Batman: Gotham Adventures #21

Batman bursts through a doorway in this 2000 entry in the animated-style Gotham Adventures series, his cape sweeping dramatically as he confronts a heavyset man brandishing what appears to be a billy club — while a bound and helpless hostage sits tied to a chair nearby. Looming ominously overhead is a bundle of dynamite with a sparking fuse, giving the whole scene a thrilling, ticking-clock urgency that the animated universe does so well. Cover pencils by Bob Smith and inks by Terry Beatty capture that clean, expressive Batman: The Animated Series look perfectly, with a layout that pulls you straight into the tension.