Conan the Barbarian #24
Conan the Barbarian #24 delivers the first full solo adventure of Red Sonja, a character who would grow into one of sword-and-sorcery's most enduring heroines, eventually anchoring her own Marvel title, a Dynamite Entertainment publishing line, and a film franchise. The story, 'The Song of Red Sonja,' won the 1973 Academy of Comic Book Arts Award for Best Individual Story (Dramatic), making it one of the most decorated single issues of the Bronze Age. It also marks the final interior work by Barry Windsor-Smith on the color Conan title — closing the foundational chapter of his run and the beginning of John Buscema's long tenure that would define the series for a generation. The double weight of a landmark character debut and a farewell to a transformative artistic partnership gives this issue a singular place in Marvel's Bronze Age history.
In "The Song of Red Sonja," Conan and Red Sonja clash in the city of Makkalet, sparking a brawl that leads them through fountains, temple walls, and a deadly confrontation with a magical serpent. Written by Roy Thomas and brought to life with bold, dynamic art by Barry Smith, this issue captures the raw adventure of sword and sorcery, culminating in a clever twist as Sonja vanishes toward Pah-Disha. The cover, a striking piece by Barry Windsor-Smith, perfectly frames their fierce, fleeting alliance.
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Writer-editor Roy Thomas and British artist Barry Windsor-Smith had been navigating deadline pressures throughout their second run on the book, with Windsor-Smith's increasingly painstaking attention to detail proving incompatible with a monthly schedule. Knowing #24 would be his last issue on the color comic, Windsor-Smith fully penciled, inked, and colored both the cover and the story — an unusual solo production effort that resulted in what many observers consider the high-water mark of his Conan work. The story itself drew on Thomas's research into Robert E. Howard's non-Conan tale 'The Shadow of the Vulture' (1934), from which he extrapolated the flame-haired fighter Sonja into the Hyborian Age, tweaking her name's spelling and replacing Howard's original character's firearms with a sword. At least two panels were altered before publication — reportedly censored by production chief John Romita Sr. — and the unmodified version of the story was not widely available until Marvel Treasury Edition #15 in 1977.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First full-length Red Sonja story: 'The Song of Red Sonja,' written by Roy Thomas and fully penciled, inked, and colored by Barry Windsor-Smith — his sole complete solo art production on the title.
- Red Sonja's debut across issues #23–24 was a creative reinvention: Thomas transplanted Robert E. Howard's 16th-century swashbuckler Red Sonya of Rogatino into Conan's Hyborian Age, altered the character's name spelling, and replaced her guns with a sword.
- The story won the 1973 Academy of Comic Book Arts Award for Best Individual Story (Dramatic) — one of the industry's top honors at the time.
- Issue #24 is the final issue of Barry Windsor-Smith's interior art on the ongoing color Conan series; the letters column, written by Thomas, formally announced Windsor-Smith's departure to readers.
- Two panels in the original printing were censored (redrawn) before publication; the restored, uncensored pages first appeared in Marvel Treasury Edition #15 (1977), recolored by Glynis Wein.
- The story is set in the city of Makkalet and follows Conan and Sonja as they brawl in a tavern, scale a palace tower, steal a serpent tiara that transforms into a living magical snake, and at the end Sonja outwits Conan and departs for Pah-Disha.
- Red Sonja's adventures continued directly in Savage Sword of Conan #1 (1974), and the character later headlined Marvel Feature Vol. 2 (1975) and her own self-titled series beginning in 1977.
- The story has been reprinted extensively: in Savage Sword of Conan #82 (1982), Marvel Treasury Edition #15 (1977), Essential Conan #1 (2000), The Chronicles of Conan Vol. 4 (Dark Horse, 2004), The Barry Windsor-Smith Conan Archives Vol. 2 (Dark Horse, 2010), and the Marvel Original Years Omnibus Vol. 1 (2018).
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Reprinted in The Avengers #103 (1975), The Avengers Annual #1978 (1977), Marvel Treasury Edition #15 (1977), Conan #3 (1978), Conan de barbaar #3 (1979), The Savage Sword of Conan #82 (1982), Conan el Bárbaro #80 (1986), Conan el Bárbaro #81 (1986), Conan Saga #8 (1987), Conan #10/1991 (1991), Conan Le Barbare #37 (1993), Conan Saga #4 (1994), Conan el bárbaro #24 (1998), Essential Conan #1 (2000), The Chronicles of Conan #4 (2004), The Barry Windsor-Smith Conan Archives #2 (2010), Conan el Bárbaro. Edición 35 Aniversario #[nn] (2017), Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus #1 (2018), Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Epic Collection #2 (2021), Conan The Barbarian: The Original Comics Omnibus #1 (2024), Conan #3, Conan el Bárbaro #19, Conan le Barbare #9, Gli Albi dei Super-Eroi #43 + 1 more
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