The next issue of Detective Comics is out tomorrow and it takes place during the Night of the Owls. Comic Book Resources talked with Tony Daniel about not only joining the Night of the Owls event, but also what is in store in Detective Comics going forward. Here are the highlights.
CBR: You just finished your Penguin arc and your next issue will take "Detective Comics" into the Night Of The Owls. Originally, "Detective" was not going to be part of the event — when did you decide that your corner of the Batman universe would be joining in the fight against the Talons?
Tony Daniel: It was just a matter of logistics, I guess. I was happy to join in the big arc.
CBR: Along those lines, while "Detective" features Bruce as the protagonist, so does Snyder's "Batman," which is the book leading the Night Of The Owls event. Because both your books involve Bruce, how do the two of you make sure the stories are distinct without having Bruce essentially be in two contradictory places doing two completely different things at the same exact time?
Tony Daniel: That's exactly what the challenge was. Night of the Owls is Scott's story. For this month, "Detective" plays a complimentary role to the bigger story, which is happening in "Batman." Scott figured out a good way for us to include both books into the storyline. This is his baby, so we talked beforehand and he read my plot to make sure it all fit perfectly with "Batman."
CBR: Story wise, what can you tell us about your story for the Night Of The Owls issue? Who is the Talon Bruce will be facing off against?
Tony Daniel: Essentially, the story revolves around Dr. Jeremiah Arkham, whose name is on the Talon hit list, and Batman has to save his life. There are three Talons to deal with, so Batman has triple the trouble!
CBR: Will you also be exploring a specific period of Gotham history in your issue, or in form is "Detective" going to be different than the other books participating in the crossover?
Tony Daniel: "Detective's" role was to connect a segment in between Scott's "Batman" issues, but we get to see and learn a bit about Dr. Arkham and his mindset, so it's different in that he's more of the focus this issue as opposed to Batman. The length of the story, twenty pages, means there's a lot to squeeze in there.
CBR: Charlotte and her sister, Jill, were the big focus of the Penguin arc that just finished, and we're left with a question as to what will happen to them. Will this be a thread you pick back up on in the near future?
Tony Daniel: Yes, we get back to Charlotte in issue 10. We'll have to see what happens during this coming arc in regard to her relationship with Bruce Wayne!
CBR: Finally, for your last arc, you created some crazy-looking new villains like Snakeface, Hypnotic, Combustible and the other crooks, all of whom were looking to Penguin for protection. For you, both as artist and writer, is the idea to switch back and forth between playing with established villains and introducing new ones in each arc? And will we get to see some of those villains popping up again soon?
Tony Daniel: Exactly. I want to bring in some new villains to keep from leaning on the old established ones too much. I think it can be refreshing to introduce some new concepts to Gotham City. Some of the characters I had the most fun with were semi-obscure characters at one point themselves. Like Fright, for instance, and now Professor Radium. So maybe one day twenty years from now, a new writer might dig out some of my guys. As for seeing some of those characters again, yes we will, actually, and sooner than you think!
For the entire interview, including talk about Ed Benes coming on board, head over to Comic Book Resources. Detective Comics #9 is in stores tomorrow.
Posted by Dustin Fritschel
