Most comic book fans have a solid idea about what they’re going to buy every week as they descend upon 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, funny, scary, etc. 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 our attention this week, with entries from comics editor Chris Coplan. This is Judging by the Cover.
Ultimate X-Men #1
Cover by Peach Momoko
Anyone who has read a Marvel book in the last several years will know how essential Peach Momoko is to the line. Not only has she done a slew of amazing variant covers, but she’s gotten a chance to tell her own stores with the excellent Demon Days. Now, Momoko and letterer Joe Caramagna are working together on Ultimate X-Men, in which Hisako “Armor’ Ichiki must leave behind her life as an average teen when “urban legends have sprung to life and brought some unusual new powers with them.” Sure, a lot of the more recent Ultimate stuff has been pretty good overall (even as some real criticisms do exist), but I feel like Momoko could be onto something here. For one, any book that brings in a non-A-list like Armor deserves our attention, but then there’s this idea of filtering it all through the life of a teenager that feels both compelling and quintessentially comics. And Momoko’s own cover to issue #1 expertly encapsulates what Hisako may be going through, as she’s caught in a storm of sorts where everything she knew and this strange new world bash together to throw her life asunder in a way that all of the best teen dramas can accomplish. It feels like classic Momoko but also with a touch more emotional gravitas and undertones of intensity to really make us feel for our new lead. It’s already another win for Momoko, folks.
Batman #145
Variant cover by Yasmine Putri
I get that some folks really loved “Joker Year One” and others may have felt a little more uneven about it (possibly bordering on outright dislike). But that event was done with such brutality and efficiency (just one of the reasons that I liked it) and now we get to move on to “Dark Prisons.” Based solely en this variant cover from Yasmine Putri, I already feel like “Dark Prisons” is a lock for yet another great storyline from Chip Zdarsky and company. (Get it, lock? Because prison?) Putri — who drew the mostly great Dark Knights of Steel maxiseries — doesn’t really focus on the story elements in any sort of direct way, but perhaps captures the mood of Bruce Wayne’s continued “struggle” with Zur-En-Arrh. That might explain the overwhelming sense of darkness and intensity that permeates every square inch of this piece. Or, the use of color to help facilitate a sense of reality change or shifting, and how out there (but still scary) a lot of this Zur-En-Arrh stuff is as opposed to other, more “grounded” Bats tales. Even the use of the pearls (that old trope, right?) feel imbued with a new power and significance, a link to some emotional core that’s central to this whole storyline of “I made a man in my brain to help me fight crime as a bat when I get too old/weak/etc.” It’s about a snapshot that speaks volumes without spoiling what’s sure to be packed with surprises, and I for one can’t wait until it’s lights out for this new arc.
Pine and Merrimac #3
Cover by Fran Galán
I’ve been a massive fan of Pine and Merrimac since about 50% into page one of issue #1. It’s hard to argue with the sheer charm and inherent drama of a story about two married PIs trying to make their small town less of a crime-ridden dump. But the thing about this book’s first two issues is that it all started rather innocently enough. Sure, there was some faces being smashed, and generally unsettling acts from thugs and the like, but it was about Linnea and Parker having a chance to show off their super effective partnership and ease us into this world. But with issue #3, as the duo are on the run in the face of some especially harrowing and awful conspiracy, things have been turned up a few degrees tout suite. Series artist Fran Galan captures that so perfectly, as our lovebirds face the (literal and figurative) fire with one of their most intense moments so far (and that’s saying a lot given how much this still-young book has delivered). And while there’s plenty of stakes hinted at in this cover, as well as a sense that things have take a massive turn emotionally and thematically, Galan still gives us this deeply human and utterly relatable portrayal. And that, more than anything else, has been what’s made this book so dang special, and why we can connect with it no matter the twists and turns of this latest case. It’s also why I know this case will test our mental and emotional prowess in such a massive way with its massive layers and deliberateness.
Golgotha Motor Mountain #1
Cover by Robbi Rodriguez and Marissa Louise
By the time you’re seeing this, there’s a good chance you’ve already read my advance review of issue #2 (which doesn’t actually hit shelves until April 17). But if you’re feeling a little out of sorts, or like things have gone topsy-turvy somehow, I want you to really and truly embrace those sentiments. Because once you actually read this book, I can guarantee you that it’ll only get worse (or better, depending upon how you look at it all and if you did peyote in college or not). It’s a book that slams you with ideas big and small, stupid and brilliant, and you’re sort of left to pick up the pieces of your brain and decide what to do with it all. So, think of this debut cover less like a preview of sorts and maybe more like a bit of calm before the storm. (If you can call this psychedelic maelstrom any kind of calm.) It looks really cool and eye-catching, like if you spilled bong water on your VHS cover of M.A.S.K. or something. And it may not tell you about the cacophony about to enter your ocular nerves and infest your brain, but it does sort of hint that something supes weird is about to take hold. So this cover at least primes the reader in a way that you can focus on the cool parts of this book. Then all that sub-contextual goodness and general multimedia madness will hollow you out from the inside out. Enjoy, suckas!
Night People #1
Cover by J. H. Williams III
I’ve been doubly excited for Night People since I spoke with writer Chris Condon in early February. And there’s a lot to be excited about this series: it’s an adaptation of a pretty great novel; there’s lots of darkness and seedy energies baked directly into the book; and Condon has a really great approach to noir in general. But one of the things I’m most excited for is the art, with each issue involving a different art team/collaborators in general. That begins, of course, with this truly excellent cover from J. H. Williams III on the cover to issue #1. There’s a few things that makes Williams’ work stand out even amid some great variant covers from Joelle Jones and Brian Level. For one, the sheer intensity and detail; I practically feel like I have to step over the bodies myself. There’s also the right balance between violence and humor — the book emphasizes and interplays both so perfectly, and this one makes me chuckle even as my stomach churns a little. And, of course, just the way that this cover feels a little like the title card for some AMC show; that makes me think we’re in for more prestige TV in comics form. All of it together has bumped my excitement into the realm of jittery joy, and I know Night People is bound to make our noir-y dreams (and nightmares) come true.
Edie: You Are What Eats You #3
Cover by Greg Woronchak
The titular Edie is your average woman looking for love until her date assaults her and then she’s “captured, consumed, and forever changed” by a “voracious alien.” So, in that sense, it seems to tackle ideas of toxic masculinity and the harrows of our iffy dating culture — doing so with the honesty and intensity these topics truly deserve. But if you know me, I mostly want to focus on the S-tier body horror that’s happening across issue #3 (courtesy of series artist Greg Woronchak). The split growing green skull/human side isn’t just wonderfully gross, but captures the eye first and almost tells us, “If this is the first thing you see, I can promise it’s only about to get worse, friend.” And that it most certainly does, as Edie is either consuming and/or melding with her cat in a way that makes some of those same similar scenes from The Thing feel almost quaint in comparison. But what makes this cover great isn’t just that Woronchak takes an unblinking approach to this, but his style feels especially dirty and chaotic (in the best ways, of course), and that just adds whole new dimensions to a piece that tries its hardest to make you re-evaluate your relationship with the human body. That, and all that focus on the cat’s neck/body just shows you the amount of emotional energy poured into this piece. Heck, even the dang candle feels menacing!
The Avengers #11
Cover by Stuart Immonen
Here’s how you know you’re a great superhero team: you’ve got solid support staff. Heck, even the JSA had Alex Montez for a bit (until he went and played around with the spirit Eclipso and took a swan dive off a building). But as far as “employees” that are basically members of the actual team, you can’t get much better than Edwin Jarvis. He’s so intertwined with Marvel’s super squad that Tony Stark used him as the basis for his own A.I. (in certain adaptations). While this latest incarnation of the Avengers are clearly operating on a new level — they’ve got the “orbital super-fortress, the Impossible City” — they’re still very much in need of the care and attention of Mr. Jarvis. That’s why I think this cover to issue #11 works so well. Because it’s clearly about positioning Jarvis in an important way — he’s very much plugged in and at the very nerve center of the Impossible City. At the same time, though, the rest of the team are looking as cool and epic as ever, and that shows you just how important a butler really is on a team of super robots and actual gods. Also, as always, bonus points for finding a way to include a cat. All of this together shows not only the role that Jarvis plays but also the kinds of inventive enough angles and ideas that this series is injecting to really explore and extend the Avengers. Logistical support and perfectly tempered tea — what a team lead, yeah?
The Bat-Man: First Knight #1
Variant cover by Marc Aspinall
If there’s Year One, does that make this story Year 0.5? Actually, Dan Jurgens and Mike Perkins have decided to take Batman way back to 1939, with a story set in the fallout of WW I and the Dark Knight contending with a murder case where “the perpetrators are all men who died in the electric chair.” While I appreciate Perkins’ own main cover — which gives us some really sleek and stylized noir action — I just had to go with this variant cover by Marc Aspinall. Because as far as touching on or tapping into those early Batman stories, this one screams like it was the cover to Detective Comics #28 or something (but not really, obviously). There’s far more overt intensity and sheer theatricality and drama — a modern energy and force that never once takes away from the old-school sensibilities of this piece. Batman’s design also feels vaguely like those old stories even as it’s got something new (and maybe not unlike it’s from some 1940s Batman play/stage show). Even the imperfections and creases and whatnot make it feel like we’re reading an actual 70-year old book in 2024, and that kind of attention to detail really does wonders for our immersion in this experience. It doesn’t take a lot to get us back to this era, but this cover does it with such precision and power. If the book itself can match even one-tenth of the cover, this really could leave us feel chirky.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution #1
Cover by Esau Escorza, Isaac Escorza, and Luis Antonio Delgado
This year is the 40th anniversary for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It’s a time to look back at all the great stories that the brothers have told across various mediums, and the lessons about family and inclusivity they’ve taught along the way. But it’s not just about exploring the past, as IDW still has plans for the future of the TMNT with more stories from The Last Ronin “universe.” And, sure, maybe there are those among us who don’t need a story about “disparate gangs [vying] for economic and political control” of a dystopian New York City.” (But why?) So if that’s the case, maybe you should look extra hard at this cover to The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution #1 from Esau Escorza, Isaac Escorza, and Luis Antonio Delgado. Because why it’s all about a new crop of Turtles — Moja, Odyn, Uno, and Yi — you can’t help but feel something old-school-inspired about this piece. Each Turtle has their own unique pose and a larger sense of individuality, which is classic TMNT. There’s also the size and scope of the city, and the role that it plays (even as it’s clearly a rather different city). There’s also a vaguely late ’80s quality to this piece, and most of us know that’s sort of a peak time for the whole TMNT franchise. Yes, these aren’t the Turtles a lot of us grew up on, but that doesn’t mean they’re not capable of scratching the same itch and offering the same life lessons and perspectives. Slap a cowl or whatever on a Turtle, and it’s still a karate-kicking badass.
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