Mad #363

Mad #363 (November 1997) puts Alfred E. Neuman at the center of a gloriously absurd send-up, as the gap-toothed mascot finds himself swarmed by caricatures of all five Spice Girls — blonde, redhead, dark-haired, curly-haired, and more — each lavishing him with exaggerated affection while the cover cheekily promises readers a chance to "Win a Night with the Spice Girls*" (with the asterisk doing a lot of heavy lifting). The border is packed with the magazine's signature parade of tiny gag panels, and the whole scene is rendered with polished painterly detail courtesy of cover art by Joe DeVito and Al Jaffee. Peak late-'90s Mad absurdity, delivered with a wink.