Mara #3

Ming Doyle's striking cover for Mara #3 places the title athlete front and center — rendered in bold red, volleyball tucked under one arm, her gaze direct and unwavering — while four teammates walk away behind her, rendered in spare monochrome against softly colored halos. The contrast between Mara's vivid presence and the retreating figures around her gives the image a real sense of isolation and emerging singularity. Brian Wood's series, colored by Jordie Bellaire, continues to deliver one of Image's most visually assured sports-tinged stories of 2013.