Titan; $5.99 

If you’ve followed our reviews previously, you already know that I think that Conan The Barbarian scribe Jim Zub has already written himself into the pantheon of great Conan storytellers over the 24 issues (and one Free Comic Book Day issue) that preceded this one. 

Equally, thanks to Zub’s work and the art of a number of talented illustrators, Titan can now stand aside Marvel and Dark Horse as publishers of sustained, solid runs on Robert E. Howard’s best-known creation. Two years in seems to be a great place to celebrate that, and that’s what Zub and Titan have done with Conan The Barbarian #25.  

Considering the average price of comics at this time, the $5.99 cover price for this extra-sized, standalone issue is well worth the price of admission. For it, Zub was teamed with noted cover painter Alex Horley for a nearly life-spanning tale of King Conan. It’s particularly cool to see Horley doing interiors on a full comic issue, and he doesn’t disappoint on a single page. 

A mysterious visitor to the king’s court conjures up some of the critical scenes of Conan’s life. For those among us who are devoted Conan fans, these pages will recall memories of great stories from prose and comic books past, while at the same time they are entirely accessible and powerful for newer readers. Bravo! 

There’s a plethora of variant covers – some of them quite catching – but if you haven’t done so already, you might want to seek out cover A, which is a wraparound piece painted by Horley. 

– J.C. Vaughn