Lords of Mars #5

The arena of Mars erupts in this penultimate issue of Lords of Mars, as Alex Ross's cover drops us into a gladiatorial spectacle — a massive warrior swings a skull-tipped mace at a muscular opponent mid-battle, while a red-robed woman watches from the arena floor and a vast crowd of onlookers fills the stands against a backdrop of golden alien spires. "Worlds Collide" promises exactly the kind of pulp-planetary-romance clash that this Dynamite series has been building toward, with Arvid Nelson's script and Roberto Castro's interior art continuing to fuel the adventure. Ross's painted composition gives the whole thing a sweeping, cinematic scale that practically pulls you into the red dust of the arena floor.