DC Comics’ upcoming Batman: Arkham City comic series is the recently announced bridge between Batman: Arkham Asylum and its sequel, Batman: Arkham City.

The six-issue miniseries is slated to fill fans in on what happened between the games. The comic picks up roughly one year after the events of Arkham Asylum and finds Quincy Sharp, the former Arkham warden, being elected mayor of Gotham City.

Sharp’s first act as mayor is to shut the asylum down and establish a new maximum-security "home" for Arkham’s residents, Arkham City, near the heart of Gotham City.

The city takes a decidedly new approach to dealing with its residents, letting them roam free and do whatever they like so long as they keep it within the city’s walls. What could go wrong? Oh wait, did we mention that the new mayor appoints Hugo Strange, a genius psychologist who knows Batman’s true identity, to run the joint?

The comic’s story is being handled by Paul Dini, the acclaimed writer who penned both games in addition to working on comics and the animated series starring the iconic hero.

Dini’s encyclopedic knowledge of the dark knight and his intimate understanding of the game’s story should ensure the comic series will feature teases of what to expect from the upcoming game. We were able to get hold of the first five pages of the first issue of the series, which kicks off in May when the first two issues ship and will continue monthly. Take a look at how the story begins, and enjoy the fantastic art by Batman: Arkham City concept artist Carlos D’Anda, who knows his way around a comic thanks to his time working at DC Comics/Wildstorm. Check back for more on Batman: Arkham City in the months to come as it heads toward its fall release on the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.

Batman: Arkham City