The Maxx #18

Sam Kieth's cover for The Maxx #18 frames its promise with playful dread: a tiny, wide-eyed purple figure crouches low on a burnt-orange plain, dwarfed by two massive, swirling dark forms looming on either side — and the bold challenge "Beware the… Hooly!" hangs over the whole unsettling scene. There's something wonderfully off-kilter about the contrast between the character's compact, almost cartoonish presence and the churning, painterly menace surrounding it. Written by Sam Kieth and Bill Messner-Loebs with colors by Steve Oliff and Olyoptics, this 1995 Image issue delivers the series' signature blend of surreal unease and unexpected humor in fine form.