Tony Daniel has been a busy man lately. Besides writing The Savage Hawkman he also writes and draws Detective Comics. With the Dollmaker story coming to a close and a Penguin story coming up, Comic Book Resources caught up with Daniel to discuss some of the future plans for the series.
CBR: With the Dollmaker story arc wrapping up in December, What can you tell us about the following Penguin story?
Tony Daniel: We'll be seeing how the underworld works a little bit as Penguin opens up his new floating Iceberg Casino. There's a hit man, his gal, stolen money, a string of murders in the underworld and some secrets revealed about Charlotte's past. Also, we'll see if Batman would ever hit a lady. It's a shorter arc, but explosive.
CBR: In your pre-September "Batman" series, you were playing with a lot of the classic Batman villains, and the next arc after the Dollmaker reintroduces the Penguin. With "Detective," are you equally interested in reestablishing classic Batman villains as you are creating new bad guys?
Tony Daniel: That's exactly it. I'd like to bring new challenges to Batman as well as take the opportunity to bring in some of the classics. There's also a Scarecrow story in the pipeline that I'm looking forward to. I'm trying to keep "Detective" as fresh as possible. Even in the Penguin arc, we meet a couple new bad guys who might be worth keeping around, who might make a formidable foe in their own right one day.
CBR: Besides new villains, you've also got a new love interest for Bruce Wayne in TV reporter Charlotte Rivers. What can you tell us about Charlotte? And does this mean Bruce has put Selina behind him?
Tony Daniel: Charlotte is an investigative reporter who specializes in uncovering scandals and corruption, and has seen her share of controversy over her career. She does the kind of reporting that has and will continue to make her enemies, especially as she spends more time in Gotham City. She's really a strong woman and is independent. She's a pretty good match for Bruce, and that's why he likes her. She's crafty, smart and daring, too. There'll be some secrets unburied from her past at some point that might put a strain on their relationship one day, but we'll get there in time. As for Selina, I don't know if she's someone Bruce could ever completely put behind him. I'm sure she'll rear her head at some point in "Detective," and that will be fun when it does happen.
For the entire interview, including talk about Daniel's art style, head over to Comic Book Resources. Detective Comics #4 hits stores in less than two weeks.
Posted by Dustin Fritschel
