“THE WRATH OF THE SERPENT GOD! WARRIORS ACROSS TIME DEFY THE ELDER GODS! JAMES ALLISON will soon die. But it’s not his first death. He’s lived many lives, in many places – lives he can recall in vivid detail. But when an Elder God called the WYRM reaches across time to James, an ages-spanning quest begins! The serpent god SET plans to usher in an eternity of darkness, and only the chosen warriors across time and space have a hope of stopping him: CONAN THE BARBARIAN, SOLOMON KANE, DARK AGNES, and the man known as MOON KNIGHT! In an unprecedented comics event, Robert E. Howard’s characters join forces along with Marvel’s Moon Knight, in an all-new saga built on REH and Marvel lore from across the ages!”

By BOB FREEMAN – Paint Monk’s Library Writer

I have, almost unerringly, been against crossovers on principle, particularly when it comes to Conan of Cimmeria. When Marvel began to shoehorn the character into their four-color universe, I stood firmly against it. While there have been interesting moments, by and large, these stories have not worked for me on any level. Conan interacting with the Marvel Universe outside of a “What If?” simply was grating to my sensibilities. The same could be said of Robert E. Howard’s other literary creations… That is, until Jim Zub took the reins.

Conan: Serpent War #1 is a crowning achievement and my favorite comic so far in Marvel’s re-acquisition of the Howard properties.

By Crom, this is how one bloody does it. Future authors, take note.

Using Howard’s James Allison as catalyst and framing device, Zub carefully and meticulously introduces us to the protagonists in his tale. First, Allison, seemingly on his deathbed in 1936 Texas, reaching out across time & space to gather a collection of heroes — Hunter, Knight, Paladin, Fighter, and Adventurer — to combat an ancient and slithering evil called Set.

Yeah. I’m on board.

Allison is a brilliant choice as the instigator. As a 1930s era Texan who recalls his past lives as ancient heroes, the character is a perfect bridge between Niord Worm’s-Bane, Marc Spector/Moon Knight, Solomon Kane, Dark Agnes de Chastillon, and Conan of Cimmeria.

While, to be fair, Moon Knight’s inclusion seems an odd pairing with a collection of Howard creations, I never once felt myself pulled from the narrative. Zub’s words carried the weight, and by freely adapting Howard’s own prose to the page, made the transitions seamless and intoxicating.

I’ve not had this much fun reading a comic in a long time.

Each of Robert E. Howard’s creations rang true, and that is the real test. Kane and Agnes felt lifted right off of Howard’s typewriter and dropped onto the comic page. And Conan himself? Yeah, that’ll do.

As for the nuts and bolts of the issue, the art is fairly solid. While uneven at times, Scot Eaton and Scott Hanna perform admirably, but it is the James Allison sequences by Vanesa del Rey and Jean-Francois Beaulieu that are the most eye-catching, projecting mystical surrealism that elevates the overall work.

Eaton and Hanna’s Conan is the weakest of the characters depicted, but the characterization is right and can be forgiven in the short term.

All in all, I count this as a major success that spotlights Jim Zub’s creative talents and bodes well not only for the rest of Serpent War but for Zub’s 2020 turn on Conan the Barbarian, beginning with issue #13.

As for the 1-10 skulls of my enemies…Crom, take them all. I am well satiated.