Conan the Barbarian #178

This January 1986 Marvel issue puts Conan at his most visceral, with John Buscema's cover art showing the Cimmerian riding atop a massive, snarling beast — dagger raised and ready to strike — while a red-haired woman in green and orange garb lies sprawled on the ground below, seemingly in the creature's path. The tension between Conan's fierce determination and the woman's desperate vulnerability gives the image a genuine sense of urgency that pulls you straight in. With a story titled "Death Hunt" and the full creative team of Jim Owsley, John Buscema, Ernie Chan, George Roussos, and Diana Albers on board, issue #178 looks like exactly the kind of savage, propulsive adventure that made this series such a long-running Marvel staple.