This interview contains major spoilers for Savage Avengers #1, in stores now.

Robert E. Howard's iconic fantasy hero, Conan the Barbarian, is known for his wanderings, and in 2019 he journeyed through a strange new locale: the modern-day Marvel Universe. While he was there, he battled the monstrous machinations of another Hyborian Age time traveler, the Sorcerer Kulan Gath, and teamed up with some iconic heroes and villains. These tales were chronicled in the initial volume of Savage Avengers by writer Gerry Duggan, artist Patrick Zircher, and their team of collaborators. The series ended with Conan traveling back to his home time and then back again to the modern age -- something that didn't go unnoticed by a multitude of beings who keep their eye on and police the time stream.

In the kickoff issue of the new volume of Savage Avengers by writer David Pepose and artist Carlos Magno, one of those individuals, a time-traveling Deathlok, came gunning for Conan. The end result was "A day unlike any other" because a new incarnation of the titular team formed. Their ranks included Elektra/Daredevil, Cloak & Dagger, Weapon H, Anti-Venom, the Black Knight (Dane Whitman), and, of course, Conan. The end of that issue found the new Savage Avengers transported back to Conan's home time. What does that mean for the team? How will they cope with life in the Hyborian Age? Is Deathlok finished with them? For the answers to those questions and more, CBR chatted with Pepose about the fallout from Savage Avengers #1 and his larger plans for the series. Also included is a first look at the cover to Savage Avengers #4 and the solicits.

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Savage Avengers 4 Cover

CBR: Savage Avengers #1 ends with the newly formed team transported back to the Hyborian Age. Will that pulp fantasy-style setting be the backdrop for the book moving forward, or is it just the first stop on a larger journey through time?

David Pepose: Yes, we'll be putting the Savage Avengers through their paces on Conan's home turf for this adventure! Having our heroes explore the Hyborian Age felt like a really exciting opportunity that we haven't really experienced in the Marvel Universe, as the Savage Avengers embark on the ultimate fish-out-of-water adventure in a harrowing new fantasy world without the benefits of allies or technology.

Beyond watching our heroes band together in this new setting, the Hyborian Age also offers us some juicy characterization for Conan in particular. They say you can't go home again, so what happens when Conan does? He's going to find out he might have looked back on the Hyborian Age with rose-colored glasses and that his feelings of homesickness might be far from reciprocated.

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What can you tell us about this era of the Hyborian Age that the team has arrived in? How much time passes between the end of Issue #1 and the beginning of #2?

Chronologically speaking, we're dropping the characters off shortly after Conan's disappearance during Avengers: No Road Home. By this point, Conan's been a known presence in the Hyborian Age, but people have noticed they haven't heard from him in a while. (Without spoiling too much, Conan's return will knock over some dominoes elsewhere with some potentially far-reaching implications.) As far as how much time passes between the end of Issue #1 and the beginning of Issue #2, it's fairly short, hours or days at most. We've seen where Conan, Anti-Venom, and Dagger wound up after their battle with Deathlok, but we still have five more characters to see where they landed...

What's it like writing your characters against this backdrop? Which of your cast is struggling to acclimate to the time period, and which team members seem to enjoy the Hyborian Age?

I think all of the modern-day Savage Avengers have some degree of struggle with the Hyborian Age, although some of them are certainly handling it better than others. As the most capable and competent fighter on the team, Elektra hits the ground running, and as both a history buff and a longtime Avenger who's dealt with time travel before, Black Knight is on solid footing. Weapon H is certainly not happy about being ripped from his family, and Anti-Venom might experience some unforeseen complications thanks to the temporal jet lag...

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What can you tell us about the adventure the team becomes embroiled in during Issue #2? Is that Devil Dinosaur on the cover?

It is! As soon as I was scripting Issue #2, the idea of Daredevil versus Devil Dinosaur in a gladiator pit made me very excited. Given how old Devil Dinosaur is, I thought it would be a fun touch to show off some of the adventures he might have had off-page, centuries before he met Lunella Lafayette.

As far as where Issue #2 is headed, it's going to be a very fun sophomore outing, as the Savage Avengers are all split up amidst the dangers of the Hyborian Age. The gladiator pit scene is one of my favorite bits in the series to date. Let's just say that I'd place good odds on the Woman Without Fear.

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Savage Avengers 1 Cover Cropped Top

Issue #3's cover suggests that Deathlok comes back to menace the team in the Hyborian Age. In issue #1, he refers to himself as part of the Deathlok army. Does that mean he's connected to the army of heroic Deathlok cyborgs we recently saw in Jason Aaron's Avengers series? Can you talk any more about his motivations?

Yes, the Savage Avengers will discover that not only are they stranded in the Hyborian Age, but they brought a relentless cyborg back with them as Deathlok continues to hound their every step. Drawing from Jason Aaron's amazing Avengers run, our Deathlok is a member of the multiversal police force known as the Deathlok Army. He's been charged with erasing crimes against the time stream, and that's Conan personified right now. The idea of having a sword-and-sorcery riff on The Terminator is half the fun of this series to me, and the change in location absolutely has not changed Deathlok's mission one iota.

That all said, I'm very excited for readers to get to know this character. He's frighteningly tenacious and resourceful, and you'll see that unfold in Issue #2 and beyond. There are layers to our Deathlok and his mission, some of which even he might not be fully aware of. It'll be very fun to excavate this antihero to his core.

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The Savage Avengers' time displacement raises some interesting questions about the Black Knight. Is he currently wielding the Ebony Blade? If so, or if not, what does that mean for his partnership with his daughter, Jackie Chopra, who was helping Dane cope with the Blade's curse?

Luckily for Dane, Jacks had the Ebony Blade when he was ripped away during Deathlok's time jump. Instead, he's bringing an arsenal of collapsible technological weapons to the fore, which means he's going to be a very unpredictable utility player throughout this adventure. He's almost like Ted Kord in that way. He's a thinker first and foremost, and that'll pay off in some big ways.

As readers will discover, the Curse of the Ebony Blade still has left some scars on this longtime Avenger, which may have some consequences down the road. I see Dane's adventures in the Savage Avengers potentially being very helpful in that regard. He's really banding together with a group of people who understand exactly what he's going through, in terms of wrestling with his dark side.

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Savage Avengers 1 Cover Cropped Bottom

The time displacement also gives a lot of weight to Deathlok's line in Issue #1, where he scans historical files and doesn't seem to recognize Anti-Venom. Can you talk at all about the implications of that? Is it just Flash that Deathlok doesn't recognize, or is he unfamiliar with the entire team?

I honestly wrote that bit as a little bit of robotic trash-talk. [laughs] The implications [are] that Flash may be the first to boost up his resume as a card-carrying Avenger, but historically he might not even be seen as a footnote. Of course, as diehard Flash Thompson fans, Carlos and I will be working overtime to make sure that future doesn't come to pass!

It's clear from Issue #1 that your collaborators Carlos Magno and colorist Espen Grundetjern are very happy to bring this series to life. What are some of the things you know that they've especially enjoyed working on?

Carlos and Espen have really been an incredible dream team to work with on this series. I know Carlos is a longtime, diehard Conan fan, and you can really sense that every single time the Barbarian shows up on the page... Seeing how Carlos has portrayed Cloak, I think he's having a real fun time with Ty as well. Also, Anti-Venom, Daredevil, Weapon H... He's flexing his muscles. I will say Carlos has drawn some VERY unexpected stuff for Issue #4 that's way off the beaten path, that I think he's enjoyed himself drawing, so preorder that soon! [laughs]

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Finally, let's end with a question about teasing further issues, but let's give it a twist. Say Akiro the Chronicler from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Conan movies (played by the late, great actor Mako) were to tease this summer's issues of Savage Avengers. What would he say?

"And lo, the hunter from tomorrow pursued his quarry across the long-forgotten past. Yet nature abhors a vacuum, and every action has its consequences. As the Deathlok would soon discover... the Hyborian Age has teeth.”

Savage Avengers #1 is the quiet issue. [laughs] I'm not only excited about the kinds of challenges and danger we're able to throw at this team in the Hyborian Age, but I can't wait for readers to get to see how this team starts to bond as characters. I specifically chose this roster for a reason, and you're going to see the sparks flying in our next few issues. In case you're curious, you should DEFINITELY preorder Savage Avengers #3 and #4 because everything you think you know is going to change...

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This solicits text for Savage Avengers #4, provided by Marvel, might give a hint at just how much change is coming.

SAVAGE AVENGERS #4

DAVID PEPOSE (W) • CARLOS MAGNO (A) • Cover by LEINIL FRANCIS YU

WHO IS DEATHLOK? [[Consciousness rebooting…]]

Tasked with pursuing Conan the Barbarian, the cybernetic hunter known as Deathlok must now come to terms with his past. [[Where am I?]] And with Conan in the hands of Thulsa Doom, the Savage Avengers must turn to the unlikeliest of sources for aid. [[101100… Is that my face?]] How did one hero's sacrifice lead to the end of the world? [[WARNING: Temporal safeties disengaged.]] Without their ticket back to the present, can the Savage Avengers stop Set's return in the past — or will the snake god conquer the planet thousands of years ahead of schedule?

Savage Avengers #1 is available now, with Issue #2 releasing June 8 and Issues #3 and #4 available for preorder.