Batman / The Maxx: Arkham Dreams #5

The penultimate chapter of Sam Kieth's Batman/The Maxx: Arkham Dreams arrives with this 2020 IDW/DC co-publication, and the cover makes an immediate impression — Batman and the massive, purple-hided Maxx are locked in an intense, close-quarters struggle, each gripping the other with raw, visceral force. Kieth's unmistakable linework (both pencils and inks his own) gives the confrontation a wonderfully kinetic, almost dreamlike weight, perfectly suited to a series set at the intersection of Gotham and the Outback. If you've been following this crossover, issue #5 promises the kind of surreal intensity that only this creative team could deliver.