Having failed in his attempt to strike down his captor, the ruthless sorceress Athyr-Bast, Conan finds himself struggling to resist her mind domination magic. Zula, a shape-shifter Conan previously encountered in the jungles of the southern Black Kingdoms, appears in the nick of time, knocking Athyr-Bast unconscious and freeing Conan from her influence. Still indebted to Zula after their previous encounter (Conan the Barbarian #20), Conan agrees to help the magician sabotage his Set-worshipping Stygian enemies, provided they return to rescue Livia once their mission is complete. Zula uses his magic to disguise himself as Athyr-Bast and Conan dons the armor of one of the sorceress’ slain bodyguards. Together they set out to uncover the aims of Thoth-Amon, leader of the sorcerous Black Circle and an influential figure in Set’s snake cult.

Part III of A Nest of Serpents, this issue is entitled “Power and Influence.” Finally, Jim Zub delivers the much-teased first encounter between Conan and Thoth-Amon. While Thoth-Amon and Conan never actually meet in the original Robert E. Howard short stories, Conan only indirectly comes into contact with Thoth-Amon’s malign magic, Thoth-Amon is a fan-favorite antagonist from the pastiche novels and comic adaptations. Finally seeing the two characters together in the current Titan Comics Conan the Barbarian run was a long-awaited treat. Zub makes their meeting a tense one, showcasing Thoth-Amon’s great mystical powers while also depicting him as an embattled leader, beset by enemies both distant and within his inner circle. As one potential threat Thoth-Amon namedrops Natohk the Veiled One, who Howard fans will recall as the antagonist from the 1933 Conan tale “Black Colossus.” Thoth-Amon also demonstrates how well-informed he is when he recognizes the name Amra, Conan’s current nom de guerre; Conan hurriedly claims that he is a DIFFERENT Amra, not the notorious Black Coast pirate of which Thoth-Amon has heard.

Fernando Dagnino continues to showcase his strength and versatility as an artist in this issue. The architecture in this issue particularly stands out. Dagnino makes the teeming slums of Keshatta come alive, and Thoth-Amon’s Temple of Set is appropriately monumental and imposing. Thoth-Amon himself also looks “right,” maintaining the sinuous build and vaguely reptilian aspect popularized by Cary Nord in the 2004 Dark Horse Comics Conan title. In an interview in Conan the Barbarian #21, Dagnino laments that Conan’s face is tricky to perfect: if the bridge of his nose is even slightly too short, he ends up looking like the Incredible Hulk. True enough, in this issue there are some borderline Hulk-faced Conan depictions. But that’s less a critique of the artwork on my part than an amused acknowledgment of the two characters’ resemblance.

Conan the Barbarian issue #23 gives readers the Conan and Thoth-Amon encounter they have been waiting for. Zub and Dagnino deliver a briskly paced issue packed with tension and spectacle.

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