Green Lantern Corps #38

This "Prelude to Blackest Night" chapter brings the "Emerald Eclipse" arc to a close with a cover that radiates raw menace — a massive, battle-worn Green Lantern bearing glowing eyes looms over the viewer, clutching a fistful of power rings as blood stains his hands and the words "This is what it costs!" hang in the air. Patrick Gleason's pencils and Rebecca Buchman's inks give the figure an almost overwhelming physical weight, making the stakes of the impending Blackest Night event feel genuinely personal. At $2.99 in September 2009, this is Peter J. Tomasi's creative team at the height of their Green Lantern Corps run.