Superman #116

Something is very wrong with the Man of Steel in this September 1957 issue of Superman, and the cover by Al Plastino makes sure you know it. Superman stands poised in his classic costume, but instead of his bare fists he's wielding a massive mechanical hand on a crane-like arm, blasting through a wall of rubble while two startled, gun-toting criminals look on in wide-eyed disbelief. The cover tagline — "The Man of Steel startles the world when he becomes 'The Mechanized Superman!'" — sets up a genuinely intriguing mystery, teased further by the crooks' panicked thought that he may have lost his super-powers entirely.