Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #12

Issue #12 of Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from Mirage brings a tense, jungle-drenched cover where a red-masked Turtle looms large behind a grizzled, cigarette-chomping mercenary type clutching a submachine gun — the dense foliage around them suggesting a story deep in dangerous territory. Peter Laird handles both pencils and inks here, delivering a gritty, lived-in composition that captures the darker, street-level tone that made this series stand apart from superhero mainstream in 1987. A compelling snapshot of the Turtles at their most serious.