Conan the King #53

This July 1989 issue of Conan the King delivers a visceral, close-quarters cover by Mike Kaluta, depicting a crowned, red-faced warrior locked in a fierce struggle with a gaunt, skeletal-looking adversary adorned with gold ornaments and wild white hair — two faces pressed together in grim, deadly tension against a blood-red sky. The painted intensity and intricate detailing Kaluta brings to the scene give the confrontation a nightmarish, almost ritualistic weight that perfectly suits the issue's story title, "Night War." With writing by James Owsley and interior art by Geof Isherwood, this is a compelling chapter in Conan's reign that fans of sword-and-sorcery at its most atmospheric won't want to pass up.