The Rawhide Kid #20

The tension practically leaps off this 1961 cover by Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers, as the Rawhide Kid squares off in a dusty Western street against the rifle-toting Blackjack Bordon while a crowd of bystanders scrambles frantically in every direction behind them. The cover dialogue makes the stakes unmistakable — only one man walks away — and the stark red sky and bold yellow logo give the whole scene a charged, urgent energy. Stan Lee, Kirby, and the rest of the creative team bring their full early-Marvel muscle to this shoot-out story, making issue #20 a sharp, spirited entry in the Kid's run.