Jim Zub's Frozen Faith part IV: The Hidden World.
Horsa and Niord bring Conan (still clutching his gossamer garment clearly never fashioned by human hands) to their Aesir War Camp. Conan eats and reflects on his past.
He's a boy again helping his metalsmith father. An earthquake hits, his dad thinks it is Crom sliding his feet.
We learn that Lihamm "The Tree" (beheaded by Brissa way back in Conan: The Barbarian #2) thinks that earthquakes are actually Devils moving around underground. Hence the saying Crom's devils.
Back to reality. Gorm (the one that saw Atali on the bloody field of Wolraven) comments on the stew, Conan thinks he's talking about his mental state.
Did Conan really encounter a Goddess? Conan questions his senses and reality.
While daydreaming about the daughter of Ymir, Conan gets hit behind the head by a jealous Osmin (the friend of Bergen from issue #14).
We get another flashback of Conan's youth. Alfred E. Neuman hits Conan over the head. Conan proclaims that he does not believe in Crom and defeats the Mad magazine mascot. Conan's father confirms that Crom does not care about anyone and grabs Conan.
Conan's father thinks that Hydal (Yes, the dude who mysteriously survived the soul stealing lake in issue #3) is behind his son's crazy beliefs.
Conan asserts once again that he does not believe in Crom or of his ancestors watching over him.
Conan's father confides that he too had doubts about Crom when his wife died "on the battlefield". He asks young Conan to keep an open mind when it comes to the invisible.
Flashback over. Conan coldly kills Osmin. Bergen and friend find Osmin's body and tell Conan that he cannot return to camp.
A frustrated Conan leaves and ventures into the woods to hack at some frozen branches.
Conan is now hip to The Hidden World. Conan has touched the intangible. Conan now believes in Crom.
Conan catches sight of his next adventure.
Fin.
What I did like:
Polish artist Mr. Werewolf aka Jakub Różalski's cover features his wife and the broken William Smith sword from the 1982 John Milius movie!
Young Conan has his iconic Marvel Comics necklace.
Conan is now wearing pants! Trousers in winter! Finally!
The wanderlust is back, baby!
An advert promoting the excellent Heroic Legends Short Fiction Program.
The Doug Braithwaite tetraptych! Combine covers #13-16 to form another cool Conan quadriptych. Do it! Do it, now!
Atali is on almost all of the variant covers. Bravo!
Archaeologist Jeffrey Shanks talks Epemitreus the Sage from The Phoenix on the Sword, the dream in the novelette: Iron Shadows in the Moon, Queen of the Black Coast, Spears of Clontarf/The Grey God Passes/The Cairn on the Headland and Odin.
Shawn Curley interviews Zub & artist Doug Braithwaite.
Conan the Barbarian was parodied in Mad magazine #235.
What I did not like:
It's "stone-set" not "stone-sent".
Zub paints himself into a corner by affirming that Conan's mother is dead.
Conan's mother is not named.
Conan's mother is NEVER seen in the flashbacks. Shameful and sexist.
Conan would never kill a drunken fool.
Conan fights the fool for six long pages.
Conan does practically nothing for six more pages.
Zub's Conan is an unlikable boorish killer of men, women and animals. Disgusting.
Women appear but say absolutely nothing.
Conan pitching a tent while embracing Atali. Stay classy, Heroic Signatures.
NO recipe for the Æsir stew! What?!
NO advert for the Conan the Barbarian Hyborian Age Map 1,500 Piece Color Puzzle!
Still NO letters page!
I give it a 6/10. This is Zub's epilogue to his adaptation of The Frost-Giant's Daughter aka The Gods of the North. Conan feasts on a tasty stew, dispatches an innocent drunk and stops doubting the existence of Crom (but Crom does not care about anything. So what is the point?). A filler/recap issue that can be easily skipped. Save your money and purchase Savage Sword of Conan #5 instead.