Star Wars #22

Marvel's 1979 Star Wars series reaches a gripping dramatic peak with issue #22, "To the Last Gladiator!" — and the cover by Carmine Infantino and Bob Wiacek says it all: Han Solo, wide-eyed and desperate, shouts at a lunging Chewbacca that in this "crazy arena" there's no choice but to fight to the death. The two beloved companions are pitted against each other in what promises to be an intense gladiatorial confrontation, with the cover's cosmic backdrop and raw urgency making it one of the most striking images of the run.