Shade, the Changing Man #7

A swirling storm of orange and yellow energy dominates this 1978 DC cover by Steve Ditko, as Shade himself appears caught in a blazing, explosive force at the center — flanked by a menacing blue armored figure on the left and a purple-clad adversary with a weapon on the right. The cover copy sets the stakes plainly: the battle for the Meta-Zone rages on, with Shade trapped in "The Color Coma!" — a premise that practically radiates the kind of psychedelic sci-fi energy Ditko brought to this series. With writing from Michael Fleisher alongside Ditko's art and inks, this issue delivers the offbeat interdimensional tension that made Shade, the Changing Man one of DC's more inventive late-'70s titles.