100 Bullets #98

Four silhouetted figures in dark suits stand before a wall of flame, completely dwarfed by the looming red skull that dominates the cover — its eye sockets bearing a hand symbol marked with Roman numerals XIII, a detail that speaks to the series' deep mythology of power and conspiracy. Dave Johnson's stark, graphic cover design for this February 2009 issue makes the tension feel almost physical, the crimson palette and saw-blade wreaths framing those anonymous figures like condemned men. With Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso's acclaimed noir saga barreling toward its conclusion at issue #98, "Chapter Ten: Five Rook(ed)s" promises the kind of high-stakes maneuvering the title has always delivered.