A new variant cover for Detective Comics #1047 is homaging Joker to Arkham Asylum. The cover illustrated by Lee Bermejo borrows from the iconic incarnation of Gotham City.
Throughout Batman’s history, he has been reinvented alongside his rogues gallery several times. In the ‘90s, Batman: The Animated Series reimagined the caped crusader and became a definitive modern take. As artist Lee Bermejo continues to depict the Dark Knight, he draws from the animated series as a key influence. From Batman: Noel to Batman: Damned, he has proven himself to be one of the most inspired artists to take Gotham City to the next level. Now, Bermejo is illustrating a variant cover featured in Detective Comics #1047, written by Matthew Rosenberg and Mariko Tamaki with art by Danny Miki, Ivan Reis, and Fernando Blanco.
In Lee Bermejo’s variant cover for the issue, Batman is pulling the Joker by his purple suit jacket on the way to Arkham Asylum. Going through the gothic gates of the mental hospital for the criminally insane, the building resembles its depiction in Batman: The Animated Series. Similarly, Joker is dressed in his traditional purple and orange costume. In recent years, the clown prince of crime has had variations on his suit in the comics, making this depiction feel intentional. The sky on the cover is also red, which was iconically the color of Gotham City’s night skies in the series.
Batman’s suit appears to be a realistic version of his costume from the animated series, with the gray and black color scheme, and hints of blue. Batman’s shorter bat ears on his mask and his yellow utility belt harken back to his design. Although the issue itself isn’t focused on homaging the seminal series, Bermejo’s variant cover for Detective Comics #1047 speaks to its lasting influence. The Joker also resembles Bermejo’s take in his graphic novel Joker, which was similarly inspired by The Dark Knight’s take on the character.
While fans already knew Lee Bermejo had an authentic take on Gotham City, its rogues, and the vigilantes, the variant cover highlights how much potential there would be for him to illustrate a Batman series. Taking inspiration from the most beloved iterations of the character, he has already crafted a cover worthy of a new bat title. Detective Comics #1047 is on sale now.
