The Dreaming #41

Dave McKean's cover for this October 1999 Vertigo entry is a haunting, layered image — a pale figure with eyes closed, face seemingly doubled or merged, holds a lit cigarette while disembodied hands drift through a hazy, dreamlike blue-green atmosphere. It's exactly the kind of unsettling, painterly composition that suits the story title "The Bittersweet Scent of Opium," evoking altered states and fractured identity with quiet intensity. Caitlín R. Kiernan and Al Davison continue their run on The Dreaming, and the issue also promises a special preview of the then-forthcoming Sandman: The Dream Hunters graphic novel — a nice bonus for Vertigo devotees.