Cerebus #122

Part of the long-running "Jaka's Story" arc, this May 1989 installment continues "The Poet 3" with a cover by Dave Sim and Gerhard that's quietly arresting — Cerebus peers low along a stone windowsill while two figures sit outside against a bright, cloud-filled sky, the composition playing beautifully with observation and distance. Sim and Gerhard's collaborative linework gives the rough-hewn stonework a tactile weight that contrasts wonderfully with the soft, painterly atmosphere beyond the glass. It's the kind of understated, mood-first cover that made Cerebus one of the most distinctive independent comics of its era.