Usagi Yojimbo #16

Stan Sakai's cover for this 1997 Dark Horse issue drops us into a tense forest confrontation, with a hulking rhino warrior raising a blade overhead while a dark-haired fighter braces defiantly in the foreground and a startled rabbit figure in blue robes looks on from the background. The "Grasscutter" arc continues here with Chapter 2, "Heike Gani," promising more of the feudal intrigue and action that makes this series such a pleasure. Sakai's expressive anthropomorphic characters and richly detailed woodland setting make this cover alone a compelling reason to pick it up.