Checkmate #18

Three figures loom over a giant chessboard on Kalman Andrasofszky's cover — a woman in armored tactical gear at center, flanked by two men who regard her with wary intensity, all rendered against a backdrop of floating chess pieces that underscore the series' espionage-and-strategy atmosphere. The bold headline "The Fall of the Wall Begins!" promises a major turning point in Greg Rucka's spy-thriller run, brought to life inside by artist Joe Bennett and inker Jack Jadson. If you've been following Checkmate's intricate world of covert ops and political chess matches, issue #18 is exactly where you want to be.