Hellblazer #190

Hellblazer #190 kicks off 2004 with a striking Tim Bradstreet cover that arranges five figures in vertical panels — a stern, close-cropped man at the top and four atmospheric portraits below, ranging from a heavily marked face to shadowy, long-haired figures rendered in muted blues and ochres. Mike Carey continues his five-part "Staring at the Wall" arc with Marcelo Frusin handling both pencils and inks inside, promising the moody, supernatural tension this Vertigo series does so well. A solid chapter in one of DC's most enduring mature-readers titles.