Henrique Alvim Corrêa's Fallen Martian, War of the Worlds 1906

Subverting the triumphalist conventions of alien invasion imagery, this haunting pen-and-ink vignette depicts the aftermath of Martian defeat — a collapsed, massive alien form sprawled across barren ground, its tentacled or mechanical appendages radiating outward in death. Smoke rises in the background, suggesting the smoldering wreckage of an invader brought low. Corrêa's loose, expressive linework conveys weight and finality with remarkable economy, turning the feared conqueror into a pitiful, broken heap — a quiet but devastating reversal of power.