Despite the visual clutter of that list of titles down the left side, here’s the great Joe Kubert telling an entire story in one dramatic image on this cover for SUPER DC-GIANT #S-14. That mirror lets us see both combatants, as well as the confederates of the bad guy who are about to massacre the … Continue reading Great Covers – SUPER DC GIANT #S-14
A positively spooky HOUSE OF SECRETS cover by Bernie Wrightson, whose use of light and deep shadow would become a trademark. There really isn’t much to this image, but it’s nevertheless creepy–it looks like the image of a skull within the wafting smoke is almost covered up by the logo, which doesn’t help. Good, simple … Continue reading Great Covers – HOUSE OF SECRETS #103
Another Jack Kirby piece, this KAMANDI cover really shouldn’t work at all–and yet it does. The tiny figure of the hero with his back towards the camera, lots of dead space and only sparse wreckage to give it all a sense of place. But the two bits of Kirby cover copy cement the whole piece … Continue reading Great Covers – KAMANDI #20
It’s almost got more of a feeling of the flavor of World War One than the then-current WWII conflict, but this cover to MASTER COMICS #16 is another great example of the bold and clean simplicity of some of the early comic book covers. This piece is credited to Charles Sultan. That bold yellow-orange background … Continue reading Great Covers – MASTER COMICS #16
Boy, they don’t make ‘em like this one anymore–if they ever did! This is the cover of PREZ, one of the most insane series ever produced by mainstream comics. And this cover by Jerry Grandinetti defies you not to pick it up and look inside. I’ve got a few qualms–I don’t love the balloon lettering … Continue reading Great Covers – PREZ #3
Another Kirby. No story in the world is going to live up to the potentials imagined by this cover image. It’s also an early example of Stan Lee’s hyperbolic cover copy, albeit in a restrained way. It’s a bit dicey to refer to your own work as a ready-made classic, after all–though Stan could usually … Continue reading Great Covers – TALES TO ASTONISH #34
Let’s talk about Jack Kirby for a moment. Kirby is pretty much the greatest creative force in comics. But as a cover artist, his efforts could be a bit uneven. Now, he did some marvelous covers, but also his share that were cluttered, oddly-composed or just ineffective. Given the number of covers he produced over … Continue reading Great Covers – THOR #155
An acknowledged classic, for obvious reasons, this SUPERMAN #233 cover features a Superman who is lean, powerful, dramatic and realistic (at least within the context of a super hero comic book cover.) The yellow-orange background silhouettes and pops his figure perfectly. This is also the first time that the trick of the “Big #1” is … Continue reading Great Covers – SUPERMAN #233
A classic SILVER SURFER cover by John Buscema. Everything works on this one. The diagonal composition draws your eye down tot he waiting Thor on the lower left while emphasizing the Surfer’s speed and trajectory. The deep background color makes the characters pop while providing an appropriate space-y environment.
If there is a better WWII-era SUPERMAN cover than this Jack Burnley masterpiece, I’ve never seen it. The whole story is there in a single image: the sinking of the American steamer, the terror on the part of the Nazi submariners, and the terrible anger of Superman himself. The outcome is never in doubt. (If … Continue reading Great Covers – SUPERMAN #23
The Tom Brevoort Experience 