All-Star Squadron #9

Joe Kubert's cover for this May 1982 issue sets the stakes immediately: the armored figure known as Steel squares off against the star-spangled Commander Steel amid a blazing ring of fire, while a crowd of All-Star Squadron members — including a blonde heroine, a blue-clad mystery man, and a winged figure among others — surges forward from the flames behind them. The tagline "Ring of Fire — Ring of Fear!" promises the kind of superhero clash that made DC's WWII-era team-up title such an appealing corner of the early '80s DCU. With Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway sharing scripting duties and interior art by Adrian Gonzales and Don Heck, this one delivers both spectacle and that distinctive All-Star Squadron ensemble energy.