Black Adam is going to die.
In 2022, the Shazam villain joined the Justice League, and ahead of his theatrical debut, Black Adam will star in his own solo series. Written by Christopher Priest with art by Rafa Sandoval, the title will explore the character's immortality fading away, forcing him to choose a worthy successor. As revealed by the Aug. 2022 solicitations for DC Comics, Black Adam #3 will kill the fan-favorite character, though his descendant, Malik, will try to bring him back to life.
BLACK ADAM #3
- Written by CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
- Art by RAFA SANDOVAL
- Cover by IRVIN RODRIGUEZ
- Variant covers by RAFA SANDOVAL and RAHZZAH
- 1:25 variant cover by RAFA SARMENTO
- Swimsuit variant cover by EMANUELA LUPACCHINO
- $3.99 US | 32 pages | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
- ON SALE 8/16/22
- Black Adam is dead, and the Mesopotamian gods of Akkad are having a field day. Are the gods real or are they merely figments of human imagination? Accepting death but denied redemption, Black Adam becomes an ersatz Gilgamesh as he journeys through Akkadian Hell while Malik, his young descendant, goes to extreme and unethical measures to try and revive him, all the while wondering if he should save the life of one of the greatest evils the world has ever known.
The series will arrive in June 2022, months before actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson gives Teth-Adam his first live-action portrayal in Black Adam. The film was originally slated to release in theaters on July 29, but was delayed until Oct. 21. While the Black Adam solo series will be set in the main DC Universe, DC Comics will also release a series of one-shots that serve as prequels to the upcoming film, with one spotlighting Hawkman.
First appearing in The Marvel Family #1 back in 1945, in DC Comics, Black Adam has predominantly served as one of Shazam's greatest nemeses. In 2021, this status quo shifted when writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist David Marquez added him to the Justice League in Justice League #59. Adam continued to fight alongside the League until the title's end in Justice League #75, "The Death of the Justice League."
Despite the fact that he is about to die, Black Adam was the sole survivor of Justice League #75 (though Black Canary's true fate was never shown), and watched Pariah and the Great Darkness decimate the universe's greatest heroes. He suffered injuries and burns from Pariah in the book as well, before his solo series begins to strip away his immortality. Justice League #75 writer Joshua Williamson hinted in an exclusive interview with CBR that this experience may influence how he reacts to the next generation of heroes, like Superman Jon Kent, in DC's upcoming Dark Crisis event.
"[Black Adam] sees them as children," Williamson said. "He doesn't believe that even the members who have experience have what it takes to be considered the Justice League. There's a scene later where he flat-out tells them that they're lost in the shadow of the League. He does not believe in them. He has no faith in their abilities, and he feels that they are incapable of stepping up."
Black Adam #3, featuring the death of Black Adam, is written by Priest with interior art by Sandoval, main cover art by Irvin Rodriguez and variant covers contributed to by Emanuela Lupacchino, Rahzzah and Rafael Sarmento. The issue goes on sale Aug. 16 from DC Comics.
Source: DC Comics