Creator-Owned Heroes #2

Image Comics' Creator-Owned Heroes was a genuinely ambitious anthology magazine format, and issue two from July 2012 delivers two full comics plus interviews and how-to articles in a single package. The cover spotlights the gritty, post-apocalyptic flavor of Steve Niles and Kevin Mellon's American Muscle, with four tough, armed women posed around rugged vehicles in a bleak urban setting — a woman in a pink beanie leveling a shotgun front and center, flanked by equally no-nonsense companions. Inset in the corner is Trigger Girl 6, the white-haired, sharp-eyed creation of Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray, and Phil Noto, while an interview with Paul Pope rounds out what is a remarkably generous offering for $3.99.