Recaps

Jason took Roy and the Roland Cathedral group on an armed nighttime patrol through Gotham, where they disrupted a drug deal and encountered Joker’s agents. Astra then reunited with Harley Quinn, whom she called her godmother, while Jason led the others back to the church.

• Jason took Roy and the Roland Cathedral group to Black Mask’s territory for a nighttime patrol, and they waited near a construction site for Black Mask to arrive.
• Joker confronted Jason, attacked him, and escaped into the sewers, so Jason sent Poseidon after him and alerted Batman.
• Jason and his crew raided Black Mask’s drug deal, subdued the people inside, and divided the cash before leaving half for the police.
• Jason’s group encountered Hammer, a clown with a time bomb, and Astra disarmed the bomb, gave him money, and told him to leave Gotham.
• Astra rode her Nightmare Unicorn to find her godmother, Harley Quinn, while Jason led the others back to the church.
• Astra greeted Harley Quinn by clinging to her, and Harley silently wished she could return to Arkham.

Joker framed Bruce Wayne for shooting Roman Sionis, leaving Bruce in police custody as Roland and Jason went to investigate. Clark secretly used his super-speed to get them inside the police station, and Roland questioned why he had removed his glasses.

• Joker lured Batman out and revealed his plan to frame Bruce Wayne for murdering Roman Sionis.
• The Joker Gang recorded someone resembling Bruce shooting Black Mask at Wayne Manor, and the police arrested Bruce.
• Constantine and Deadpool defended Bruce to reporters, while Deadpool said someone else would help Batman.
• Roland and Jason decided to visit Bruce, and Roland found Clark among the reporters outside the police station.
• Clark took off his glasses and carried Roland and Jason into the police station at super-speed, prompting Roland to ask why he had removed them.

Roland and Clark visited Bruce in police custody, where Bruce explained that Joker and Black Mask had targeted him, while Man-Bat forced Black Mask to reveal their plan. Harvey Dent prepared Bruce’s defense, and Bruce won his murder trial as Black Mask was sent back to prison.

• Roland and Clark met Commissioner Gordon, who took them to see Bruce in temporary detention.
• Bruce told Roland that Joker and Black Mask had targeted him, and Roland suggested investigating Black Mask’s motives.
• Man-Bat threatened Black Mask with a syringe until Black Mask admitted that he and Joker had conspired to send Bruce Wayne to prison.
• Harvey Dent gave Bruce an alibi and witness statement for court, and Bruce agreed to use them rather than reveal that he was Batman.
• Bruce won his murder trial with help from his lawyers and the judge, while Black Mask was convicted of perjury, escaping prison, and other crimes.

Roland investigated the strange Joker incident and sought Madame Xanadu’s tarot reading for Batman. The ominous cards left Roland worried about Batman’s future, though the chapter ended with the family gathered safely at Wayne Manor.

• Roland and Bruce concluded that the Joker who tested Batman was the Clown, one of the three Jokers, and Bruce said he would handle him.
• Roland went to Madame Xanadu in New York, who gave him The Hanged Man for Joker and The Tower for Batman.
• Madame Xanadu warned that Batman’s card signified sudden, devastating change, but said its meaning might differ from Roland’s interpretation.
• Roland returned to Wayne Manor and urged Bruce to be careful after showing him The Tower card.
• Selina explained that she had brought Helena back to Gotham to visit Bruce, and Alfred served cookies to the gathered family.

Roland gained Lorgar Aurelian's alpha-level psychic power, then discovered that Crime Alley had been destroyed while Bruce was there. He attacked Ultraman at the Daily Planet, demanding to know where Owlman was.

• Roland drew Lorgar Aurelian's alpha-level psychic power and briefly sensed Starro approaching before returning to normal.
• Bruce found Roland's protective charms, including an original edition of Augustine's Confessions, while Roland learned how dangerous his new psychic power could be.
• After hearing that Joker had escaped Arkham Asylum, Roland called Bruce, who said he was walking with Selene in Crime Alley.
• Roland saw that Crime Alley had been bombed and used the Philosopher's Stone to open a portal there, then called Lois when Superman did not answer.
• Roland heard Ultraman threaten Lois, entered the Daily Planet through a portal, and savagely attacked him while demanding Owlman's location.

Roland followed Owlman to Earth-3 and used Gotham’s magical nodes to summon seven Dark Knights as Servants. The Holy Grail War began with the Crime Syndicate facing their summoned opponents.

• Roland learned from Grid that Owlman was in Blüdhaven, confronted Owlman’s hologram, and discovered he had escaped to Earth-3 using Pandora’s Box.
• Roland traveled to Earth-3, where Ultraman and the Crime Syndicate trapped him in Gotham and blocked his spatial powers.
• Under attack, Roland summoned Saber, Lancer, Archer, Berserker, Rider, Caster, and Assassin through the Holy Grail ritual.
• Owlman and Volthoom Ring fled as the Servants engaged the Crime Syndicate, and Roland announced that the Holy Grail War had begun.

Joker joined forces with The Batman Who Laughs and The Red Death, while Owlman used the Mobius Chair to learn about the summoned Bruces and tried to manage his endangered allies. The chapter left Volthoom Ring trapped in Owlman’s custody and Grid fleeing Alfreds in the network as The Murder Machine pursued him.

• Joker escaped his self-destructing Safehouse and agreed to hear The Batman Who Laughs’s plan against Owlman.
• The Batman Who Laughs and The Red Death took Joker with them and set out to find The Murder Machine.
• Owlman used the Mobius Chair to learn about the Dark Knights and the Holy Grail War, then ordered Volthoom Ring into a bank where he could be rescued.
• The Dawnbreaker chased Volthoom Ring into the bank, but Owlman teleported him into a cage and told him to use Flash Mode against The Dawnbreaker.
• Grid called Owlman for help while countless Alfreds pursued him through the network and The Murder Machine threatened to reach his body.

Roland and the Dark Knights confronted Owlman after hunting down his allies, but The Batman Who Laughs betrayed Roland with the anti-life equation. Joker’s sacrifice gave Roland a chance to strike back, and Batman arrived just as Roland was about to kill Owlman, revealing he had been seeking Pandora.

• The Dark Knights destroyed Deathstorm and captured Johnny Quick, while Owlman escaped and Grid was found at the Gotham City Television Station.
• At Gotham’s harbor, The Batman Who Laughs used the anti-life equation to turn on Roland, but Roland’s commands forced The Merciless and The Murder Machine to kill themselves.
• Joker detonated his bomb to stop The Batman Who Laughs, and Roland used his remaining Command Spells to unleash Doomsday, who defeated The Drowned and tore apart The Batman Who Laughs.
• Roland healed the injured Joker and prepared to kill Owlman, but Batman appeared and explained that he had faked his death to investigate the intruders.
• Batman revealed that he had gone to find Pandora of the Trinity of Sin, who stood beside him.

Pandora recounted how she opened Pandora’s Box and was cursed by the Council of Eternity, while Batman explained that he had helped Diana seal the Seven Deadly Sins. After Joker killed Owlman, Pandora considered joining the United States Justice League, and Roland kept the mysterious Lesser Grail instead of making a wish.

• Pandora told Roland and Batman how opening the box released the Seven Deadly Sins, destroyed her tribe, and led to her eternal sentence as one of the Trinity of Sin.
• Batman revealed that Diana had sealed the Seven Deadly Sins in a box forged by Hephaestus, and that he had been helping Pandora while Roland fought on another Earth.
• Batman took the Volthoom Ring from the ring-bearer, while Joker shot Owlman and Batman held his dying brother; Outsider Alfred then shot himself.
• Pandora described the skills she had learned over the centuries and said she might help humanity, while Batman invited her to join the United States Justice League.
• Roland had The Red Death retrieve a pitch-black Lesser Grail, then put it away rather than make a wish.

After the Crime Syndicate fell, Roland and Batman dealt with Grid, brought Jester back to their Gotham, and then visited Jason Blood with Raven. The chapter ended with Etrigan discovering that Raven was his aunt.

• Roland found Victor after Batman reminded him that he had been left behind, while Grid declared that he planned to rule the world.
• Batman trapped Grid with a data injector, and Cyborg recovered with Grid's memories, including the knowledge that Grid had hacked Roland's computer.
• Roland gathered the Mobius Chair, Superwoman, and Ultraman's ship, then brought Jester from the Crime Syndicate's Gotham to his own.
• Jester met Harvey Bullock and Harley Quinn in Gotham, where he learned that Harley had named her pet monkey after his companion.
• Roland took Raven to Wayne Manor to meet Jason Blood, then revealed that Raven was Trigon's daughter and Etrigan's aunt.

Roland and the other adults were pulled into an extradimensional space after Morgan le Fay revealed that Mordred had used the Primordial Magic Symbol to banish them. Back on Earth, Raven gathered the remaining children and young heroes to confront Mordred, leaving the adults watching through Merlin’s magical broadcast.

• Roland vanished in a purple ripple, and Raven discovered that nearly every adult on Earth had disappeared while the children remained.
• Roland found Batman and other heroes in an extradimensional space, where Morgan le Fay explained that Mordred had used the Primordial Magic Symbol to send the adults away.
• Morgan offered to turn the adults into children, but Roland trusted the Justice League to handle Mordred on Earth.
• Merlin sent a Dream Demon double to Earth and created a magical screen so the adults could watch events there.
• Raven brought Damian to Roland Cathedral, where Jason rallied the children and Jeanne d'Arc, Roy, Kara, Bizarro, and Conner joined the preparations.
• Raven opened a Portal to the source of the witchcraft, and Nightwing led the Justice League out to begin the fight.

The Roland Cathedral expeditionary force fought Mordred’s army at Londinium, where Jeanne d’Arc directed the attack and Cassandra broke through the enemy cavalry. The battle continued with the expeditionary force advancing despite Mordred’s defenses and summoned warriors.

• Merlin and the others saw dragon-shaped omens above Roland’s force and Mordred, while Mordred learned an army was approaching Londinium and led his knights there.
• At Londinium, Jeanne d’Arc’s gunners and Dragon destroyed the attacking Gargoyles, prompting Mordred to summon young warriors with his Primordial Magic Symbol.
• Automatons met Mordred’s infantry as Cassandra charged through his cavalry, defeated Grant Wilson, and helped Donna capture him; Kara later captured Rose Wilson.
• Beast Boy transformed into a hydra and routed Mordred’s flank attack, while Nightwing and Starfire damaged the fortress wall before Terra Markov repaired it.
• Mordred ordered ballistae and archers to fire, but Jeanne d’Arc directed the fighting and pointed out that the expeditionary force’s line was steadily advancing.

Jason and the heroes fought Mordred’s forces in a magical battle, shattering the symbol that sustained Mordred’s power and securing victory. After everyone returned to the real world, Morgan took Mordred away, while Batman and the Rogues discovered that Barry was missing.

• Jason began the siege as Astra invoked Napoleon, Jeanne d'Arc, and Charles de Gaulle, while giant trees hurled boulders at Mordred’s army.
• Nightwing and Cyborg drew Mordred into battle, and Cyborg struck the Primordial Magic Symbol on Mordred’s chest with an Anti-Life Beam.
• With Mordred unable to summon more troops, Jeanne d'Arc led the heroes forward, Raven captured Terra, and the others overwhelmed Mordred.
• The sorcery ended, the adults returned to the real world, and Morgan took Mordred away.
• Wonder Woman put Roland in an armbar after he commented on her age, and Batman and the Rogues searched for the missing Barry.

Batman investigated The Flash’s disappearance and found blue Lantern energy at the Central City Bank. Roland identified the Blue Lantern Corps’ connection to the coming Blackest Night and suggested that a Blue Lantern ring had chosen The Flash.

• The Rogues told Batman that they had last seen The Flash at Central City Bank before he vanished.
• Batman examined the bank and detected energy resembling Green Lantern energy; Roland brought Green Lantern to the scene through a portal.
• Green Lantern identified the trace as blue hope energy and explained that the Blue Lantern Corps represented hope.
• Roland described the emotional-spectrum Lantern Corps and said the Blue Lanterns were preparing for the Blackest Night.
• Roland concluded that a Blue Lantern ring had probably chosen The Flash, but left the nature of the Blackest Night unexplained.

Roland, Batman, Green Lantern, and Deadpool argued over comic-book lore while searching for Barry, who called from Odym to say he was training as a Blue Lantern. Batman captured the Rogues in Central City, then Roland sent Deadpool through a series of portals that ended at the Queen’s bedroom in Buckingham Palace.

• Roland explained the Black Lantern Corps to Green Lantern and summoned Deadpool to ask about the Blackest Night comics.
• Roland and Deadpool argued about Nekron’s power and the events of Blackest Night, while Green Lantern and Batman questioned their unreliable discussion.
• Batman called Barry and learned he was on Odym training with the Blue Lantern Corps for a future crisis.
• After Barry mentioned that the Rogues had robbed a jewelry store, Batman confronted and captured Captain Cold, Captain Boomerang, Weather Wizard, Mirror Master, Pied Piper, and Abra Kadabra.
• Roland took Batman back to Gotham and repeatedly redirected Deadpool, finally sending him through a portal to the Queen’s bedroom in Buckingham Palace.

After returning to Gotham, Roland met Toyman, who demonstrated dangerous toys and let the children try them. Toyman stayed to discuss new designs with the kids, while Deadshot asked Jason to keep the youngest children away from the toys.

• Roland returned to the church, where Deadshot was sorting and servicing weapons, and told him that The Flash had gone to the North Star.
• Toyman visited Roland in Gotham and explained that he wanted to test his new toys while Superman was away from Metropolis.
• Roland tested Toyman's Slot Machine and toy soldiers, which dispensed a gold coin, fired kryptonite at him, and attacked him with miniature weapons.
• Roland called Jason over to try the toys, and Toyman began talking with the children about his creations and their suggestions.
• Jason told Deadshot that Toyman was Superman's enemy and sometimes endangered children, so Deadshot asked him to keep little Edward and Zoe away from the dangerous toys.

Bronze Tiger rescued Mary McCabe and her father, Richard Kivie, from robbers, and Roland discovered that Mary's necklace was the magical Tantu Necklace. After learning its powers, Mary considered becoming a superhero called Vixen but decided to keep looking for work as a designer.

• Roland and Deadshot discussed Toyman's unpaid orders while cleaning up Roland Cathedral, and Bronze Tiger left for a drink.
• Bronze Tiger stopped a robbery and met Mary McCabe and Richard Kivie, then offered to escort them through Gotham.
• Roland sensed power in Mary's necklace and used the Red to awaken its abilities, giving her heightened senses and animal powers.
• Roland brought Constantine in to identify the necklace, and Constantine learned from Giovanni that it was the Tantu Necklace, which could grant animal and nearby metahuman abilities.
• Mary discussed becoming a superhero named Vixen but decided to continue seeking design work, and Bronze Tiger offered to walk her and Richard back toward their hotel.

Bronze Tiger helped Mary explore her necklace’s powers and fought Killer Moth alongside her, prompting her to take the name Vixen. After Gotham police arrived, Bronze Tiger explained why he trusted Harvey Bullock more than the usual police channels.

• Roland returned to the Church while Bronze Tiger stayed with Mary, who told her father Richard Kivie that her necklace might help her find answers about herself.
• Bronze Tiger and Mary detected Killer Moth hovering nearby, and Bronze Tiger identified him as an antique thief before they confronted him.
• Bronze Tiger disarmed Killer Moth’s acid attack, and Mary used animal abilities to defeat him and leave him unconscious on a rooftop.
• Bronze Tiger contacted Commissioner Gordon, and Sergeant Harvey Bullock arrived with officers to arrest Killer Moth.
• Mary introduced herself to Bullock as Vixen, and Bronze Tiger explained that he called Bullock directly because a former dispatcher had made him distrust the usual police channels.

Vixen questioned how her mother died despite wearing the powerful necklace, while Bronze Tiger offered help and later learned Deadshot had remarried. In Gotham, Jester hunted Joker through the night until Batman caught him, leaving Joker exhausted and convinced everything was boring.

• Vixen told Bronze Tiger she wanted to investigate her mother's death herself, and they exchanged phone numbers before parting.
• Bronze Tiger learned that Deadshot had remarried his wife after they reconciled while discussing custody of their children.
• Jester and Harvey Dent patrolled Gotham beneath the Joker-Signal, and Jester said the night might become lively.
• Jester attacked Joker, who fled across the rooftops until dawn while Harley Quinn helped pursue him.
• Batman confronted Joker, explained that Jester had endured tragedy without becoming twisted, and seized Joker after he threw a firework at him.

Batman investigated Otis Flannegan’s wrongful murder conviction at Harvey’s request, uncovering coerced testimony and evidence that Elliot was the real killer. Harvey overturned the conviction, but Otis returned to Blackgate Penitentiary and escaped through a tunnel.

• Harvey asked Batman to investigate Otis Flannegan’s conviction, and Batman agreed after finding serious flaws in the case files.
• Batman questioned Julian at Blackgate, who admitted Officer Fay Fisher had forced him to testify that Otis killed the victim.
• Batman found Elliot, the real killer, and arranged for him to receive treatment for his drug addiction after getting his account of the fight.
• Batman gave Harvey the testimony and evidence, and Harvey secured a retrial that cleared Otis and won him compensation.
• Otis asked to return to Blackgate after his acquittal, then escaped through a tunnel inside the prison.

After Otis Flannegan escaped while seeking permission to visit prison, Batman recruited Roland and others to search Gotham’s sewers for the Ratcatcher. The group entered the maze-like tunnels with Vixen and Beast Boy, whose glowing armadillo form illuminated their path.

• Mayor Kate, Harvey, and Batman discussed whether Otis Flannegan’s escape counted as a prison escape, and Batman decided to find and speak with him.
• Batman asked Tim to search for Otis, then learned from Damian that Ratcatcher knew Gotham’s sewers well.
• Batman and Damian went to Roland Cathedral, where Bronze Tiger lost a sparring match to Vixen.
• Roland agreed to gather students familiar with the sewers, while Vixen and Beast Boy volunteered to join Batman’s search.
• Roland, Batman, the students, Bronze Tiger, Vixen, and Beast Boy entered Gotham’s sewers, where Beast Boy transformed into a glowing armadillo and fired a beam of light.

Batman and his allies found Ratcatcher beneath Gotham and tried to persuade him to abandon his revenge against humanity. Roland suddenly left through a portal, claiming he would find Ratcatcher a daughter, leaving Ratcatcher questioning Roland’s sanity.

• The group followed their student guide through Gotham’s rat-filled sewers, where Raven uncovered a magically formed wall and they passed a pit full of falling rats.
• Batman and the students prepared to confront Otis Flannegan, but Batman frightened off the rats before they could attack.
• Ratcatcher rejected Batman’s offer to make amends and declared that he planned to take revenge on humanity.
• Roland asked Ratcatcher about his daughter, then opened a portal and left to find one after Ratcatcher said he had no daughter.
• Ratcatcher asked Batman whether Roland was mentally ill.

Roland brought Ratcatcher to meet her daughter, then confronted an Owlman who warned that Ratcatcher had disturbed a seal beneath Gotham City. Owlman revealed that another Gotham existed underground, ruled by a being who craved pain and was always hungry.

• Roland asked Harley Quinn to contact Ratcatcher and bring her to meet her father in Roland's world.
• Ratcatcher met the young woman and recognized her as her daughter through Sebastian V's help translating their communication.
• Ratcatcher and her daughter talked while Vixen recounted how the young woman had joined the Suicide Squad and Bronze Tiger described rescuing Killer Croc.
• Owlman arrived and claimed Ratcatcher had disturbed a bolt on Hell's gate, putting Gotham City at risk.
• Roland revealed his knowledge of the Court of Owls and Barbatos, then Batman asked Owlman what lay beneath Gotham City.
• Owlman revealed that another Gotham lay beneath the city, created and ruled by a being who craved pain and was forever hungry.

Roland entered Madness City, where Harvey revealed that an ancient god had turned Arthur Arkham into Batman and trapped him in an endless cycle of suffering. Roland confronted Cthulhu Batman while the monster sent empowered Arkham inmates to attack Gotham, where the heroes fought back.

• Owlman led Roland and the others to the gate between Gotham and Madness City after rats’ sounds inflicted mental contamination on the group.
• Harvey explained that Arthur Arkham had been abducted by an ancient god, made immortal, and transformed into Batman to suffer endlessly in Madness City.
• Harvey led Roland to Arkham Asylum, where Roland faced Cthulhu Batman and learned the monster’s true body lay beneath the asylum.
• Cthulhu Batman tore open the sky and hurled empowered Arkham prisoners into surface Gotham to wreak havoc.
• Jason used Poseidon to batter the transformed Clayface, while Kara froze and dropped Killer Croc into the Pacific Ocean.
• Kara, Nightwing, Cassandra, and Donna fought the enhanced Bane until The Flash arrived, while Jeanne d’Arc battled Scarecrow.

Roland helped defeat Scarecrow and Riddler before freeing Arthur Arkham from Cthulhu Batman in Lower Gotham City. Arthur chose to rebuild the nightmare city, while Roland returned to the surface and learned that Waylon had grown huge and trampled the streets.

• Kara and Jeanne d'Arc worked together to overwhelm Scarecrow, while Cyborg used his network connection to resist Riddler's riddles and attack him.
• Roland's living hand fused with his right hand, and he transformed Cthulhu Batman into a plant-covered figure, freeing Arthur Arkham.
• Arthur explained that Barbatos had trapped him in repeating Batman nightmares and that he planned to rebuild Lower Gotham City as a place to contain Gotham's nightmares.
• Roland learned that the hand was his form in other people's nightmares and that a Joker-like duplicate of Arthur Arkham's father still lived under Barbatos's protection.
• Arthur showed Roland a crack that led back to the surface, where Batman and the others met him after feeling an earthquake.
• Kara told Roland that Waylon had grown enormous and trampled the street before she left him in the Pacific Ocean.