Checkmate #22

A tense, action-packed cover sets the stage for "La Vie en Sang, Part Deux" as a heavily armed blonde woman in Checkmate gear charges forward alongside a dark-haired woman in a red beret and bandolier, both weapons blazing, while a startled young girl looks on from behind — all rendered with sharp urgency by cover artist Kalman Andrasofszky. The tagline "The Past Is Another Country" hints at a mission with deep roots, and the faint text lurking beneath the figures adds an unsettling undercurrent to the scene. With Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann writing and Chris Samnee on interiors, this March 2008 issue delivers the kind of espionage-edged storytelling that made this DC series such a compelling read.