Blue Beetle #3

Charlton's Blue Beetle faces long odds on this October 1967 cover, depicted bound with rope and clearly on the back foot as a wild gang of colorfully costumed villains — the Madmen — closes in from all sides, with a blasting weapon adding a crackling "KZZZZZ" to the chaos. Steve Ditko's cover art captures that signature kinetic energy, the hero mid-struggle against a mob of grimacing, garish opponents who look every bit as unhinged as their name suggests. If you enjoy a good outnumbered-hero scenario rendered with Ditko's unmistakable line work, this one delivers the premise right on the cover.