EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK Inside JIM APARO’S DC CLASSICS Artist’s Edition
BATMAN TURNS 86! PLUS: The COMPLETE table of contents! And a NEW VARIANT COVER! It’s Batman’s 86th anniversary — and there are few better ways to celebrate than taking you on an EXCLUSIVE tour inside this fall’s Jim Aparo’s DC Classics Artists Edition, from Act 4 Publishing, Scott Dunbier’s new publishing house. Scott will play tour guide himself, with 13 (+1) original art pages and covers from the book, the complete table of contents — and your first up-close look at a variant starring the Spectre. Here’s Scott: — By SCOTT DUNBIER The main table of contents features the bulk of Jim Aparo’s DC Classics Artist’s Edition, including 10 complete stories. Five of these are Batman-centric (Four Brave and the Bold, and one Detective Comics), with the other five featuring the Spectre from the classic 1970s run in Adventure Comics. The first and the final Spectre stories are included; they are some of my very favorite comics by Jim Aparo. As a side note, eight of these 10 stories include their covers. The gallery table of contents has an additional 26 covers (for a total of 34 in the book). There are more than 20 Batman-related covers, a couple of the Spectre, and even two Aquaman ones. The rest of the gallery includes some great splashes and pages, and even one short story, a three-page Aqualad back-up from Teen Titans #36! Now, here are 13 (+1) illustrations, including the main and variant covers for the edition, which is scheduled for Sept. 30, 2025, and lists for $150. — The main cover of the Jim Aparo’s DC Classics Artist’s Edition. This was originally the cover of a treasury called Limited Collectors’ Edition #C-37, released 50 years ago, in 1975. For 12-year-old me, these treasury editions were such a treat! When I was choosing what to use as the cover of this Artist’s Edition… well, there really wasn’t any contest — it doesn’t get much more iconic than this cover! — And here is the direct market-exclusive cover. Since so much of this book is dedicated to the Spectre, I felt I needed to devote the other cover to him. While I love Aparo’s Batman, my favorite work of his (and Michael Fleisher) is on the Spectre. — BATMAN #293 (Nov. 1977) This cover is just pure fun! Superman and Batman...
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