The Patriots #3

A military helicopter tears through the sky above a city under siege, with figures grappling desperately at its open door while an army of menacing armored robots swarms the streets and rooftops below — it's a tense, kinetic image that immediately signals high stakes for this WildStorm title. Michael Ryan's cover pencils and Randy Elliott's inks pack every inch of the composition with urgent energy, from the battered American flag backdrop to the gleaming mechanical threat advancing below. Brandon Choi and Jonathan Peterson's The Patriots #3 looks like exactly the kind of grounded-yet-spectacular action comics that made 2000 an exciting time for superhero storytelling.