Alias #18

Part three of "The Underneath" arc finds Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos deep in the emotional core of Marvel's MAX imprint series. David Mack's watercolor cover is quietly arresting — a close portrait of a young woman with eyes closed and hands pressed together beneath her chin, rendered in flowing washes of violet, amber, and shadow that feel more like a memory than a moment. It's the kind of cover that draws you in with stillness rather than spectacle, a fitting mood-setter for one of 2003's most character-driven superhero titles.