Each Monday, staff writers Kevin Melrose and Steve Sunu discuss their five favorite covers from the previous Wednesday's new comic releases, selecting from among them CBR's Cover of the Week. Then, at the end of each month, they choose from the weekly winners -- you guessed it! -- a Cover of the Month.

This week brings a grim fairy tale, a journey into Nick Fury's past, a visit with an adorable ghost, a flood of purple flowers, and an up-close introduction to Matt Murdock's date.

Keep reading for Kevin and Steve's favorites from the week of May 2, as well as the April Cover of the Month, then discuss your choices in the CBR forums.

"Blue Estate" #11, by Viktor Kalvachev (Image Comics)

Viktor Kalvachev continues to be a "Cover of the Week" favorite, and his work on "Blue Estate" #11 shows why. While his covers are usually iconic, this image is particularly notable for its coloring and detail. Whether it's the expression and crumpled shirt of the commando above with his shadowy blues or the detailed bedframe of the sleeping, almost spotlighted figure below, Kalvachev really impresses. -- Steve Sunu

"Fury MAX" #1, by Dave Johnson (Marvel)

I'm no fan of Marvel's MAX trade dress or, for that matter, the logo for this particular series, so let's hold our hands up to the screen and block those out. Now let's just take in that arresting image by Dave Johnson. As he did with his covers for "B.P.R.D.: Russia," Johnson references another era while still making the image contemporary. Even without "Indo-China" spelled out within the reverse silhouette of Nick Fury, we would have a good idea of where, and when, this story takes place. -- Kevin Melrose

"Skeleton Key" One-Shot, by Andi Watson (Dark Horse)

Andi Watson proves there's elegance to simplicity with this "Skeleton Key" cover. With three simple figures, Watson creates an instantly recognizable image that's perfectly in tune with the book's interior pages. It's incredibly effective. -- Steve Sunu

"Vescell" #7, by John Upchurch (Image Comics)

John Upchurch's cover has the fantastic pencils readers have come to expect from this book, but it's the coloring that really pushes this over the top. By using mostly gray tones for the characters, Upchurch's detailed work on the purple flowers stands out so much more, making the giant head vomiting flowers seem almost ... commonplace. The bright color of the background helps to undercut the strong hue of the flowers, again moving the eye back to the gray tones of the characters. It's a risky, but effective, experiment in color. -- Steve Sunu

COVER OF THE WEEK: "Daredevil" #12, by Paolo Rivera (Marvel)

A fixture of "Cover of the Week," Paolo Rivera returns with yet another cover from the relaunched "Daredevil" series, and the first not to feature the title's hero. That's not to say Matt Murdock's presence isn't felt, though: We're shown part of Assistant District Attorney Kirsten McDuffie -- Matt's date in this issue -- the way Daredevil views her, more or less, with echolocation hugging the contours of her body and her heartbeat represented by the line of an electrocardiogram. It's a noirish image, and undeniably sexual (and sensual). -- Kevin Melrose

With that, we look back at the five Covers of the Week, all contenders for the Cover of the Month for April: "Daredevil" #11, by Marcos Martin; "The Rocketeer Adventures 2" #2, by Darwyn Cooke; "Saga" #2, by Fiona Staples; and "Fatale" #4, by Sean Phillips.

And CBR's April Cover of the Month is ...

"Fatale" #4, by Sean Phillips (Image Comics)

As much as I loved Sean Phillips' cover for the first issue of his horror noir with frequent collaborator Ed Brubaker, I think this one is now my favorite. While that first image was sultry and sinister, the cover of Issue 4 is downright unnerving, with Bishop's emotionless, and seemingly blank-eyed, henchman tasting the blood on his fingertips. In case you're wondering, no, it's not his blood. -- Kevin Melrose