One of the beautiful things about the comic book medium is that it is one of the few art forms that allows readers to both literally and figuratively judge books by their covers. The work of a cover artist is not always to encapsulate the plot of the issue; in fact, most times the cover is completely unrelated to the content inside. The primary job of the artist is to make the book stand out - to grab readers by the throat and force them to take a look at the issue, even as it's speckled in with dozens of other books on the shelf, Wednesday after Wednesday.
It is entirely possible to purchase a book based on its cover and find the content inside to be complete drivel, or worse yet, with art that pales in comparison to the work of the cover artist. Alternatively, a poor cover could potentially lead readers away from books that are otherwise goldmines. There's a lot riding on that cover, so CraveOnline is taking it upon ourselves to take a look at the covers and artists that made us stop dead in our tracks in August 2010.
5. Black Widow #5
Cover by Daniel Acuna
This cover encapsulates everything that I think of when I think “Black Widow”. Acuna presents issue #5 with a classic spy movie feel, very akin to the 1960s James Bond posters. The noir-ish shadow behind her figure, her body language, and the orange hue all scream “Action! Espionage! Intrigue!” Though the issue might not have been completely accurate to the genre the cover suggests, it’s still a great piece that, in my mind, represents Black Widow to a T.
4. Air #24
Cover by MK Perker
G. Willow Wilson’s Veritgo series Air is coming to an unfortunate early end, but at least MK Perker’s cover for the final issue is fitting. Featuring Air’s leading lady Blythe, issue #24’s cover is stunningly simple, featuring the character in a mid-shot, giving a very casual salute to the reader. It’s actually rather eerie, thinking in fourth dimensional terms of a character knowing that their story is ending... but that’s neither here nor there. Perker’s cover to Air #24 is, at face value. a suiting image to cap off the series.
3. DV8: Gods and Monsters #5
Cover by Fiona Staples
I mentioned it in my review of DV8: Gods and Monsters #5, but Fiona Staples’ cover work here goes above and beyond the issues that came before it. She boils the Sublime and Evo characters down to their core and finds a way to position them that also dictates their relation to one another. Sublime is attention grabbing, perfectly postured and hip; Evo is lowly and primative, squatting beneath her. It’s a great image that easily sums up not only these characters, but the contents of the issue as well.
2. Daredevil: Black & White #1
Cover by David Aja
Firstly, Aja’s Daredevil work is always badass, but the reasons I really dig the Black & White cover are plentiful. First, the vintage throwback trade dress is really cool, and I love that the color scheme sticks entirely to black, white, and red. Even the coloring is given an aged look, as though this book just teleported here from 30 years ago. Most importantly, I love the WIll Eisner style composition of the image itself. The way Aja uses the environment to spell out “The Man Without Fear” is very Spirit-like and fits right in line with the overall design of this book.
1. Sweet Tooth #12
Cover by Jeff Lemire
I adore this cover. Not only is it clever, but despite Gus’ utterly blank stare, it’s one of the most emotional pieces of artwork to grace mainstream comics covers in the last year. Portraying lead character Gus as a paint-by-numbers image suggests the character’s emotions in a way that he’s too intellectually stunted to explain for himself. He’s truly a victim in the entire situation he’s found himself in, and there are a bunch of different people telling him different things and putting different thoughts in his head. He’s not his own person, he’s what everyone else is painting him to be. It’s a heartbreaking, smart cover, and just one more reason why Sweet Tooth continues to wow readers.
