Savage Sword of Conan #1 (Titan Comics, February 2024). Cover art by Joe Jusko

Savage Sword of Conan, from Titan Comics, is the comic book that I have been waiting for. It is a thing of perfection: art, story, presentation, physical format – all unmatched.

The cover by Joe Jusko is brilliant, capturing some brutal imagery from the prose story within, penned by Jim Zub. I loved Joe’s work on the original SSoC run.

The introduction by Roy Thomas was a delight. Roy was the mastermind behind Conan the Barbarian and Savage Sword of Conan, but he’s also known for creating characters such as Wolverine, Vision, Werewolf by Night, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Ultron, and scores more. Hearing that he had plans to contribute to this magazine filled me with joy.

[Click the images for savage-sized versions.]

Interior pages from Savage Sword of Conan #1. Art by Max Von Fafner

The first story in SSoC #1 is called “Conan and the Dragon Horde,” written by John Arcudi, with art by Max Von Fafner. It has violence, bloodshed, nudity, sex, murder, betrayal, greed, superstition, intrigue, and horror. It is a classic Conan yarn that includes a fascinating female protagonist. Maybe she’ll stick around, or maybe she’ll go her own way, like Valeria. I can’t wait to see.

The prose story by Jim Zub, “Sacrifice in the Sand,” was a pleasant surprise. I have to admit to almost always feeling a sense of dread when someone other than REH writes Conan, but by Crom, this Zub guy gets it, much like his contemporary, John C. Hocking. The story was short, but the action was intense, realistic, and engaging, with a nice little twist at the end. Congrats, JZ.

More interiors from Savage Sword of Conan #1. Art by Max Von Fafner

Next, we had a Solomon Kane yarn, “Master of the Hunt.” Placing an SK backup story in SSoC is chef’s kiss perfect. It brings back wonderful memories. Written and illustrated by Patrick Zircher, this was an excellent Gothic tale, with all that 1600s mood and tone. The Puritan gun-toting swashbuckler is one of REH’s finest creations, and he is well represented here.

The magazine closes with a piece by Jeffrey Shanks, who delves into the publishing history of Solomon Kane, which many readers will no doubt find fascinating. Jeff is a bona-fide REH scholar, much like my dog brothers, Mark Finn and Chris Gruber.

Interiors from Savage Sword of Conan #1. Art by Patrick Zircher and Howard Chaykin

This book was great. The husky offset paper is thick and opaque, yet has that newspaper quality to it, bringing back the nostalgia of the original run. You can smell the ink – it’s glorious.

One thing I would love to see in the future (and I know this is wishful thinking) is art by Val Semeiks in the pages of this series. I’ve been working with Val off and on for eight years on Hyperborea RPG content, and I think it would be a wonderful “full circle” event to see him back where he started – illustrating Kull in SSoC. I’d love to see that happen.

Savage Sword of Conan #1 (Marvel Comics, 1974). Cover by Boris Vallejo

The original Savage Sword of Conan #1 was published in 1974, featuring an incredible cover painting by Boris Vallejo (see above). It picked up where Savage Tales had left off, with Roy Thomas spearheading the efforts within.

The talent of the contributors is off the charts: John Buscema, Barry Smith, Alfredo Alcala, Gil Kane, Pablo Marcos, Esteban Maroto, Neal Adams, Ernie Chan, and a riveting article by Glenn Lord. All of it, as Roy Thomas states “… is dedicated to Conan and the other heroic-fantasy creations of the late Robert E. Howard (1906-1936).”

Interiors from Savage Sword of Conan #1 (Marvel Comics, 1974). Art by
John Buscema, Pablo Marcos, Esteban Maroto, Neal Adams, and John Chua

I already had a copy of this book, but I picked up this backup copy for $20 from my old pal, Chris, of Chris’s Comics.

For me, the most iconic Conan art was established by Frank Frazetta with his cover paintings on the Lancer paperbacks, and John Buscema with his cover and interior art in Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian and Savage Sword of Conan. When I was young, one of the things I always looked forward to was the next issue’s cover painting for SSoC.

They rarely disappointed. Among those cover painting artists, one of my personal favorites was Earl Norem. I don’t believe he has received the attention he deserves for capturing incredibly dynamic scenes, such as the one pictured above, fighting a sand demon.

One of the prizes of my personal collection is the page below, purchased at a NY Comicon in the late 90s. This is an original page from Savage Sword of Conan #197, published in May, 1992.

It features Roy Thomas writing, John Buscema pencils, and Ernie Chan inks. The ultimate creative dream team. On this page we see Conan, Belit, and Valeria. This is a one-of-a-kind piece that I will never part with!

One of the ultimate dream teams in comic book history was Roy Thomas, John Buscema, and Alfredo Alcala. The page below is from Savage Sword of Conan #20, adapting the Robert E. Howard story “The Slithering Shadow,” originally published in Weird Tales magazine in 1933. A sword-and-sorcery masterpiece.

The third and final volume of Barbarian Life: A Literary Biography of Conan the Barbarian, by Roy Thomas, is a must-have for fans of Roy’s take on Robert E. Howard’s most famous character.

In thousands of four-color panels for Marvel Comics, Roy Thomas told the tale of Robert E. Howard’s greatest creation, Conan the Barbarian. Now, in this definitive biography and analysis, Roy chronicles Conan’s comic book life, issue by issue, plot by plot, and artist by artist.

For ten years, from October 1970 when Roy and artist Barry Smith assembled the first issue of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian, to October 1980 when Roy and artist John Buscema completed their last issue together on the series, Thomas wrote of Conan’s gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth — as well as the wars, the wenches, and the wizardry that bedeviled the Cimmerian from one issue to the next.

In this final volume of the series, Roy Thomas explains the creative process behind his final few issues of Conan the Barbarian, his run on King Conan, and selected stories published in Savage Sword of Conan. Additional features include a full-length interview with Roy, a short history of sword-and-sorcery in the comics, and the tale of Conan’s battles with the Comics Code.

Now, I do want to preface what I am about to say by noting that my thoughts may be clouded by the nostalgia of my youth: lying on my bedroom floor, poring over my Conan comics and studying the words and art with rapt interest.

That being said, of all the pastiche authors who have developed new, original Conan tales, Roy Thomas may be my favorite — and he did it with the accompaniment of a brilliant visual medium, working with some of the finest artists of the day, such as the aforementioned Barry Smith and John Buscema, and also greats such as Alfredo Alcala, Gil Kane, and Ernie Chan.

Unfortunately, one of my favorite Conan artists, the incredible Val Semeiks, didn’t cross paths with Roy, but he deserves mentioning nonetheless for his breathtaking art.

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Jeffrey P. Talanian’s last article for Black Gate was The Dreams in Gary’s Basement: Gary Gygax and the Creation of Dungeons & Dragons. He is the creator and publisher of the Hyperborea sword-and-sorcery and weird science-fantasy RPG from North Wind Adventures. He was the co-author, with E. Gary Gygax, of the Castle Zagyg releases, including several Yggsburgh city supplements, Castle Zagyg: The East Mark Gazetteer, and Castle Zagyg: The Upper Works. Read Gabe Gybing’s interview with Jeffrey here, and follow his latest projects on Facebook and at www.hyperborea.tv.