Robert E. Howard is best known as the father of sword and sorcery and the creator of Conan the Barbarian. Despite this, Howard wrote in a number of genres and created many beloved characters. Many of them figure into Battle of the Black Stone #1, which is both a crossover and a continuation of the current Conan comic. It is also an excellent introduction to the writings of Robert E. Howard outside of his fantasy tales.
The story opens in Chicago in 1936. It is here that occult detectives John Kirowan and John Conrad meet with an elderly adventurer, Francis Xavier Gordon. Know as El Borak (Arabic for “The Swift”), Gordon has traveled widely and seen many strange things in his long life. This includes a strange sigil that haunts his dreams, which has also arisen in the research of Kirowan and Conrad.
Meanwhile, in a time before time, Conan, who also encountered the same sigil, sees it yet again on the necklace of a slain enemy. The same sigil also taunts the Puritan witch-hunter Solomon Kane and the French swordswoman called Dark Agnes. They are all connected, not only by the sigil but by author James Allison, whose visions of his past lives inform his writings.
Howard’s heroes beyond Conan speak to his legacy
Robert E. Howard was ahead of his time in many respects. Years before shared universes and crossovers became commonplace in genre fiction, Howard’s characters teamed in tales that spanned the timeline of his world. For instance, the titular ring of the Kirowan and Conrad mystery “The Haunter of the Ring” is the same cursed ring wielded eons earlier by the Conan villain Thoth-Amon. Likewise, King Kull of Atlantis was brought forward in time to help the Pict hero Bran Mak Morn fight a Roman invasion in “Kings of the Night.”
Jim Zub builds upon this same spirit, as well as references Howard made to the corrupting “black stone,” in his writings. It is fan fiction of a sort, yet it is a well-researched pastiche that truly feels like a lost Robert E. Howard story. A particularly nice touch is making James Allison, who was almost certainly a self-insert of Robert E. Howard, the central link of the story.
The artwork is similarly bold. Jonas Scharf depicts a variety of environments with skill, ranging from the prehistoric time of Conan, to small-town Texas in the 1930s. The action sequences sing, yet there is a subtle sense of dynamic action throughout. Even the static scenes of intellectuals talking in a club or Solomon Kane praying quietly have a sense of waiting menace. Colorist João Canola adds the perfect finishes to Scharf’s detailed designs, resulting in one of the best-looking books in recent memory.
Fans of the current Conan comic will find Battle of the Black Stone #1 to be a fine continuation of the monthly series. Newcomers will enjoy it as a welcome entry to the weird tales of Robert E. Howard. Most of all, it is a worthy tribute to the Bard of Cross Plains, which truly honors his remarkable legacy.
Grade: 5/5
Conan: Battle of the Black Stone #1 arrives in comic shops everywhere on September 4, 2024.
