Hello Alo ! The ADSL works now ! 'Twas these naughty non-filtered phones indeed.
Oh, yes, the "fake gems and metals splattered on the cover style" is quite kitschy indeed. I estimate the ones wil Swekel sketches on the cover (like the Manual of the Planes) are the best looking.
And the MM2 cover would have been better than the MM1 (didn't liked those plastic scales) cover if it hadn't had this triangular fishmouth-with-big-glowing-thingie (is that the gutter of a microfiendwurm ?).
The style has been copied by d20 publishers, true, but usually in a more classy fashion. Relics & Rituals or Creature Collection, from a cover standpoint, are prettier (now, if we open the book and compare the interior art...).