Fantastic Four #292 (1986) – “The Man Who Dreamed the World”

Apparently trapped in the year 1936, the Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and She-Hulk are rushing to Berlin, Germany, in order to prevent Nick Fury from assassinating Hitler and altering history in a potentially catastrophic way.

This cover isn’t iconic, nor did it change the industry. However, Fantastic Four #292 sports one of the most ludicrous images to ever be put onto a comic and, thus, has to be remembered for as long as comics are being printed. Apparently Hitler is dead everywhere else except the world of Marvel, and John Byrne found history’s greatest monster too tempting to ignore.

Byrne’s idea of what Hitler actually does nowadays is a little odd because the cover implies that he just spends his time constantly saluting himself and looking evil. The story features all sorts of time travel and alternate dimensions, but nothing is more head-scratching than the cover. This issue is also further evidence that left to their own devices, most writers would simply write about Hitler all day if they could.