Warlord #32
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeWarlord #32 earns its place in DC history as the first appearance of Shakira — a shape-shifting warrior capable of transforming between human and cat form — who would become one of Travis Morgan's most enduring companions across the remainder of the original series run. Her debut in the 'Land of the Titans' storyline immediately deepened the ensemble of Skartaris, giving the series a genuinely enigmatic supporting character whose origins Mike Grell deliberately left unexplained, a narrative choice that kept readers speculating for years. As part of the late Bronze Age peak of The Warlord — then one of DC's top-selling titles — the issue also exemplifies Grell's ability to introduce a new character through immediate, high-stakes action rather than expository setup. The issue has since been collected and acknowledged by multiple key-issue databases as the sole origin point for a character who reappeared across later volumes, animated adaptations, and the DC role-playing game sourcebooks.
In "Land of the Titans," Warlord Travis encounters Shakira, a mysterious woman-cat, as he breaks the final chains of the last Titans—six towering giants who enslave humanity. Written and illustrated by Mike Grell, this 1980 DC adventure blends raw survival with unexpected alliances, all rendered in Grell’s distinctive style, with cover art by Grell himself.
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By April 1980, Mike Grell had been writing and drawing The Warlord solo — script, pencils, and (for many early issues) inks — for roughly four years, a workload he sustained through approximately the first 50 issues of the ongoing series. Warlord #32 falls squarely in that period of total creative ownership, with Grell credited for both script and art, inked by regular series collaborator Vince Colletta and lettered by Ben Oda. The series was edited by Jack C. Harris, who remained closely involved with the book during this era; editor and creator would even make a metafictional cameo together just three issues later in #35. The title had grown out of Grell's earlier pitch — originally conceived as a syndicated newspaper strip called 'Savage Empire,' rerouted through DC's 1st Issue Special anthology — and by this point in the run was comfortably established as a consistent seller that gave DC a credible sword-and-sorcery counterpart to Marvel's Conan line.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Shakira, a shape-shifting woman-cat warrior native to Skartaris, who becomes one of Travis Morgan's principal allies for the remainder of the original series and beyond.
- The story is titled 'Land of the Titans'; Morgan is taken captive by a race of giant warriors and their queen, Amarant, where he first encounters Shakira as a fellow prisoner and slave.
- Shakira's origin is deliberately kept mysterious — it is never fully explained whether she is a woman who transforms into a cat or a cat who transforms into a woman, a question Morgan himself poses within the series.
- Full creative credits: script and art by Mike Grell, inks by Vince Colletta, letters by Ben Oda; cover date April 1980, published by DC Comics.
- Issue #32 is part of the sustained Grell solo run; he wrote and drew the series through approximately issue #52, with his then-wife Sharon Wright ghost-writing issues #53–71.
- The Warlord was among DC's best-selling titles in the late 1970s and early 1980s, making this issue part of the series' commercial and creative peak.
- Shakira's debut in #32 was followed immediately by her second appearance in #33 ('Birds of Prey'), cementing her as a recurring character rather than a one-off creation.
- The character later appeared in the Justice League Unlimited animated episode 'Chaos at the Earth's Core,' voiced by Nicholle Tom, extending Shakira's reach beyond the printed page.
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Reprinted in Warlord #6 (1998), Die großen Phantastic-Comics #13
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