Judging by the Cover – 01/29/25 new releases

There is a veritable cornucopia of new comic hitting stands each week, and while readers often know exactly what it is they’re most interested in (those in the know have got their pull-list sitting in their comic shop’s ever-reliable hands), there is something to be said about going against that old truism and Judging a Book by its Cover.

Some truly astounding cover art hits each and every week. These are the ones that caught AIPT’s Colin Moon’s eye for the week of January 29th, 2025.

(This week marks this column’s transfer from Chris Coplan, the longtime shepherd of Judging by the Cover, to AIPT contributor Colin Moon. I’d like to express a great deal of gratitude to Chris, whose column has long been a highlight of my comic week. It’s an honor to take over such a massive legacy, and I hope to do him justice.)

Psylocke #3

Variant cover by Pablo Villalobos.

It’s a week full of compelling X-Women spotlight covers, starting with this amazing piece. One of the great things to come out of the lamentably gone Krakoan Era was the liberation of Kwannon. She had long been a body for Betsy Braddock, whose mind had been moved over during the final years of Chris Claremont’s run of Uncanny X-Men. Having Kwannon back – under the Psyclocke name – gives us one more badass woman in a franchise full of badass women. This book’s commitment to developing a human center of a character long relegated to the ‘kill kill kill’ squad means that she might develop a fan base independent of Betsy and the late ’80s.

Pablo’s cover, here, gives that fan base all the more reason to grow, all purple swirls and psionic flares. It illustrates all the reasons the Jim Lee design of the character cemented Psylocke in the minds of every X-Kid of the 90s and beyond.

The Seasons #1

Variant cover by Jordie Lafebre.

This Kiki’s Delivery Service-inspired cover for the new Rick Remender series comes from Jordie Lafebre, the writer/artist behind one of 2022’s best original graphic novels, Always Never.

While I haven’t had a preview of The Seasons yet, this cover captures the same sort of fluid beauty of Lafebre’s graphic novel; preview pages of The Seasons promise a similar sense of tone from series artist Paul Azeceta and colorist Mat Lopes. Whether the series will be as playful as this cover has yet to be seen.

Space Ghost #9

Variant cover by Jae Lee.

Moody master Jae Lee’s commitment to the campy and classic has always been something that endears me to him. This is an artist who captures a sense of horror and the monstrous with a sort of inky economy and ease – this is the man chosen to bring horror master Stephen King’s opus, The Dark Tower, to life, if that tells you anything.

Space Ghost, from a retroactive stand point, might not be a property one might naturally connect to the artist who drew The Crimson King, but here we are – we’ve been getting these Lee variants every issue of the series so far (and for every issue so far solicited).

It’s good to be a campy Hanna-Barbera hero.

Storm: Lifedream

Variant cover by Olivier Coipel.

Returning to the X-Women, here’s a moody snapshot of everyone’s favorite Weather Witch from her Marvel Voices one-shot. Coipel is an inspired choice for a Black-led issue; he’s already spent some quality time with ol’ Ororo herself (as with the Marvel NOW!-era run of X-Men).

This cover pays a wonderfully moody tribute to one of Storm’s most classic looks (indeed, her debut look); it is Storm delivering her namesake.

ThunderCats #12

Variant cover by Manix Abrera.

There is a delightful. . . well, manic . . . energy to Manix Abrera’s ThunderCats covers – this one sees Lion-O and Mumm-Ra wrapped up in a firey, mortal battle, and it is both savage and cartoony. It feels spiritually aligned with the short-lived but fantastic ThunderCats: Roar!, the comedy version of the franchise.

Nostalgia series have a sad tendency to take themselves too seriously, but Abrera’s incredible, stylized irreverence proves that they don’t have to – they can be as expressive and zany as they want.

X-Men #10

Variant by Lesley ‘Leirix’ Li.

We’ve reached the final X-Woman of the week with this incredibly sharp Magik cover. It’s been good to see the rise of Magik – she’s one of the few characters who stayed dead for a very, very long time after her death in the ’90s, and in the last decade or so she’s really risen to prominence (more prominence, really, than any of her New Mutants buddies).

This Leirix cover captures her at her sleekest and shiniest, if not her most menacing. I love the soulsword’s modern appearance as a true beast of a chonky blade, and the Darkchylde armor on her left arm is almost Dark Souls-esque in its plated, grimdark styling. Fantastic work.