Conan The Barbarian #35 Review

 

Conan The Barbarian #35 Review

Writer: Jim Zub

Artist: Fernando Dagnino

Colorist: Diego Rodriguez

Letterer: Richard Starkings & Tyler Smith

Cover Artists: Gerardo Zaffino, Nick Marinkovich, Ashleigh Izienicki & Benito Gallego

Editor: Chris Butera

Publisher: Titan Comics

Price: $4.99

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

The Red Brotherhood ruled the seas. But while a storm clutched the Briney Wren in a death grip, a specter with red eyes haunted the night. Amid the raging seas, it murdered the First Officer and attacked Conan. In the morning, Captain Quinn steered his broken ship to the shores of a mysterious island where a crystal pillar embedded with Human skeletons met the crew's weary gaze. But that was only the beginning of the Red Brotherhood’s problems.

 

Now, Conan watches a cult in black robes carry his surviving shipmates through the jungle. Can he rescue Captain Quinn, Valeria, and the rest of the survivors? And why do the servants of Jaggta-Noga want the Cimmerian? Let’s shout, “Hail Crom,” leap into Conan The Barbarian #35, and see!

 

Story

Morley sweet-talked Valeria as they fought side by side. Yet, as a fellow member of the Red Brotherhood, he never pressed his affections unduly. Valeria regarded him as a jovial rogue that she could control. Then he robbed her of her voice. And with the aid of robed cultists, Morley imprisoned her in a cave.

 

As Conan The Barbarian #35 follows Valeria’s perilous journey, it also shows Conan’s loyalty to his comrades. Morley's cult may wear dark robes. Yet, Conan slips through the night, striking cult members without warning and disappearing when they threaten to overwhelm him. He seeks to free his brothers-in-arms by striking fear into their captors. And as they strive to capture him for their foul purposes, Conan seeks only their deaths.

 

While Jim Zub's story follows Conan's merciless attack on the island's Human predators, it also follows the evolving relationship between Valeria and Morley. Like any relationship, it is one of discovery. Morley believes he knows everything he needs to know about her. Valeria discovers much more about who Morley is, what he prizes, and what he'll do to reach his goals. Yet, as she observes more of his eldritch powers, Morley discovers that Valeria and her Cimmerian friend can still surprise him in Conan The Barbarian #35.

 

Art

With their wrists bound in ceiling-mounted restraints, the members of the Red Brotherhood hang in vertical panels. Standing on the sloping cave floor, Morley looks up at Captain Quinn and Valeria. He may resent looking up at these two pirates who held power over him. But as a worshipper of Jaggta-Noga, Morley is used to gazing up at his betters.

 

As Fernando Dagnino shows the Red Brotherhood's peril, the robed cultists search the forest. They carry torches as their eyes dart in all directions on another page of three vertical panels. But Conan crawls through the forest canopy like an Englishman bred in the jungle, only dropping down for a quick game of death.

 

Streaks of white light create sparkles in the blue-and-green cavern. Like the searchers’ torches, yellow flames blaze in braziers by cultist guards. As yellow, orange, and pink signal morning’s arrival, orange fills backgrounds during moments of violence and tinges attacks when scarlet flies. Yet just as pink heralded the coming of a new day, it also celebrates another visitor’s arrival.

 

As Diego Rodriguez’s bright palette illuminates Conan and Valeria's dark journey, Jim Zub's narration fills yellow boxes. Cultists and pirates' black uppercase dialogue fills white balloons. While intonation makes words bold, broken balloon borders convey lowered voices. 

 

As cultists descend into the darker levels of their domain, Richard Starkings and Tyler Smith cast enlarged uppercase words into balloons with serrated edges. Enlarged red letters accompany acts of surprising strength. Still, Morley isn't the only person who speaks large red letters in Conan The Barbarian #35. Thanks to Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Conan is only a man. Yet his fierce determination to survive and his preternatural fighting abilities have seen him surmount overwhelming odds. Crom may never speak to him. Yet as he defeats sorcerers and foils their plans, the Cimmerian becomes someone the gods cannot ignore in Conan The Barbarian #35.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see Conan The Barbarian #35 Preview. 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures for sharing this cover preview with us.

 

For the Red Brotherhood's first day on the Island of Death, see Conan The Barbarian #34 Review.

 

For Conan's battle with a specter with crimson eyes, see Conan The Barbarian #33 Review.

 

For how this series began, see my review of Conan The Barbarian TP Vol 1.   

 

Adventure Time Halloween Special: Those Who Fight Monsters #1 Preview

 

Cover A: Sean Dove

Jake is jazzed. Only one circle remains on his Adventurers Guild card. After another quest, Jake can get his membership card punched. Then, he will graduate to S-Rank. After striving to find the Enchiridion, Finn understands how intoxicating the idea of becoming a better hero can be. Still, Finn wishes Jake would temper his enthusiasm and chill a little before hurtling into another battle.

 

What dangers will Jake and Finn face as they embark on their next quest? And how may the monsters they combat threaten the Land of Ooo?

 

Here's all the info from Oni Press:

 

 

Adventure Time Halloween Special: Those Who Fight Monsters #1 Preview

Writer: Jeremy Melloul

Artist: Adam Seats

Colorist: Rebecca Nalty

Letterer: Shawn Lee

Cover Artists: Sean Dove, Agustin Morales, Violet Tobacco & Adam Seats

Publisher: Oni Press

Issue Description:48 Pages, Full Color

Price: $7.99 US

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

 

Boo . . . from the Land Of Ooo! 

Adventure Time’s First-Ever Halloween Special Is Here! 

 

 

From writer Jeremy Melloul (Dungeon Masters Guild) and rising star Adam Seats, noble heroes Finn and Jake enter their trickiest situation yet in this SPOOKY-SIZED 48-PAGE special that’s definitely a treat!

 

After signing up for a quest from the Adventurer’s Guild without reading the fine print, Finn and Jake find themselves in a new dungeon—turning into some of its monstrous inhabitants! Stuck in strange bodies, fighting familiar faces, and attempting to get to the bottom of this mysterious place, can our dynamic duo best this unearthly dungeon? Or will they fall victim to the monsters within . . . and within themselves? 

 

Here are more covers to collect:

 

Cover B: Agustin Morales

 

 

Cover C: By Violet Tobacco

Variant Cover (1:10): By Adam Seats

Thanks to Oni Press and Superfan Promotions for sharing this cover preview with us. 

Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1 Review

 

Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1 Review

Writers: Stephanie Williams & Leah Williams

Artists: Eduardo Pansica, Júlio Ferreira & Belén Ortega

Colorists: Romulo Fajardo Jr & Triona Farrell

Letterer: Clayton Cowles

Cover Artist: Daniel Sampere & Tomeu Morey

Variant Cover Artists: Kyuyong Eom, Guillem March & Leirix

Editors: Marquis Draper & Brittaney Holzherr

Publisher: DC Comics

Price: $5.99 US/Variant $6.99 US (Card Stock)

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

Her mother, Emilie, battled Diana for the right to represent Themyscira on the world stage. Her father, the Sovereign, quietly ruled the United States behind the façade of democratic institutions. Lyssa succeeded her father as the Matriarch of the United States. And then she killed everyone who opposed her.

 

How did the girl Diana raised become such a brutal killer? And what happened after Diana defeated the Matriarch in the Temple of the Moirae? Let’s leap into Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1 and see!

 

Story

After Diana’s fist hurled her through a stone pillar, Lyssa awakens in a boat. Unlike Steve Trevor and Elizabeth, no Ferryman steers her course. And instead of gliding along the River Styx, her wooden vessel floats on the bloody currents of the Phlegethon.

 

While no one travels with her, Lyssa is far from alone in Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1. As the boat carries her toward Tartarus, shades of the heroes he killed rise to meet her. And as in life, Lyssa must decide how to confront them.

 

Stephanie Williams and Leah Williams intersperse Lyssa’s journey through the Underworld with key events from her past. These scenes chart Lyssa’s journey from her childhood on Themyscira to grasping for something that Hippolyta warned Diana she must avoid. But by the time she reaches adulthood, deviating from her Amazons’ code of conduct has become the rule of Lyssa’s life.

 

She may have lost her power ring. Still, Lyssa has someone who travels with her. It’s someone she has not listened to as much as she should have. Instead, this person has become a stranger to her. But after crashing through the barrier of death, this still small voice regains its strength. And unlike in life, Lyssa can no longer repress her conscience in Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1.

 

Art

When she awakens in the boat, no ring adorns her gloved hand. As she rises, Lyssa stands in the middle of the boat between two lamps to light her way. Like Diana in the Colosseum, Lyssa dodges projectiles. When her journey grows rough, Lyssa clings to the boat instead of a Kanga. As dark figures arise, red streams down their heads and backs. Yet when Lyssa meets this test of her strength and skills, no red trickles from her palm when she clenches her fist. Yet as Lyssa remembers how her path diverged from the Amazons, one person reaches out to help another when she falls.

 

As Eduardo Pansica, Júlio Ferreira, and Belén Ortega show Lyssa in black and white on a red river, Romulo Fajardo Jr. and Triona Farrell adorn the Matriarch’s past with a vibrant palette. Red mixes with violet and lavender when Lyssa and Elizabeth's paths diverged. The colors return later to convey how far apart they have grown. Blotchy red borders frame gray, brown, and green panels of love and loss. Yet, orange tinges more tragic memories of how Lyssa demonstrated her worth in Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1.

 

While Lyssa sees the Underworld as she viewed the Earth, her uppercase white thoughts appear in black narrative boxes. She cannot vanquish small, lowercase white letters in black boxes. Black uppercase dialogue in white balloons grows bold to convey inflection and shrinks when voices lower. While Clayton Cowles’ sound effects may be few, Lyssa’s dialogue grows progressively larger as the trials grow more difficult. Still, beige uppercase letters in blue boxes force Lyssa to remember the needless pain she has caused. Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this story with us.

 

Final Thoughts

Every decision we make empowers us. Yet no matter how much they help us accomplish, our decisions also limit us. As Lyssa looks back on her life choices, she measures the narrative she has spun. But if she wishes to act "so that all that will be might not be again," Lyssa must cut the threads binding her to her former life in Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War—The Matriarch Special #1.

 

Rating 9.4/10

To look inside see Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War –The Matriarch Special#1 Preview.

For Steve Trevor and Elizabeth's return to Themyscira, see Wonder Woman #37 Review. 

For the second half of Steve's story about falling in love with Diana, see Wonder Woman #36 Review.

For the first part of Steve's tale, see Wonder Woman #35 Preview. 

For Diana's battle with Lyssa in the Temple of the Moirai, see my review of Wonder Woman #34.

For how Diana, Steve, and Elizabeth enter the Underworld, see my preview of Wonder Woman #33. 

For Tammy's interview with the Matriarch, see my review of Wonder Woman #32. 

For how The Wonder War began, see my preview of Wonder Woman #31. 

 

Conan The Barbarian #35 Cover Preview

 

Cover A: Gerardo Zaffino

The Red Brotherhood ruled the seas. But when a storm swept the Briney Wren into its grip, a specter with red eyes attacked Conan during the night. In the morning, Captain Quinn steered his wrecked ship to the shores of a mysterious island where a crystal pillar embedded with Human skeletons met the crew's weary gaze. But that was only the beginning of their problems. 

Now, Conan watches a cult in black robes carry his surviving shipmates through the jungle. Can he rescue Captain Quinn, Valeria, and the rest of the survivors? And why do the servants of Jaggta-Noga want the Cimmerian?

Here's all the info from Titan Comics: 

 

Conan The Barbarian #35 Cover Preview

Writer: Jim Zub

Artist: Fernando Dagnino

Cover Artists: Gerardo Zaffino, Nick Marinkovich, Ashleigh Izienicki & Benito Gallego

Publisher: Titan Comics

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

 

Captives on the Island of Death!

 

 

Conan and Valeria are pirates of the Red Brotherhood, living a life of lawless adventure on the Western Sea. But occult forces from the Cimmerian’s past have him in their sights once more. And they will not rest until the barbarian’s body and soul are torn asunder!

 

 

Here are more covers to collect:

 

 

 

Cover B: Nick Marinkovich

 

Cover C: Ashleigh Izienicki

Cover D: Benito Gallego

Cover E: Gerardo Zaffino Virgin Cardstock

Cover F: Ashleigh Izienicki Foil

Cover G: Ashleigh Izienicki Virgin Cardstock

 

Available from local comic shops. For UK & Europe visit Forbidden Planet

 

For more details, visit Titan Comics.

 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures for sharing this cover preview with us.

 

For the Red Brotherhood's first day on the Island of Death, see Conan The Barbarian #34 Review.

 

For Conan's battle with a specter with crimson eyes, see Conan The Barbarian #33 Review.

 

For how this series began, see my review of Conan The Barbarian TP Vol 1.   

 

 

Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War –The Matriarch Special #1 Preview

 

Her mother, Emilie, battled Diana for the right to represent Themyscira. Her father, the Sovereign, quietly ruled the United States behind the façade of democratic institutions. Lyssa succeeded her father as the Matriarch of the United States. And then she killed everyone who opposed her.

 

How did the girl Diana raised become such a brutal killer? And what happened after Diana defeated the Matriarch in the Temple of the Moirae?

 

Here's all the info from DC Connect: 

 

 

Wonder Woman 2026 Annual: Wonder War –The Matriarch Special #1 Preview

Writers: Stephanie Williams & Leah Williams

Artists: Eduardo Pansica & Belén Ortega

Cover Artist: Daniel Sampere

Variant Cover Artists: Kyuyong Eom, Guillem March & Leirix

Publisher: DC Comics

Issue Length: 48 Pages

Price: $5.99 US/Variant $6.99 US (Card Stock)

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

 

Matriarch’s Inferno!

 

 

After the shocking events of Wonder Woman #34, the Matriarch must crawl her way through Hell and back to the land of the living to stop Steve Trevor and Trinity from changing the past. The only thing that stands in her way is a river filled with the souls of heroes and villains alike that perished by her hand. Retribution is coming for the Matriarch. Will she survive it, or is she doomed to fate?

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this preview with us.

For Steve Trevor and Elizabeth's return to Themyscira, see Wonder Woman #37 Review. 

For the second half of Steve's story about falling in love with Diana, see Wonder Woman #36 Review.

For the first part of Steve's tale, see Wonder Woman #35 Preview. 

For Diana's battle with Lyssa in the Temple of the Moirai, see my review of Wonder Woman #34.

For how Diana, Steve, and Elizabeth enter the Underworld, see my preview of Wonder Woman #33. 

For Tammy's interview with the Matriarch, see my review of Wonder Woman #32. 

For how The Wonder War began, see my preview of Wonder Woman #31. 

 

Quiet GN Review

 

Quiet GN Review

Writer: Kim-Joy

Artist: Alti Firmansyah

Letterer: Sara Linsley

Editor: Allison O’Toole

Graphic Designer: Cindy Leong

Publisher: Comixology

Kindle Price: $6.99 US

Release Date: September 22, 2026

 

Mary Odette Casper likes Ms Emuka. She seems to care about her. And while she has sparkle and personality, she doesn’t overwhelm Mary. Still, some of her fellow students make Mary uncomfortable. So, as her math teacher explains how to solve the day’s problem, Mary keeps an eye on the clock. Why does Mary struggle at school? And can anyone make her school days easier? Let’s leap into Quiet and see!

 

Story

Mary dislikes all the noise of public places. She cringes when people talk excessively. Multiple voices fill the air with a sonic storm. But worse is when people pay attention to her. Mary tries to turn away from her classmates. She seeks to escape people who annoy her. But Toby, Shivan, and Jessie sense weakness. So, when they see Mary, they attempt to make her miserable.

 

Mary lives in Manchester, United Kingdom, 34 years from now, in Quiet. As Mary navigates her difficult school days, plagued by noise and bullied by classmates, Ms Emuka notices her distress. Her mother thinks Mary is shy. But her math teacher believes there is more to it than that. So, as she keeps an eye on her troubled student, Ms Emuka suggests a way to help Mary adjust to the world around her.

 

As Kim-Joy's graphic novel focuses on Mary's anxieties and what brings her peace, Ms Emuka gives her silent student a friend. A prototype robot, or Serenibot, looks for ways to help Mary be more social. At first, Mary finds the robot’s intended helpfulness annoying. But then she realizes that the robot, not governed by a sense of morality, can make her life easier in Quiet.

 

Art

Large circular glasses hint at the big personality hiding behind Mary’s demure features. While she wears her school uniform and braids her hair, Mary watches as Ms Emuka teaches using holograms instead of a whiteboard. Mary also enjoys generating holograms on her personal computer. But when she tries to resolve her problems, Mary pens a letter on ruled paper.

 

Alti Firmansyah enhances today’s recognizable world with futuristic technology, such as Mary’s sleek, hovering Serenibot. While Mrs Redfern, the school’s head teacher, and Mr Bell, the baking instructor, have conventional appearances, Ms Emuka showcases youthful energy and diversity. Yet as Mary gets to know her, she realizes that her math teacher also reveres technological marvels of past eras.

 

While Alti Firmansyah shades her Black-and-White art with gray, color occasionally creeps into Quiet. Mary’s features turn green as she compares herself to her contemporaries. Her robot also produces a rainbow of colors to protect Mary and signify that no member of society should be singled out for their differences.

 

Sara Linsley places uppercase letters in white balloons. Dotted balloon borders accompany lowered voices. Sounds like a sigh, or the conversations filling a room appear in panel backgrounds. “Sid,” Mary’s Serenibot companion, asks questions using white letters in black fields or black letters in rectangular balloons. Yet sound effects highlight Mary’s discomfort with a world that demands she speak, when she’d much prefer to be Quiet. Thanks to Comixology and Superfan Promotions for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Mary has a good heart. She wants to take part in the world around her. Still, the noise and the bustle of society push her away. So, when a robot designed to help her integrate into society attempts to alleviate her discomfort, Mary struggles with the sense of empowerment it gives her in Quiet.

 

Rating 9.5/10

 

To look inside see Quiet GN Preview. 

For more from Kim-Joy and Alti Firmansyah, see Turtle Bread Review.

Poison Ivy #48 Preview

 

The Parliament of Trees wanted her blood. Gotham turned against her. The Order of the Green Knight elected a new leader. Even Janet from HR admitted that she was thinking of abandoning her. So Poison Ivy turned defeat into victory the only way she knows. She delivered Gotham to the Parliament of Trees. Then she dialed plant growth up to 11.

 

Can anyone talk Poison Ivy into giving Humanity a second chance? Or will she let a superbloom make Earth uninhabitable to anything but plants?

 

Here's all the info from DC Connect:

 

 

Poison Ivy #48: Bad Seeds Week 6 Part 1 Preview

Writer: G. Willow Wilson

Artist: Marcio Takara

Cover Artist: Jessica Fong

Variant Cover Artists: Noobovich, Dan Mora & Manny Vincent Carbonilla

Dark Knight Returns Variant Cover Artist: Hayden Sherman

Bad Seeds Spot Foil Variant Cover Artist: Alexander Lozano

Publisher: DC Comics

Issue Length: 32 Pages

Price: $3.99 US/Variant $4.99 US (Card Stock)/Variant $6.99 US (Foil)

Release Date: September 30, 2026

 

 

Meet Your Master.

A Batman: Bad Seeds Tie-In!

 

 

With Gotham City firmly in Poison Ivy’s grasp, the verdant villainess’s powers are at an all-time high. Now that Batman’s forces and Ivy’s traitorous former allies are all ground down to a pulp beneath her, is there anyone left to stand in Ivy’s way? Absolutely not. It’s time to get in line or die.

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this preview with us.

 

For more of the Bad Seeds Event, see

 

Poison Ivy #47:A Batman: Bad Seeds Prelude: Preview 

 

Batman: Bad Seeds – Sunset #1 Preview 

 

Batman #13: Bad Seeds Week 2 Part 1 Preview 

 

Batgirl #23: Bad Seeds Week 2 Part 2: Preview 

 

Batman: Bad Seeds: Gotham Central #1--Bad Seeds Week 3 Part 1 Review 

 

Batwoman #7: Bad Seeds Week 4 Part 1 Review 

 

Detective Comics #1113: Bad Seeds Week 4 Part 2 Preview  

 

Catwoman #91: Week 4 Part 3 Preview 

 

Nightwing #142: Bad Seeds Week 4 Part 4 Preview  

 

Harley Quinn #66: Bad Seeds Week 5 Part 1 Preview  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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