A New Court of Owls is Coming To Kill A DC Hero (But It's Not Batman)
In Action Comics #1041, the Martian Manhunter is attacked by a group called Vulture, which may have ties to Batman and Gotham's Court of Owls.
Warning: spoilers ahead for "A Face in the Crowd," appearing in Action Comics #1041!
There is a new Court of Owls coming not to kill Batman, but the Martian Manhunter instead. Throughout “A Face in the Crowd,” appearing as a backup story in recent issues of Action Comics, the Martian Manhunter has faced a number of villains from his past, such as the Human Flame, and in issue #1041, he comes face to face with the mysterious organization behind it all—and it bears a strong resemblance to Gotham City’s Court of Owls. The issue is on sale now in print and digital.
Introduced at the dawn of the New 52 era, the Court of Owls has become a major thorn in the Dark Knight’s side. A secret society comprised of Gotham City’s elite with a history stretching back hundreds of years, the Court of Owls ruled the city with fear, using their army of undead assassins called Talons to enforce their will. The group ran afoul of Batman early in his career, when they sentenced Bruce Wayne to death in reaction to his plan to rebuild Gotham City. Recently, the Martian Manhunter encountered a number of his old villains, including the Human Flame, while investigating a mysterious stone idol. He suspects a larger organization is behind it, and in Action Comics #1041, he learns Vulture, a cartel he thought gone, are behind the attacks—and they may have a connection to the Court of Owls. The story is written by Shawn Aldridge, illustrated by Adriana Melo, colored by Hi-Fi and lettered by Dave Sharpe.
The Martian Manhunter has tracked Vulture to an abandoned casino. After rescuing two detectives from Vulture’s goons, Martian Manhunter heads into the group’s lair. As he fights his way through Vulture’s headquarters, he recounts his previous run-in with them years ago: using his shape-shifting abilities, he infiltrated the group and helped bring them down from the inside. The Martian Manhunter speculates the group may have a connection with the Court of Owls, but he was never able to follow up on it. He finds Vulture’s head, along with his old nemesis Professor Hugo, waiting on him with a neuro-scrambler. The issue ends with the Martian Manhunter seemingly defeated by Vulture.
The Martian Manhunter believed a connection existed between Vulture and the Court of Owls, based on the similar iconographies used by the two groups, but was unable to prove it. The masks worn by Vulture and those worn by the Court of Owls look remarkably alike and both tend to work in the shadows, manipulating events and people to their own ends; the two groups appear unstoppable as well, seemingly defeated time and again, only to return stronger than ever. It was revealed that the Gotham City branch of the Court of Owls was merely one branch, and that many others existed throughout the world—is Vulture a splinter from the Court? The Martian Manhunter believed a connection existed and is now about to pay with for this knowledge with his life.
The Court of Owls has a long reach, going beyond Gotham City and into the larger world. Batman has so far been unable to stop them, and now a potential splinter group has the Martian Manhunter in their grasp.