Batman – Santa Claus: Silent Knight may have been the strangest comic to come out of DC in 2023. The holiday mini-series revealed the true history of Santa Claus and his status as a former teacher of Bruce Wayne. Now, a sequel series with the original writer will see Santa return in time for the 2024 Holiday Season.
“I was blown away at how well last year’s Silent Knight series was received,” notes writer Jeff Parker. “Readers really responded to us going full tilt with Norse-mythos Santa in the DCU. Then to be asked if I wanted to do another one and have an extra issue? That was the Happy New Year.”
“The first Silent Knight series wasn’t quite what I expected, and I loved it for that,” says artist Lukas Ketner. “Jeff has an amazing ability to take an idea like a Batman and Santa team-up and play it straight with a great story, new DC lore, and a real threat. There’s humor of course, but it’s so much more effective when the stakes are real.”
(Image Source: DC / Lukas Ketner)
The sequel, titled Batman – Santa Claus: Silent Knight Returns, picks up one year after the earlier series. The Justice League investigates a new holiday horror, as life-drained bodies marked with strange symbols are discovered. This turns out to be a trap, which draws the League into another world. Thankfully, Batman is able to help Robin escape. Now, Damian Wayne must seek the aid of Zatanna and Santa Claus if there is to be any hope of saving his father and the world’s finest heroes.
Three uncolored pages from Batman – Santa Claus: Silent Knight Returns #1 may be viewed below.
(Image Source: DC / Lukas Ketner)
“Once Lukas started on Silent Knight Returns, our inboxes were blowing apart with visuals better than anyone imagined,” continued Parker. “The Bat Office started us good and early so we’ve had that rare planning time to really build out the story and craft an ominous and creepy villain. Cool monsters, exotic locales—you’ll love the smart details Lukas works in, it will reward multiple readings.”
“I come from a cartoony horror comics background,” added Ketner, “but when Jeff first brought up the possibility of a next installment of Silent Knight, I had a real ‘put me in, Coach!’ moment. The story leans into some great fantasy horror vibes, and I love that it could just as easily have been a DC Halloween series.”
The five issues of Batman – Santa Claus: Silent Knight Returns will be released weekly in comic shops everywhere, just before Christmas.