Tim Sale's iconic legacy explored following his demise at 66: 10 best comics featuring his art

News of Tim Sale's demise took the internet by storm when a tweet regarding this popped up on June 16, 2022. Per a tweet dated June 14, 2022, he was admitted to the hospital. However, none of the posts clarified the circumstances of the famous comic artist's health deterioration.

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Tim Sale is known for giving several energetic and moody artworks to DC and Marvel. It's believed that the beloved modern superheroes wouldn't be the ones without the work of Tim Sale. His grim and energetic characters include Batman, Superman, Hulk, and more. Well, as the heartbreaking news of his demise broke, we are here to explore the best comic books that Sale has worked on.

Diving into the 10 best comics by Tim Sale

1) Batman: The Long Halloween

Batman: The Long Halloween (Image via DC)

The 13-issue limited comic book series sees a successful collaboration between Tim Sale and Jeph Loeb. The plot follows Batman chasing a new villain named Holiday, who murders people on holidays.

Hence, the caped crusader must capture him following the calendar to find out about the other holidays so that he can be ready to get hold of the cunning murderer.

The comic series also features several surprise appearances from some of Batman's most prominent enemies, including The Joker, Mad Hatter, Poison Ivy, Riddler, and Scarecrow.

2) Batman: Dark Victory

After the success of the previous comic series on the list, Tim Sale and Jeph Loeb reunited to create this fourteen-issue limited series. Interestingly, it is a direct sequel to Batman: The Long Halloween.

The story kicks off after Holiday has been put behind bars. Batman has to solve another crime that revolves around the police in Gotham City. The series also re-tells the story of Robin and his adoption by Bruce Wayne.

3) Catwoman: When In Rome

The six-part miniseries follows Catwoman as she travels to Rome to find the whereabouts of her long-lost parents. She believes Carmine Falcone and his wife to be her birth givers. Hence, the plot focuses on the struggles she goes through, to find out where they have been located.

Tim Sale's work on the title is inspired by a fashion Illustrator named René Gruau.

4) Hulk: Gray

Written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Tim Sale, the comic book series features the early days of Bruce Banner after he became the strongest creature in the Universe. After going through Gamma radiation, despite being the incredible Hulk, he couldn't stand that his life wouldn't be the same anymore.

5) Batman: Haunted Night

The title follows Batman, who tries to capture Scarecrow and gets trapped in a poisonous thorn maze that almost kills him. However, he escaped successfully and learned about the abduction of James Gordon's daughter Barbara. Later, the caped crusader finds out that Mad Hatter has kidnapped her.

Besides this, she, along with the other kidnapped children, had to attend a twisted tea party forcefully, and that's when Batman somehow managed to rescue her and the other kidnapped children.

6) Queen and Country #1

Queen and Country #1 (Image via Oni Press)

Queen and Country #1 saw the cover art by Tim Sale and was published by Oni Press. It was inspired by a TV series titled The Sandbaggers. The first series included 37 issues that started in 2001 and ran until 2007.

The series follows an officer of the Secret Intelligence Service named Tara Chace. The team of the SIS operatives is also recognized as the Minders, and Tara Chace features as Minder Two. Along with her, several other characters portray a valuable role, including Donald Weldon (Deputy Chief of Service), Paul Crocker (Director of Operations), Ed Kittering (Minder Three), and Tom Wallace (Minder One).

The team deals with sensational day-to-day activities such as terrorism and intelligence gathering.

7) Superman Confidential #1

The six-part issue sees cover art by Tim Sale. The plot of the series shows the struggles faced by Superman when he first encountered radioactive chunks on his home planet. It also showed how the world of the Man of Steel was shattered when he realized that the incident had changed his life completely. In short, the plot reveals the history of Superman.

8) Billi 99

Written by Sarah Byam and Illustrated by Tim Sale, this four-part miniseries was inspired by Bryam's personal experiences when she was in Detroit in 1980. The story follows Billi Chadam, the daughter of an honest industrialist. She resides in an era where people are unaware that World War 3 has already hit and the corrupt politicians and unscrupulous corporate practices are all around.

Later, Billi's life turned dangerous when she was framed for her father's murder. Soon, she sees a ray of hope and decides to protect her city, no matter what.

9) Captain America: White

Captain America: White (Image via Marvel)

Following the origin stories of Hulk, Spider-Man, and Daredevil, it is the fourth comic series that the duo Loeb and Tim Sale have created in terms of their colored series. It also grabbed attention due to the seven-year gap between the release of its first and second issues.

Captain America: White showcases the initial days of Steve Rogers as Captain America and the bond he shares with his ally Bucky.

10) Challengers of the Unknown #1

Challengers of the Unknown #1 (Image via DC)

The story features four wealthy middle-aged men with enough money to buy anything. Their wealth was not limited to buying things; even an entire town and a mountain were named after them. Their names were Rocky Davis, Ace Morgan, Red Ryan, and Prof. Haley, and the team was also recognized as the Challengers Of The Moon.

Unfortunately, due to a failed experiment of Prof. Haley, all of their fame was destroyed, and Prof. also had to give up on his life.

Disclaimer: This list reflects the opinions of the writer.

Edited by Srijan Sen