Gotham Academy #4

Three Gotham Academy students in school uniforms scramble across a crumbling stone floor as a swarm of bats darkens the sky above them — the panicked younger student with the green backpack, the lunging boy reaching out desperately, and the wild-eyed girl with silver hair whose clawed hands suggest something unsettling is happening to her. Karl Kerschl's cover for this March 2015 New 52 issue crackles with atmosphere, blending the eerie gothic mood of Gotham with the very real dangers facing these school-age protagonists. Written by Becky Cloonan and Brenden Fletcher, Gotham Academy #4 — "The Secret of the Symbol" — delivers exactly the kind of mystery-soaked tension its title promises.