Favorite Covers

Marvel.com has just finished its top 70 comic book covers of all time. To see it just click here. Of course I have some differing opinions. For instance, no Black Panther comic belongs on the list, a lot of the comics are too unimportant, and a few don't even represent the impact of the actual story. I won't be discussing those issues though. The purpose of this post is to present you some awesome covers that failed to make the list for some reason. My brother and I will both be discussing our three best picks. Of course, we've only recently gotten into comic books, so our comics will skew a little modern.

John's Take

Civil War #3 (Turner variant) - Michael Turner
Not only is the artwork on this cover absolutely amazing, the actual image completely summarizes the nature of Civil War. Whereas Iron Man was the icon for the pro-Registration side and Captain America the rebels, Spider-Man represented the struggle for the rest of the superheroes. His choice of costume and the webbing of the shield symbolizes the bold decision made in the previous issue.

Secret Invasion #3 (Yu variant) - Leinil Yu
Leinil Yu captures the tone of Secret Invasion the same way Turner did with Civil War. Spider Woman had been an important part of the Marvel Universe for years and once it was revealed that she was the Skrull queen the whole time, readers were blown away. Her smug depiction on the throne perfectly captures the the situation of the time and the green background is a nice touch to her Skrull nature.

Runaways #1 (volume 1) - Jo Chen
I'm a sucker for painted covers and Jo Chen was at her best when doing this series. Her finest was her first. This image introduces us to the star of the series and so much more. The creepy look lets us know something's not right and her hush motion symbolizes that not only does the Pride have a secret, but also that Runaways will quietly become Marvel's best ongoing series.

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Dan's Take

Avengers: The Initiative #1 - James Cheung
Simple is good, as is depicted here. A host of heroes that seems to stretch on forever coupled with the looks of determination on every face makes it seems as though they are an unstoppable army.

New Avengers #27 - Leinil Yu
I really liked the use of the white background here, which takes nothing away from this scene of Echo's impending doom. Looking at the intense expression on Echo's face, glaring at the explosion of ninjas and swords led by Elektra, it really feels as if hell is raining down.


Civil War: The Confession - Alex Maleev
In contrast to the other covers in the series, there is no action displayed here (in fact, there isn't even a person on the cover). Instead, we get a dark and grainy image of Cap's blood-splattered shield lying on the dirt in the aftermath of the Civil War. I chose this cover because of it's symbolism. Though Iron Man has won the war, he is left to reflect back on the sacrifices made and, as Iron Man confesses to Captain America's corpse, "It wasn't worth it".