Hardcore #4

The cover of Hardcore #4 from Image/Skybound stops you cold: a man's anguished, wide-eyed face fills the frame, mouth open in a raw scream, while teal wireframe hands press against his temples — a striking visual metaphor for the series' concept of inhabiting another person's body against their will. Artist Panasian renders the tension between the photorealistic human face and the geometric digital overlay with real unnerving force, and colorist Adriano Lucas's searing yellow-gold background makes the whole image practically vibrate. Andy Diggle's sharp storytelling and Alessandro Vitti's interior linework back up a cover that promises this fourth issue keeps the psychological pressure turned all the way up.