Blue Beetle #53

This December 1965 Charlton issue plunges Blue Beetle into one of his most unsettling challenges, as the cover — penciled and inked by Tony Tallarico — shows the blue-and-red-suited hero striding forward with fists raised against a dark cityscape crawling with giant insects, including a looming spider and a sketched mosquito. The cover copy promises an army of giant creatures on the rampage in "The People-Thieves," with the sinister, goggle-eyed Praying Mantis Man grinning in the corner as the mastermind behind it all. Written by Joe Gill with art by Tony Tallarico throughout, it's a wonderfully pulpy slice of mid-60s superhero action that captures Charlton's distinct, no-frills charm.