The Goon #40

Eric Powell's cover for The Goon #40 is a fiery collision of hot-rod energy and monster-movie atmosphere, dominated by a menacing black rat rod bearing down front-and-center against a blazing red-and-yellow backdrop. At the bottom, a brooding dark-haired figure, a stitched-up Frankenstein-esque monster, and a sharp-featured woman crowd the frame, while a cap-wearing tough guy guns the engine of another muscle car in the upper corner. Dark Horse delivers Powell firing on all cylinders here — this 2012 issue captures everything that makes The Goon such a distinctive corner of comics: gritty, pulpy, and genuinely unlike anything else on the shelf.