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Fantastic Four #52
July, 1966

ROLL YOUR MOUSE OVER THE IMAGE
TO VIEW THE UNPUBLISHED VERSION

There are several versions of this cover floating about and only the published one has the Black Panther's face completely covered — apparently, a last-minute decision.  When the character was introduced, there were plans to quickly spin him off into his own comic so that probably explains why so much fussing with the cover was done and why there were so many redraws.  Soon after, Marvel was informed by its distributor (Independent News, a division of DC Comics) that they could not add more comics just then, and plans for a Black Panther monthly subsided.

Both versions of this cover were pencilled by Jack Kirby and inked by Joe Sinnott.  I like the elegance of the published version much better.  The unpublished one is clumsy and disarranged, and the cover copy is way too over-the-top, even for mid-sixties Stan Lee.