10 Comic Book Covers That Totally Lied To You

No, Spider-Man didn't really give up being Spidey in ASM #50 - but you bought the book nonetheless!

Daredevil  #179
Marvel Comics

Comic book covers are probably the most important part of an issue in terms of convincing people to buy a copy. There's a reason why cover art sells for far more than internal panels, and it's to do with the iconic imagery.

After all, it's a single image that's meant to wow the reader and get them to read a comic, so the artist has to put everything they have into the cover to help sell the book. Publishers know this all too well, and it's the reason some books publish with 10+ variant covers.

They know the collectors and readers are going to snatch up the covers drawn by their favourites, or at least, get the ones they don't have when they come along. So, yeah... covers are important, but they don't always depict what's going on in the story.

Many times, the cover straight up lies to the reader. It's pretty much how a TV series will end on a cliffhanger, giving off the false assumption that something's going to happen. Comics do the same thing, so a purported death on the cover may not come to pass. These ten comics pulled the wool over everyone's eyes a bit better than the rest.

10. Captain America Comics #1

Daredevil  #179
Timely Comics

Throughout all of comic book history, one thing has been clear: Captain America is no fan of Adolf Hitler. After all, in his debut issue, the American paragon of truth, justice, and liberty is seen socking the führer in the face — it's one of the most iconic comic book covers of all time.

Unfortunately, it's also a lie. That's a shocking revelation to anyone who hasn't read it but has seen Captain America: The First Avenger. They repeated this scene numerous times in a montage throughout the second act of the movie, so how could it possibly have been built on a lie?

The cover was immediately controversial, and both Jack Kirby and Joe Simon had to get bodyguards to protect them and their family from Nazi sympathizers. Had they cracked the book to see what was inside, they would have found a comic book that very much doesn't involve Adolf Hitler.

He's not in the book at all, but more than that, Cap doesn't travel to Germany in this issue but does manage to beat the snot out of some Nazi saboteurs. So, the cover lied, but nearly eighty years later, it doesn't matter. It's a great cover and stands as one of the most important books ever published.

Contributor
Contributor

Jonathan is a graphic artist, illustrator, writer, and game designer. Jonathan retired from the U.S. Army in 2017 and enjoys researching and writing about history, science, theology, and many other subjects. He writes for ScreenRant, CBR, NerdBastards, Listverse, Ranker, WhatCulture, and many other sites online. You can check out his latest on Twitter: @TalkingBull or on his blog: jonathanhkantor.com