Superman: The Man of Steel #129

The tagline "The Real World's Finest!" sets an intriguing tone for this October 2002 entry in the long-running series, written by Chuck Austen with art by Pascal Alixe. Dave Johnson's cover places a massive, powerfully rendered Superman streaking upward across a glowing Metropolis skyline, while a wide-eyed Metropolis Police officer — badge and uniform clearly visible — looks on from below with an expression caught somewhere between awe and alarm. It's a sharp, dynamic composition that quietly raises the question of what it means to keep a city safe when one extraordinary figure can't be everywhere at once.