King Conan #2

Marvel's second issue of King Conan (1980) promises high adventure with the story "The Black Sphinx of Nebthu," and the cover by John Buscema and Ernie Chan delivers an immediate sense of scale and chaos. Conan himself dominates the foreground — crimson cape billowing, sword raised — as he charges through a frenzied crowd of soldiers and riders on horseback, all dwarfed by the looming, shadowy mass of an enormous creature rising behind them. It's a vivid showcase for Buscema and Chan's dynamic linework, and Roy Thomas's subtitle "Death Beyond the River Styx" sets an enticingly grim tone for whatever awaits the Mightiest Monarch of a Time-Lost Land.