Cerebus #213

Issue #213 of Dave Sim and Gerhard's long-running Cerebus finds the "Guys" arc at its thirteenth chapter, and the cover makes a quietly striking impression. A confident, barefoot woman in a patterned black top and pale blue skirt stands with hands on hips before a doorway, while the right half of the image is dominated by detailed renderings of whiskey and rum bottles — a pairing that hints at the particular social atmosphere of this storyline. Sim and Gerhard's collaborative linework, always a pleasure to study up close, gives both the figure and the still-life a grounded, textured realism that sets Cerebus apart from anything else on the 1996 stands.