Cover of the Week 18/9 – The Flash 23.3 by Manapul/Buccellato

I have had a hard time rationalising the price and quantity of the villains month titles. They are expensive and on the whole are not the greatest artistic covers, relying on the lenticular device to sell. However I must say that Manapul and Buccellato are exceptional creators and I really adore this cover. The swirled ice fired from Cold’s fist is beautifully spiralled and in perspective as it flies towards us, giving off small shards of ice as it does so. He looks very impressive with his face stern and gritted with evil intent masked by his distinctive glasses and hoodie, in the presence of  his loyal cronies. The colouring of our central characters is well balanced and the blues and whites are primed together to give the impression of freezing water. The background plays a more colourful outlook with the Rogues adding in contrast. There is a nice symmetry and the page is well set with other characters evenly spread around cold. The dark red shades of Flash, burnt orange of Heatwave, the lime green of Weather Wizard the yellow and orange of Glider and Mirror Master give a bright and colourful cover. The Rogues are an interesting group and appear unified in aggression and in their evil intent, especially as we see Flash lying on the floor motionless in a pool of blood. The message is clear, the Rogues have won and they are about to unleash hell. Aside from Cold’s ice effect, the lenticular cover is lost on the other the characters, but they still look impressive as Snart is about to lead the way leaving Barry in his wake.