The Defenders #44

The cover says it all — the Hulk, Power Man, and Valkyrie are shown "helpless before the strangest power of all," sent crashing to the ground by a mysterious red-caped, turbaned figure identified as the Red Rajah. Jack Kirby and Al Milgrom deliver a dynamic, kinetic image that captures these heavy-hitters completely overwhelmed, which is no small feat when one of them is the Hulk. With Gerry Conway, Roger Slifer, and David Kraft on the script and the promise that the Red Rajah's secret is revealed inside, this February 1977 issue makes a compelling case for itself right from the cover.