The Silver Age of Comics all started right here with Showcase #4, with a marvelously creative cover by Carmine Infantino that featured the first appearance of the Barry Allen Flash. This action-packed cover is one of the most famous images in all of comics, a symbol of that "never say die" attitude that comics always had. In a time when the future of superheroes were uncertain, this cover was just the spark of brilliance that it needed.
9. Detective Comics #27 (Bob Kane)
Speaking of famous issues, the cover of Detective Comics #27 certainly ranks up there with the best of them. This outstanding cover drawn by Bob Kane marked the beginning of the world's love affair with Batman. It's a surprisingly menacing image for its day that still stands tall as one of the most iconic images in all of comics.The strong composition and beautiful pencils by Kane set it apart from the pack.
8. Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia (J.G. Jones)
Greg Rucka's three-year run on Wonder Woman was one of the best periods the character ever enjoyed, and it all started right here with his graphic novel known as The Hiketeia. The cover by J.G. Jones is one of the most striking images in recent memory, as the unmistakeable boot of Wonder Woman pins down Batman's head in convincing fashion. It goes a long way in selling the graphic novel before you even read it, exactly what a great cover should do.
7. All-Star Comics #3 (Everett E. Hibbard)
In the world of comic books, there are superhero teams and then there is the Justice Society of America. The measuring stick for all superhero teams first appeared on this outstanding cover by Everett E. Hibbard, laying the groundwork for all of the Justice Society's iconography in the future. The table, the positioning of the team, all the classic JSA ideas we think of now began right here. It was the jumping off point for so many future DC Comics adaptations, from the Justice League cartoon creating analogues in the Justice Guild all the way to Smallville's more direct adaptation.
6. Man Of Steel #1 (John Byrne)
John Byrne's reboot of Superman shaped the Man of Steel for an entire generation, and this cover to the very first issue in the 6-issue series showed you everything you needed to know; this is not the Superman you knew, and that's a good thing. Byrne keeps all the iconic visual aspects of the character, but it's absolutely modern, or at least as modern as 1986 was at the time. It's clearly a new Superman for a new generation, and it was the definitive take on the character for seventeen years.
