So far, Scott Snyder’s Absolute Batman has provided readers with multiple villains from Earth-Prime. Some of them, Harvey Dent (Two-Face), Ozzie (Penguin), Eddie (Riddler), Waylon Jones (Killer Croc), and Selina Kyle (Catwoman), are Bruce Wayne’s friends and not exactly like their Prime-Earth counterparts. Others, Mr. Freeze (who’s the child of Victor Fries), Bane, Black Mask, and The Joker, have all been given upgrades in either wealth, power, skills, or all of the above. Knowing that there’s more of this universe to come, it’s easy to guess more changes will be made and new antagonists to be introduced.
In Absolute Batman No. 8, Waylon was captured by the workers of Ark-M. Previews of issue No. 12 have shown that Waylon has been turned into Killer Croc. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Because, while Bruce is trying to find his friend and escape from Ark-M (Bruce is captured in issue No. 9), he comes across something that Doctor Arkham calls the K.L.A.Y. biome (this happens in issue No. 10).
Absolute Batman No. 10 creative team
- Writer: Scott Snyder
- Artist: Nick Dragotta
- Colorsist: Frank Martin
Despite Doctor Arkham saying that Bruce Wayne would be unconscious for the next 48 hours, stripped of his costume and gadgets, and unable to escape, readers knew that he’d find a way to get out of his cell. He does so by removing a needle from his gums and picking the lock on the door.
As he’s naked and looking round, he steps into the K.L.A.Y. biome, and it’s exactly what you’d expect. Readers see a brown, mud-like substance with a person in pain. Absolute Clayface may have just made his debut. At the very least, it’s the experiment that leads to him.
The giveaway for this being Clayface comes from the speech bubble. It has the same color that creators normally use when Clayface is talking. Sadly, before a confirmation on the person can happen, Bane punches Bruce and knocks him out.
Basil Karlo and Matt Hagen are only two of the many people who’ve been Clayface in DC Comics. Considering they’re the most popular, it’s easy to see Scott Snyder using either of them in this story. However, as Snyder has shown, conventional isn’t always his style. He could throw a curveball. For example, he was asked if Green Arrow was on his way, Snyder responded with a smile. For all we know, Clayface could be Oliver Queen, and someone like Jason Todd or Dick Grayson could be Green Arrow. It’s not likely, but Clayface, not someone who held the title, is possible.
But, wait, there’s more! After days of remaining in his cell and acting like he’d given up, Bruce escapes again. After running undetected for a while, he’s caught in something called the Isley Ecosystem. A place that was even more horrifying than the K.L.A.Y. biome. It’s people (or a person) grafted into plants saying: “The green wants out.”
The easy guess is that this is Poison Ivy, but, as I mentioned earlier, nothing is a guarantee in this universe. We could be looking at Pamela Isley as a deformed Poison Ivy, or maybe it’s even Swamp Thing. The images look more like Swamp Thing (and he does have a connection to "The Green"), but everything in DC Comics' Absolute Universe is demented.
If this is Swamp Thing, that means the "Isley" in Isley Ecosystem was used specifically to throw readers off. We’ll have to wait for more of Absolute Batman to know what's going on. Stay tuned to Bam Smack Pow to learn the truth.
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