Covered 365: Day 46

A great comic book cover matching each day of the year, 1 through 365. Please chime in with your favourite corresponding cover, from any era.

Day 46 – Startling Comics #46, July 1947, Artist – graham Ingels.

Some will call it sacrilege not picking Schomburg’s Captain America #46 (I had both pics lined up and was indecisive right up til puck drop) but I’m really trying to showcase some great artist on this covers exercise and Ingels deserves his day, besides Schomburg is not done yet. Crime Does Not Pay #46 was a distant third, I found the CDNP cover similar to Cap #46 in that the subject matter was what drove demand.

Walter Durajlija
Walter Durajlija

Walter Durajlija is an Overstreet Advisor and Shuster Award winner. He owns Big B Comics in Hamilton Ontario.

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Chris Meli
5 years ago

Total agreement.

– Captain America Comics #46 is one of the most _powerful_ covers in all of comics, but just from an art perspective it is clearly not one of Schomburg’s best. For this exercise I think the quality of art and the _portrayal_ of the message (as opposed to just the raw meaning of the message) take precedence. In some sense Schomburg’s greatness works against him here – if CAC #46 had been the only cover that he had ever produced, it would probably be the pick.

– I never actually looked closely at CDNP #46 before it was mentioned above. I can’t even imagine considering that cover. I am no big fan of Brio to begin with, and that cover is at best a mediocre Brio. Other than the scenario being disturbing and unusual for a comic cover, I don’t see much to recommend it.

– I am surprised that you didn’t even mention what I consider to be the other #46 gorilla, Marvel Mystery. If we were picking by dollar value I think it would be the winner. It is clearly considered one of the Marvel Mystery keys because of the green Hitler bobble-head. Personally I am not a big fan – I love the cartoony Schomburg work, but if we are looking at his really over-the-top entries I think there are better, and simply having Hitler on a cover doesn’t move me.

Startling is the right choice for so many reasons. It of course could also work as a SF pulp cover, but it hits the right points to work as a comic cover as well. A top work by a key artist, gratuitous and attractive pre-code GGA, great fight action, a monster, beautiful composition.

Nathan
Nathan
5 years ago

Great cover! There was a lower grade CGC copy on Ebay the other day. I went all out on it and still lost. These covers are so extremely tough to get.