Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril #5

The penultimate chapter of this six-issue Vertigo miniseries arrives with a cover by Chris Sprouse and Karl Story that puts Tom Strong front and center — determined and airborne against a dramatic starfield — while several other figures, including an older man and additional allies, loom below in the shadows. Peter Hogan's script, brought to life by Sprouse's characteristically clean linework and Karl Story's inks, continues the "Planet of Peril" saga with its fifth installment, subtitled "Sleeping in Flames." With only one issue left to go, the tension radiating from every face on this cover suggests the stakes couldn't be higher.