Invincible Iron Man #525

Salvador Larroca's cover for this fifth chapter of "The Future" arc says everything without a word: a long-haired, ring-adorned villain cradles a cracking Earth in his massive hands while a tiny but defiant Iron Man blasts away at his grip from below. The scale contrast is genuinely striking — Tony Stark rendered almost miniature against the enormity of the threat bearing down on the planet. Matt Fraction, Larroca, and Frank D'Armata were firing on all cylinders in 2012, and this image makes a compelling case for what was at stake heading into the story's penultimate stretch.