Justice League International #5

A towering, glowering villain dominates this New 52 cover, his massive helmeted face looming over a desperate Justice League International scrambling below — Green Lantern firing off volleys of energy, a green-glowing figure at the center, and armored and suited teammates bracing for impact on all sides. The tagline "Last Stand!" says everything you need to know about the tension Dan Jurgens and Aaron Lopresti have been building toward the conclusion of "The Signal Masters." David Finch and Richard Friend deliver a cover that makes the stakes feel genuinely enormous, a fitting capstone to the arc's opening chapter in DC's 2012 New 52 lineup.