Why ED HANNIGAN Is One of the Greatest BATMAN Cover Artists Ever

13 COVERS: A birthday salute…

There are have been so many great Batman cover artists over the last 80-plus years but fans naturally tend to focus on the biggest names, such as Neal Adams and Carmine Infantino. That’s certainly understandable: with Adams in particular, you’re talking the top of the top.

But among the best ever is an artist whose name doesn’t always immediately come up: Ed Hannigan, who had a roughly two-year stint as primary Batman cover artist from late 1982 to late 1984.

Readers may remember one or two of Hannigan’s superb covers, but when you look at his body of work as whole, it’s an extraordinary, inventive run. And it’s not even the fine linework (inked by the great Dick Giordano) that makes the difference: it’s Hannigan’s gift for unexpected, angled layouts and the Eisner-esque way he would often utilize the book’s title logo as part of the overall image.

Hannigan was born 70 years ago on Aug. 6, 1951. Dig these 13 COVERS from his time in Gotham:

MORE

— 13 Underrated BATMAN Covers. Click here.

— 13 Underrated DETECTIVE COMICS Covers. Click here.

Author: Dan Greenfield

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8 Comments

  1. I bought all of these comics right off the stands, and let me tell you, it was an exciting time! Even from ages 7 to 9, I knew a great cover design when I saw one, and all of these were fantastic. I still love that cover for Batman #368, where Jason officially becomes Robin. One of the best covers ever featuring the Dynamic Duo!

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  2. Those are pretty great covers.

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  3. Remember buying all of these.

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  4. These covers bring back a lot of great memories. The mid-seventies through the eighties was my golden age of Batman fandom. I bought most of these at 7-11 or my local drugstore. Ed Hannigan was a master craftsman when it came to cover design.

    I hope DC will get around to reprinting the Doug Moench BATMAN & DETECTIVE comics from this era in hardcover soon.

    “Groovy” Mike Decker

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  5. I quit buying comics in 1979. It was his Riddler cover that lured me back.to collecting.

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  6. That Nocturna cover and the Savage Skull one are the best of the lot. Poison Ivy & Killer Croc shooting the glass are nice too.

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  7. Happy Birthday Ed. My favorite is the RIDDLER cover.
    Batman #379 brings sad memories as that is the great Don Newton last time drawing Batman.

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