Early next year, Batman is entering the steampunk Victorian era of Gotham by Gaslight, a new animated feature film that is based upon the classic Elseworlds one-shot by writer Brian Augustyn and artist Mike Mignola. In the original story, Bruce Wayne and his Dark Knight alter ego were forced to contend with the arrival of the infamous serial killer, Jack the Ripper.
For Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, several familiar faces from the Batman mythos are also entering the story, including Poison Ivy. In this world, Pamela Isley isn’t a supervillain, she’s simply Pamela, “The Plant Lady.” And in the first preview scene from the film, a powerless Pamela finds herself face-to-face with the Ripper himself.
Unfortunately for Pamela, it doesn’t seem likely that she’ll survive her run-in with the Ripper. But this may explain why the Selina Kyle of this world is so hellbent on bringing the Ripper to justice herself. Selina may not be Catwoman in this timeline, but she has been friends with Pamela in other incarnations. If Pamela is killed by the Ripper, Selina would probably take that personally.
As for Batman, his connection to the Ripper may destroy his reputation as Bruce Wayne and doom his career as a hero before he can fully establish himself as Gotham’s protector. The police of this era are less likely to light a Bat-signal for a vigilante, and the previous trailer hinted that Bruce may be considered a suspect in the Ripper killings.
Batman: Gotham by Gaslight will be released digitally on January 23, 2018, with a DVD and Blu-ray release to follow on February 6, 2018.
What did you think about the first look at Batman: Gotham by Gaslight? Let us know in the comment section below!
Images: Warner Bros. Animation
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