2000 AD #1574

Thirty-one years in and 2000 AD is still delivering cover art that commands attention — Richard Elson's pencils and inks present a massively built figure, Gene the Hackman, wrapped in heavy chains and surrounded by a writhing mass of monstrous creatures in eerie purples and blues. The tagline "Kingdom Come? Gene the Hackman at the Mercy of Them" sets a suitably desperate, high-stakes mood for whatever lies within. Prog 1574 also features John Wagner and Colin MacNeil's ongoing "Emphatically Evil: The Life and Crimes of PJ Maybe," making this a fine snapshot of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic firing on all cylinders in 2008.