New York Comic Con attendees were treated to a preview in their programs of Detective Comics #854, which kicks off a run by Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III. So that long-rumored Batwoman title won't be a separate miniseries, but instead an arc of Detective timed to coincide with the "death"-induced absence of Batman.

"Which means finally -- finally! -- I can openly admit that yes, JH Williams III and I have been working on a Batwoman title for nearly two years," Rucka writes on his blog. "And that is both a pleasure and a relief, if I may say so, because I've been wanting to share this for so long it's not funny. And as much as it's been hard for me to keep my tongue still on the subject, I think it's been infinitely harder for JH, all the more so because I believe, sincerely, that this is some of the best work I've ever done, and it's certainly the finest work I've ever had the pleasure of seeing from him."

Rucka also shares a five-page preview, along with the corresponding script.

The new Batwoman, Kate Kane, was introduced with much fanfare in July 2006 52 #11. However, an often-discussed solo series has met with one delay after another, which some have chalked up to DC's nervousness -- apparently after the fact -- about any potential effect the character's sexual orientation could have on the lucrative Bat-brand.

DC had given mixed, or at least ambigous, signals about the future of the project. At a panel last year at WonderCon, Executive Editor Dan DiDio said there wouldn't be a Batwoman series (which is true enough, I suppose, given that we're now looking at Detective).

But at Emerald City ComicCon in May, Rucka confirmed, if in vague terms, that there would be a book featuring Batwoman. A month later, letterer Todd Klein listed a Batwoman miniseries under the "current projects" section of his website, only to later rename it "mystery project."

"I got in trouble for even mentioning this project last time I revised the page, and I think it's still unannounced," Klein wrote in the edited entry. "This entry may disappear soon ..."