Alliance Command

Comparing the historic (not to mention record setting) Jim Lee X-Men #1 cover to the Joe Benitez Contra Alliance “Discover the Universe” promo might seem like a stretch…but take a closer look. Both scenes offer multiple pinups composed of one unified action sequence. The old X-Men team’s were composed of fewer characters and came across larger on the pinups. Aside from that, the structure is the same – by intention.

X-Men #1 (Jim Lee/Scott Williams/Joe Rosas) – October 1991

Contra Alliance #1 (Joe Benitez/Victor Llamas/Edgar Delgado) – December 2009

I played with the notion of introducing variant covers for future editions of book one, but will probably avoid doing so primarily for the logistical difficulties. Also, if my memory is correct, the above popular cover promotion started a swarm of gimmick gatefolds, glow-in-the-dark, hologram, special edition, etc. comic book covers the drove list prices through the roof and made it hard for us collectors to keep up, eventually leading to an industry bubble that burst.

File Under:   Comics · Contra Alliance