Batman : The Black Mirror cover - Jock

Scott Snyder's "The Black Mirror" holds a special place for me. It's not only his first arc on Batman, hailed as one of the best Batman epic ever, in all the lists of top 10 graphic novels of 2011 but it was also the debut of his exclusive contract with DC and his 1st team-up with now frequent collaborator Jock (and they won an award of the best Ongoing Series for this 1st work together). More importantly for me, it's one of my favorite Batman stories ever.

I had been a fan of Jock for a long time : since he did the concept art of Nolan's Batman Begins and some of Scalped best covers but it's only when he started this run on Detective comics that I fell in love with his art. It was the first time since Sienkiewicz that I was stunned by how an artist could be so perfect for Gotham.

With this cover of Detective Comics #873, Jock created an iconic image of the Dark Knight that feels both fresh and dynamic and as gritty and modern as Snyder's writing. It was later used for various trades, both in the US and abroad, and also for the poster of the French Comic Con.
I know I will read The Black Mirror again and again as it is one of my favorite Batman stories and the start of my favorite Batman run in decades. I do believe there'll always be a before and an after Snyder so I could not be happier to own this iconic cover of his debut on Batman.