Crossed Plus One Hundred Variant Covers

This page is just the Gabriel Andrade and Alan Moore covers for CPOH 1-6. For later issues, go here.

Variant covers are basically a gimmick to extract extra money out of folks who collect comics who might buy an extra copy that they won’t even read. The variant covers have been posted at the Avatar Press website, and apparently should be annotated as, at least, the “future tense” versions of the covers do refer to other science fiction works. According to Avatar Press:

All the covers for the series have been planned out by Alan Moore, with the images enriching and expanding on the series.  Clues and glimpses of what came before, and what might be, are found throughout the variant covers.

Future Tense – Each cover is a homage to a famous work of science fiction, and each of those original works ties into themes of this issue.

This page annotates the “Future Tense” covers (below.) The primary covers are annotated as part of the issue, for example CPOH No.1 cover annotations here.

The CPOH history/timeline page features the “American History X” variant covers. I’ve created three other pages for variant cover series annotation: “CGC Numbered Edition“, “Crossed Culture“, “Design Sketch“, and miscellaneous other variants. (There are some sealed, covered “New World Order” variants that I can’t see yet. If readers can scan these and post somewhere on-line and send me the link, I’ll look them over.)

>Go to CPOH Annotation Index

Crossed Plus One Hundred No. 1 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press

1925 book cover for Ralph 124C41+, image from here.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.1 – Future Tense variant cover

• This cover is based on the 1925 first edition cover for Hugo Gernsback’s science fiction novel Ralph 124C 41+. The numbers/ letter in the title mean “one to forsee for one another.” This novel is referred to in CPOH1: in the story’s title on Page 2 and later explained on Page 12. See my CPOH No.1 annotations here and my thoughts on Ralph 124C 41+ posted here. The variant cover is surprisingly true to the original (I thought these were going to be harder to nail down.) I am impressed that the plus-insignia (which would seems like a Crossed thing) is straight off the original.
• What’s changed:
  – the woman in the circle is Future Taylor (see cast of CPOH characters here.)
  – the man (who doesn’t appear in CPOH1) has the Crossed face-rash.
  – the man’s uniform’s sleeve is ragged.
  – the ragged paper has been added… perhaps so this looks like one of the decaying books that Future collects and reads.
• Image I made with both covers side by side.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No. 2 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.2 – Future Tense variant cover

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  JRR Tolkien The Return of the King cover

  The location here (according to the sign in the middle) is Graceland. Graceland, located in Memphis, TN, was the home of Elvis Presley. Here’s a link to a Google street view similar to the cover.

• Theoretically, this cover should be based on some J.R.R. Tolkien cover… because the story refers to various parts of The Lord of the Rings. The closest thing I can find is this cover (right) for The Return of the King, which shows a brick wall… which is remotely similar to the stonework on some of the front walls of Graceland shown on the CPOH2 cover… I don’t think this is correct… but it’s the only solution that came to me, so I thought I’d post it for now.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.3 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press (and it looks like there’s a typo on their issue number)

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.3 – Future Tense variant cover

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  Cover of Glory Road by Robert Heinlein – image via commenter Tim

  This looks somewhat like about a gazillion pin-up covers – for example maybe this Frazetta cover for A Princess of Mars… disappointed to see Future Taylor have to bare herself for us.

• This is based on the cover to the right – a Brittish paperback cover for Robert Heinlein’s 1963 sci-fi novel Glory Road.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.4 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press

Cover of A Canticle for Leibowitz – image via The Zipposphere

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.4 – Future Tense variant cover

• This cover is based on a cover for a paperback edition of Walter M. Miller’s 1960 post-apocalyptic science fiction novel A Canticle For Liebowitz.
• What’s changed:
  – A lot. I may not get to all of it. The priest figure is facing us, which shows that he is indeed one of the Crossed.
  – The sky platform thing in the original is a hole in the roof.
  – There are similar shaped things on the right and left, but basically there are so many things that are different that I haven’t listed them all.
• Image I made with both covers side by side.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.5 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.5 – Future Tense variant cover

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  Cover of Tiger! Tiger! by Alfred Bester. Image via L.W. Curry

  This cover is based on Tiger! Tiger! by Alfred Bester. Apparently this was published in 1956 the U.K. as Tiger! Tiger! then re-titled in its U.S. version as The Stars My Destination.

• What’s changed:
  – The tiger-man on the cover is replaced by a Crossed who is wearing a tiger head fur cloak.
  – I think it’s clever that the stars in the blue background on the original have been replaced by the red blood spatters on the variant cover.
• Image I made with both covers side by side.

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.6 future tense variant cover, art by Gabriel Andrade. Image via Avatar Press

Crossed Plus One Hundred No.6 – Future Tense variant cover

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  Foundation and Empire cover painting by Michael Whelan – original posted here.

  Commenter Eric spotted this – thanks!

• It’s based a cover of the 1952 Isaac Asimov sci-fi novel Foundation and Empire.