I don't know what happened this week, folks, but three of the five covers I picked have Aquaman on them. So based on this study of one sample, I'd say that if you have Aquaman on your comic book cover, you have a 60% chance of getting on this definitive list. Of course, this weighs Aquaman unfairly, but it doesn't have to. There's no reason Aquaman can't be on the cover of, say, Batgirl. He could be in the background eating a bisque or something. Or put Aquaman on the cover of Shade, the Changing Girl, have him all tripped-out and grooving through a psychedelic ocean. I'm telling you for your collective benefit, comic book artists. Any edge you can get in this highly competitive weekly contest is worthwhile!
Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #5 variant
Andy Kubert & Brad Anderson
Here's our first instance of Aquaman, and this one is great. This is part of a series of similarly-styled variant covers that will probably play really well together, but so far this is the only one I think could stand alone. It implies a much larger story, and the way these characters are composed makes the image feel properly "weighted." I think the colorist also did a lot of the heavy lifting on this composition--I'm not positive it was Kubert, but good job regardless.
Superman #15
Patrick Gleason
Okay, the fact that there's a devolved Captain Carrot on the cover had something to do with my choosing it. But moreso it was the perspective and motion of the image. You can almost feel the wind blowing past you and onto Superman. The distribution of the color red on the right half aids this illusion as well. The variant with Super Etrigan is also great, but there can be only one! Except when there's two.
Green Lanterns #15 variant
Emanuela Lupacchino and Michael Atiyeh
Another Aquaman appearance! And a great cover. I haven't read this issue yet so I don't even know if the cover is pertinent to the story, but I sure would like to know what brought this on! The creature reminds me an old Jack Kirby style monster like the one on the cover to Fantastic Four #1. The perspective we get here is definitely the scariest one, if I were a seven year-old kid I'd probably see this comic at the pharmacy, run away from it, then peek it at warily from behind a display of batteries (NOTE: comic books could be bought in pharmacies when I was seven.)
Trinity #5
Francis Manapul
Manapul really seems to be channeling Gustav Klimt recently, and there's nothing wrong with that. Some muted coloring is doing heavy duty work on maintaining a timeless mood, but I really love the implication of Mongul menacing in the background. So when Trinity is collected into trade, you're going to do an Absolute version, right DC? With every cover image printed oversized and lots of fold-outs to showcase the interior panel work? Right? Right??
Aquaman #15 variant
Joshua Middleton
This could be the cover to a pulp paperback or a romance novel, depending on your point of view. Josh Middleton has been doing these incredible variants on Aquaman for a while now, ranging in a variety of styles and each uniquely gorgeous. This one gets checks for composition, color, and the implied defeat of Arthur which definitely makes you want to read the story. DC, you can do a collection of Middleton's Aquaman variants right after that Absolute edition of Trinity. Or you can publish them simultaneously, I'm not picky.
I was 2 for 5 this week of buying those selected
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