An homage to Batman#291 (vol. 1)

(The original cover -- [link])

So I'm going to assume anyone that hasn't seen The Dark Knight Rises would not be looking at this image. If you haven't, then get off the internet. Also... what's wrong with you?

In any case, during the course of the film, Batman "dies". And it got me thinking... what would the remaining villains think about that? Would they celebrate? Would they regret they didn't have a part in it? I also wanted to do a villain ensemble piece. So paying tribute to classic artist Jim Aparo's cover was a perfect oppurtunity to address all of that.

(From Left to Right)
Riddler - is the best hacker in all of Gotham (and probably the Nolanverse Earth) In all of his comic and television history, he kinda has been anyway. He hijacks billboards. He manages to re-write newspapers. He broadcasts his puzzles and conundrums to the general population. I imagining him always connected to some digital device.. hence his depiction of being 'jacked' into his phone here. I also kept his face in shadow more than the others because he generally doesn't want people knowing who the famous R1DLL3R is. If you're asking why he looks like a hipster, it's because he's the most hipster villain there is. For real.. walk around Williamsburg. They all look like the Edward Nygma.

Poison Ivy - I disagree that Pamela Isley is too sci-fi to have in the Nolan-Bat universe. In order to explain some of the more fantastical characteristics, I gave her a kind of new fungal disease. It causes her skin to be a sickly green. It also causes raised skin rashes that look like vines all over her body. The disease is infectious, and it proves fatal for her victims if she manages to spread it through her saliva (by lip-locking) As patient zero, her body has developed into a safe host for the disease to thrive. Modelled her after Keira Knightley at first.

Scarecrow - Is probably the only villain in this lineup that can claim to have even a small part in the Batman's seeming demise. Had to give him the slight touch of the torn jacket shoulder.

Lex Luthor - Not odd that he's here. In recent decades, Lex Luthor has been a business rival of Bruce Wayne's in the comics. If I could look into the future to see what actor was going to play Lex in an upcoming Man of steel sequel, I would of planted him here. Unfortunately I can't, so I used Hugh Jackman because he played an excellent foil to Christian Bale in the Prestige.

Catwoman - Hardly a villain. But she's on the original cover. And I love the character a whole lot. I especially love Anne Hathaway's interpretation of her.

Joker - I always love drawing the Joker, especially Heath's version. Originally I wanted to make it more modern and give him a spray can instead of the paint bucket. But for whatever reason, it threw off the dynamic of the entire drawing.