SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN #16 / Scripts by JIM ZUB / Art by NICOLA SCOTT, CHRIS CAMPANA & SEAN IZAAKSE / Letters by RICHARD STARKINGS & COMICRAFT’S TYLER SMITH / Published by TITAN COMICS

Robert E. Howard was not the first writer to arrange for crossovers between his characters. He may, however, have been the first to use time travel to do it with the story “Kings of the Night.” In any case, Titan Comics have honored that legacy with annual events since acquiring the rights to the whole of Howard’s estate. This has led to crossovers between Conan the Barbarian and Howard’s other great heroes.

Savage Sword of Conan #16 serves as an introduction to this year’s event, Tides of the Tyrant-King. It consists of three stories, all penned by Jim Zub, and each featuring a different hero. However, they are also unified in the darkness of their theme and the teased identity of the antagonist.

The first tale, “Massacred Memories”, is a call-back to Zub’s first story arc on the currently monthly Conan the Barbarian comic. Epically illustrated by Nicola Scott, it shows the life of Conan’s childhood friend, Hydallan, who ignores the call to adventure that Conan embraced. We also see how his experiences transformed him and how that will play a major role in the conflict to come.

The second tale, “The Ghosts of Wahpeton,” is a far less heroic story. Daringly depicted by Chris Campana, this story centers around crooked cowboy Steve Corcoran. He is in the middle of fleeing frontier justice, only to be confronted by an evil far greater than his own relatively petty crimes.

The third and final story, “The Warrior Within,” centers around a relatively obscure creation of Robert E. Howard – the enslaved woman Zuleika. With the aid of Sean Izaakse, Zub presents an origin story for Zuleika, as she has visions of her past lives in an age undreamed of.

Zub’s stories are as engaging as ever and he is well-matched by his artistic collaborators. More than any writer to dabble in the Hyborian Age, Zub goes beyond emulating Howard’s style and truly expands his creations. It is unclear precisely how these three tales will fit together. However, they are well-worth reading even ignoring their role in setting up the next Conan event and easily accessible to those who have never read a Howard story or Conan comic.