In case you haven’t been keeping up with Batman comics, Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne’s butler, is dead. Alfred served the Wayne family for decades. During the City of Bane story arc, Bane took over Gotham City and ordered all the Bat Family to stay out. When Damian snuck into the city, Bane killed Alfred. Alfred was being held captive, and Bane killed him for Damian’s disobedience.
What will Batman’s life be like without Alfred? How will his death impact Gotham? This will be addressed in the upcoming Batman: Pennyworth R.I.P. #1.
Alfred death will obviously have a huge impact on Batman. This is the biggest tragedy since he lost his parents in Crime Alley. Alfred has been more than just his butler all these years. Things won’t be the same without him. Batman won’t be the only one dealing with the loss.
James Tynion IV and Peter J. Tomasi will take on the 48-page story with a team of artists showing everyone’s mourning of a great character.
Tynion made the following statement:
“The fabric of Gotham feels like it’s been ripped, and nowhere is that more evident than in Batman’s family. This is an emotional gut-punch of an issue, as the family comes together as they struggle with the loss of the man who held each of them up in their darkest hours, and decide what kind of family they have left, now that its heart has been removed.”
Tomasi added:
It’s been a privilege to write the Bat family for so many years and an even bigger privilege to be a part of giving Alfred, my second favorite character in the Batman mythology, a salute to his kick-ass service. I’m proud of this special and the new Detective Comics Annual #3 in giving Alfred Pennyworth more moments to shine.”
The artists include Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, Chris Burnham (Damian), Marcio Takara (Jason), Dioegenes Neves (Tim), Sumit Kumar (Dick) and David LeFuente (Barbara).
Comic book deaths aren’t new. For many, they’ve lost their impact because the characters usually miraculously return from the dead. When it’s a non-superhero character like Alfred, although some may argue he is a superhero, the chance of him being revived isn’t quite a sure thing.
That being said, Alfred has too much history with Batman and DC Comics to simply be killed off until the next reboot. Comic book deaths may show how fragile life can be and why the heroes are fighting the forces of evil. I just don’t really care to read about characters dying since the world can be a crummy enough place as it is.
Batman: Pennyworth R.I.P. #1 is on sale February 12, 2020. The 48-page comic will have a $4.99 price tag. Colors are by Adriano Lucas, Rex Lokus and Nathan Fairbairn. Lettering by Travis Lanham and Tom Napolitano.
How do you feel about Alfred’s death? Do you think he’ll come back any time soon?
What the Heck is going on?!? 