Evanier: Alternate Comic Book Covers

Alternate Covers: Evanier has added another entertaining section to his website, and here's his introduction:

I added a new section to my website a few months ago and forgot to tell anyone about it. It's called Alternate Covers and it's about how comic book companies will sometimes have a cover drawn for a book and then before it goes to press, someone in the office will say, "Jeepers, that sucks" (or words to that effect) and they'll have it retouched or completely redone. Right now, I have sixteen examples of this up, all from Marvel. Others from other companies will follow and of course, if you have an example to share, get in touch with me.

In each case, I'm theorizing as to why the alteration was done and — who knows? — I may even be right in some cases. It's usually a guess and not always a sound one. Years ago, I came across a case where a cover had been redrawn and I developed an intricate but overwhelming theory as to why, having to do with figure placement and conveying the essence of the story within. Finally, I had the opportunity to present it to the fellow who'd made the decision and I expected him to say, "My God, that's exactly what happened. It's like you were in the office spying when I gave the order to have that cover redone!" Instead, he said, "Well, what really occurred was that the day the issue had to go to press, no one could find the cover we'd had drawn..."