Welcome to the twenty-first installment of Comic Book Cover-Up! Every week, We the Nerdy assistant editor Henry Varona weighs in on his choices for the best comic book covers coming out, along with some great honorable mentions worth checking out! Looking at the layout, artistic talent, and the overall craftsmanship, the covers are analyzed and ranked accordingly. At the end, each book will be given points based on their ranking. Then Henry adds up points for the various series, which will work towards earning further accolades in the future! Here’s a point breakdown for what every ranking will earn:
- First-10 Points
- Second-7 Points
- Third- 5 Points
- Fourth and Fifth- 3 Points Each
- Still Gorgeous- 1 Point Each
So without further ado, here’s the week’s best!
5. Captain Marvel 5 by John Tyler Christopher (Featured Image)
Marvel is producing a slew of Guardians of the Galaxy variant covers for the month of July to entice fans of the upcoming movie. While many of them are nothing special, John Tyler Christopher’s unique approach to his Captain Marvel variant makes it stand out. Rocket Raccoon, arguably the most recognizable and marketable of the group, is comprised entirely of weapons, be they guns, rocket launchers, grenades, or something else entirely. Rocket is known for have a very special love of weapons, so the theme of the cover makes sense. Add to that the detail and creativity of John Tyler Christopher’s choices, and you have a very clean and iconic minimalist depiction of one of the summer’s hottest young properties. The grenades for eyeballs makes me particularly happy.
4. Grayson 1 by Phil Jimenez
There is a lot going on in this cover to Grayson by Phil Jimenez, so give me a second to process how insanely awesome it is. First off, we have Dick Grayson being a complete and utter champion of men, as he plunges through a window into the unknown. Secondly, he’s looking straight at the reader, not missing a beat, ready to take on all comers and challenges. Then we have the crazy detail that Jimenez so easily layers into this image, from the infinite spiral (Or maybe that’s Spyral) to the broken glass falling from the sky. Also, breaking through the glass is a great metaphor to show that Dick is entering a whole new era of hero, as if the gun pointed straight at you wasn’t clue enough. Grayson is here to stay and shut up the haters, and with bold cover designs like this, he’s going to do just that.
3. Coffin Hill 9 by Dave Johnson
Every month I have been waiting for Coffin Hill to become a top cover. I know that’s silly, since I get to pick what my favorites are, but I just haven’t thought that it earned it’s place in the top five yet. Finally, I am happy to see that artist Dave Johnson has brought his A-game, making Coffin Hill one of the coolest covers of the week. The cover is very eerie, taking you back as the central figure stares back into your eyes, pleading for help and yet warning you to stay away. The letters of the cover are so clean and bold that the softness of her face and hair are a bold contrast, separating themselves entirely. The bloody lettering on the main image really helps to make her look more mysterious and dangerous, and when coupled with some of the crazy covers we’ve already gotten, I think I’m hooked on this series.
2. Deadpool 31 by Mark Brooks
Mark Brooks is one of my favorite cover artists in all of comics. His covers for Fearless Defenders will be forever etched into my mind. That project was such a great warm up for his work on Deadpool, where he gets to let out all of his crazy, whacked out ideas. It’s no wonder the man doesn’t have time for an ongoing series when you look at the amount of love and detail he puts into his covers. The sheer attention to the cybernetics and wires here is outstanding. The decay, the rot, and the rust, all work together to make the image very distinct. And let’s be honest here. It’s pretty horrifying to think of being in such disrepair that you’re counting on Deadpool to fix you up. And yet when that is the reality of the situation, you get a pretty wonderful cover to a great book.
1. Grayson 1 by Andrew Robinson
First things first: The image shown is not the final cover. They went back later and retooled the face, mostly by changing the hair. But man, that’s one Hell of a great cover to launch your series. Grayson is one of the hottest launches that DC has had in the last couple of years, due in no small part to this outstanding cover. It tells you everything that you need to know. Dick Grayson is a spy, far from the man he once was. He’s unmasked, exposed to the world at large. He’s working for Spyral, a mysterious organization dedicated to finding out secrets. Oh yeah, and Dick Grayson is here to stay. With bold linework, a heroic pose, and strong color choices, Andrew Robinson’s cover for Grayson immediately makes it stand out from the rest of the books out there. It’s lean and mean, and it’s just so pretty to stare at.
Still Gorgeous:
- Batgirl 33 (Batman 75th Anniversary Variant) by Cliff Chiang
- Batman Eternal 14 by Dustin Nguyen
- Black Dynamite 3 by Riley Rossmo
- Detective Comics 33 by Francis Manapul
- Grayson 1 (Batman 75th Anniversary Variant) by Jock
As always, thanks for stopping by and come back for more beautiful covers. Check out past winners HERE.
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