Great Covers – HEART THROBS #120

This is a pretty creepy cover for a romance comic. As usual, Neal Adams delivers the drama–even if the size relationship between the two figures is a little bit odd. An interesting choice to color this HEART THROBS cover in monochromatic magenta.

Great Covers – TEEN TITANS #26

The striking purple background really makes this Nick Cardy TEEN TITANS cover pop, and adds to the drama of the situation. Couple that with the dramatic word balloon and the act of the heroes leaving their costumes behind, and it’s a winner.

Great Covers – LIMITED COLLECTORS’ EDITION #C-25

This Neal Adams BATMAN figure was only a few months old when it was reused as the cover of this Treasury Edition, but that only served to make it more iconic. Making the background red added an eerie quality to the piece, as it’s meant to be a night sky.

Great Covers – BATMAN #205

The sketch for this Irv Novick BATMAN cover had to have been done by Carmine Infantino, who had been brought on staff by DC in the late 1960s to punch up the graphics of their line, which had grown stale over the years. It’s a masterful cover–that tilted ground line, the extreme close-up on the … Continue reading Great Covers – BATMAN #205

Great Covers – ACTION COMCS #361

This Neal Adams ACTION COMICS cover is perhaps not all that shocking these days, but in the time period when it was published, it was a revelation. This was simply not the sort of cover that you saw on a DC comic. Instead of a sedate and almost picturesque image conveying a high concept in … Continue reading Great Covers – ACTION COMCS #361

Great Covers – G.I. COMBAT #80

A terrific Russ Heath G.I. COMBAT cover taking full advantage of halftones to create a painted look to the artwork. DC production maven Jack Adler experimented with adding greytones to covers throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s, often to excellent effect. The color here is marvelous as well–that fireball couldn’t seem any more hot … Continue reading Great Covers – G.I. COMBAT #80

Great Covers – SUPERMAN #53

A great Jerry Ordway SUPERMAN cover that takes its inspiration from the blatantly patriotic covers the character was featured on during the WWII era.

Great Covers – BATMAN #1

Impossible to say for certain who drew this iconic beauty. It’s signed by Bob Kane, and he may have even laid it out. But it’s more likely that assistants and ghosts such as Jerry Robinson and George Roussos had a greater hand in it. Either way, you couldn’t ask for a more classic image to … Continue reading Great Covers – BATMAN #1

Great Covers – AQUAMAN #42

A great Nick Cardy AQUAMAN cover, from a sketch by Carmine Infantino. This was during a period when DC was getting bold and aggressive with its covers, and one of the innovations that Infantino played with was to integrate the series logo into the image in the style of Will Eisner. It’s a great triangular … Continue reading Great Covers – AQUAMAN #42

Great Covers – BATMAN #9

Possibly the quintessential BATMAN cover of the 1940s, by Fred Ray and Jerry Robinson. This image was strong enough for it to have been reused seven issues later, albeit with some other elements added in. It’s got great drama, and also illustrates the essential contrast between the shadowy Batman and the bright and carnival-style Robin.