"Judging Books By Their Covers" is a feature where I pick out my favorite comic book covers from the monthly solicitations by the various comic book companies.

So here we are, back again after a month and, not, you know, FIFTEEN YEARS like the gap between the previous two Judging Books By Their Covers.

The way this works is that I'm going to just count down my ten favorite covers of the solicitations (note that not every cover for DC's September 2024 releases has been revealed yet, so I'm going just by what was actually featured in the solicitations, which you can click on here to follow along). I'm considering perhaps working in one or two cover images that I think didn't quite work, but I guess I'll stick with just "pros" for now, and no "cons" (one exception this time around, but it's a major one).

A note about THAT Superman cover

As I pointed out in a recent news article, DC has pulled three covers that were featured in the September 2024 solicitations that were "drawn" by artist Francesco Mattina after superstar artist Adi Granov pointed out that the covers were almost assuredly produced with generative "A.I." art.

And yes, it will be a tough thing for DC to live down that no editor caught the fact that Superman's S symbol had an extra bit (a tell-tale sign of A.I. art)...

But what's striking to me is how bad the cover is BESIDES the major screw-up. Everyone looks like they're in their own separate cover, like a classic "color forms" cover, which was one of the critiques I used to make back in the day when it looked like someone just sort of assembled a few different figures and slapped them on a cover today with no cohesion. That's what this cover looks like BESIDES the alleged use of A.I. art. It was nice to see DC pull the covers. Okay, on to the actual GOOD covers!

10. Javier Rodríguez shows how a little bit of oddity in a normal setting helps to set a cover apart

For a while there, during the Golden Age and the Silver Age, a big thing on comic book covers was to have a giant hand show up on the cover. No one knows why, exactly, outside, I suppose, the idea that, well, giant hands on comic book covers look pretty freaking cool (here's a notable one I've written about recently, although this one is even trippier).

Here, the giant hand is not the main attraction, per se, but Javier Rodríguez cleverly juxtaposes the oddity of the giant hand with the scene of John Constantine and Zatanna in an embrace on a balcony. it is such an unusual mix that it really stands out. What's interesting is that even WITHOUT the giant hand, it is a well-drawn cover, but, well, there are a LOT of well-drawn covers every month, so it is smart for Rodríguez to go for something a little bit special.

9. For a company known for an Infinite Crisis, Dan Hipp pulls out the Infinity Cover

Another classic comic book cover gag that isn't really used anymore is the "Infinity Cover." You know, a character is reading the comic book cover that they are appearing on, and so the cover that they are reading shows them reading the comic book cover...that they are on, holding the cover...which they are on, and so the concept theoretically goes on forever, hence "Infinity Cover." It was obviously more of a draw when the main audiences for comic books were little kids, as stuff like that likely blew their little minds.

However, what I love about this Dan Hipp cover is not so much the "Infinity Cover" aspect of it (although that IS cool), but just the amount of character work he gets done in the faces of the characters. This really draws you into the cover, and I assume it's why our editor, Jenny C, chose this cover for the header image for DC's September solicitations.

8. Inhyuk Lee shows the power of negative space with his Robin cover

As I noted last time, the biggest change between now and the mid-to-late 2000s, when I was last doing these columns, is by FAR the proliferation of covers that are "just" pin-ups. Obviously, pin-up covers have been in play for YEARS before now, but the difference is that DC eventually started doing cardstock variant covers that were specifically designed to highlight the cover art, like you're buying a little print. As a result, and due to the expansion of the AMOUNT of variants for each cover, there are soooooo many more pin-up covers than there used to be, and I generally prefer my covers to have something more to do with the plot of the comic.

There are PLENTY of excellent pin-up covers, but for me to feature them, they have to do something really special, and I think Inhyuk Lee pulled that off with this cover for the series about what if Jason Todd had lived. I am a sucker for negative space, and Lee's use of it on this cover is stunning.

7. Alex Lins' Plastic Man: No More cover popped with its pop art

Plastic Man: No More #1 has a BUNCH of really nice covers, including some variants that actually tie into the theme of the series, which is about Plastic Man discovering that his body is deteriorating. However, while there were some strong variant covers on the same idea (Tyler Boss has Plastic Man melting on a clock as timing is running out, while Chris Samnee has Plastic Man forming a prohibition sign around himself), I think the best of the bunch is the main cover, by Alex Lins, who is the interior artist on the series.

The use of Plastic Man on Pop Art at the gallery is clever, contrasted with the "real" Plastic Man walking around, slowly detroriating. It's quite the clever (and slightly disturbing) visual.

6. Constantine was a movie, and now John Constantine is a movie on a cover, as well

As I noted, obviously, John Constantine HAS starred in a major Hollywood movie before, but this cover goes well beyond that, tying beautifully into the concept of the issue, which is described as, "John has made it all the way out west to Los Angeles, where the line between what’s real and not is paper thin – and that’s before you unleash the power of Dream’s sand. The long-traveled road across America has lead them here…but what sort of evil lurks behind the bright lights of Hollywood?"

So how clever is it to then show him trapped in a reel of film, with the other film reels showing movies named after famous Hellblazer storylines? The answer is, "Very clever." Great work by Aaron Campbell.

5. Bruno Redondo bids farewell to Nightwing with a cute variant cover

Nightwing #118 marks the end of the wonderful Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo run on Nightwing (made all the more notable based on how low the book was before they took over), and Redondo has an adorable variant cover for the issue that shows Nightwing and all of the heroes (and his dog) running off into action...only for Nightwing to quickly return to wave goodbye to the readers.

That is truly a very sweet, and touching way for Redondo to say goodbye. Redondo has been outstanding on this series, helping to take bold leaps constantly throughout the run, and I can't wait to see all the great stuff he'll be up to next.

4. Brian Bolland continues to show why he is the master with this Poison Ivy cover

Now, one of the notable examples of an artist who has been doing pin-up style covers for DECADES is Brian Bolland. He is one of the most acclaimed artists in the history of comic books (voted #21 on our most recent poll of CBR readers for their all-time favorite comic book artists and writers), and he often does pin-up covers. However, a lot of the time, his covers tie directly into the plot of the issue in question. Not ALL of the time, of course, but a lot of the time.

This Poison Ivy #25 cover seems to not really tie into the issue's story (but I could be mistaken), but, I mean, great googley moogley, look how amazing that comic book cover is! DC didn't even have this appear as a variant, it is the MAIN cover for the book! It is a delight for them to have this to celebrate their 25th issue (comic books for some reason view 25th issues as big deals, and if you're going to treat something as a big deal, getting Brian freakin' Bolland to do a cover is a heck of a way to celebrate).

3. Greg Smallwood evokes the mood beautifully with his Batman the Barbarian cover

After a breathtaking stint on Human Target with Tom King, Greg Smallwood did such an amazing job on that book that I guess the next step was for him to write his own comic book, and that's the case with his work on Batman the Barbarian for DC's new return of Elseworlds comic books. DC has really lined up some great talent for these Elseworlds books (I previously featured a Leandro Fernandez cover as #4 last month, and Fernandez's cover THIS month almost made the Top 10, as well), and Smallwood is no exception.

He perfectly evokes a classic pulp style with this cover, although he is doing so without outright mimicking, say, a Margaret Brundage, but going for something equaling the FEEL of those covers without outright copying them. It's an excellent piece of work.

2. Eduardo Risso keeps us off kilter with this striking Batman: The Last Halloween cover

I feel bad leaving off Tim Sale's cover for this issue, but, well, as great of a drawing as it was by a wonderful artist (who are so unfortunate to no longer have with us), it really seemed like a basic sketch of Batman by Sale, and not really anything specific to this issue. Meanwhile, Eduardo Risso does a wonderful job with a cover that is clearly tied into the issue, and also is extremely offbeat.

The idea of Batman posing for a mugshot is genius, and I just ADORE how the letters are out of sorts. What a clever idea for a cover, and extremely well executed.

1. Nicola Scott is so awesome that she got her own cover month

I was all prepared at first to give Nicola Scott's covers an honorable mention, as I thought that these were all pre-existing pieces, but then I realized that MOST of these are brand-new pieces, and, well, WOW! These are just stunning. The way that Scott pays such detailed attention to the past depictions of the characters, but without ever losing the PERSONALITY of each piece is truly remarkable.

The Nightwing one is an old piece that is making its cover debut, and I love how cheeky she is with the ass shot. Too, too funny. These are just outstanding, and a highlight of the month. Good for whoever at DC came up with the idea of doing a month of these wonderful covers.

Okay, this column is a bit less reader-interactive, but hey, if you want to share your thoughts on DC's September 2024 covers, feel free to make comments, or drop me a line at brianc@cbr.com!