I mean...

Certainly not the worst, but I've always been underwhelmed by the cover of Fantastic Four #1





The team isn't really being showcased here; they're out of costume (yes, I know they didn't have costumes at this point); aside from The Torch, no one really looks fantastic - Reed Richards looks more gaunt than elastic except for his left arm which, though stretchy, doesn't create the impression that he's escaping from the ropes so much as he's just needlessly elongating it to push some ropes that were tossed on top of him aside - in fact, looking at it now, I can't help but wonder if he even sees the giant monster bursting through the street.  It's like he thinks the big danger is "someone tied me up but I untied myself, good thing there's nothing else going- WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING?!"; while seeing only the back of The Thing could be an artistic choice designed to tantalize the reader as to what he looks like from the front, it's clear that the giant monster in the centre of the picture is meant to be our focus in the big and scary looking department and not the relatively tiny guy in the corner which only makes me wonder why I should care about the seven foot guy when there's a fifty foot guy in the picture too.  Sue Storm using her ability to hide as she plays the helpless damsel in distress undermines how cool invisibility should be.  As a superhero cover it feels underwhelming; as a horror cover there's no real mood - no night sky, no shadows, no sense of terror.


Again, not the worst key issue there is, and I understand that Lee wasn't quite sure what he wanted at this time with regards to superheroes, but it bugs me that it's the debut issue that gets all the homages and attention, when a truly iconic cover is waiting just around the corner




THIS cover screams FANTASTIC!  Just from looking at them I can tell that Mr. Fantastic is the leader and the brains behind their vessel; The Thing shaking his fist at The Torch's showboating tells me a lot about their dynamics and personalities; and you've got to wonder what's caught Sue Storm's attention off in the distance.  


Yes, you can cite 100 other key issues less effective than Fantastic Four #1 (and the comic did sell so obviously it was effective to a lot of people) but very few of those covers would be from the period and feature such important characters (ie. Amazing Fantasy #15, Hulk #1, Daredevil #1, Joruney into Mystery #83, etc, etc).

Beatles reference?

I think that Colan Captain Marvel cover is pretty good.
But the real Sentry key issue is another Kirby gem.

I was thinking of Carol Danvers' debut. It's a good, but not great cover featuring the Sentry.

^^ And he's other got tiny tiny feet or legs ten feet long.

And hair under his left armpit.