Cover Fire 7/19/2023
The Most Fire Cover From This Wednesday’s Releases
7/19/2023
NO INCENTIVE VARIANTS OR STORE EXCLUSIVE VARIANTS ARE COVERED IN THIS ARTICLE. THIS FEATURE IS ABOUT COVER AESTHETICS, ONLY, AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SPEC.
HOWEVER… For this week’s INCENTIVES and EXCLUSIVES needs, check out the weekly “COVER LOVERS” podcast with TEAM NERD HERD and me, RIGHT NOW!
Weekly Rundown…
Welcome back, fine folks, to yet another Cover Fire. There are some really nice covers to hunt this time around. Here are a few notes before we get to the goodies:
DC has some amazing covers this week. They have a few impressive incentives, too, but we don’t cover those in this article. Check out Cover Lovers for that.
Seriously?!?! Who let Kevin Eastman do a Red Sonja cover? You almost have to see it to believe it. It’s like a bad train wreck. You just have to look.
There are so many Red Sonja covers and while that would normally excite me, a lot of them are trash. That said, there is one that is stunning and another that is good enough for the “Worth a 2nd Look” section. Of course, I like the Parrillo, the Mignola and the Thorne Icon cover, but they don’t make the list.
That’ll do it for notes. Let’s just get to the winners…
And this week’s winner is…
Red Sonja #1g
PUBLISHED: Dynamite – 7/19/23
ARTIST: Jenny Frison
Oh, c’mon… don’t act all surprised, now. This is me writing this after all. It’s Frison AND it’s Red Sonja AND it’s beautiful. It just had to win. Your mileage may vary, but there aren’t really any covers better than this, anyway. If you collected her original run of these back in the 2000’s, you’ll need this one like I do.
*****
RUNNERS UP
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Frank Frazetta’s Tales of Science Fantasy #2a
PUBLISHED: Opus – 7/19/23
ARTIST: Frank Frazetta
Shark?… Check. Naked girl?… Check. A butt?… Check. Frazetta art?… check! WINNER!
Knight Terrors: Punchline #1b
PUBLISHED: DC – 7/18/23
ARTIST: Ben Oliver
A very disturbing and impeccably-rendered depiction of Punchline, here. I think this character is a cheap money-grab, but that doesn’t stop this cover from being incredible. Oliver’s photorealistic style works incredibly well especially in sections like the veiny eyelids and the teeth. So creepy yet compelling.
Harley Quinn: Black, White, Redder #1b
PUBLISHED: DC – 7/18/23
ARTIST: Stanley ‘Artgerm” Lau
This one might have seemed obvious for the week, but what I really find intriguing is Artgerm’s willingness to evolve his style and swerve away from his overly-digital coloring style. I prefer this more classic comic 4-color style which really shows off his near-perfect line work.
*****
STIFF COMPETITION
*****
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #34b
PUBLISHED: Marvel – 7/19/23
ARTIST: Jerry Ordway
Not the best of them, but still super-nostalgic and if you’ve done the others, you probably need to complete the set.
King Spawn #24a
PUBLISHED: Image – 7/19/23
ARTIST: JH Williams III
Dramatic, compelling and intricate. I really like this one. Spawn covers so often look the same as each other (even though they are mostly all pretty darn good), but this one is a nice stand-out.
Hawkgirl #1b
PUBLISHED: DC – 7/18/23
ARTIST: Derrick Chew
Maybe I’m just a sucker for greens and yellows or maybe I’m a sucker for how much better Chew’s work has gotten, but I really love the detail and action of this cover. That said, he has a not-so-great cover this week on Karnal Confessions. However, if you like his older style, you might dig that one, too. I left it off the list, though.
Knight Terrors: Catwoman #1a
PUBLISHED: DC – 7/18/23
ARTIST: Leila Leiz
Short of some smutty black bagged covers for small Indies, I do not know this artist very well (although I’m sure one of you will and you’ll comment with some obscure book that I’ve never heard of and wonder why I’ve never seen it, ha!), but she is really good. It has a nice mixture of Joelle Jones and Adam Hughes. It is sexy, suggestive and the line work is fantastic. The attention to background is also appreciated. This is a nice surprise, this week.
*****
WORTH A 2nd LOOK
*****
Harley Quinn: Black, White, Redder #1c – Guillem March – DC – 7/18/23
Not nearly as good as the Artgerm and she looks a little young in the face, but overall this is a solid cover.
Knight Terrors: Nightwing #1b – Francesco Mattina – DC – 7/18/23
Not nearly as good as his last few, but still a solid Mattina worth placing in this section.
Knight Terrors: Wonder Woman #1b – Francesco Mattina – DC – 7/18/23
Incredibly atmospheric and intricate. Yet again, not his best for this series, but still worth checking out.
Tales of the Titans #1a – Nicola Scott – DC – 7/18/23
I like the old-school nature of this cover. It doesn’t blow my doors off, but it is very serviceable.
Tales of the Titans #1b – Stanley “Artgerm” Lau – DC – 7/18/23
Not nearly as great as his Harley, this week and frankly, I don’t actually like this ‘Germ (which is a rare thing). Something is off with it. However, it is still an Artgerm and it’s better than most things, this week. Plus, Artgerm completists will need it.
Red Sonja #1a – Shannon Maer – Dynamite – 7/19/23
A beautiful cover, but we’ve already seen it on the pre-release ashcan AND it’s stock Maer; that same pose and same perspective. Either way, it is still pretty.
Dead Romans #5c – Rob Brunette – Image – 7/19/23
A little dark in spots, but a really excellent cover for a series that has a lot of excellent covers.
Walking Dead Deluxe #67 – David Finch – Image – 7/19/23
Finch crushes it as usual. Nothing new under the sun, just fantastic lines.
Black Panther #2b – Mateus Manhanini – Marvel – 7/19/23
Another gorgeously colored Manhanini. The head is a little small, but it still pops and has great attitude.
Star Wars – Return of the Jedi: Rebellion #1a – Ryan Brown – Marvel – 7/19/23
IT’S A TRAP!!! Buy it! (A little static to make the main list, but excellent art, nonetheless).
Planet Comics #20 – Erwin Arroza – Antarctic – 7/19/23
Great feel to this cover even though it’s a little busy.
*****
Yet again, there we have it. There should be a little something for everyone for this week, and LOTS of cool covers. I intentionally left off a lot of “meh”, so as usual, I’m positive I missed something you liked. Toss in a comment and let me know what it is that I missed. Until next time, stay cool, be good to each other, thanks for reading and happy hunting.
*****
NOTE: All products, pictures, names, descriptions and logos are property of their respective copyright and trademark holders. No items are listed for sale. All information is for educational purposes, only.
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