Gwandanaland Comics #181

This 2017 Gwandanaland Comics treasury collects the complete public domain run of Man in Black, presenting Bob Powell's thrilling work in one handsome volume. Powell's cover art for issue #4 sets the tone perfectly: a looming, devil-horned figure dominates the composition while tiny human figures — a policeman, a caped hero, and others — are arranged like chess pieces on a checkered board, with an enormous reaching hand hovering ominously above them, all beneath the pointed caption "Pawns in the Hands of Fate!" It's a masterful example of Powell's dramatic sense of design, and having the complete series gathered together makes this an irresistible read for fans of golden age mystery and adventure comics.