Star Wars #36

Marvel's Star Wars #36 from 1980 plunges Luke Skywalker into serious danger, as the cover — penciled by Carmine Infantino and inked by Bob Wiacek — shows him flat on his back in churning water, lightsaber raised against a massive, horned purple beast bearing down on him with teeth bared. A red-haired figure on the creature's back adds another layer of tension to the scene, and the cover tagline "This Time the Force Is Against Luke!" makes the stakes unmistakably clear for the story within, "Red Queen Rising!" It's a vivid, kinetic piece of work that captures the galaxy far, far away at its most unpredictable.