Batman once again dons his Hellbat armor in this week's Detective Comics #998, but not until he has a few choice words with one of his oldest enemies, Dr. Hugo Strange.

The Dark Knight has had a tough time of it as his original comic heads toward its 1000th issue, facing monstrous versions of himself, among other threats. It makes sense, then, for him to confront Strange about his current mystery, given the doctor's proclivity for bio-engineering monsters in order to sate his mad scientist tendencies.

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In CBR's preview, we see Strange plead his innocence, and Batman appears to believe him. Of course, that just means he's still got a mystery on his hands, and when it appears Jason Blood, the human half of the Demon, appears to be in trouble, the Dark Knight realizes he needs to call in the heavy machinery in the form of his Hellbat armor.

Detective Comics #998, by Peter J. Tomasi, Doug Mahnke and Jaime Mendoza, arrives in stores Wednesday, Feb. 13, but you can check out CBR's exclusive preview below.

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DETECTIVE COMICS #998

  • written by PETER J. TOMASI
  • art and cover by DOUG MAHNKE and JAIME MENDOZA
  • variant cover by JAE LEE
  • Batman’s tried everything on Earth to stop the menace hunting his friends and family...now it’s time to turn to things not of this Earth! In the past, whenever Batman’s encountered the supernatural, he’s turned to Jason Blood for guidance—and to Etrigan, the demonic entity living inside him! But securing their help is never simple, and what Blood has to show him will shake Batman to his core!
  • ON SALE 02.13.19
  • 3.99 US | 32 PAGES
  • FC | RATED T
  • This issue will ship with two covers.