The Savage Sword of Conan #191

Joe Jusko's cover for this November 1991 issue pulls no punches: Conan strains with every muscle against a massive serpent whose snake-headed tail rears up like a living nightmare, while a woman lies vulnerable nearby and smaller serpents writhe across the ground at his feet. It's part two of the four-part "The Skull on the Seas!" arc, and the interior story — "Jade Coils in Black Khemi" — promises the kind of dark sorcery and brutal struggle that Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, John Buscema, and their collaborators delivered so reliably throughout this long-running black-and-white Marvel magazine. A solid chapter in one of 1991's most consistently satisfying showcases for sword-and-sorcery storytelling.