Absolute Batman #22 is out now: Scarecrow’s name gets a dark new meaning

DC put out Absolute Batman #22 in July 2026, and its backup story, “The Straw Man,” gives Scarecrow a genuinely nasty new angle.

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In the story, Harley Quinn points out that a “straw man” isn’t just something you hang in a field, it’s also a logical fallacy. That idea becomes the whole hook for this version of Scarecrow. He’s not just built around scarecrow imagery anymore. What he really uses are misinformation, distortion, and delusion, twisting people’s sense of reality instead of leaning on fear gas.

It’s a smart rework of Scarecrow, one of Batman’s oldest rogues, who first showed up back in 1941. And it fits the darker Absolute Universe DC kicked off in late 2024, where fear comes less from monsters in the dark and more from uncertainty, manipulated perception, and a world that feels impossible to trust.

Scott Snyder has described this Scarecrow as modern anxiety turned into a villain, and as an operative for Jack Grimm, he helps drag Batman and Gotham deeper into psychological horror, where lies move faster than facts and breakdowns spread from person to person.

Harley also drops another major reveal in the issue: she’s Jack Grimm’s daughter. Then the final-page cliffhanger throws in one more jolt, hinting that Thomas Wayne might still be alive and locked up, or that this is just one more deliberate distortion.

If you’ve been reading Absolute Batman, this one sounds like an issue to pick up, and early reactions have been especially strong on both the darker tone and the “Straw Man” idea.

You can get Absolute Batman #22 now wherever DC Comics are sold.