Before Watchmen: Rorschach #1

Lee Bermejo's cover pulls you in close — uncomfortably close — filling the frame with Rorschach's ink-stained, blood-spattered mask staring back with absolute stillness, the shifting blot patterns doing their psychological work inches from your face. It's a striking opening image for this 2012 four-issue miniseries, written by Brian Azzarello, that carries the uncompromising "Rated M for Mature" label and the evocative chapter title "Damntown." If you've ever wanted to spend more time in the grim headspace of Watchmen's most unrelenting vigilante, this is a compelling place to start.