Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #96

Dirty Tricks" reaches its second chapter in this July 1997 installment of Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, and the cover by Anthony Williams (pencils) and Andy Lanning (inks) sets a gripping tone — Batman stands defiantly at center while a ring of oversized, grasping hands closes in from every direction, each clutching a different weapon: a mace, a staff, blades, and more. The Dark Knight looks cornered but unbroken, surrounded by swirling dark energy and an eerie green glow that gives the whole composition a distinctly supernatural menace. With Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning steering the story, this middle chapter of a three-part arc promises the kind of atmospheric, high-stakes tension the Legends title did so well throughout the 1990s.