Batman’s immortal nemesis rises again as DC Comics Villains Month continues.
James Tynion IV and Jorge Lucas explore the past of Ra’s Al Ghul in Batman and Robin #23.3 Ra’s Al Ghul and League of Assassins.
Grant Morrison gave a hint of what Ra’s Al Ghul’s possible plans may be in his Batman, Incorporated finale. But the Villains Month stand-alone is being hailed as “the origin of Ra’s al Ghul in The New 52.”
The story comes at a time when all of the great villains are confronted by the Crime Syndicate who has supposedly killed the Justice League and declared our Earth as their own.
When the Demon’s Head receives an offer from the Secret Society will Ra’s chose to follow their agenda or forge ahead with his own plan for the world?
Villains Month is not just the rogues taking over each book but it’s the return of the deadliest secret society in Batman mythology.
James Tynion IV (Talon, Red Hood and the Outlaws) is resurrecting the League of Assassins in the one-shot. The League was founded by Ra’s Al Ghul (non comic book movie fans will remember them as the League of Shadows in The Dark Knight Trilogy.)
The writer explains the return of the League:
“It was a piece that was originally suggested to me – that maybe there was something to the idea of reintroducing the League of Assassins in a cool new way. What I wanted to do was bring in some familiar faces and also create new characters so I could really build out this piece of mythology that I’ve always been fascinated with,” Tynion tells Comic Book Resources, “Especially after the Nolan movies – even though they’re the “League of Shadows” there – these kinds of super assassins and the world they operate in has always been one of my favorite pieces of comics. Looking what’s already been on the page, there haven’t been a lot of stories about how the League operates because they’ve always been secondary to Ra’s Al Ghul’s stories.
So I wanted to go at this and introduce the characters in a way that would draw something out in Jason (Todd) but also show a new corner of who they are and why they operate like they do. I wanted to show that there’s an assassin they’d send after a highly technological superhero. There’s an assassin they’d send after John Constantine if he ever crossed them. I wanted them to have a wide reach and a scale to them that they often don’t have since they’ve often been faceless ninjas in the background who stand behind Ra’s or Talia. That’s really where this all came from: the desire to do world building, establish new elements and use the New 52 to build something new that could last in continuity.
That all led to the creation of the assassin city whose name is Arabic for “Snake’s Nest” as this real central location. It’s the secret city they’ve been operating in for hundreds and hundreds of years. That was the seed that led to this story. I wanted to tie this great piece of the DC cosmos to what’s been a part of “Red Hood” from the very beginning. One of the first issues of the series had Talia taking Jason to the All-Caste, so I wanted to find that connection between the League of Assassins and the All-Caste. That’s at the heart of what will be explored in the next few issues.”
Tynion confirms this story serves as the origin story of the League in The New 52:
“100%. This is very much about the history and the legacy of Ra’s Al Ghul specifically and why he created the League of Assassins. I wanted to show moments that we haven’t seen over and over without overriding any of the classic Denny O’Neil stories. There will be little nods to that stuff in there, but I didn’t want to do his origin because his origin is just incredible in the original “Birth of The Demon” story.
So this comes out of a desire to show the reach and the power of Ra’s Al Ghul through the history of the DCU. You’ll see his hand in key a few key historical moments and how those moments affect the present day. But this is also very much a story that stands alone for anyone who isn’t reading “Red Hood” right now.”
No word on if this issue will tie-in to the cliffhanger finale in Batman, Incorporated #14 (see side above) in which the Demon’s Head plans to unleash an army of ‘Damian’ clones on the world.
Batman and Robin #23.3 Ra’s Al Ghul and the League of Assassins arrives Wednesday.
This is the creative behind the dark and brilliant Batman and Robin #23.2 Court of Owls issue.
by Editor