SOLOMON KANE: THE SERPENT RING #1 / Script, Art & Color by PATRICK ZIRCHER / Letters by RICHARD STARKINGS & COMICRAFT’S TYLER SMITH/ Published by TITAN COMICS

In another time, Solomon Kane would have been a Knight Errant. As it stands, he is a self-appointed champion of justice. A Puritan by birth and inclination, he has traveled around the world and faced many evils in the name of good. But for all that he is concerned with the next world, he is an Englishman, and so answers the call to war when Queen and Country demand his sword.

The title of privateer sits ill on Kane’s broad shoulders. It becomes a yoke when his zeal in battle leads to the death of an innocent man. This leads Kane to accept the dying man’s request, to deliver his precious cargo to an old friend in Venice. This noble act will have dire consequences, however, forcing Kane to confront an ancient evil born of the Hyborian Age!

Since brevity is the soul of wit, I shall be brief. This first issue of Solomon Kane: The Serpent Ring is one of the best comics I have ever seen and an early candidate for this year’s Eisner Awards. The story is gripping, the art complex, and everything an action adventure comic should be. This is another triumphant adaptation of the heroes of Robert E. Howard from Titan Comics and the makings of a magnum opus for artist Patrick Zircher.