Batman: Shadow of the Bat #71

Batman stands in a combat-ready crouch amid a swirling storm of birds — pigeons and crows scattering in every direction — while flames rage behind a chain-link fence and a grotesque, snarling creature looms in the lower right corner. Chris Moeller's cover work bathes the whole scene in a striking contrast of deep blue and scorching orange, giving Batman's billowing cape an almost elemental presence against the inferno. With Alan Grant, Mark Buckingham, and Wayne Faucher bringing "Anatomy of a Murder" to life inside, this February 1998 issue of Shadow of the Bat looks like a tense and atmospheric chapter in the Dark Knight's ongoing saga.