Superman: American Alien #2

The cover of this second chapter in Max Landis's seven-part series stops you cold: a bruised, blood-spattered teenage Clark Kent stands at a police height chart holding a booking slate that reads "KENT CLARK J — 17 YRS — SPD BRIAR CTY KANSAS." It's a striking, unsettling image of the future Man of Steel at his most vulnerable — not a hero, just a rattled small-town kid facing something very human. Ryan Sook's mugshot composition is restrained and quietly devastating, making "Hawk" feel like one of the more grounded and emotionally honest takes on Clark's formative years in 2016.