As shocking as this is to read, there exist in this world Batwoman covers by Amy Reeder that may never see print. Because the highly anticipated DC Comics series will feature alternating storylines illustrated by Reeder and J.H. Williams III, it was decided that Reeder would provide variant covers for Williams' issues and that Williams would provide variant covers for Reeder's. That is no longer the case, according to Reeder, who posted the completed work on her blog. Check them out after the cut.

Always a divisive subject, variant covers are ostensibly meant to provide retailers with an incentive to order more copies of a certain issue of a certain comic book because for every X amount of copies shipped, Y amount of variant cover editions (often illustrated by a big-name "stunt" artist with no connection to the work) will be included or otherwise made available to them. The variants are limited in number so retailers can sell them to collectors (at a markup, if they wish). Comics publishers have employed the strategy seemingly willy-nilly for years, but sometimes it makes a kind of creative sense, as was the case with Batwoman, where the series artists were the ones providing the alternate cover artwork and thus some aesthetic continuity to the hardcore collectors as well as casual fans.

On her blog, Amy Reeder wrote that she was bemused by DC's decision to eliminate the variant strategy for Batwoman, and concluded that her work -- which she pencilled, inked and colored -- may never see print.

So, I'd done four of the five variants, when I had found out that DC decided not to publish any variant covers on Batwoman.

I have told many fans to keep an eye out for these variants and I apologize for getting your hopes up! No word yet on whether they will ever see print. I've tried to ask about printing them on the interior of their respective Batwoman issues, but haven't heard anything yet.

No definitive word, either, on whether they will let me do covers for my arc. Or give me another cover gig. For now I'm still working on Batwoman interiors, and that'll start February of next year.

Reeder, whose Batwoman arc doesn't begin until February, also noted that she'd drawn four Supergirl covers that were also never used (although she released one online that became the lead image of last week's Best Art Ever (This Week) on ComicsAlliance.)

I drew four Supergirl covers in that year's time that won't ever be published. There's a lot of confusion dealing with the "why"s and I'm not sure I was supposed to know.

Whatever DC Comics' reasons were for canceling Reeder's Supergirl and Batwoman covers, it is plainly a shame that her excellent work will not be seen on the racks any time soon. Fortunately for us, Reeder published on her blog the completed Batwoman covers, which you can check out below.

Batwoman #1, featuring art and cover by J.H. Williams III, goes on sale September 14 in comic shops everywhere, DC Digital and can also be pre-ordered online at Things From Another World.


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