Warning: contains spoilers for The Batman and Scooby-Doo Mysteries #3!The Court of Owls have emerged as one of Batman’s greatest foes, and now they have received a perfect Scooby-Doo makeover. In a preview for The Batman and Scooby-Doo Mysteries #3, Scooby and the gang join forces with Batman to investigate a creepy old hotel–and discover it has a shocking connection to the Court of Owls.The issue, the third of twelve, goes on sale in print and digital December 13th.
In 2011, writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo inaugurated their Batman run in style by introducing the Court of Owls, a secret society that has been manipulating events in Gotham City since the city’s inception. Batman, initially believing the Court to be nothing more than a legend, ran afoul of them as well as their undead assassin Talon. After Batman humiliated the Court, they turned lose their legions upon Gotham, requiring the entire Bat-Family to come together to stop the menace. While the Court was defeated, they are not out, and recently it has been revealed they have branches all over the world, and have set their sights on other heroes as well. The Court has proven popular with fans, and has made appearances in other media as well; furthermore, they have been rumored to be the villains for the next Batman film. Now, the Court is coming to menace not only Batman, but Scooby, Shaggy and the rest of the gang as well.
The preview opens by introducing readers to Gotham’s Owl Court Hotel, once a playground for Gotham’s wealthy elite; now it has been shuttered for nearly a century. Rumors abound as to why, with some blaming a sordid scandal and others an evil ghost. One of Daphne’s high school friends, Bibi, has rented out the Hotel, which belongs to her family, for her birthday party. Outside of Scooby and the gang, no one has come to the party–except for Bruce Wayne, who seeks to buy the hotel. Readers then learn the Hotel’s history: Albus Powers built it in the 1910s. Powers was a self-made millionaire, which rankled the Court of Owls–then believed to just be a myth. Powers doubled down on his opposition to the Owls, naming it “The Owl Court” to spite them. Angry, the Court dispatched the Talon to the Hotel, frightening Albus away. In the years since, numerous people have tried to rent or buy the Owl Court–only to be chased away by the Talon. Bibi’s party is the first time in many years the place has been open, and the preview ends with a silhouette of a Talon in the window, watching the revelers below. The issue is written by Matthew Cody, illustrated and colored by Erich Owen and lettered by Saida Temofonte.
The Court of Owls Are Perfect Scooby-Doo Villains
While readers do not get to see Scooby and Batman fight the Talon, the stage has been set–and in the process the Court of Owls has received a Scooby Doo-style makeover. Numerous Scooby-Doo stories saw the gang investigating a creepy old house, or hotel, or castle–and discovering nearly every time the “haunting” was done by ordinary criminals dressed as ghosts or monsters. Here, the “haunted house” is the Owl Court Hotel and the monster is Talon. Yet unlike classic Scooby-Doo cartoons, the Talon is not an ordinary criminal, but instead an undead assassin. Whether this will hold true here remains to be seen, but regardless, Scooby and Shaggy have Batman in their corner–which will even the odds.
The Court of Owls, in the span of a decade, have become some of the Batman’s greatest foes, a testament to their power and frightening appearances. Now, the Court is getting a Scooby-Doo style makeover, but it makes no less the frightening.
The Batman and Scooby-Doo Mysteries #3 is on sale December 13th from DC Comics!