Ex Machina #21

This Eisner-nominated series continues in strong form with issue #21, opening the "Smoke Smoke" arc. Tony Harris's striking cover splits the composition between two intense close-up faces — one half obscured by a goggled, mechanical visor with glowing green eyes, the other a sharp-featured man marked with luminous green circuitry-like details against a deep red background — creating a tense visual dialogue between technology and humanity. Brian K. Vaughan and Harris, together with inker Tom Feister and colorist JD Mettler, were clearly firing on all cylinders when this WildStorm Signature series was earning its multiple Eisner nominations for Best Continuing Series.