It's still not fair...!  They should have brought more guys!!  (But, man...  Where in the world would Nick have puit them?!?)  A joyously cacophonous royal rumble with the Big Man front and center, tearing through wave after gloriious wave of B-listers (well, and Juggernaut :) ).  That's Basilisk over Ben's shoulder, right?  And Hate Monger on the other side?  And Grizzly?!?  And I love Jigsaw's dread as he realizes he's in Ben's path...  Hilarious!!).  Bradshaw draws a great Thing, too, with the "missing" rock plates allowing extra opportunity for Nick to show off with some beautiful texturing.... although there's no lack of texture here - gadzooks!  This feels almost like a Kirby collage (or love letter to them), with pictures of villains cut out and glued down so Ben can knock them out.  -SUCH- a great (almost celebratory) piece, perfectly fitting the occasion of a #1 issue (and Clobberin' Time in general).  Nick knocked it out of the park (who -wouldn't- buy this issue?!?) and it landed in the perfect collection to spotlight it.  Serious congrats, Chris!  Rock on!

Absolutely -SPECTACULAR- piece, Alex - no other word for it!  Finch knocks this one out of the park, perfectly capturing the complicated emotions of this narrative moment: the tragedy and drama surrounding the non-stop succession of body blows the Avengers have been dealing with over the past couple issues (with the smoldering remains of Avengers Mansion in the background), and then the incredible uplift when Cap turns around to see the Assemblage of heroes and friends that felt duty-bound to show up and provide any and all support and backup they can.  Truly heroic and majestic!  Sincere congrats on the epic pick up!

WOW - now that is some serious artistic muscle from Rob DLT here (loved this whole run)...  BEAUTIFUL rendition of Yelena, and although he's more often drawn in a comedic "lighter" style (to play up the yuks), I always welcome and appreciate a "heavier", more realistic approach to drawing Deadpool (to stress the menace and intent of the Merc).  A great design & composition to the page, and really interesting (and very clever) that Rob drew it on two pages for a more efficient pass on the colors.  Great idea and GREAT page, George!  Congrats!

-SUPER- cool page, George!!  I -loved- the Hitch/Millar run on FF, and fondly remember this particular arc as one whose surprise twist culminated in an unforgettable expression of Doom's will (along with a pretty potent testament towards his hatred of all things Richard's, of course :) ).  It's all present in his eyes here: they bore through you thanks to Hitch's strong composition (reminiscent of Zeck's Secret Wars #10 cover) and Currie's smooth, clean inks.  The armor may be smoldering hot enough to burn away the outer robes, but that's usually a sign that Doom is just getting warmed up... (er, so to speak...).  Fantastic, dramatic splash here, George (I just can't get over the eyes)!  Mega-congrats!

Superb!  There was a small pocket of issues at the very start of Church & State (and end of High Society) that proved particularly elusive to acquire for me back in the day, and this was one of them... so seeing the original cover here is -fantastic-!  When Gerhard was fully integrated into the singular, incredible "art unit" that produced Cerebus, the covers of the book became incredibly unique, increasingly complex (and unorthodox), "mature" pieces (declarations, almost) that continually kicked down the walls that held in check the expectations of what a North American monthly comic book cover should, would, and could be.  But before then, Dave could really unleash some havok on his own, and this image is a perfect example.  It must have come as a great relief, after the high-falootin', complex High Society, to see this cover kicking off a new storyline and realize that Dave "got it all out of his system" and was returning Cerebus to his roots as a brawling, Conan parody, leaving behind all that heavy political and systemic analysis... thank goodness! :)  And then he gave us Church & State... :)  Absolutely, epically smashing and fantastic Cerebus pick up, Rick!  Gorgeous Dave Sim drawing on this beauty (love the Looney Tunes-like shorthand of the goon biting his lip to denote the force of the blow...).  Congrats on pinning this bad boy down!

Beautiful page with a tremendous sense of weight (in terms of both emotion and storytelling).  The composition, lighting, and inking in that second panel are fantastic!  This was during the Ultimatum storyline, where everything was unraveling at a breakneck pace, and I'd guess the biggest challenge may have been to assure all the important moments registered (it's all just a lot of screaming and noise otherwise, right?)... but Ultimate Spidey was in great hands with Immonen and von Grawbadger.  Beautifully composed page with lots of detail, but the reader's eye never gets lost and is guided perfectly to where it needs to go.  Fantastic!  Congrats, Peter!

Totally!!  The Swamp Thing upside down "V" grafted onto the all-time great, timeless and classic "This Island Earth" brain creature design...  Spectacular!

Oh, my goodness, Mark...  PHANTASMAGORICAL pick up!!  Good grief, one of the indelible, "I-remember-where-I-was-when-I-first-saw-this" images from this all-time great, favorite series, and I'm thrilled (and hardly surprised :) ) that it has found its way home here, to you.  Yeah, the meta-commentary only -started- with Jaime's inclusion here, right?  The wallpaper really let us wallow in its depths (/ heights...?)  :)  

Jaime's characters are always the best clothed characters in comics, period.  Doesn't matter if they're in a t-shirt and torn jeans or layers and layers of fabric, they're just the BEST CLOTHED, like real human people, always.  It's a key element in the integrity of Jaime's work - a foundation of why Jaime's fictional worlds and characters are the most realistic and relatable.  And Maggie just looks -fantastic- here. I feel like I have to resist saying this same thing on almost every comment I leave on a Jaime piece, but the stylistic, mega-design-oriented approach to the way that he hand-drew his flannel patterns (as a set pattern, immune to clothing folds or body positions) completely exploded my brain at the time.  Still does.  It's not as obvious on this piece as on others (obviously :) ), but every time I see Hernandez flannel, my heart leaps (and the small, reserved dollop of it here perfectly counters the tight lines on her collar and cuffs... just gorgeous execution and design).

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention how hilarious Jaime's rendition of himself is here: frumpy (tummy pooch and all), fatigued, and a bit frustrated with Maggie's insistence on holding that particular pose.  The fly circling his head is the icing on the cake (and is what coaxes the laugh to happen out loud).  Beautiful.

So here's another perfectly balanced, brilliantly composed, highly impactful pieces masterfully rendered in Jaime's sumptuous and impeccable black and white linework.  It's just (as that one band says)..."So Alive".  It'll be a -tough- one to top (but I have complete faith in you, Marc)! :) Sincere congrats, sir - this is as awesome as awesome gets.  

Zoop!!  More un-Myth-takable Foglio/Sale ambrosiaic goodness!  I love all the movement of the page that happened within this relatively straightforward (but highly functional) layout... the vertical movement in the left panels, and then the wide horizontal swing (as Isstvan turns his gaze and swings the camera around from one side to the other) of the right panels...

A very dramatic moment in the culmination of the story, where every element of Aahz's plan seems to be unraveling... the storytelling (along with the art) here is crisp and and tight, yet still charming and fun to look at (and, yeah - panel 4...?  Gadzooks!).  Just fantastic.

And big congrats on coming another step closer (with your pages 14 & 15 from this issue!) to putting together an extended sequence of pages from a Foglio 'Myth' book!!  BRILLIANT!!  Absolutely LOVE it!  Sincerely cheering for you!  Go, Rick, go!!  

Such a beautiful sketch... and at 19?!?  Yowza...  I love the EC feel this one has, from the slightly yellowed paper (can you tell if that's from age or the original coloring?) to the sumptuous hand-colors, to that completely circular, beautifully inked helmet (adorned with the uber-technical accoutrements and details - like the communications rig on the alien's left side of the helmet, WITH THE CORD that -obviously- plugs in to a backpack... because a standalone unit would be just too much of a leap... :) It's my favorite touch, I think, even over the delicious, bent antennae...  And then that respiration hose plugged into the side of the helmet - gorgeous inking on the hose! - piping in a noxious, life-giving ammonia-rich atmosphere...!).  The alien's left shoulder patch is another favorite touch, too - I absolutely love that.  Simple black and white (despite a possible temptation to infuse it with color)...

SO much wow-factor here, Rick, and so much of it stemming from the incredible maturity level reflected in the decisions of the 19-year old Totleben.  Along with each of those above details, the brushstroke mastery (just as Rubén pointed out) and (once again) those amazing hand-colors... there's subtlety and nuance there, and the background is bold enough to be dramatic, without being ostentatious and "harmful" to the impression given by the piece: a finely-tuned, beautifully crafted, delicately detailed love-letter to a "lost" era of lost sci-fi... even as sci-fi as a whole was taking its first steps in experiencing a global renaissance...

I mean, think about it... in June of 77, Star Wars was still over 6 months away from opening in the UK...  but I'm guessing some of the US buzz around the movie -must- have found its way to young John by this time... And he may have been funneling some excitement that way, by route of an EC filter...?  Just super fun to think about!

I madly love your beautiful new piece, Rick!  -SO- cool!  :) Thanks for sharing this! 

Jim has been blessed with some terrific inkers, and the always fantastic Mark Morales may be the best of them!  But that's obvious by looking at the results here...  Being a huge fan of the FF -and- the Super-Skrull, this cover has always been one of my favorites, and I'm delighted to see it in your collection, keeping company with the rest of the amazing jewels you have.  Superb composition, with the solid black Super-Skrull holding down the center of the cover, as the heroes flail about, helpless all around him.  Jim's skrulls are always the -best-!  Congrats, Bill!  Another winner!

TITANIC pick up, Bill!!  Wow - congrats on landing what must -surely- have been the last issue of Amazing Soider-Man...!  (Oh, wait...  You mean Spidey -could- survive an attack by all of them?!?) We're all in the hands of a master here, as Romita graces another issue of ASM with a classic "must buy" cover, stacking up foe after foe for Spidey to knock down, completely aware that while a group of superheroes working together is always cool, a group of superVILLAINS together is where the magic happens.  (This lovely cover also reminds me of the one he did for the first Spidey treasury edition, which reprinted Pete's first tussle with the Sinister Six.  GREAT stuff!). Another killer add to your brilliant collection, Bill!  CONGRATS!

Soooooooper cool, Marcus!!  Wow - a painted DWJ (with all the flair and style you'd expect)!  I know you said that righteous pink background was airbrushed on, but is it okay if I modify the story a bit to imagine that he actually applied it via roller, and was sitting there making car noises and shouting, "Rooooolllll out!" as he was working?  Appreciate it!  Great, fun, special piece!  Congrats, Marcus!

Matt Wagner is a chiaroscuric and compositional genius.  Or a madman.  (Maybe both?). I guess "Faces" is the perfect setting to explore those aspects, though, and it certainly feels like he's doing so here.  Panel 1 is pretty incredible, but panel 4 is dizzyingly awesome with all of its concurrent vectors, angles, lines, x-es, swoops, swirls, and slopes.  And then panel 5?!?  Are you kidding me?  A master is at work here.  Beautiful pick up, Jim - more sincere congrats!

Fantastic, brilliant, high-contrast work that feels like something out of a 50's horror movie.  I'm -positive- we JUST missed a bolt of lightning flash in the distance...! :)  I don't know if I'm reading too much into things here, but this feels deliberately unbalanced compositionally, in -exactly- the most perfect of Two-Face ways...  Harvey sits on the right side of panel 1, with the large patches of black (the wall and his cast shadow) pulling and holding our gaze.  Panel two's goal seems to be to shift the reader's eye back to the right as quickly possible, using the act of flipping the coin (as well as the grated window in the background) to propel it in that direction, through panel 3.  Our eye comes to rest comfortably in panel 4, weighed down on the right side of the page again, taking in all the detail of that amazing portrait of Harvey.  Then panel five, with that unmistakably Wagnerian hunched, evil figure, off-center to the right, staring to the right, to the source of the word balloon.  Matt Wagner was loaded for bear on this one.  Glorious and beautiful; masterfully constructed.

Absolutely monstrous, in all the most wonderful ways...  Fantastic layout and execution here, taken over the top by the super creepy, mad scientist laboratory backgrounds.  Many great artists have been able to work magic with Two-Face, but the fact that graphic design has always been such a core component of Matt's work gives him a leg up on creating an impactful and unmistakably unique approach to ol' Harvey Dent.  The "Faces" storyline really felt like a present to us all, with pages like this providing the Christmas morning bow (and brilliant lettering, too!).  -GORGEOUS- piece, Jim - astonishingly cool.  Sincere congrats!

A super cool, "apocryphal" addition to your mighty Matt Wagner collection, Jim!  A fun document capturing a taste of the 90's in that most venerable of ways: the swimsuit special.  Love the shading, zipatone, dark crayon (on the sandcastle?) on this...  Super rich visual textures!  My favorite little touch is the lightning bolt flag flying on the castle ramparts... :)  Fun piece!  Congrats, Jim!

Super cool page,Simon!  Love the highly graphic, stylized technique here, and the "sunbeam" pattern to the panel layout feels really novel but absolutely gives an extra sense of gravity to the downwards movement  and falling here.  I just had some friends tell me they enjoyed this book, and I'm thinking I may need to check it out...  This page is certainly a compelling argument to do so!  Congrats, Simon!

WOW, Jim!  Mega-congrats - an ALL-TIME GREAT page!  LOVE the hand-drawn sound effects (to say nothing of the "interaction" the Red Cap has with them in panel 2), as well as the turn-on-a-dime action/gag in panels 4&5.  Unforgettable!

It was almost dizzying, seeing Matt's storytelling power and prowess come online "in real time" back in the day.  Just as Kevin's fictitious steps became more and more confident as his story progressed, Matt was also progressing and refining his craft in leaps and bounds, and Sam's inks played a -HUGE-, integral part in adding the polish and slickness to the enchantment that Mage ultimately became (and remains, to this day).  I mean, you bet: magic is green... but Matt and Sam make a pretty compelling case here that it's even purer in black and white.

Sincere congrats, Jim, on this epic barnburner of a beauty!

Holy moley - such a -great- point about Eric's take on this character resulting in a permanent "evolution" of how Venom is drawn and imagined.  I honestly hadn't thought of that, but you're totally right! :)

A charming, charging Venom here, about to plant a big ol' slobbery kiss on the viewer (er, right?)...  A really fun sketch from what sounds like a great meeting with a dedicated artistic talent!  Congrats, FM!

An absolutely glorious (and gorgeous!) testament to the myriad of skills that JLG-L both commands and employs in his work.  Beautiful figure work, perfect storytelling and character work, superb compositional command...  WOW.  A fantastic cover.  Congrats on this pick up, Happy Birthday, Happy CAF Daily Featured Piece, and Happy 20th CAF Anniversary, all rolled up in one (and with plenty of magic and joy left over)!  Spectacular piece, FM - congrats!

This belongs in a museum!!  (And if you think this one's good, you should see the strip where Rubén saw 'The Secret Life of Pets 2' for the first time...)

Hearty congarts (not a misspelling)!  The only thing more special than locking down the priceless original is sharing it here with us on AFD (April Fools Day, or "Air Force Dunce", whichever you prefer)!

-ANY- Jim Cheung addition to a collection should be lauded, but a full-figure action shot?  Of Sam Wilson?!?  With -sensational- backgrounds?!?!?  FOR HOT WHEELS?!?!?!?!?  Face it, Tiger: you just hit the jackpot.  A sweet and unique piece - Jim Cheung's smooth (yet dynamic) and effortless (yet highly detailed) lines have to be a marketing team's dream. Terrific add (and ad :) ), Kelsey!  Huge congrats! 

HA!  I just re-read this run this weekend!  By this point the "sentient mask" (with its eyeslits adjusting to the emotional or humorous beat of the moment/panel) is a familiar friend, but -no one- does it like Chris.  Each panel is a rich little character moment, and the consistent, beautiful details on the binding of the sword handles seems to be another CB/TT hallmark.  SO great.  The character design of Bellus (the bird monster), too, is another wonderful Bachalo creation, and the fun, blocky (but broad strokes symmetrical) layout not only allows for some quick banter and beautiful character illustration, but also sets up the arrival of another monster hunter in the last panel...  Congrats are due, Kelsey, for a(nother!) strong Bachalo Deadpool example (you've got a great pile of them from this run)!  Awesome!

BOOM!!  There it is!  I'm right with you, K - that Remender / Immonen run sealed the deal and cemented Sam as Cap for me.  Loved those issues so much...  They exploded out of the gate, propelled by fantastic character development and positively supersonic art by Stuart and Wade (I mean, here we are on page 6 of issue 1, with Sam halfway through dismantling a Hydra base...).  
A super busy page in the -best- possible way: bursting with gorgeously drawn detail, but the viewer's eye never gets lost in the bustle: the shield hitting the shaded-in goon on the left of panel 1 (and its clear white trajectory after impact), then popping Sam's balletic aerial arc out of the borders of panel 2... that leads the viewer's eye -RIGHT- into the path of the shield in panel 3... which then guides the reader right back to Sam (popping against the white "pit")... who (of course) grabs the shield in panel 4 (with INCREDIBLE crosshatching on the shield, working to re-establish it as a central object after being just a blur on the first half of the page)...  

All that is lead-up to the senses-shattering panel 5, when Sam hits the jets and flies forward with impossible velocity (thanks to von Grawbadger doing his most delicious and ferocious manga-style-speed inking).  This is an artist and inker at the peak of their powers, excited to be tackling something new and bold, and your post here serves as a great movie-opening-weekend reminder that Sam and Stu and Wade all kick -serious- butt. :) FANTASTIC grab, K!  Huge congrats!  LOVE this!

FANTASTIC, if I may say so!  A gorgeous rendition of the First Family (or -extended- first family, with Pete there) dripping with artistic muscle in both technique and composition.  Great technique in the form of superb figure, wash, and tone work and superb composition not only in the strong "team pose/arrangement", but in those character touches that ground the piece and underscore the family dynamic.  Reed and Valeria being genuine in the moment here, Franklin's attitude (and Spidey love)...  And Stefano's rendition of The Thing?  Oh, my stars and garters - SO good.  Love the "no neck" look - just a huge slab of unmovable rock standing guard over the people he loves most.  Superb.  Hickman's run was a high water mark for FF fans, and the excitement even bled over into other titles needing the boost, like, y'know, ASM... 😜 Outstanding cover from this unforgettable era, K!  Sincere congrats on this pick up!

ZOUNDS!!  One of my favorite Marvel covers of the last 10 years, hands down!  I remember seeing the solicit for this and exploding with excitement, not only for the fact that one of my favorite artists would be drawing one of my favorite characters, but because of the AXE, and the implied promise there that this creative team would be bringing something different to the table (and they didn't disappoint - especially at the -breakfast- table, in Doc's kitchen)!  Beautiful inks on this one, from the strong pools of midnight black on Doc's figure to the grit and gravel of the skulls to the fantastic Townsend-familiar thick outline (and fine-lined internal detail) of the Axe... Superb!  A positively spellbinding piece, Bill, standing tall with the other wonders in your (frankly) mystical collection!  Congrats!!

Great Isherwood splash, Miki!  Really enjoy the inking on this one: Kiliyan's figure is beautifully rendered, but I'm especially taken with the chest (with voodoo doll on top!) at his feet.  A really fun way to set the stage upon opening the issue - dive right in and let's GO!  Fun Halloween piece, Miki - really sharp splash!  Congrats!

I won't lie, Marc...  I've been circling this one for a good while, totally intimidated by it!  First off, your description is outstanding.  I had found myself thinking about many of the exact things you mention, especially how interesting it is that this is Paul's summary of his own "important" or "omnibussable" work.  Some omissions surprise me (where's Escapo or the One-Tricks?) but I do reluctantly understand (with heavy heart) the absence of others (love you, Dr. Richardson and Sin Titulo!).  But then you also get the Bumble Buzz seal in the bottom dead center (right on the spine of the hypothetical hardcover) so it all balances out...? ;)

Like you, I started with THB (thanks to the Cerebus preview) and his and H.R.'s beefy representation here make my heart soar.  (Even as I eagerly await any new work by Paul, I do hold out hope for an eventual check in with H.R. Watson at some point, just to see what she's up to.)

(And, yeah - the Joker behind Batman is awesome... and it's not just any Joker, right?  This is the death rattle / self-destruction "HHK..." of the Dark Knight Joker...?  Eeshk!)

Your piece is a gorgeous work by one of my favorite creators - a completely unfiltered, zen-like stream-of-consciousness blast of Pope ephemera, unmistakably awesome lettering and all.  When Paul is in "the zone"?  -THIS- is where he's at.  The Pope Zone.  And perhaps the greatest compliment is that it makes me want to dig -all- of these books out (plus I guess the apocryphal (?) Escapo, Sin Titulo, One-Trick Rip Off, and The Ballad of Dr. Richardson!) and dive right on in for a glorious blast of premier sequential storytelling.  PHENOMENAL add, Marc - 100%.  VERY sincere congrats!

This is the heir apparent / One Minute Later cover to Quesada's 1998 Daredevil #1 cover, right?  I love the perspective, of course, and the cityscape itself is rendered -SO- well...  Such a strong composition (the billy club in the viewer's face is always a winner!), but you'd think the addition of Spider-Boy would allow for some webbing to add a sticky tangle to the mess...  Ah, well!  He's just Spider-BOY, I guess.  He'll learn. :) Awesome Medina piece, Paul - congrats!

Whoo!  This one's +sharp+, Paul... and I don't just mean those inks!  Venom just looks as dangerous as an unsheathed blade here, as though even the smallest touch to anyone or anything would cost them a limb of some kind.  Bet this is just as wicked in person!  I love how the dripping / swirling symbiote goo creates the borders for the inset panels, too - great design.  This is one mean mama-jamma!  Congrats, Paul - another great add!

In September of 2023 I was able to attend my very first Baltimore Comic Con!  That meant I was also able to go to my first Hero Initiative auction and marvel at the -amazing- pieces of art that had been donated to such a fantastic cause by all the incredible artists.  This one was in -very- good company and represented excellence in both art and intention (as you have so accurately already said, CAB!).  It was one of my very, -very- favorites then, and still is, to this day! :) Fun to be "in the room" when you won it, and had I known at the time that you had claimed it, I would have been even -happier-. :)  A gorgeous and sublime piece of work by the incredible Mike Perkins.  Everything is off the charts here: composition, foregrounds, backgrounds, washes...  A truly special piece.  SINCERE, enormous congrats, CAB!

A modern Marvel masterpiece!  A fantastic choice of cover for Fred to tackle (I feel like there may be a story here...!  Care to share with us why you chose this one?), and the large size must -really- allow the image's narrative to sing: that monstrous water tower falling towards Spidey...  Brrrrr!  And those bricks must be almost life-size!  I love how Fred draws Spidey here, too...  Is this the most faithful Hembeck rendering of Spidey to the source material?  I'd believe it (knee-squiggles notwithstanding... :) ).  For me, though, a Hembeck recreation starts and ends with the hand-drawn logo and hero box, and Fred -KILLS IT- here.  Loving that Comics Code Authority popped out over the "N", just like the original, of course.  Fred's "cover version" of a beloved image elicit's only pure joy from this viewer.  -SO- cool that you were able to commission this directly from Fred!  Congrats, CAB!

GREAT piece by Asrar.  Having Medusa and Johnny hook up in this run felt like a naughty indulgence for all involved (characters, creatives, and audience) and Mahmud's use of the beams and debris to frame the happy couple in a candid photo-like border makes this feel like a private moment captured by paparazzi to me: "should we really be seeing this" replaces "oh, my gosh - are they okay?"  Super work by Asrar, Miki!  Congrats!

Scatchamagowza!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Doc!!  Yesterday (as I post this) was my brother's birthday, too!  Of course, he doesn't have as wicked taste in OA as you, nor (sadly) the type of quality sibling/relative in his life that would present him with such a great present.   But I'm -right there- with you about your appreciation of the Hickman FF run (or should that be "Hickman FF HOME run"?): possibly the best ever?  Ironic that your dad's awesome gesture of love and support should be a beautifully rendered Eaglesham page that underscores just how callous and inattentive the FF can be!  I mean, all Reed wants to do here is talk about his collection of rare first edition books (great details by Eaglesham here!) but, unknown to Reed, Ben and Johnny have set up a TV in front of the bookcase... a TV that Sue has rendered invisible to Reed (!) so they can all watch the last episode of 'Agatha All Along' and see what Franklin's nanny has gotten up to!  Hickman was unafraid to shine a light on the dark underside of Marvel's First Family, and they'll never be the same!  Ah, well - that's life on the Witch's Road!

(or wait... am I thinking of a different run...? 😜). Huge congrats, Doc!  Happy birthday once again!!

Not 5 minutes ago I posted about how thrilling it is to see a previously unseen Hembeck recreation, and oddly (or... not?) the only modern artist that generates a similar sense of glee upon discovering a new piece from them has gotta be Manix.  Seeing Manix's take on this beauty is just as brilliant and hilarious as your inspired idea to choose it in the first place, Marcus.  A race car to the heart with an emotional photo finish that leaves you pining for an answer: How can one big red lady... be so blue?  Poor red lady!  Never mind Love 1971, this is Love 2024, baby.  Brilliant add, Marcus!  Love it!!

Holy Hembeck!  Not since Reed and Sue's wedding has there been a more august assemblage of super-powered celebrators!  Seeing Hembeck recreations pop up (when you didn't even know they existed, previously) is among the most intense feelings of OA bliss I encounter (seriously) and Fred absolutely destroys one of my -very- favorite covers from my youth.  (In a good way :) )  In typical Hembeck fashion, Fred sows some lovely gags from the seeds Byrne laid down: from character-accurate giggles (Luke Cage's unimpressed detachment, Wolverine's flat-out eye-rolling, Kitty's swooning, Johnny Storm's confident certainty that everyone has shown up to celebrate -him-) to the delight of even -seeing- Fred's take on some characters (great call out on Agatha's inclusion here, and Willy Lumpkin is also awesome) this is an absolutely thrilling Hembeck add, Marcus - this melts my brain.  MEGA-congrats!  This is spectacular!

Another Yu killer!  His Iron Fist and Doctor Strange were -so- well done and uniquely his, and you have some super fine renderings of them here, along with some fantastic Echo panels!  For this multi-issue close-quarters ninja throwdown, Leinil crammed the panels full of detail to capture the chaos, and taking a moment to strip everything out (as he does in panels 5&6) punches the moment as if he was channeling all his chi into the blow...  Great technique!  Another super page, Anthony - congrats!

Astonishing to me that your beautiful Yu pieces have no comments on them, Anthony!  Leinil's lengthy run on this book was my favorite slew of issues because of the sense of consistency and baseline excellence he established.  Issue after issue, as our heroes were wading through some dark times, Leinil was fully invested into making them as dark (and beautiful!) as possible! :) This page is a -great- example of that, with a spectacular battle sequence (and team shot!) that captures the hectic, electric feel of a throwdown with a bunch of Hand ninjas (I -LOVE- how the pile of Hand bodies in panels 2&3, with their "simple", outlined renderings, recalls Frank Miller's take on them!).  Really fun bottom tier with Spidey: love the spider-sense in panel 5, and panel 6's wall full of arrows feels like Peter is dodging away in the hilarious nick of time (my brain inserts a "FTDDDTDTDDTTDDT!!" sound effect here as thirty bolts miss their mark).  Popping the shadowy ninja outline in front of panel 7 is a great trick to adding lots of depth to that panel.  Fantastic Yu page, Anthony!  I love this!  Congrats!

Rumble royals!  A great sense of movement and action throughout, as the thrown punches bounce your eye down the page to that final panel, which literally stands out (in all its panel-wall-breaking glory) against all the other "contained" action.  Fun and heady blend of heroes, villains, action, and technique, Paul!  Great pick up!

Absolutely perfect (and hilarious) Moebius riff here (as the others have said), with the chef's kiss being the stone bird wall ornamentation in the upper left corner.  Too, too cool, Miki!  Congrats!

J.G. really pulled out all the stops here!  Along with that fantastic perspective, there's a brilliant balance and symmetry between light and dark all the way up the page: from Sue (and the "4" logo), lighter, up front (counterpointed by a beautifully rendered Ben), and just moving up; dark lizards across from light patches of wall or falling debris, the darkened upper ledges of the buildings and the strip of daylight shining between them...  Crazy!  Insane level of details, too, from the passive (broken windows in the building on the left; the detailed facade of the building on the right) to the aggressive (like rocks broken off of the upper ledges of the building corresponding to the debris raining down on our heroes), and the Torch's grey wash flame trail rocketing skywards... Surely J.G. didn't have to work -this- hard...?  Incredible, INCREDIBLE work!  Sensational pick up!  Congrats, Miki!

Stunning.  This may be one of my favorite pieces on all of CAF.  The depth and richness Nick is able to get with those blessed colored pencils of his is worthy of legendary status, but he pulls out all the stops and goes to infinity and beyond with this.  The folds in the clothing (and the neck of his helmet), the ray gun in that gloved hand, Adam's expression (and his eyes) as he looks up... This is not a piece about anger, revenge, or fear; this is about the youthful spirit of adventure, where wonder will open doors and exploration will lead to unimaginable discoveries.  Nick pinned down the very essence of 50's sci-fi along with our Adam Strange here.  Just beautiful. Congrats, Fred!

Wow - unbelievable.  It's like Wesley is as much a cloud of vapor as the sleeping gas from his signature gas gun here, wafting away on the night breeze... SO, so cool.  A compelling testament to Matt's as a top-tier crosshatching talent and visual texture auteur!  Absolutely wonderful!  Congrats, Fred!

Absolutely spectacular!  His depiction of the Eye "in use" is thrilling; that white in the center is so bright you need sunglasses to look directly at it, and I love how the cascading colors (and waterstains!) lend the feeling that reality is unwinding a bit as you do...  You'd expect nothing less from an artist of Christian's talent, and boy, does he deliver here.  Great choice of commission subject, Fred!

I suppose it was only a matter of time before Manix tackled this one, right?  And it's really pretty striking how much Manix's Polaris looks like Steranko's. :) Love the colors, of course, but it's the heaping helping of Manix Krackle (which is my new favorite breakfast cereal) that seals the deal for this one!  Another beauty, Fred!  Congrats!

With Manix, it's less "astral form" and more "kick-asstral form".  Manix is just the master of his very own mystic art, isn't he?  Fantastic pick up, Fred!  Congrats!

Holy moley, Fred - now THAT is Hellboy!  I've never seen a more true or more compelling version of Big Red, dammit!  This is a phenomenal take, with all the piss, vinegar, and attitude that befits the Right Hand of Doom.  The harsh lighting from above, coupled with the grey tones and superb hatching gives this such flavor and texture... it's impossible not to love this.  Zaffino killed it!  Fantastic acquisition, Fred - congrats!

Completely, entirely, and -totally- awesome.  Huge dollops of detail and character on this sheet!  Love the lighting on the right head on the bottom.  I bet these look absolutely dynamite on 11x17!  (Was the name "Fireclaw" something you gave this beastie, or was there some mention of it somewhere...?)  A splendid "odds'n'ends" piece that seems all Arthur, through and through!  Fantastic pick up - congrats!

Phenomenal Perkins page upon which he focused so many of his signature elements!  Love the razor cuts all over, the grey washes in panel 6, the white paint in panel 7... but my very favorite is that -killer- bottom panel...  Whoolf!  Mike pulled no punches on this one!  Beautiful page, Mike!  Congrats!