Azrael: Agent of the Bat #95

Subtitled "Hero of the People!" right on the cover, this December 2002 issue presents Azrael in his striking gold-and-red armored suit charging forward, fist raised, red cape sweeping behind him — while a mob of angry civilians armed with bats, pipes, and torches surges through a burning city street at his back. The tension between the tagline and that menacing crowd makes for a genuinely compelling visual question about just whose side everyone is really on. Writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Sergio Cariello bring the story, while the dynamic cover itself comes courtesy of penciler Mike Zeck and inker Jerry Ordway.