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.
DC K.O.: Superman vs. Captain Atom #1
Cover by Jorge Corona and Sarah Stern
Oh sheesh y’all, D.C. KO action that has nothing to do with Daniel Warren Johnson (and Mike Spicer). Again, it’s sort of like opening a flavor with literally every ice cream ever commercially available; you’re bound to deliver someone’s favorite. But this Jorge Corona and Sarah Stern piece deserves its flowers for a number of reasons. While I always thought that Captain Atom was made of, like, nuclear energy, I’m glad to see getting pummeled by the Man of Steel has somehow made him tangible/physical (and like a wonderfully burnt meatball). From there, we often don’t see Superman look quite so mad, and the extra menacing look alongside that decidedly ’50s-inspired build (OK, maybe filtered through a little Frank Miller) is not only perfect for this fight but explores the hero’s unique history with violence. It’s raw, brutal, and unrelenting — two men with great power battling it out in a way that cuts you deep as oppose to awe-ing you with their sci-fi magic. If it gets this personal so early on in the tournament, the end might knock your head off.
Doctor Strange #1
Variant cover by Mateus Manhanini
When we last left him, Doctor Strange was the Sorcerer Supreme of Asgard, stuck in the realm after Loki shuffled Thor loose someone’s mortal coil. With this new adventure seeing him “[preventing] elves and angels from going to war over a mysterious coffin,” things are clearly about to get strange. And when that happens, we need to celebrate the resulting medley of covers/variants that come our way. Alex Horley’s main cover is pretty great, as if somebody remade Flash Gordon on a different kind of acid. This Taurin Clarke variant is pretty great, too, for its magic-meets-sci-fi vibes, and this one from Mark Buckingham feels a little like a trippier version of Heavy Metal. But the clear standout/winner is the variant from Mateus Manhanini, in which Strange is all Knull-ified. Is it timely? Maybe?! Does he look hella cool with those many arms wielding the magical arts? Heck yes! But mostly, it’s a weird and wild (if not entirely unrelated) start for a new Doctor Strange, and sometimes that sharp tic in insanity can feel brain-meltingly refreshing! Knull yeah!
Giant-Size Criminal #1
Variant cover by Marcos Martin
Ahead of the Criminal show that’s set to debut soon, we’re getting our very first new single issue in some five years. As if some TV behind-the-scenes and a tabletop RPG weren’t already enough, the issues sees Mr. Ricky Lawless “go solo” on his most recent heist, and based on this Marcos Martín variant cover, everything seems to be coming up Ricky. I can’t be the only one who, upon first viewing the piece, thought we were seeing holes shit through the character (who, again, I’m assuming is Lawless, FYI) — as if he’d been plugged so many times he’d become a gritty Looney Tunes character. And even if that weren’t the case (god I wish it was), I think it speaks to something else. This novel idea that Criminal‘s true power has always been its deeply human storytelling over any flash theatrics and dope gun fights. That we expect such a level of humanity from the book that, of course, I’d expect a cover where we can literally see through our lead. It’s that kind of intense intimacy that’s made this book sizzle for years, and whether on TV or in the comics, it’ll put holes in your heart and mind.
The Terminator: Santa Clause Is Coming to Town #1
Cover by Will Robson
When talking about I Saw Santa: A Spawn Universe Christmas Story #1 last week, I said that I was unsure about a yuletide tale from the King of Hell. Turns out, that proves doubly true for the Terminator franchise. And yet here we are, with the world’s most beloved robot assassin playing Kris Kringle. There’s at least a good storytelling reason for the move, with a group of young freedom fighters imagining St. Nick as a Terminator-style threat when they’re regaled with tales of Christmases of yesteryear. Still, there’s at least a few visual elements that take this idea from good to great. (Like getting an Xbox when you only expected a karaoke machine.) Like, the naughty list featuring beloved franchise characters, including Kyle Reese. Or, the stringy Santa beard that actually seems on brand for this lackluster Santa disguise. Even some of the weapons, like an actual bomb that says “TNT,” near a realistic looking rocket launcher. It’s dark, a little silly, and just the right kind of absurd — everything that can be a truly important Terminator story. Still, does anyone else think he only has a naughty list, though?
Briar: Night’s Terror #1
Variant cover by Filipe Andrade
If you read any of my reviews, you’ll know Briar was a true standout. Not only that, but the “finale” we got way back in August 2024 made it clear that there was more story to tell in several major ways. And so we come to Briar: Night’s Terror #1, where Briar, Spider, and (some/all of the rest of the crew?) have to contend with the “perilous Fallswitch Traps” before finally reaching the lair of the heinous Grendid. And while I love the main cover from series artist Alex Lins, this Filipe Andrade really grabbed me by the bangs. If you knew nothing about Briar Rose, you might be both moved by her grandiose beauty and unsettled by the sheer amount of blood staining her cloak. And both sentiments would be equally valid, as the story has tested and uplifted BR in some truly compelling ways. Meanwhile, if you know the story so far, you might feel both optimistic and scared for her journey’s fate, and once more, that duality of ideas and feelings is what has made Briar such a perfect expansion of everyone’s favorite fairy tales. There’s joy and horrors to face before Grendid, and I for one am as overjoyed as I am terrified.
Dread the Halls 2025 #1
Cover by Maria Wolf
If I’m unsure about the Christmas-ification of characters like Spawn and the T-800, then I’m totally cool with horror and Xmas melding together like a migthy hot cocoa. That’s especially true if we’re getting four robust stories, with everything from a story marrying a “Hallmark movie and brutal revenge flick” to something titled “The Martians Conquer Santa Claus!” But the best present of them all is the main cover from Maria Wolf, who manages to combine various parts of these stories into something horrifyingly heartfelt. I love that the aliens not only feel like a perfect cross-media representation, but they have such wonderfully great headwear. The sun mask and wooden boy seem story-specific, but they add a vaguely psychedelic and cerebral qulaity that augments the usual fare of terrifying extraterrestrials. Meanwhile, a living skull eating a candy cane tops it off with a hint of EC Comics vibes, and this piece really feels incredibly specific but seeped in wondrous horror nostalgia. And that, folks, is exactly what you want in these stories: Hokiness, heart, and the heft to really bring it all home with true holiday joy. Ho ho holy schnikes!
JSA #14
Variant cover by David Talaski
I quite liked the start of “Year One” in JSA #13. Not only am I a sucker for origin stories, but this one took place in a novel time and with lots of corresponding textures and layers between the as-yet-un-aligned JSA. But even I thought things moved a little slow and certainly held back on some of the emotionality and interpersonal relationship development. Which is why I’m practically stoked to peep this David Talaski variant to #14. For one, it makes me reconsider the Flash-Green Lantern dynamic; it’s one I don’t think gets explored as much as it should, and the two compare and contrast personally and professionally in some really unique and informative ways. But mostly the bubbles made me instantly think about Jim Croce’s 1972 classic “Time in a Bottle.” You know, that poignant ballad about nostalgia, the loss of innocence, and how we can’t get back what was one so dear. Even if that connection is just my own, it makes me feel like this storyline is already delivering in a big way, and that we’re getting some deep character studies even on the cover. Ain’t reminiscing just grand?!
Wiccan: Witches’ Road #1
Variant cover by Carmen Carnero
Not only is Wyatt Kennedy (of the eternally wondrous Nights) on writing duties, but Wiccan: Witches’ Road #1 promises some big things. That includes changes to the “magical fabric of the Marvel Universe” and even Wiccan having to save the day when his beloved Hulkling is “grievously wounded.” And it’s that very bond that made me choose this excellent Carmen Carnero variant cover. Because even with grand, grand things on the horizon, the draw of this book is the compelling and multifaceted connection between these two lovebirds. Not only that, but even amid the chaos and destruction of being active heroes in the realms of “magic” and “space” (it’s real, look it up), the pair always find time for this quiet moment. In fact, you can feel the exhaustion radiating as much as their love and admiration, and that sensibility feels like this deep vein of added intimacy amid a story that will also be quite grand and epic in scale. I always want these kinds of stories to be as personal as possible, and this one delivers with a earnestness and faith in love that’s frankly disarming.
Star Trek: Red Shirts #5
Cover by Chris Shehan
I’ve certainly liked Red Shirts for its interesting approach and people-centric storytelling. But even I can admit some of the series’ primary allure has been, “LOLz, how else can these dummies die?” And then I went ahead and looked back on Chris Shehan’s previous covers, and something emerged. Issue #1 is existentially terrifying; issue #2 is funny but oddly distant/cold; issue #3 is viscerally horrific; and issue #4 is a dash of ’80s horror wonder. So, what are Shehan and company trying to do here exactly? Well, as we move to issue #5 and its deliberately sad cover (that perfect hair means she was struck down quick, and yet she remains fulfilling some level of her final duties) I’m beginning to see the end goal. We always move between the humorous and the harrowing (both between covers and in the “duration” of individual covers), and that both desensitizes and re-sensitizes us with every new sudden movement. We’re meant to not feel the weight of their suffering and also feel it very, very much; in short, it’s the creators’ goal to dissect the Red Shirt “trope” and get us thinking about ideas of death, warfare, human suffering, survival, trauma, etc. And with each new cover, it guts us like the very first time.
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