Redesigning Batman One Million

Putting a new spin on the Dark Knight of the far future with Baldemar Rivas.

It’s finally here! Batman Urban Legends #7 hits comic book stores on September 15th. Baldemar Rivas and I were so excited to do a new take on this classic version of Batman and we wanted to share some of that process with you.

This was our first time working together and we really wanted to bring something new to the DC One Million mythos. I sat down with Baldemar to recap his experience on drawing the story, designing the characters, and what makes him excited about Batman One Million.

KENNY: What was your first experience with Batman?

BALDEMAR: My first experience with Batman would probably be Batman: The Animated Series. The tone hooked me, and the show made me feel empathy for the villains, which I wasn’t used to—haha. 

K: When you were asked to draw a Batman One Million story, what drew you to the characters?

B: What drew me to the characters was the fact that it was so far into the future and we could go nuts if we wanted to. I’m a sucker for time jumps and this was a leap. 

K: How did you approach the designs for the new characters?

B: For the design of Batman One Million, I was allowed to do alterations of the suit and had to make sure that he had his unique trait, which was the upper shoulder pad/chest plate guard. Talking to you and Dave (our editor) about the costume, we brought up our love of Kamen Rider and Super Sentai, which I incorporated into the modified suit. I went overboard and did about eight different chest/shoulder designs, figuring out what worked best.

K: Why do you think this is a good jumping-on point for people who haven’t heard of Batman One Million before?

B: This is a good introduction of why Batman One Million is the best Batman! I don't wanna spoil anything. I just wanna say that this Batman has learned from all prior Batmen throughout history. We show off special abilities that have never been shown in any Batman One Million comics (to my knowledge). 

K: For people who want to follow you and more of your outstanding artwork, where can they find you?

B: You can follow me on my Instagram : @marsisanartist, and on Twitter: @baldemar_rivas. I draw a lot of monkey people in my spare time. 

K: Awesome! Anything else you’d like to add to wrap things up?

Just wanted to say, working with you was a blast, and hope we get to work together again soon!

Friends, this new issue of Batman Urban Legends is packed with amazing stories. We’re so excited that people are going to get to experience our new take on Batman One Million, as well as the Batman Beyond, Batman 666, and Casandra Cain stories in this issue.

You can pre-order copies on Comixology now, or you can head to your local comic book shop on 9/15 and grab a physical copy.

Don’t forget to look for this awesome variant cover by Chris Burnham and Nathan Fairbairn!

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