The Dreaming: Waking Hours #8

Part of DC's Sandman Universe Black Label line, The Dreaming: Waking Hours #8 kicks off a new arc — "The Faerie King, Part 1" — with a cover by Nick Robles and Matheus Lopes that pulls you straight into an otherworldly collision of realms. The cover depicts a blue-haired figure in dark clothing striding urgently through a luminous, rosy fae landscape alongside a smaller blonde companion, while a haloed young man reaches out from a shadowy doorway behind them — a striking visual tension between the dreaming and waking worlds. G. Willow Wilson's writing paired with Robles's graceful linework and Lopes's warm, otherworldly palette makes this 2021 issue a genuinely appealing entry point for fans of the Sandman Universe's more mythologically rich corners.