Review: ‘Conan The Barbarian’ #1 Highlights The Best Of The Hyborian Age

Welcome to the table,

“Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandaled feet.”

Those words, written by Robert E. Howard, have stuck with me for most of my life. While not my favorite quote from the tails of the wolf eyed warrior, it is the most iconic for sure.

That is the thing I love about Conan. The sword and sorcery genre feels most alive and at its best when the stories center around him and The Hyborian Age. In the same way, I imagine a religious person takes comfort in their books and scriptures I take comfort in the stories of jeweled towers and black sailed ships.

From Titan Comics, hither came Jim Zub‘s script, Rob De La Torre with his dazzling designs, José Villarrubia with clashing colors, and Richard Starkings with letters so bold,  to deliver to us the next telling of the timeless tales of Conan The Barbarian, pirate, thief, and slayer of those who would serve the dark forces above and below.

My expectations were all over the place for this one. I have read so many tellings of the tales that I have seen the highest of highs and what I consider the lowest of lows. In recent memory, I really enjoyed the Dark Horse Comics version of the lore and was very let down by what Marvel did with the character in their most recent iteration of his stories. I have no idea who came up with Savage Avengers but it did not delight me in any way shape or form.

Because of all this, my worry over if Titan Comic’s acquisition of the series was going to see more kind of goofy weirdness was fairly high.

I picked up the book on Free Comic Book Day and loved it so much, so I was really, REALLY looking forward to this first chapter in the ongoing series.

The first issue of Titan Comics’ Conan The Barbarian gave me everything I wanted from a Conan story. The art is primal and energetic in a way that takes you along for the adventure. The story is brilliantly balanced between narration and dialog making it feel like the classic Conan stories I love. And the plot of this first issue takes you through some of the best things about the Hyperborean age firmly anchoring this book in my must-read category if you are a fan of Sword and Sorcery.

It’s a really great feeling reading through this comic a few times and being able to honestly tell you that I loved it. It’s really solid and the introduction of less-than-natural moments towards the end feels very grounded in the rules of the world of Howard that I have come to define the borders of possibility in the setting.

I can see that if they stick with this tone and look, Titan could keep putting out Conan comics for a decade or more and remain fresh and fun. Everyone is doing a fantastic job on this book but José Villarrubia colors really deserve a callout as they are nothing short of a masterclass on balancing classic comic aesthetics with a modern color sensibility. These pages are really dazzling, like, next level work.

If you are a fan of Sword and Sorcery, enjoy the work of Robert E. Howard, or are just looking for a fun slow burn low fantasy story that strikes the perfect mood between character-driven narrative and the clashing of steel, this is the book you are looking for.

Until next time,

“Someday, when all your civilization and science are likewise swept away, your kind will pray for a man with a sword.”

Now that is my favorite Conan quote.