The Vigil #5

A massive, brooding figure looms in deep crimson over a chessboard where small, tense figures — including a crackling electric-powered hero and a dark-cloaked character — stand like pieces awaiting their fate. Sumit Kumar's cover for The Vigil #5 frames the story title "Check Mate" with quiet menace, suggesting that Ram V and the artistic team of Sid Kotian, Dev Pramanik, and Rain Beredo are moving their characters toward a decisive confrontation. Part of DC's Dawn of DC initiative and the "We Are Legends" imprint, this issue is a compelling entry in one of 2023's most visually distinctive new series.