Conan the Barbarian #226

Conan leaps into the fray on this December 1989 cover — sword raised high and shield in hand, his muscular frame dominating the composition as armored soldiers and a snarling great cat surge around him in the chaos below. The tagline promises something genuinely intriguing: "The Lion of Cimmeria meets the Panther of Bast!!", hinting at a clash of mythic proportions amid the flames and figures visible in the background. Cover pencils by José Delbo and inks by Mark Texeira give the scene a fierce, kinetic energy that fits perfectly into Conan's long-running Marvel saga.