Batman Creative Team Celebrate 50 Issues and the Return of Bruce Wayne

DC Comics launched the New 52 back in September 2011. This reboot set up a new status quo for the entire comic universe. The flagship Batman title is one of the few to still retain the original creative team for nearly all 50 issues. Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo have done wonders in setting Bruce Wayne on a new path with incredible story arc after story arc. Sadly their run is coming to an end with next month's issue #51.

We spoke to both creators on the oversized issue 50. This wraps up the Superheavy arc. Batman was presumed dead and Jim Gordon became Batman, mostly operating in a robo-bat suit. No surprise, Bruce Wayne is back as Batman and ready to fight the evil Mr. Bloom who has terroized Gotham City. Here's what the two had to say. There will be minor spoilers below!

GameSpot: What do you want to say about the first page and giving Gotham the Batman they deserve?

Scott Snyder: I think one of the things we've tried to do with this arc is to address fans concerns, fears, and also generosity with us for trying something as crazy as this. Luckily it's gone over even better than we expected. This page is largely about saying we're about to have a lot of fun. Bruce shaved off his beard and we see the Bat-sink. There's plenty of costumes and gadgets so let's get back and just explode onto the scene.

Is Alfred going to have to clean up the sink? Bruce just left all the shaving gunk there.

Greg Capullo: That's job security, brother.

Greg, how does the art process work for your? Do you just visualize in your mind what each panel would look like and then draw? What about the shadows and lighting?

Capullo: Yeah. I mean that's part of my job. Scott told me, "He can be in the cave. We'll see the sink. He'll open the armory." It's just my visual way to tell that story. I want readers to know they're in the cave instead of just doing the sink. I did a sliver panel on the side that shows the cave. Then I want to show how he goes about getting to the stuff. I add in the shadows and doors opening. It just kind of works together. Scott gives me his ideas on what has to take place or should take place on the page. How I go about getting to the end is either pretty close to that or a little far off sometimes. The whole storytelling bit comes from reading his inspirational script.

With Mr. Bloom so easily gaining control of the robo-suits, will this permanently put an end to their use?

Snyder: Yeah, I think so. Unless any other writers want to use them after me. They're more than welcome to drag them out of the recycling. They can use them anytime they want. Anytime you want a Bat-Jaeger, you can have it.

How did the idea of Batman making his entrance standing on the Bat-Signal come about? "Who died and made you Batman?"

Snyder: I had that line in my head for a while. I've been waiting to pull it out. It was such a classic Bruce line. Compared to Jim, I feel that Bruce is all confidence. Because the last issue had an emotional ending, I feel this Bruce would announce himself with more of a badass attitude than any Batman we've seen. I thought it was so cocky, but I thought, "Oh, that's just Bruce." We could get away with it.

Greg, what can you tell us about the new costume design? How long did it take? You've done a few different ones now.

Capullo: It was rather quickly. I find the design aspect of things to be one of the most fun parts of my job. What I tried to do with Batman was two things. I gave him a cowl that I've always wanted to do but couldn't do because Jim [Lee] had done the design at the launch [of the New 52]. I tried to get that flat, full nose look that turned me onto Frank Miller. It's actually from the old Batman black and white movies from way back.

Apart from that, I was trying to incorporate little threads of what Scott and I have done throughout our run. Instead of purple gloves, the inside of the cape is. With the belt, I tried to give it an almost bat-shape. The front part kind of looks like fangs and sweeps up like wings. He's always had a yellow utility belt. I thought, let's make it black with yellow piping. You still get the fitted yellow, but it still comes off as a bit more stealthy. I thought the black was needed to balance the way I designed the rest of the costume. That was it. I don't think it was radically a new costume. There's just slight nudges in different directions that, to me, encompass what Scott and I have done along the ride.

Since you designed it, do you make an official list of all the things and hidden compartments the suit has and can do for other artists?

Capullo: I will tell you, I am far too lazy for that. I don't even do that stuff for myself. I do a rough drawing, and I figure it out as I'm going, drawing the pages. I'll go, "Oh, okay. Now it's time to actually draw that gauntlet."

I think it's all the years from working with [Todd] McFarlane. Everything was just done on the fly. You just go as you go. So no, I've never sat down to do it. I've never been remotely ambitious enough for that.

With you two leaving the title, what happens with the developments with Duke Thomas or Julie Madison?

Snyder: They all die! No, all of that stuff gets picked up right afterwards in upcoming Batman stories—Duke Thomas especially.

Favorite moment from the issue?

Capullo: I don't know. For me, the whole thing was just a fun ride. It's just everything. I'll tell you one of the things I thought was just a funny idea that I passed by Scott and he ended up liking it—the giant Batarang moment. Scott had Batman being attacked by all these guys up on the roof. One guy shoots electrical bolts, and it hits the Bat-Signal. I had this thought, "You know what would be cool is when it explodes, the Bat-Signal goes way up in the air, and when it comes down, he whacks it like a baseball bat." It goes flying and takes the guy out.

Snyder: Honestly, that's probably my favorite too. I also had the scene in my head where he's in the giant Bat-Jaeger. Also when Alfred's telling Bruce he's the strongest now he's ever been, and he's beating up all the Blooms. He fights the giant Joker-bot.

Capullo: There's another one. This will really tell you how Scott and I work together and the flexibility he allows me to have with the story. We have Jaeger-meister Batman fighting the gigantic Bloom. Scott told me to choreograph it any way I wanted. He gave a couple fun ideas and one was, "Maybe Batman picks up a couple buses and claps Bloom's ears with them. Maybe he picks up a big trash bin and shoves it in his face." I was thinking about that, "If I'm the size of a Jaeger, would I pick up a couple of Matchbox cars or Hot Wheels cars to hit him when my fists are gigantic?"

I had this idea, which I did instead, which had an even bigger action. He just takes his head and rams it into an abandoned building and just drags it across the floors. Basically it demolishes the building, which eventually collapses. For me, that was a fun bit. Our only concern was to make it the coolest. He'll go, "Here's my idea, but if you have something else, run with it. Whatever feels right." That's a classic Snyder/Capullo moment right there.

Even though we still have 51 coming as the final issue for you two, what was it like finishing up this issue?

Capullo: This was probably one of the most fun issues in a while. It has a bit of everything. It's certainly high on action and cool stuff. What it's like finishing it, it was the first time where I didn't hate…much of it. I was like, "This came out pretty good."

Snyder: For me, it was a huge thrill to end and a relief that it made it. There was a strange challenge, and we were both passionate about it. To be able to finish it this way, where it's over the top with enjoyable moment after moment to write and see Greg draw, was a blast. 51 is really a quiet issue. It's the quietest issue we could possibly do with out it being boring. It's meant to be like a love letter to Batman, the mythology, Gotham, and all that stuff. This issue is the last time we get to do huge action.

Batman #51 is on sale this week.