SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Batman: Damned #2, by Brian Azzarello, Lee Bermejo and Jared K. Fletcher, on sale now.
The world Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo created for Black Label’s Batman: Damned is decidedly darker than its DC Universe counterpart. The Joker is dead, Thomas Wayne is an adulterer and the Dark Knight himself isn’t afraid to show us what’s beneath his utility belt.
However, in some cases, new incarnations of characters practically write themselves, as evidenced by Batman: Damned #2’s take on Etrigan the Demon.
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While investigating The Joker’s murder, Batman – at the recommendation of John Constantine – heads to a Gotham City nightclub called The Cavern. There, in the basement of the establishment, we find the unmistakable horned face of Etrigan, but with a clever twist.
Bound to the mortal Jason Blood, the demon prince known as Etrigan has always spoken in rhymes. That being said, Azzarello and Bermejo decided what better way to reinvent the character for Black Label than by turning him into an underground rapper?
Calling himself J Blood, nearly every line of dialogue that comes from the demon’s mouth is in the form of a rap lyric. In fact, given the character’s predilection for poetry, one can’t help but wonder why no one came up with an idea like this sooner.
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While DC has made no qualms about regretting the infamous Batawang incident, here’s hoping J Blood continues to live on.