Posted By Dan Greenfield on Mar 3, 2020 | 6 comments

A welcome blast from the past…

Last year, when the news first surfaced that Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams’ complete original Ra’s al Ghul saga was coming back to print — in hardcover, no less — I talked about how much I hoped the edition would use the cover from Limited Collectors’ Edition #C-51, which just might be Adams’ best cover ever:

The placeholder art utilized the image, but hey, things can change, y’know?

Well, not only is the book using this cover — it’s adding to the beauty with a rejiggered circa 1971 Batman logo, according to a listing on Amazon.

Dig this:

My, oh my. Seeing that actually made my heart skip a beat and my breath catch in my throat.

I’m a logo nerd to begin with but that one, which you can see in its original glory on the cover of Ra’s al Ghul’s first appearance…

… is one of the all-time great Batman banners.

And somehow it’s even more fitting to use on Tales of the Demon than the subsequent Batman logo that adorned some of the original issues and the top of LCE #C-51.

Beauteous.

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A few thoughts:

— This is not official. DC has not formally released the cover so it’s still subject to change. But I’m willing to wager that this is it, given that the original placeholder art used generic lettering.

— By the way, here are the issues collected: Detective Comics #411, #485, #489-490, Batman #232, #235, #240, #242-244 and DC Special Series #15. So that’s the original saga, plus several Bronze Age follow-ups. The 232-page book is due March 11. It lists for $49.99.

— Want more classic Batman vs. Ra’s? Well, the Demon Trilogy is being collected in hardcover for the first time later this year. Click here for the details.

— Oh, and don’t forget: Issue #5 of Neal Adams’ Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul — which has a superb logo of its own — is expected April 1.

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MORE

— BATMAN’s Complete, Original RA’S AL GHUL SAGA Returning to Print — At Last. Click here.

— The 13 Greatest BATMAN Logos — RANKED. Click here.