash that the company doesn't want, and after a flurry of other Black Label announcements after the brand was revealed, little to nothing has been seen from the other projects, and the one that has released keeps having to be retooled. All that creates the possibility that either A. Batman Damned #3 comes out in May but the Black Label brand just sort of fades away afterward or B. Batman Damned #3 just sort of fades out of existence and doesn't release. Granted, we could totally be wrong and Batman Damned #3 comes out in May and Black Label news starts rolling in, so, for now, we'll have to wait and see.

You can check out the official description for Batman Damned #3 below.

"The stunning conclusion to the groundbreaking miniseries by the critically acclaimed team of writer Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo is here! Batman's most baffling case brings him face to face with his worst nightmare in this highly anticipated finale!"