History ComicBook / KnightAndSquire

Creator/GrantMorrison then reintroduced Cyril in ''Comicbook/JLA1997'', having taken his father's mantle (Percy having been killed by his archenemy SpringHeeledJack) and become a member of the Ultramarines, an international no-nonsense superteam. This story also introduced Beryl as the new Squire, a highly intelligent young working class woman who contrasted with the aristocratic Sheldrakes. The duo would later appear in ''Comicbook/BatmanGrantMorrison'', initially in a story which portrayed all the Batmen of Many Nations as damaged in some way, essentially becoming cautionary tales of what Batman could become if he stopped being Batman. Cyril, however, was the one who'd stuck closest to the ideal.

That was the status quo when Cornell and Broxton decided to use the characters as a lens to create a whole DC Comics version of the United Kingdom, largely out of whole cloth. Over the course of the miniseries, they fight a sidekick gone bad, a cult of Morris dancers, the Bad Kings of England, the Knight's own costume and Comicbook/TheJoker, while maintaining a StiffUpperLip and [[BritishHumour the British sense of humour]]. They also meet many, many other British heroes (and villains) at the Time in a Bottle pub, all of whom were original to the miniseries.

Meanwhile, Morrison made them part of ''Batman Incorporated'', during which Cyril was killed and Beryl succeeded him. This appears to still be canon in the ''Comicbook/DCRebirth'' universe, in which Beryl briefly appears in ''Comicbook/DoomsdayClock'' as the leader of the UK's official superteam, Knights Inc. Which, sadly, does not appear to include any of the Cornell-created characters.

** When Beryl suspects Shrike of being TheMole, she calls it a [[Comicbook/TheJudasContract Judas contract]].
** The Joker recognises Jarvis's attempted crime spree as the actions of a dying man seeking recognition, because [[Comicbook/JokersLastLaugh he's been there himself]].

* ElectricBlackGuy: 'Fro, who wears a version of Comicbook/BlackLightning's costume and, as his name suggests, the same hairstyle Jefferson had in the seventies.

** Beryl is named after Beryl the Peril from ''Comicbook/TheTopper''. Shrike's real name of Dennis Ennis is likewise a reference to ComicStrip/DennisTheMenaceUK.

* DropTheHammer: As the Bad Kings each prepare to take a section of the UK, Edward I, the Hammer of the Scots, is shown heading for Scotland with an actual energy hammer.

** Morris Major is a pun on the Morris Minor car, and possibly the comedy music group Morris Minor and the Majors. His rose-tinted view of how England used to be is meant to suggest [[UsefulNotes/JohnMajor another Major]], although Cornell acknowledges the fascist undertones aren't.

* HistorysCrimeWave: The Bad Kings, clones of Richard III, John, William II, Charles I and Edward I, each with an army of criminals and a desire to reclaim part of Britain.

Meanwhile, Morrison made them part of ''Batman Incorporated'', during which Percy was killed and Beryl succeeded him. This appears to still be canon in the ''Comicbook/DCRebirth'' universe, in which Beryl briefly appears in ''Comicbook/DoomsdayClock'' as the leader of the UK's official superteam, Knights Inc. Which, sadly, does not appear to include any of the Cornell-created characters.

* {{Eagleland}}: Very mixed flavour: Hank Hackenbacker, the Knight's butler, is America the Beautiful, a square-jawed guy who's biggest failing Is that he thinks Cyril should be open about his emotions when the "proper" thing to do is bottle them up. The Joker is 'Murica the Boorish, absolutely ''contemptuous'' of Britain and everything about it.

Creator/GrantMorrison then reintroduced Cyril in ''Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsJLA'', having taken his father's mantle (Percy having been killed by his archenemy SpringHeeledJack) and become a member of the Ultramarines, an international no-nonsense superteam. This story also introduced Beryl as the new Squire, a highly intelligent young working class woman who contrasted with the aristocratic Sheldrakes. The duo would later appear in ''Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman'', initially in a story which portrayed all the Batmen of Many Nations as damaged in some way, essentially becoming cautionary tales of what Batman could become if he stopped being Batman. Cyril, however, was the one who'd stuck closest to the ideal.

* MyHorseIsAMotorbike: A constant since the fifties is that Knight and Squire ride motorbikes with stylised horse's heads. In the series, Knight's bike Anastasia can follow a scent. The clone of Richard III acquires something similar, leading to Knight and King ''jousting'' on London Bridge.

* ComicBookFantasyCasting: Jarvis Poker is heavily based on the appearance and comic persona of ''Creator/KennethWilliams''.

* AmbiguouslyGay: Jarvis Poker uses a lot of {{Double Entendre}}s, comments on the attractiveness of Shrike, and jokes about a man getting him with his trousers round his ankles when visiting the doctor, but it's never clear if this is just part of his persona or not.

-->'''Jarvis Poker''': I suppose he'll [Shrike] fit in somewhere. Among the funny and the serious, the horrific and the whimsical, all pushed together...\\

* ContinuityNod: The Joker recognises Jarvis's attempted crime spree as the actions of a dying man seeking recognition, because [[Comicbook/JokersLastLaugh he's been there himself]].

* StiffUpperLip: Mostly played straight, but also pastiched somewhat, with Knight at one point ironically calling it "Better living through repression".

'''''Knight and Squire''''' is a six-issue 2010 Creator/DCComics miniseries by Creator/PaulCornell and Jimmy Broxton, featuring Cyril Sheldrake, the Earl of Wordenshire and the superhero known as the Knight, and his sidekick Beryl Hutchinson, the Squire. They are the British Batman and Robin.

!!Knight and Squire contains examples of

** The Bad Kings are specifically those identified as such in ''Literature/TenSixtySixAndAllThat''.

The characters have a long history, the original Knight and Squire appeared in ''Batman'' #62 in 1950, in a story entitled "The Batman of England!" In this story, the Knight was Percy Sheldrake, Cyril's father, and Cyril was his Squire. The characters were later featured as members of the Batmen of Many Nations, along with the Guacho of South America, the Ranger of Australia, the Legionaire of Italy and the Musketeer of France.

* PrettyFlyForAWhiteGuy: Squire's linguistic abilities are illustrated when she a) talks to Shrike in the same grime slang he's using and b) correctly identifies that he's middle-class and doesn't normally talk like that at all.

'''''Knight and Squire''''' is a six-issue Creator/DCComics miniseries by Creator/PaulCornell and Jimmy Broxton, featuring Cyril Sheldrake, the Earl of Wordenshire and the superhero known as the Knight, and his sidekick Beryl Hutchinson, the Squire. They are the British Batman and Robin.

Creator/GrantMorrison then reintroduced Cyril in ''Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsJLA'', having taken his father's mantle (Percy having been killed by his archenemy Springheel Jack) and become a member of the Ultramarines, an international no-nonsense superteam. This story also introduced Beryl as the new Squire, a highly intelligent young working class woman who contrasted with the aristocratic Sheldrakes. The duo would later appear in ''Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman'', initially in a story which portrayed all the Batmen of Many Nations as damaged in some way, essentially becoming cautionary tales of what Batman could become if he stopped being Batman. Cyril, however, was the one who'd stuck closest to the ideal.

That was the status quo when Cornell and Broxton decided to use the characters as a lens to create a whole DC Comics version of the United Kingdom, largely out of whole cloth. Over the course of the miniseries, they fight a sidekick gone bad, a cult of Morris dancers, the Bad Kings of England, the Knight's own costume and Comicbook/TheJoker, while maintaining a StiffUpperLip and the British sense of humour. They also meet many, many other British heroes (and villains) at the Time in a Bottle pub, all of whom were original to the miniseries.

* WearingAFlagOnYourHead: Captain Cornwall and Cornwall Boy sport the St Piran's Flag on their costumes.
* WriteWhatYouKnow: Time in a Bottle's influx of supers on the "first Thursday of the month" is loosely based on the First Thursday get-togethers of ''Series/DoctorWho'' fans at the Fitzroy Tavern, including Paul Cornell.