Daredevil #9

Paolo Rivera's cover for this 2012 issue is genuinely striking: Daredevil stands defiant in a small boat, wielding his billy club like a ferryman's oar while dozens of pale, grasping hands and anguished faces surge up from the dark water all around him. The composition evokes something almost mythological — the Man Without Fear navigating a sea of the desperate or the damned — and it's a testament to how well Rivera captures both physicality and atmosphere. Mark Waid's run paired with this kind of cover artistry makes issue #9 a compelling entry in Daredevil's 2012 chapter.