Excellence #9

Image Comics' Excellence continues its sharp, stylish run with issue #9, featuring a hooded figure in a teal jacket wielding a long staff, jaw set and fists clenched against a backdrop of cascading, glowing red-and-gold sigil-covered blocks. Khary Randolph and Emilio Lopez bring a striking visual tension to the cover — the scattered magical geometry and the figure's fierce, grounded stance suggest someone pushing hard against forces far bigger than themselves. Brandon Thomas's series has been one of 2020's most compelling reads, and this cover makes a compelling case to keep turning pages.