![Batman: The Cult #[nn] cover](https://comicbooks-covers-449901518064-us-east-2.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/covers/isbndb/9781779527974.jpg)
Batman: The Cult #[nn]
In this pivotal 2025 issue of *Batman: The Cult*, written by Jim Starlin and illustrated with haunting precision by Bernie Wrightson—whose cover pencils and inks match the story’s grim intensity—Batman and Robin fight to survive a Gotham overrun by Deacon Blackfire’s army of the homeless. After escaping the suffocating sewers, where Batman is visibly broken by what he’s endured, Robin’s plea snaps him back to focus just as the National Guard withdraws and the city teeters on evacuation. With barricades holding back the military and sniper fire cutting down every attempt to intervene, Batman makes a devastating decision: he tells Robin to call Alfred, and declares they’re leaving Gotham for good—Blackfire has won.
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Robin helps Batman escape the sewers. Batman is still shaken by his experience and has difficulty fighting. Robin asks him for help and Batman snaps out of it. Deacon Blackfire's army of homeless force the National Guard to withdraw and the Governor recommends Gotham City evacuate but about half the people remain. Sewer snipers eliminate a spec ops group sent in and barricades keep the army at bay. Once they leave the sewer, Batman asks Robin to phone Alfred and get him to pick them up. Batman tells the Boy Wonder that they are leaving Gotham City and not coming back because Blackfire has won.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).