Final Crisis: Revelations: featuring Crispus Allen

I missed Crispus Allen becoming The Spectre until I read this article on Comicbookresources. Seem like this could pretty interesting. The 40-page “Final Crisis: Revelations” #1, with art by new DC exclusive Philip Tan, is scheduled to go on sale August 13.

Allen is also in the upcoming Batman: Gotham Knight DVD being voiced by Gary Dourdan who is more widely know as Warwick on CSI.

Source Wikipedia:

Originally from Metropolis, Detective Crispus Allen was a fortysomething police veteran transferred to Gotham City where he was partnered with detective Renee Montoya on the Gotham City Police Department‘s Major Crimes Unit. Allen had a loving wife and two teenaged sons, whom he put above his job and the safety of others when Gotham was in crisis. Allen saw Batman as a necessary evil, not wanting to deal with him but tolerating his presence. Their occasional interactions illustrated his views on Batman, notably during Brian Azzarello‘s Broken City storyline. Allen was an agnostic who doubted the existence of God in spite of his family’s strong faith.

In Infinite Crisis #4, while Allen’s body is in the morgue, the Presence forces the Spectre to accept Allen as his new host. Later, the magic users of Earth assemble at Stonehenge to call forth the Spectre and usher in the new age of magic. Allen appears in a ghostly version of his own form before making his first official transformation into the Spectre. The Spectre then kills Star Sapphire for her past crimes before vanishing, leaving the assembled magic users confused and fearful.

In the first issue of Infinite Crisis Aftermath: The Spectre, “Dead Again Part One”, the Spectre confronts Crispus Allen. He has come to realize that he needs a host to humanize him in order to know what his mission really means. Allen refuses his request, wanting no further involvement in the Spectre’s vigilante work.

The Spectre then leaves Allen for a year (presumably about the same as the year depicted in 52). During that time, Allen sees that he cannot help or communicate with his family, still shattered because Jim Corrigan will not be called to account for Allen’s murder. In addition, while the former detective can solve crimes — and even learns Batman’s secret identity is Bruce Wayne — he cannot bring the culprits to justice. This includes Corrigan, his own killer.

After a year of being unseen and powerless, Allen receives another visit from the Spectre. This time he finally takes the offer, and becomes the Spectre’s human host. Their first mission together is to bring ghoulishly appropriate justice to a child molester. While troubled, Allen is satisfied by the knowledge that, “He [the Spectre] needs me more than I need him.”

Using Crispus’ own son, Mal, whom he says must be killed for his homicide of Corrigan, as an example, the Spectre proceeds to explain the point set during Hal Jordan‘s tenure as the Spectre. Crispus accepts the task. This final notion leads Crispus to embrace fully the role of moral anchor of the Spectre.