Batman's newest villains inspired by the Catholic Church and Michael Jackon in Rafael Grampá's Gargoyle of Gotham

After inviting readers into a bold new vision of Gotham City and the Batman mythos in the inaugural issue of Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham, acclaimed comic book creator Rafael Grampá doubles down on the stakes and new villains with the DC Black miniseries’ second issue. On sale beginning December 12, the series previously introduced the obsidian supervillain Crytoon with its first issue as Gotham falls into widespread moral and urban decay despite Batman’s best efforts. Though the Dark Knight defeated the crying clown after a harrowing chase through the city, the evil is only escalating in Gotham as two new villains in the Virgin and Moth-er surface with even more insidious plans.

With Bruce Wayne haunted by reopening old wounds linked directly to his parents’ murders, Jim Gordon takes point in the investigation as the body count grows around the city. This places the veteran lawman squarely in harm’s way as Batman uncovers a vast conspiracy with sinister implications as the threat these villains pose become even more personal to him than ever. While The Virgin presents a theologically unholy challenge for Batman, Moth-er unleashes a lethal swarm of moths on anyone who opposes them, with Gordon right in their sights.

In an exclusive interview with Popverse, including an extended preview of Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham #2, Rafael Grampá reveals the childhood trauma and pop culture influences that inspired the villains debuting in the issue, explains the deeper themes that they bring to the story, and teases what readers can expect when Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham #2 goes on sale December 12.

“The first feeling that I try to connect to when I’m creating villains is fear and evil,” Grampá explains. “My first impressions of evil were in the church because I had a very Catholic family and we went to church every weekend. I remember how horrified I was when I saw, for the first time, Jesus on the cross with blood. I was very young, like three or four years-old, something like that. I used to see Jesus on little crosses, but they weren’t colored and I didn’t see the blood.”

Taking those religious elements into mind, Grampá created The Virgin and the dark congregation festering under Gotham as Batman. Grampá points out that while the character goes unnamed in Gargoyle of Gotham #2, the imagery associated with and the appearance of the character itself are meant to convey that theological connection. The introduction of the Virgin is also meant to evoke the larger themes in the story and its exploration of Bruce Wayne. Based on this childhood memories, Grampá wanted to incorporate elements of the Lord’s Prayer, particularly its closing line.

“Faith is a big subject in everything that I create and it wouldn’t have been different for Batman,” Grampá notes before remarking with a laugh. “When you’re