Gotham Academy: First Year #4
(W) Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher (A) Karl Kerschl, Marco Ferrari
BLACKOUTS, BETRAYALS… AND BAT WINGS? Olive’s had her share of obstacles since she arrived at Gotham Academy. From the difficulty of young love to dealing with bullies to fighting villains alongside Batman, it has been a lot. But sadly, her troubles have just begun, as a bat-shaped (or more accurately, a Man-Bat-shaped) shadow falls over Gotham Academy.
Gotham Academy: First Year #3
(W) Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Brenden Fletcher (A) Marco Ferrari
She’s got the lead in the school play, a cute boyfriend, and maybe even a shot at prom royalty. But just as Olive starts to feel like she belongs at Gotham Academy, the football team bullies crash her big stage debut… with pyrotechnics! Cue Batman. Suddenly, stage fright is the least of her problems. Also featuring: Colton Rivera in a tux. Sort of.
Gotham Academy: First Year #3
(W) Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Brenden Fletcher (A) Marco Ferrari
She’s got the lead in the school play, a cute boyfriend, and maybe even a shot at prom royalty. But just as Olive starts to feel like she belongs at Gotham Academy, the football team bullies crash her big stage debut… with pyrotechnics! Cue Batman. Suddenly, stage fright is the least of her problems. Also featuring: Colton Rivera in a tux. Sort of.
Gotham Academy: First Year #2
(W) Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Brenden Fletcher (A) Marco Ferrari
School is about making friends… and enemies! Life at school is both terrible (pissing off the football team is never a good idea) and wonderful (almost kissing a cute boy is almost perfect), but Olive Silverlock will never be truly happy until she knows her mom is safe.
Visiting her in Arkham is supposed to be reassuring! But when Olive meets the man behind the Scarecrow’s mask, will her serenity be torn away, too?!
Gotham Academy: First Year #1
(W) Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Brenden Fletcher (A) Marco Ferrari
THE SCHOOL HAS SECRETS. SO DOES SHE. IT’S GOING GREAT.
Olive Silverlock has a problem, and it is shaped like Gotham’s favorite hero: Batman. He “saved” her when her mom lost control and got Commissioner Gordon to pawn her off on Bruce Wayne, who promptly shuffled her off to Gotham Academy. Boarding school. With a bunch of awful rich kids! As if she wasn’t traumatized enough already!
How will Olive navigate her trauma as a new student? Who will she share her first kiss with? And… why are the existing fans talking so much about maps?
Fall in love with the fan-favorite characters all over again in this revealing prequel taking readers back to Gotham Academy! Artist Marco Ferrari joins the original team as we return to the hallowed halls for even more mystery, romance, and teen drama. Guaranteed to delight fans of the original series and introduce new readers to the lovable cast; don’t miss the year it all began!
Gotham Academy: First Year #1
(W) Becky Cloonan, Karl Kerschl, Brenden Fletcher (A) Marco Ferrari
THE SCHOOL HAS SECRETS. SO DOES SHE. IT’S GOING GREAT.
Olive Silverlock has a problem, and it is shaped like Gotham’s favorite hero: Batman. He “saved” her when her mom lost control and got Commissioner Gordon to pawn her off on Bruce Wayne, who promptly shuffled her off to Gotham Academy. Boarding school. With a bunch of awful rich kids! As if she wasn’t traumatized enough already!
How will Olive navigate her trauma as a new student? Who will she share her first kiss with? And… why are the existing fans talking so much about maps?
Fall in love with the fan-favorite characters all over again in this revealing prequel taking readers back to Gotham Academy! Artist Marco Ferrari joins the original team as we return to the hallowed halls for even more mystery, romance, and teen drama. Guaranteed to delight fans of the original series and introduce new readers to the lovable cast; don’t miss the year it all began!
Pack your notebooks (utility belts), sharpen your pencils (batarangs), and watch your back! DC’s beloved school of mystery and moonlit mischief is opening its doors once again! DC Comics has announced Gotham Academy: First Year, a six-issue comic book series marking the long-awaited return of the fan-favorite Gotham-based teen saga featuring the original creative team of Brenden Fletcher, Karl Kerschl, and Becky Cloonan! Joining them for this new chapter is interior artist Marco Ferrari. Returning to cover duties, Kerschl provides main covers for all six issues, channeling the signature visual flair that helped define the original run.
Gotham Academy: First Year continues the critically acclaimed story of Gotham Academy’s young students, perfect for longtime fans and new readers alike. Mystery and mayhem await Olive Silverlock, a shy, working-class teen from Gotham’s Narrows, as she navigates school life in a super-powered world, offering a unique perspective on Gotham through the eyes of a youngster as scared of its heroes as its villains. In addition to visits to Arkham Asylum and surprise appearances from billionaire weirdos, you never know who—or what—you might meet wandering the halls of Gotham Academy.
Set before the events of the original series, First Year traces Olive’s reluctant arrival at the school after a traumatic event involving her mother—and a fateful handoff between Commissioner Gordon and Bruce Wayne. Shuffled from crisis into campus life, Olive must adapt to cliques, secrets, and a system that’s less supportive than it seems.
Underlying everything, Olive has a problem—and it’s shaped like Gotham’s most famous vigilante: Batman. But how will she process the weight of her past while navigating school politics, unexpected friendships, and a growing connection to Gotham’s darker mysteries? Who will she share her first kiss with? And why is everyone obsessed with… maps? What’s with these rich kids? Does Gotham Academy have a cartography class??
After the monthly run of Gotham Academy: First Year concludes, the story will be collected into a Young Adult graphic novel edition, arriving in bookstores and libraries on August 4, 2026. Perfect for classrooms and gift-giving, this collected volume packages all six issues in an accessible format for readers of all ages.
Gotham Academy: First Year #1 debuts October 1, 2025 with colors by Eva de la Cruz, lettering by Steve Wands, and variant covers by Dustin Nguyen and Sweeney Boo.
While the specific projects haven’t been revealed (other than Slash’s which features Tim Seeley, Jim Terry, and Steven Kostanski and Pete Wentz’s which features Hannah Klein, artist Lisa Sterle), Vault has shown off the creators who we can expect to see on the shelves from the publishing in 2024.
The full list includes:
Alex Schlitz
Amalas Rosa
Ben McCool
Brenden Fletcher
Cavan Scott
Cassio Ribeiro
Christopher Cantwell
Cody Ziglar
Collin Kelly
Corin Howell
Dailen Ogden
Dani
Daniel Kraus
David DB Andry
Eliot Rahal
Gio Sposito
Greg Pak
Hannah Klein
Jackson Lanzing
Jim Terry
John Bivens
John Jennings
Lisa Sterle
Michael Moreci
Nathan Gooden
Nicholas Eames
Paul Cornell
Pete Wentz
Peter Milligan
Peter Wartman
Phil Collen
Pius Bak
Rich Douek
Slash
Steven Kostanski
Tim Daniel
Tim Seeley
Zander Cannon
Gotham Academy: Maps of Mystery #1
(W) Karl Kerschl, Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher (A/CA) Karl Kerschl
In Shops: May 09, 2023
SRP: $5.99
Return the beloved world of Gotham Academy with this one-shot, collecting acclaimed Gotham Academy back-up stories from Batman #119-#121, as breakout character Mia “Maps” Mizoguchi teaming teams Batman to search for a missing classmate! Plus, Gotham Academy: Maps of Mystery includes the Gotham Academy story from 2022 anthology DC’s Saved by the Belle Reve, by the original Gotham Academy series creative team, along with Karl Kerschl’s story from Batman Black and White #4! It’s all things Gotham Academy from the past two years in one issue, and exactly what fans of the series have been hoping for.
Gotham Academy: Maps of Mystery #1
(W) Karl Kerschl, Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher (A/CA) Karl Kerschl
In Shops: May 09, 2023
SRP: $5.99
Return the beloved world of Gotham Academy with this one-shot, collecting acclaimed Gotham Academy back-up stories from Batman #119-#121, as breakout character Mia “Maps” Mizoguchi teaming teams Batman to search for a missing classmate! Plus, Gotham Academy: Maps of Mystery includes the Gotham Academy story from 2022 anthology DC’s Saved by the Belle Reve, by the original Gotham Academy series creative team, along with Karl Kerschl’s story from Batman Black and White #4! It’s all things Gotham Academy from the past two years in one issue, and exactly what fans of the series have been hoping for.
