Aquaman #31

The cover of this 2014 New 52 issue says it all: Swamp Thing looms enormous and menacing against a blood-red sky, his vine-like tendrils coiling tightly around a struggling Aquaman — trident in hand but clearly at a disadvantage. Writer Jeff Parker teams with cover penciler Paul Pelletier and inker Sean Parsons to set a genuinely unsettling tone, pitting Atlantis's king against one of the DC Universe's most formidable forces of nature. If you've ever wanted to see Arthur Curry pushed to his absolute limit, "In the Muck" looks like a fine place to start.