OFFICIAL CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT - BATMAN

Bruce Wayne by Jim Lee

Eleven months ago, Superhero of the Month launched its first contest, asking readers to redesign Robin, the Boy (or Girl) Wonder. Nearly a year later, to bookend our first year of redesign contests, we're asking you to redesign Robin's mentor, Batman.

Since May 1939, Batman has captured the attention and imagination of millions, arguably becoming the most popular superhero in the world. Batman's popularity is arguably rivaled only by Wolverine, and let's face it, ol' Logan doesn't have one of the most anticipated games or movies hitting the market between now and July.

Part of what makes Batman so endearing is that, unlike so many other superheroes, he lacks superpowers. He's a man who's trained and pushed himself past the limits of what the human body is capable of. As a metaphor, Batman exists as an example of what mankind can achieve through hard work and determination.

Dick Grayson by Tony Daniel

This month's contest is co-headlined by Batman-News.com, the #1 Batman movie site on the web, Facebook and Twitter. Since September 2010, Batman-News.com has quickly become the destination for many fans seeking the latest news, updates, rumors -- and spoilers! -- for The Dark Knight Rises. With its slick, modern layout and interface, Batman-News.com makes it easy to find all the news you're looking for on director Christopher Nolan's final outing in Gotham City. With lots of news coming in, we're grateful that Batman-News.com's show runner, Chris, is willing to take time to help us judge this month's contest.

Batman has had so many different looks in the past 72 years, that his design is really open to interpretation. A few things remain vital: cape, cowl, utility belt, and bat symbol. These are important aspects of Batman's iconography, so rejection of any or all of these aspects will need to have sound justification.

Terry McGinnis by Dustin Nguyen

Submissions are due by October 24, but will be posted between October 1 - 24 as we receive them. For this contest, artists are permitted to submit up to four redesigns, one each of the Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, Jean-Paul Valley or Terry McGinnis iterations of Batman. Please specify which version(s) of Batman your are submitting. Remember that only one redesign is eligible for inclusion in the top five, but it does increase your odds.

For all practical purposes, please checkout and adhere to our submission guidelines. Please email your Batman submissions to superheroofthemonth@gmail.com. Batman is my personal favorite comic book character. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight rank among my favorite films of all time. So needless to say, I'm excited to see what you all come up with!

Jeal-Paul Valley by Kelly Jones

As a quick aside, I'd like to thank everyone again for contributing to Superhero of the Month. When I started this site in September 2010, I had no idea if it would succeed, or if it'd fall flat on its face. Time and all of the fantastic contributions and submissions sent in have proven it to be a success, and I have each and every one of you to thank for that. Here we are, a year later, and I'm excited to see where this thing is going to end. Eleven contests are in the can. Let's send this one out with a bang!