Alex Raymond's Flash Gordon #4

Checker Book Publishing Group's fourth hardcover collection of Alex Raymond's Flash Gordon arrives with the brooding, imperious face of Ming the Merciless front and center, his gold sun-emblem crown and richly colored robes radiating menace. Surrounding him in ghosted panel art are charging horsemen, sword-wielding warriors, and figures locked in desperate combat — a vivid glimpse of the sweeping adventure contained within. At $19.95, this 2005 volume is a fine way to keep one of comics' most celebrated space-opera sagas on your shelf.