High on the right side of the Guard's opening spread is a blue-skinned woman in a dark costume and a flowing purple cape. Nightshade's placement gives her a very different prese…

High on the right side of the Guard's opening spread is a blue-skinned woman in a dark costume and a flowing purple cape. Nightshade's placement gives her a very different presence from the fighters gathered at ground level. She adds a darker shape to a page dominated by bright yellow costumes, Starbolt's flame and the enormous pink crystal. Cockrum uses those differences to keep the new team readable. Even a member with little dialogue can have a place the eye remembers. Her launch portrait belongs to the art more than to an individual fight. The cape stretches outward, the pale face looks toward the intruders and the figure occupies space above the crowd. It is a strong first image, even before the story has given her much to say.