Superman, Batman to team up with Islamic superheroes

London, July 06: Superheroes based on Islamic culture and religion in the comic book ‘The 99’ are all set to appear in a new mini-series collaborating with Justice League characters.The Kuwaiti series, created by Teshkeel Comics, will feature with their DC counterparts in the unprecedented cross-cultural project.

"It is a long-standing tradition for characters to meet others in the fictional world," the Telegraph quoted Paul Levitz, DC Comics` president and publisher, as saying. "And over the years a lot of the superheroes have been translated into Arabic, taking on ethnic elements. But this is a nice step forward. The most difficult creative test is when you are working with the least precedent and when you`re trying to reach an audience that has a different cultural bias and different interests," he added. Dr Naif Al-Mutawa, the creator of ‘The 99’ and the founder of Teshkeel Media, said that the plot was yet to be determined. He said: "Are we going to have them working together from day one, or will they think the other is the enemy? Enemy number one is fear. You could open it with Obama``s speech (in Cairo) with the two sets of superheroes watching it and having different reactions. There`s plenty of possibilities." The creative team for ‘The 99’ include comic book industry veterans Fabian Nicieza, Stuart Moore, June Brigman, Dan Panosian, and John McCrea. ANI