I'll agree that of the 3 posted the first is the best. That said though... it just looks like you set up the camera and lit the joint and snapped the shot. Not much thought into it and it shows. Just kind of looks snapshot-ish. I think a vertical crop would fit better with the subject and clean up some of the background. The line on the face is also pretty distracting.
Also, when I look at the shot I really see two points of interest which for me... is conflicting. I think the shot would work better as a close up on the joint where it fills the frame.