Fewer names are more respected in comics than Conan the Barbarian. Conan is one of those characters that stands larger than his source material; Conan is an institution and a downright modern myth. If this book were just an interesting Conan book it’d have my recommendation. If this were just a Groo the Wanderer comic, I’d still say check it out.
By Julian Kazan
Groo is a comedic fantasy tour de force and one of the fathers of the genre, think Bone or Usagi Yojimbo but keep in mind that Groo came first, and Groo goes unloved in the reprint scene. Groo is an underappreciated satire with a lot of heart; and he’s crossing over with Conan in a 4 issue miniseries.
Groo vs Conan is a lot more than another forgettable crossover book; it’s as unique as comics come and a total treat. If there ever was a mini you should pick up instead of one of your weekly books; this is it. Every once and a while a self-aware comic comes along, a comic that really gets what the best this genre can be. I for one should have known better than to have ever doubted the team behind this book because they deliver on an uncanny level. The team at hand is the classic Groo duo, Sergio Aragonés on art and Mark Evanier on writing. Don’t let the team fool you; Groo has top billing here but the thing is this book isn’t just Groo featuring Conan. Flip to a random page to find yourself in the purest form of crossover; the clashing of artstyles working here better than I thought possible. Conan looms over the more Sergio-style villagers; and when the two barbarians get to fighting in this issue the art slays. The fact that this book never looks bizarre is worth talking about, but the fact that these two art styles succeed on page together is a landmark.
The biggest surprise in this book is that it has an entire meta-narrative outside of the title fight. The Groo and Conan story is framed by a parallel narrative set in “real life”, where Sergio is running around in a hospital gown claiming he’s Conan and telling anyone that will listen about his fight with Groo. There’s also an expanding story about protesting the closing of a comics shop, paralleled by a bakery on danger in the Groo/Conan side of things. This frame narrative is harder to talk about without the whole miniseries being over, as it could go in any direction, but the fact that it exists at all was a very pleasant surprise!
Surprise is a great word to leave with when it comes to a comics crossover. One of the easiest concepts in comics to really drop the ball on, next to the “game changing events” we’re subjected to every other month. Crossovers, when done right, can remind us why we love comics at all. At once supremely capable of filling a reader with glee (GROO AND CONAN ARE FIGHTING!!) as well as elevating a sense of why comics are important. I’m not exaggerating; if you love comics you should be reading Groo vs Conan.
