In the first part of New Collector 101: Comics- Getting Started, we covered a lot of material.
It was probably more than a little overwhelming at first, but I promise it will all make sense once you get into the comic shop and start looking around.
That being said, the most complicated part is over — and now we get to start on the fun part! Comic covers! We’re going to begin with information on the anatomy of a cover, so you get a basic understanding of the elements used in comic book cover design.
Getting started
All comics; single issues, trade paperbacks, and the omnibus — come with a cover. It’s the outside bit of the book with the flashy picture on it. It is how the book advertises what is inside, and is the first thing most people in the comic shop see. The artwork on the cover is meant to draw the reader in and make them want to read the contents.
Each book type comes with a standard/base cover, and can also have optional covers called “variant covers” which come in a variety of designs and styles.
We’ll dive into more about standard and variant covers in part 3 of this series, but for now let’s start with the basics, getting familiar with the parts of a cover!
The anatomy of a cover:
For the purposes of this article we’re going to lean more towards how Marvel does things, but other companies also follow similar “rules,” so this should still help you out, should you venture outside of the Marvel Verse.
We’re going to begin with our floppies. If you happen to have one handy, it might be worth it to have with you as you read along.
Single Issues:
Single issues in the modern era follow the same general look. They contain a whole page image, usually in full color, and typically referencing the story contained in a particular issue (though that is not always the case with variant covers — we’ll get into that next time).
Single issues have a box in the upper corner containing the logo of the publisher, and other important information such as the issue number, lot number, and rating (most of these are rated teen+), though sometimes the rating appears in different locations and is not within the box itself. In the past, the information also included dates, pricing information, and other logos. This box is referred to as a “corner box” and sometimes contains another image, like the corner box shown below from the first appearance of Gambit. This corner box features a sassy little Gambit, sometimes they are just character faces. Corner box art has its own echelon of collectors too who seek out particular artists or rare examples.
The corner box can be on the right or the left side of the comic book. It usually depends on the art and the design flow of the cover. Here’s an example of a corner box on the right corner, Uncanny X-Men (2024) #2.
And an example of a corner box on the left corner, Uncanny X-Men (2024) #3.
Occasionally, they’ll also end up in a lower corner, though that is not as common, as shown in Uncanny X-Men (2024) #20. It again really depends on the design of the art on the cover, and where the box fits best, esthetically.
Beyond the corner box, you’ll also see the book title (usually a standardized logo, like “the Uncanny X-Men” shown above in all three examples). Sometimes the cover will include a tagline which may or may not be the issue title. In the examples above, the issue title of issue #2 is “Who are the Outliers?” and issue #3 is ”Catch the Elf” which are both shown below the title logo. Issue #20 does not include the issue title. It varies for the same reason the corner box moves- to accommodate the design of the cover art.
Also listed on the cover is the credits: generally the last names of those who worked on the issue. This is usually listed in the order writer, artist/penciller/inker, colorist, and letterer. In the examples above you’ll see “Simone Marquez Wilson” across the top of each issue for #2 and #3, and “Simone Vecchio Wilson” on the bottom left corner of issue #20. In these cases, that refers to Gail Simone (writer), David Marquez (artist), and Matthew Wilson (colorist) and Gail Simone (writer), Luciano Vecchio (artist), and Matthew Wilson (colorist), respectively.
Here’s a handy chart so you can see each part labeled.
More details of the cover elements are featured inside the book, where there’s more space to elaborate. The very first page of the comic usually contains the logo (again), the “stars” of the comic (aka, the characters appearing in this issue), a storyline summary or sometimes a review of what happened in previous issues, the issue title, full creator credits, and legal details like copyrights. That’s really better left inside so the art can be the focus of the outer cover. We’ll dig more into comic interiors in a future article.
Here’s the first page of Uncanny X-Men (2024) #20.
Trade Paperbacks and the Omnibus:
Trade Paperback and Omnibus covers vary, like most paperback and hardcover books.
They generally contain the the stylized book title, but other elements are included or excluded based on the overall cover design. Multi-issue books do not have a corner box or an issue number as seen in single issues.
Often, they include the publishers logo, the TPB/Omnibus name, and primary credits. They may also include a collection name, a tagline or a press/review snippet as well.
Sometimes, the art featured on the cover is the cover art from one of the issues contained in the book, and sometimes it is new art or a part of a previous cover. The primary image is not always full-page, sometimes it has a border or other banners/graphics to allow for the addition of extra text. The back covers sometimes also contain full page graphics. Back covers are usually where synopsis, included issues, and pricing information is located.
Like the comic covers, the point of the front cover is to draw the reader in and make them buy the book. Additional credits and wordier information about what the books include, like in floppies, is written out in the first page or two.
Here’s some examples of regular TPB/Omnibus covers.
A TPB for The Uncanny X-Men (2024), Red Wave, Collecting Uncanny X-Men (2024) 1-6, X-Men (2021) 35, Free Comic Book Day 2024: Blood Hunt/X-Men 1. It features a press/review snippet above the book title. The cover art is the same as Uncanny X-Men (2024) #1.
An older TPB, Lifedeath collecting Uncanny X-Men(1981) #53, #186, #198, #205 and #214. The cover contains elements of the cover for Uncanny X-Men #198.
A larger more recently released TPB relating to the LifeDeath arc- collecting Uncanny X-Men(1981) #176-188, Kitty Pryde and Wolverine (1984) #1-6 and material from Marvel Fanfare (1982) #40. It features a banner showing it is part of the “Epic Collection.” It is also based on an issue cover, Uncanny X-Men (1984) #185.
An omnibus for The Trial of Gambit collecting Uncanny X-Men (1981) #341-350, -1; X-Men (1991) #62-64, -1; Imperial Guard (1997) #1-3; Psylocke & Archangel: Crimson Dawn (1997) #1-4; Gambit (1997) #1-4; Bishop: Xavier Security Enforcer (1998) #1-3; Marvel Fanfare (1996) #4-5; Longshot (1998) #1; material from Marvel Valentine Special (1997) #1. It only contains cover art from Uncanny X-Men (1981) #350 and no additional text beyond the book title.
An omnibus for X-Men (1991), collecting X-Men (1991) #1-16 and Annual (1992) #1, Uncanny X-Men (1981) #281-297 and Annual (1992) #16, Ghost Rider (1990) #26-27, X-Factor (1986) #84-86, X-Force (1991) #16-18 And Stryfe’s Strike File #1 -- And Material From X-Factor Annual #7, X-Force Annual (1992) #1, Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #89 And X-Men: Odd Men Out. It features the book title and omnibus title, publisher logo and credits.
As you can see, there’s a lot of style variation in the paperback and hardcover books, but they generally tell you the pertinent information-
What team of characters are involved
Who published it
The main storyline(s) included
The writer, artist, and colorists involved
This helps you recognize and pick books that are relevant to your interests at first glance.
That concludes our comic lesson today, as always feel free to bookmark or print this article for reference, should you need to look it over again. You can also drop us a comment if you have any questions. We’re here to help!
Up next:
We’re going to get into variant covers!