The Spirit #10

This Autumn 1947 issue from Quality Comics puts the masked crimefighter front and center — his blue coat and fedora blending into the shadows of a brick alleyway as he peers alertly into the night, a sign beside him boldly declaring he "Stalks Crime!" Peeking out from the lower corner is a wide-eyed, red-hatted monkey who looks considerably less confident about the whole situation, lending the cover a dash of charm to balance its noir atmosphere. Reed Crandall's cover art captures the Spirit's moody urban world with assured linework, and the interior tale — "Diamonds and Rats" — promises exactly the kind of gritty, fast-moving storytelling that made this series a standout of its era.