Scarlet Spider #4

The cover of issue #4 says it all — Kaine, the Scarlet Spider, is pinned against a crumbling stone wall, his red-and-black suit battered and riddled with what appear to be crossbow bolts or darts, yet his body language reads as coiled and defiant rather than defeated. Ryan Stegman and Michael Babinski deliver a visceral, kinetic image that captures the series' tagline — "All of the power, none of the responsibility" — perfectly: this is a hero who takes punishment and keeps coming. Christopher Yost's 2012 Houston-set series continues to make a strong case that Kaine is one of Marvel's most compelling antiheroes, and this cover alone makes issue #4 hard to pass up.