Welcome Back to Top Ten Tuesday! Today we’re counting down the 10 best #1 covers. A regular comic cover needs to grab your attention and make you want to read that issue, but a #1 has to intrigue you into reading a brand new series. Marvel has had some of the most iconic first issues in the history of comics and we at the M6P debated which 10 are the best and came up with this list. Let’s start with 3 that almost made the cut…
Iron Man vol. 1 #1
Iron Man finally gets his own title with this great cover by Gene Colan that nearly made the list.
Daredevil vol. 2 #1
Before taking over as Editor in Chief at Marvel Comics Joe Quezada used to draw amazing covers like this, which kicked off the Marvel Knights line and just missed making our top ten.
Silver Surfer vol. 1 #1
Gene Colan with another amazing cover that just missed the top 10. Silver Surfer looks so great in this cover that it’s hard to believe there are 10 better number ones.
So without further ado let’s take a look at the 10 best Marvel first issue covers!
10. Fantastic Four #1
It’s fitting that we start this countdown with the cover that kicked off the Marvel age of comics. Jack Kirby does a terrific job of introducing four new heroes facing off against a ferocious monster. Kirby’s storytelling, composition, and technical skill are all at their peak in the number 10 cover on our list.
9. Avengers vol. 3 #1
George Perez was the master of putting multiple heroes in one image. So when the Avengers were returning to the main universe after the short lived “Heroes Reborn” he was the obvious choice to take over the book. This beautiful cover features all 39 Avengers who were alive at the time and each and every one of them is rendered beautifully in a way that only Mr. Perez could do.
8. Wolverine #1
The Claws, the hair, the sneer, Frank Miller captures Wolverine perfectly in this simple but effective cover of Logan’s first mini-series.
7. King-Size Hulk #1
The power and intensity of the Hulk is undeniable in this cover. Jim Steranko uses the title of the issue to put pressure on our hero in this powerful cover.
6. Spider-Man #1
Todd McFarlane was so popular in 1990 that Marvel gave him his own book. While he didn’t last long before leaving for image. He did leave us with this beautifully creepy cover to Spider-Man #1.
5. Secret Wars #1
The Avengers! The X-Men! Spider-Man! The Hulk! Secret Wars finally brought our favorite heroes together, and Mike Zeck draws them perfectly in the first cover setting the tone for the rest of the series.
4. Web of Spider-Man #1
With this cover, Charles Vess uses a darker tone to make your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man a little less friendly. It’s such a striking and memorable image that it lands at number 4 in our top 10.
3. Giant Size X-Men #1
This cover saved the mutants from extinction. Dave Cockrum has a brand new team of international heroes ripping through the original X-Men. Cockrum introduced us to some of the most beloved Marvel characters of all time, and turned a struggling comic into one of the top selling titles for years to come.
2. Infinity Gauntlet #1
George Perez does it again! This cover has it all, power, mystery, heroes from every corner of the Marvel Universe. The first issue of a limited series that would influence the multi billion dollar MCU lands at number 2 on our list.
1. X-Men vol.2 #1
The highest selling comic of all time is also our number one, number one cover! A cover so good it could be sold in pieces! Jim Lee brings all of our favorite X-Men together to face the menacing Magneto, and no one has done it better before or since!
