As the sun sets on Gotham City, something ancient wakes beneath its streets. That's the premise of Batman: Bad Seeds, the next major Batman event kicking off in August and running through October.
When Poison Ivy unleashes a desperate act of eco-terror that transforms Gotham into a hostile landscape of prehistoric plant life, Gotham's heroes, villains, and civilians fight to survive in an event that's told across one long, dark night. Led by "showrunners" Matt Fraction and G. Willow Wilson, Batman: Bad Seeds is a Gotham-wide comic book crossover that pulls every corner of the city into the crisis.
While Fraction (Batman) and Wilson (Poison Ivy) steer the event’s core narrative, the writers and artists behind Detective Comics, Batgirl, Batwoman, Catwoman, Nightwing, and Harley Quinn each deliver pivotal chapters that track Gotham’s transformation as the night deepens. Across ten weeks, readers will follow the crisis as it spreads from block to block, title to title.
As Ivy's plants spread, Gotham begins to mutate—buildings swallowed by vines, streets overtaken by carnivorous flora, and entire neighbourhoods reverting to a primordial state. With the Bat-Family hunted, the GCPD fractured under Commissioner Vandal Savage’s militarised rule, and civilians trapped in a city turning against them, Gotham City becomes a living battleground where every chapter brings a new evolution.
On August 26, DC will publish a Batman: Bad Seeds prelude in Poison Ivy #47. Written by G. Willow Wilson with art by Leandro Fernandez, a main cover by Jessica Fong, and variant covers by Noobovich, Kyuyong Eom, and Manny Vincent Carbonilla, this prelude issue reveals that Gotham City is done with Mayor Pamela Isley. There’s just one problem for everyone there: she’s not done with them.
Then, also on August 26, the event officially begins with Batman: Bad Seeds – Sunset #1. Written by Matt Fraction and G. Willow Wilson with art and cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli, Cliff Rathburn, and Tomeu Morey, plus variant covers by Dan Mora, Marcio Takara, Jorge Jiménez, and Jeff Spokes, the first chapter opens as the sun goes down. Gotham loses power, showing that the only thing scarier than the night...might just be the morning sun.
Gotham City’s mayor, Pamela Isley—deserted by her allies both political and arcane—is about to make a last-ditch power play that will leave Gotham decimated by daybreak. Having already declared war on the Bat-Family and flooded the streets with his private, paramilitarized police army, Police Commissioner Vandal Savage sees an opportunity to solve two problems at once.
Following August’s prelude and kickoff, the event continues across September and October in the pages of Batman, Poison Ivy, Detective Comics, Batgirl, Batwoman, Catwoman, Nightwing, and Harley Quinn, alongside several new event titles. You can see some first look cover art below.