DC Comics’ preview shows how plunging Gotham into a state of terror began with an early Scarecrow’s theory on societal evolution.
The origin behind the Fear State about to plague Gotham City in Batman and related titles has been revealed.
A preview for Batman: Fear State: Alpha #1 sees Simon Saint and Dr. Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow, meet for the first time in Arkham Asylum, before it was destroyed during Infinite Frontier #0. Saint sought out Crane based on a theory the doctor cultivated in graduate school, one where societal evolution could be achieved if the people were to face a period of tremendous trauma. That was the beginning of the two’s plan to execute Crane’s Fear State Theory on Gotham.
The Fear State event has been brewing within DC Comics since that Infinite Frontier issue continued on into Batman #106. The Batman issue was the first time readers saw Batman captured and tormented by Scarecrow, a sequence they would only receive glimpses of at the beginning of each additional issue. Every issue featured Gotham’s slow descent into terror and paranoia as Scarecrow and Saint worked tediously to frighten Gotham over a slow build in time.
In the preview, the conversation between Saint and Crane revealed that this was all part of the theory’s execution. According to Crane, the state “needed to be reached naturally before it could be exploited.” Hence, this is why Scarecrow wasn’t attacking the city directly, but instead left scarecrows in secure areas that no person should have been able to enter unnoticed.
Placing these scarecrows, finding a scapegoat with the Unsanity Collective and making vigilantes be viewed more as menaces was all to bring Gotham to the brink of the Fear State. The conversation between Saint and Crane showed that the tech mogul sought to make the city malleable to be reimagined and developed differently. Saint wanted the Fear State so that he could successfully implement his Magistrate program.
Of course, Batman #111 saw Scarecrow betray Saint, intending to use the Fear State to his own advantage and push Gotham even further beyond terror and fear. That issue also left off with Batman finally falling into Scarecrow’s clutches, seeing the beginning of the terror sequence that appeared in each previous issue. The preview for Batman: Fear State: Alpha #1 can be found below.
Batman: Fear State: Alpha #1
- Story by JAMES TYNION IV
- Art by RICCARDO FEDERICI
- Cover by BEN OLIVER
- ON SALE 8/31/21
- 4.99 US | 40 PAGES | FC | DC
- Card stock variant cover by DYLAN TEAGUE
- US $5.99 US
- 1:25 card stock variant cover by JORGE JIMENEZ
- $5.99 US
- Foil Team Retailer card stock variant by FRANCESCO MATTINA
- $5.99 US
- The event over a year in the making begins Fear State settles upon Gotham City, and no one is safe! Overwhelmed by the dual threat of the Scarecrow and Peacekeeper-01, Batman and his allies have been one step behind since the events of Infinite Frontier #0 and with the arrival of a mysterious anti-Oracle and the return of Poison Ivy, Batman might have more than he can handle!
Batman: Fear State: Alpha #1 is written by James Tynion IV with art by Riccardo Federici. Main cover art was created by Ben Oliver, with variant covers by Francesco Mattina, Jason Fabok, Jorge Jimenez, Dylan Teague, Natali Sanders, Kael Ngu, Ejikure and Megan Hutchison-Cates. The issue goes on sale Aug. 31, 2021 from DC Comics.
Source: DC
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