Most comic book fans have a pretty good idea what they’re going to buy every week when they visit their local comic shop. With that said, there’s still a lot of fun to be had just glancing at the week’s new releases and taking a chance on a book that looks promising. That’s where covers come in. A fantastic image can make the difference between trying something new or saying, “Nah, not this week.”
In that spirit, here are the covers that captured Movies Editor Nathaniel Muir and Manga Editor Eric Cline’s attention this week.
Nathaniel’s picks:
The Goon #4
Cover art by Eric Powell
Albatross Funnybooks
A great comic book cover does not care if you know what the story is about. The only thing it’s worried about is drawing people’s attention. The Goon #4 does this perfectly. Is it a horror comic? Something sillier? Is it some sort of social commentary? It’s impossible to say from looking at the cover. But it does make you want to read it.
Psycho List #1
Cover art by Jonathan Lau
BlackBox Comics
The covers for horror movie VHS tapes in the 1980s were great. They were over-the-top, eye-catching, and made you want to see the movie. The cover for Psycho List #1 invokes those old classics. The cover is also reminiscent of Golgo-13. The red shading adds just the right amount of terror. The blood splatter over “List” is a little over-the-top, but that adds to the charm
Middlewest # 10
Cover art by Jorge Corona
Image Comics
The art on this cover is fantastic. The lone shack in the middle of the woods is creepy enough. The use of whites and grey-blues is striking and eye catching in itself. The topper is the frightening face that seems to be sucking in all the cold wind in the woods. The real stand out on the cover is the lettering. It matches the scene perfectly and gives the entire cover a great overall feel.
Eric’s picks:
Aliens: Rescue #2
Cover art by Roberto De La Torre
Dark Horse Comics
How do you make a Xenomorph or the darkness of space all the more imposing? Blend them together! I’m calling it now: this is one of the best comic book covers of the year. The composition is absolutely perfect, with the alien threat looming (literally) over whatever poor souls are on that ship. There’s also a real sense of horror to the isolation conveyed by having the ship positioned in space with no other orbiting objects or stars visible to the eye– just the cold vacuum where there are no other people to save the creature’s next victims. Even the shades of blue are the perfect degree of chilly to match the piece’s tone. This is perfect.
Marvel Tales: X-Men #1
Cover art by Jen Bartel
Marvel Comics
This piece is fun. I’ve enjoyed Jen Bartel’s various Marvel Tales covers as they’ve effectively conveyed the joy and bright aesthetic of the Silver Age, and this one here is no exception. The color palette is just perfect. All the blues, greens, yellows, and pinks pop off each other perfectly and the Ben-Day dots call back to the art of the era depicted. It’s also fun to see these classic suits again. Angel’s is so bizarre, but a great example of some of the odder outfits that decade in comics brought us. I also really like the visualization of Polaris’s powers.
Strayed #1
Cover art by Juan Doe
Dark Horse Comics
One of my main criteria for a good cover is that it be eye-catching. That is certainly the case here; as I was looking through issues scheduled to come out this week, this image grabbed my attention and demanded a second look. That cat is adorable, and I love the cute hints at cosmic mystery. The patterns, the divine light up top, the other cats in the background…there’s a lot to like here.
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