The Thing: Freakshow #3

Part three of Marvel's 2002 "Freakshow" miniseries delivers one of the most quietly affecting covers of that year — Scott Kolins and Andy Lanning depict Ben Grimm, the Thing, hunched alone on a suburban curb, his massive orange form bowed in what reads unmistakably as sorrow, the title rendered in dripping, melting letters pooled at his feet. It's a surprisingly tender image for such a powerhouse character, capturing the loneliness beneath all those rocky layers. Geoff Johns, Kolins, and Andy Lanning are the creative team guiding this "Icons" arc to its penultimate chapter.