Captain Marvel #17

Comic books have always been about New York City. Whether Superman's Metropolis, Batman's Gotham or the actual city as portrayed by Marvel -- home to the Fantastic Four's Baxter Building, the Avenger's mansion abutting Central Park and Peter Parker's place of employment (J. Jonah Jameson's Daily Bugle) -- modern-day comic books, since the medium's inception in 1930s New York City, have acted as a introduction to and a primer for life in the cultural capital of the United States.

As a boy growing up during the 1970s, reading The Amazing Spider-Man and Daredevil: The Man Without Fear, it was clear to me that there was a center, a platform for all human action, and that was New York City. I knew I had to get there. (And I did get there, and lived there for five years at an appropriate time of life, my early to middle twenties.)

A fundamental aspect -- I'm tempted to say the fundamental aspect -- of situating superhero comic books in New York City is one of scale. It is all about the size of the buildings, the long canyons of commercial high-rise architecture, and the puniness of Homo sapiens in such an environment. To dramatize a situation where the hero can soar above all this, can swing freely among and tread effortlessly up and and down the skyscrapers, is the essence of super.

To see what I mean, check out the two Silver Age covers from the great John Romita, Sr. The first, with help from Frank Giacoia, is from Daredevil #16, May 1966; the second, a favorite of mine, is from Amazing Spider-Man #48, May 1967:

Captain Marvel #17, the concluding issue in the 7th volume of that title, with a publication date of January 2014, is amazing because it taps back into this essence of the superhero: it is set in New York City, and it pays homage to the grandeur of the metropolis' architecture -- it almost has a George Reeves Adventures of Superman quality.

The issues of volume 7 of Captain Marvel where writer Kelly Sue DeConnick works with standout artist Filipe Andrade are exceptional.

Andrade departs after #12 and the title clunks along in service of the Thanos Infinity Star Warsesque crossover event, but he returns to spectacular effect in #17.

As you can see from the scans of nine interior pages below, Andrade is one of the best. The cover page is by the incomparable Joe Quinones.