Conan the Barbarian #76

Set against the ornate golden architecture of Stygia, this 1977 Marvel entry finds a sword-wielding Conan mid-kick as he sends a massive purple stone hawk-god idol crashing down onto a crowd of horrified Stygian worshippers below. The cover dialogue — "You Stygian dogs worship this great stone Hawk-God… well, now he is YOURS!" — captures the barbarian's defiant swagger perfectly, and the cover pencils by Gil Kane inked by Ernie Chan deliver a wonderfully kinetic composition brimming with energy. "Swordless in Stygia" promises exactly the kind of irreverent, muscle-and-steel adventure that made Roy Thomas and John Buscema's run on this series so compelling.