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Underground > Comic Books >

Cover stories

19:20 / 12.10.03

In the NYX thread there has been a bit of debate on what makes a good comics covers.

What makes you pick up a comic - what do you look for and what do you thnk makes a good cover or a bad cover for that matter.

Give examples if you want and show your working in the margin.

Matthew Fluxington

19:28 / 12.10.03

I think a good cover should just be a solid piece of art/design that is attractive. I don't have any hard and fast rules for what makes something attractive, of course.

The thing that I hate the most in comics covers is when the cover has no relationship with what actually happens inside of the issue. That drives me nuts, especially when you have covers featuring character who either aren't in the issue at all (hello, New X-Men) or have an extremely minor role. That just seems like a bait-and-switch to me, and very irresponsible.

00:26 / 13.10.03

For me, a good comic cover is a concise, striking image that engages and intrigues the casual observer. If you look at a cover and are compelled to open the book to see what it's about, then it's a winner. It's a vague description, but there's really no other criteria.

>>>The thing that I hate the most in comics covers is when the cover has no relationship with what actually happens inside of the issue.<<<

I'm guilty of this with a few of my Catwoman covers, most notably the ones featuring Captain Cold (the cover depicts Catwoman caught in a fierce blizzard and suggests a battle between her and Cold, when in fact there's nothing of the sort on the inside), and next month's cover which depicts a similar (nonexistent) clash between Catty and Hawkgirl. This is a result of having to complete the cover in time for inclusion in the Previews catalogue, before I'd even received the script for the issue in question. They're not entirely accurate depictions of the story within, but I've still received a lot of praise for them and told that my covers have led many to pick up the book for the first time, so on that level I think they're successful.

00:27 / 13.10.03

Forgot to add:

I really liked The Filth covers because even though they weren't tremendously cutting edge, as far as the graphic design world is concerned, they were still quite unique and definitely stood out on the shelf.

01:14 / 13.10.03

I'm with Cameron. and I guess we've had enough 'trading cards' covers in mainstream american comics. although pretty, Tim Bradstreet's PUNISHER covers have long started looking rather generic.

I miss those rare covers with a scene taking place before page 1 panel 1.

02:34 / 13.10.03

Being a graphic designer, I like to see a bit of design on a cover. I liked the filth covers. I liked a couple of the recent Wildcats covers for the same reasons. I also like the covers of 100 bullets as they have a 'designed' feel to them. I don't really care if the cover shows a scene from the interior as long as fits with what the book is about that's good enough.

03:30 / 13.10.03

My favorite covers of all time are from Invisibles, Volume III. They didn't neccessarily have much to do with the story, but were extremely well designed, and beautiful works of art, apart from the comic. I guess the thing that makes a good cover is the same thing that makes a good painting, a visually dynamic image that's interesting to look at, and reveals increased depth the more you examine it.

04:18 / 13.10.03

for me, the pinnacle of the art of the comic cover is Dave McKean's work on Sandman. however, i don't know if that sort of cover would work for many other comics.

05:17 / 13.10.03

I still find the NXM covers creative and graphically enticing enough to pique my interest... whereas Ultimate Spiderman, Jesus Christ, they've all been a varitation upon themselves, barring some exceptions such as #13.

10:47 / 13.10.03

While I like a good cover, they have absolutely no bearing on what I pick up. I usually know what comics I want to buy ahead of time, and a nice graphic, no matter how distinctive or pretty, is very unlikely to influence my choice.

11:20 / 13.10.03

cool a lot of interesting responses so far - especially from Camron and bossboy

The last time i read previews (admittededly a while back now), not every comic had its cover in there with the sales blurb - meaning that retailers and anyone that ordered comics without going to a comic shop to gaze at the racks simply doesn't even see any other covers - let alone anything to catch the eye

added to this the problem with cover artists often having no idea what is going to be in the issue their cover will grace adds to the problems of making a great cover.

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

12:35 / 13.10.03

One of the biggest crimes is obscuring the title - I'm not saying the title has to be 1/3 of the front or anything, but as long as Spider-Man isn't Spi####an or anything.

One of the biggest problems at the moment, is that a lot of covers look the same - If I was a newcomer to Daredevil or Punisher, I would probably not remember which ones I had by just remembering the cover picture.

I think speech balloons on the cover are due for a comeback - especially if they contain the word ::sob:: .

Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

12:56 / 13.10.03

I think that it's not a good cover unless there is a monkey on it.

The problem with comic covers is that now, most comics are sold via the "subscription" service in comic shops, which means the vast majority of people buying a comic don't even look at the cover before they buy it. The "Ultimate" covers have all been good for the mass market, as they show the hero involved inside in a pin-up type pose by the interterior artist...

But if comics ever want to go mainstream again, they will probably have to go the "Shonen Jump" route, where they look like regular magazines. Lots of cover blurbs, lots of "busy" art and hype hype hype.

My favorite covers are the ones that Marvel had in the 60's...a BIG action scene and a small cover blurb like "And Now....Galactus", but you had Jack Kirby and John Buscema, who were the masters of drawing art that gave a feeling of kinetic action. The worst covers were the Marvel covers of the 80's, usually not by the interior artist, generic action stuff or poses that had little if anything to do with what was going on inside (although the 70's Marvel covers were pretty painful with the endless tags and even dialogue).

Vertigo also had great covers (mostly the Bolland ones) as they gave the entire line a look that no longer aimed the comics at kids and made them look more "serious" and adult.

Matthew Fluxington

14:31 / 13.10.03

I love those old 60s Marvel covers, especially the over-the-top hyberbole and drama. They had a real sense of humor about them, Stan Lee was a really funny guy. I wish more mainstream superhero comics were less humorless these days.

14:51 / 13.10.03

Actually I think if anything 40 years of laboured homages to the works of Kirby et al are the reason why comic covers today are tired, empty and repetative so often and have contributed to a lack of innovation that comics as a whole has been slow to recover from.

16:13 / 13.10.03

I like well- or at least slightly-designed artwork and information that tells a bit about what's on the inside and distinguishes the issue from other issues of the same comic. I've had an awful time with Daredevil issue 40 and up because so many of the covers look almost identical - Daredevil posed, nothing hinted about the interior story. The art is great, but I've almost accidentally bought issues twice because of it.

Also, I'm finding that ever since I started studying graphic design and illustration, I'm sensitized to how much cover art is just centered in the middle of the cover without any thought to how un-dynamic it looks. It's so forced and posed - there's nothing to lead your eye anywhere, and there's no feeling of movement, even if the character is shown in a moving pose. Like this cover from Black Panther, and most of Fallen Angel so far - the characters look _placed_, like statues.

Porn Star Justice

22:34 / 13.10.03

Gorillas.

Definitely gorillas.

Gorillas dressed like people are even better. Gorillas dressed like super hero's are best of all. If they can't be in clothes, then they should at least be GIANT gorillas.

SavageFistsOfFengshui

09:25 / 15.10.03

Today's comics just don't have enough bad dialogue on the covers. My favourite was from Iron Man #38, where Shellhead thinks, "He's -- right! But, if I toss in the sponge now -- the girl and I have had it!!"
check it out here.

10:39 / 15.10.03

I'm not sure if covers still attract my attention as much as they're supposed too. I find the advanced solicits my main way of determining which comics I'll be picking up, the covers may grab my attention online but as they're not the right size or even in the flesh I would hazard a guess that they aren't doing exactly the same thing as they would do on a news stand.

Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

22:13 / 16.10.03

Oddly enough, the last time I was looking at comic covers, the "Gloomcookie" ones really jumped out at me. Mostly because of the purple used, and the figure drawing. It also had a very "Addams Family" look to it.

It stood out from all of the endless super-hero covers.

I agree that Kirby pastiches are a bad thing in comics, since Kirby was really the only one who could pull that sort fo thing off, but there is something lost now that we don't have any "This is the most exicitng scene in the comic!" sort of covers.

17:08 / 30.11.03

I'm one of those people that will pick up a random issue just for a good cover.

A lot of covers are the same, although, I agree with the Graphic design comment. Nice basic colours, or a nice colour mix are definitely plus though. Although, I think colours could be used more to enhance the storytelling as well sometimes.

I really enjoy Greg Horn's Emma Frost's #8 cover. It reminds me a bit of something like the Secret Garden. And not what I'd expect from Horn. But, I really do enjoy it.

And although the Ultimates line has a unique feel with it, I hate those covers. Nothing really inventive or new with them. Although, they are seperate from others.