Carnage U.S.A. #5

The five-issue limited series Carnage U.S.A. reaches its finale with a cover that's equal parts unsettling and darkly magnificent — Clayton Crain renders a symbiote-clad figure in deep crimson, standing at a mock salute before a massive American flag, a star emblazoned on its chest in an obvious nod to patriotic iconography twisted through a Carnage lens. The tendrils of living symbiote curl outward from the figure's body, a quiet reminder of just how far from "hero" this image really sits. Zeb Wells and Clayton Crain close out their 2012 run with a cover that frames the story's title, "The Dawn's Early Fright!", perfectly — patriotism and horror sharing the same skin.