Batman #3

Part of the celebrated New 52 relaunch, Batman #3 brings together writer Scott Snyder and cover artist Greg Capullo for "The Thirteenth Hour." Capullo's cover is a striking close-quarters image: Batman, cowl gleaming with white-lens eyes, strains against a powerful red-skinned assailant who grips him by the throat and wields a blade overhead, blood spattering the stark white background. It's an arresting composition that makes clear the Dark Knight is in genuine danger — the kind of visceral tension that made this Snyder/Capullo run so compelling from its earliest issues in 2012.