Sometimes the cover to a comic will totally blow you away- which is exactly what the upcoming cover to August's issue of Batman and Robin #28 did to me. The jaw-droppingly gorgeous Chris Burnham cover to the upcoming issue written by David Hine and illustrated by Greg Tocchini was revealed by DC earlier today. It isn't just that the cover is stunning- but it is also extremely different than many covers I have seen on the stands. I feel like DC editors gave Burnham a lot of flexibility to artistically strut his stuff with this one. Likening to a Salvador Dali painting, Burnham uses abstract imagery to reveal both the plight of Batman and Robin and some of Paris' most famous monuments like (but not limited to) the Arc de Triomphe, Tour Eiffel, and the Lourve. The premise? Paris will be topsy-turvy if Batman and Robin don't do something to stop the prisoners of Le Jardin Noir who have mysteriously been freed!
The Jardin Noir is the equivalent of France's Arkham Asylum and made it's first appearance in Batman Annual #26. While we don't know much about the Jadin Noir or the overall crime in France, it does seem like a pretty cool way to introduce some completely new villains for Dick Grayson (Batman) to combat. It will also be pretty cool to see some new additions to his "rogues gallery." Will we see another appearance of Nightrunner, who also appeared in the Annual issue? Or perhaps we'll see Korrigan again?
What do you guys think of the introduction of Le Jardin Noir as France's Arkham Asylum? Do you think it's a good idea, or do you think that Batman writers could have had an opportunity to create something different for France? Are you looking forward to this issue?