In Lazarus Planet, a new swordfighter is joining the DC Universe, and their name is Xanthe.New details are available for Lazarus Planet: Dark Fate #1 following the release of DC Comics' February 2023 solicitations, one question asking readers, "What lurks in the corners of the Spirit World for new character Xanthe?" On Twitter, DC Editor Jessica Chen shared artist Haining's variant cover artwork that spotlights Xanthe, their design and massive sword, tweeting, "Meet new character Xanthe soon, as they fight Chinese vampires with some help from John Constantine and Cass Cain Batgirl." Chen's use of gender-neutral pronouns when referring to Xanthe indicates that they are a new non-binary character created for DC.
Created by writer Alyssa Wong and Haining, for Xanthe's comic book debut, the hero is teaming up with one of the DC Universe's fan-favorite sorcerers and deadliest combatants, being that they will face vampires alongside John Constantine and Batgirl Cassandra Cain. Prior to Lazarus Planet, Cass stars in DC's ongoing Batgirls series and fights alongside the Bat-Family in Gotham City, while Constantine serves as a member of the Justice League Dark. What exactly unites the vigilante, magician and Xanthe against vampires remains to be seen from Lazarus Planet.
Breaking Down DC's Lazarus Planet and 2023 Lineup
Originally announced at New York Comic Con 2022, Lazarus Planet is a seven-part event that spins out of the Batman vs. Robin miniseries. Issue #4 of the miniseries will feature the explosion of a Lazarus volcano, causing a massive Lazarus storm that affects people by giving them different abilities. Aside from the penultimate issue Dark Fate, other issues part of Lazarus Planet include Lazarus Planet: Alpha, Lazarus Planet: Once We Were Gods, Lazarus Planet: Legends Reborn, Lazarus Planet: Next Evolution and the final Lazarus Planet: Omega.
Lazarus Planet bridges the gap between DC's 2022 and 2023 events. The seven-part story arrives after the conclusion of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths in Dec. 2022, which is intended to set of up the "Dawn of the DCU." A yearlong event titled "Dawn of DC" kicks off in Jan. 2023, featuring the release of numerous new titles, including two Green Lantern series, Batman: The Brave the Bold and new series for characters like Superman, Green Arrow, Shazam! and the Doom Patrol.
Along with Wong and Haining, Lazarus Planet: Dark Fate #1 features the work of writers Tim Seeley, Joshua Williamson, Dennis Culver and A.L. Kaplan, interior artists Baldemar Rivas, Chris Burnham and Kaplan, and cover artists David Marquez, Alejandro Sanchez, Al Barrionuevo, Ibrahim Moustafa, Burnham and Nick Filardi. The issue is set to go on sale Feb. 14 from DC Comics.
Source: DC Comics