Conan the Usurper

Conan the Usurper was published in 1967 by Lancer with a painted cover by Frank Frazetta. It was later reprinted by Ace once Lancer ceased publishing operations. The book includes an introduction by L. Sprague de Camp and two short stories solely authored by Robert E. Howard. There are two additional stories included that were manuscripts by Howard that de Camp took it upon himself to edit and complete. 

According to L. Sprague de Camp's introduction in Conan the Usurper, de Camp discovered unpublished manuscripts written by Howard in 1951. With one of the manuscripts, “The Black Stranger”, de Camp took the liberty of editing and re-writing the story as an adaptation into the Conan saga, specifically Aquilonian revolution. Lester del Rey, editor of Fantasy Magazine, made further additions and deletions and published the manuscript as “The Black Stranger”. The story was re-titled to "The Treasure of Tranicos" and included the same year in a Gnome Press hardcover omnibus called King Conan. de Camp explained that the title change was a result of too many of Howard's Conan stories containing the word “black” in their titles. That story appears in this collection as "The Treasure of Tranicos".

In "The Treasure of Tranicos", the titular hero is running through the Pictish Wilderness, crossing Thunder River and brushing up against the Western Sea. Chased by Picts, Conan is shocked when the painted, savage warriors refuse to venture forward. Instead, as if scared of this part of the mountainous shoreline, they retreat. Conan, puzzled by the experience, finds a wooden door recessed into the mountain. Forcing it open, he discovers a dark cavern filled with preserved bodies and shiny piles of hidden treasure. But, he's quickly choked by hands that appear out of a dark mist. Then, Conan disappears for the bulk of the narrative's first half. 

In the next chapters, readers learn that this shoreline is a residence inhabited by Count Valenso. The Count, and his people, became shipwrecked and trapped on the shore months ago. Caught between the ocean and the savage Picts, the Count built a fort and has defended it since. Two rivals appear before the Count's fort, both greedy, savage pirates with a multitude of nefarious crewmen. It turns out that they have read pieces of a treasure map that points to the shoreline's location as home to hordes of precious loot. But, as Conan learned, it might come with a deadly price.

I can see that Howard's original manuscript was borderline Conan material. The Cimmerian isn't necessarily integral to the story, but by adding in a few descriptive details, and a brief mention of Aquilonian history, it works as another installment of the Conan mythos.

The next story in the book is "Wolves Beyond the Border", authored by both Howard and de Camp. Technically, it's in the same fictional universe and mentions the hero, but Conan doesn't actually appear in the story. It takes place along the Pictish border. For Hyborian Age rookies, the Picts are similar to the Native American tribes of the North American continent in the 1500-1800s. If you read early frontier novels by the likes of James Fenimore Cooper (Leatherstocking Tales) or later, traditional westerns by Zane Grey (his Border Trilogy for example), the narratives mostly consist of early settlers and pioneers struggling to live in the same territorial regions as Native American tribes. So, Robert E. Howard used this as a blueprint when creating Conan stories like “The Treasure of Tranicos” and “Wolves Beyond the Border”. The Pictish borders are similar to the surrounding areas of North America's early Ohio River Valley.

This story is told in first-person narrative by a border ranger. In the early pages, this ranger (unnamed and referred to as Gault Hagar's son) witnesses a bizarre ritual by the Picts, where they torture a man and then magically place him in the body of a snake. It is a disturbing, horrific passage that surpasses even the mad-scientist terrors lurking in “The Scarlet Citadel”. This ranger sees that an Aquilonian named Lord Valerian is conspiring to secretly ally with the Picts. This is important because the story is set during a time when Conan was attempting to overthrow Aquilonia's leaders and become the new king. An alliance of Picts and Aquilonian noblemen doesn't promise success for Conan. 

At nearly 60 paperback pages, the story becomes bogged down and convoluted in the middle. The ranger hero confronts Lord Valerian and Pictish leaders at a swamp cabin and there's a fight and a capture. The beginning and end are exciting skirmishes and chase sequences, but overall I found the story to be of middling quality.

"The Phoenix on the Sword" follows. In 1929, Robert E. Howard submitted a story called "By This Axe I Rule" to magazines like Argosy, Weird Tales, and Adventure. The story starred King Kull, the hero of Howard's published story, "The Shadow Kingdom", which is arguably the grandfather of the sword-and-sorcery genre. "By This Axe I Rule" received the same cold shoulder as 10 of Howard's other Kull manuscripts. Instead of giving up on the story, Howard modified the manuscript to include a different king, a dark haired barbarian called Conan. The story was re-titled as "The Phoenix on the Sword" and published by Weird Tales in December, 1932.

The story begins with an outlaw named Ascalante formulating a plot to assassinate King Conan of Aquilonia, a country that has turned against their king due to his foreign heritage. The Rebel Four (Volmana, Gromel, Dion, Rinaldo) all feel as though they are employing Ascalante's services. In reality, Ascalante plans on betraying the killers so he can seize the crown for himself. Ascalante's ace-in-the-hole is Thoth-Amon, an evil wizard he has enslaved to do his bidding.

A number of events occur that aid King Conan in escaping the assassination. A dead sage (ghost?) appears before Conan and warns him of the plot, allowing the barbarian king to prepare for their arrival. Additionally, this dead sage singes Conan's sword with the symbol of the phoenix, a tribute to a God named Mitra. At the same time, Thoth-Amon gains back a magical ring he lost years ago. To exact revenge on Ascalate for enslaving him, he conjures a large ape-like creature to venture out to hunt and kill Ascalante. All of this culminates in a bloody and vicious fight in Conan's throne room as he battles the Rebel Four, Ascalante, and sixteen of his rogue warriors. 

Obviously, there's a lot to digest over the course of this 9,000 word short story. In the manuscript's original form as "By This Axe I Rule", the magic element is absent, replaced with a simpler approach of Kull being warned of the assassination plot by a slave girl. Perhaps the story was too simple for Weird Tales editor Farnsworth Wright. Thus, Howard injects a magical pageantry to the tale, mystifying readers with political intrigue, monstrous mayhem, and a violent hero to cheer. The story is beautifully constructed with all of these moving, intricate parts blended together to create an artistic apex. This is Howard in brilliant form.

The last story is "The Scarlet Citadel" written solely by Howard. It was originally published in the January 1933 issue of Weird Tales. It was later included in the King Conan (1953) omnibus. The story was published more recently in The Conan Chronicles Vol. 2 (2001) and Conan of Cimmeria Vol. 1 (2003).

“The Scarlet Citadel” features Howard's famed Conan the Cimmerian in a much later period of his life. Readers discover that Conan is now an older, wiser warrior that has taken the crown of Aquilonia. King Conan receives a message from the king of Ophir claiming that the emperor of the nearby region Koth is threatening his kingdom. Ophir needs Aquilonia's assistance, so King Conan generously leads an army of 5,000 knights to fight Koth's invasion. 

Upon arrival, Conan discovers that it was a trap. Both Ophir and Koth's leaders were working together to ensnare the hero. Their secret weapon is Tsotha-Lanti, an evil sorcerer that captures Conan and places him in a deep, multi-chambered dungeon in a high tower. It is here that Conan experiences horrifying creatures that have been created or altered by the “mad scientist” Tsotha-Lanti. His biggest rival is a giant, slithering serpent that seems to guard the dungeon's cavernous hallways. 

In an attempt to escape, Conan frees a powerful wizard named Pelias. In a short backstory, Pelias explains to Conan that he was a rival of Tsotha-Lanti before being captured and imprisoned for ten years by the mad sorcerer. As the story continues, there's a prison escape, Conan riding a flying dragon (?), and an epic showdown as Conan and Pelias extract their revenge.

This story is on par with “The Tower of the Elephant” and “Rogues in the House” in terms of pure storytelling excellence. The escapism, extraordinary sense of adventure, and suspenseful dungeon horror are key elements that catapult the story into the higher echelons of Howard's literary showcase. His attention to detail grips the reader with an ominous overtone that promises nothing short of death and bloody destruction. Howard's lengthy paragraph describing Tsotha's castle overlooking the city, its lone road with steep, daunting hills on each side, makes for an impregnable tomb. This description makes Conan's dazzling, unorthodox escape more powerful and entertaining. 

Overall, the quality of both "The Phoenix on the Sword" and "The Scarlet Citadel" make Conan the Usurper a must-have book. However, at this point in time you can easily obtain these two stories in other editions, including the fantastic collections published by Del Rey. The other two stories aren't mandatory reads and serve as filler to pad out the page count. If you are a Conan completist you probably need this book just for Frazetta's painted cover alone. Recommended. Get the book HERE.

Conan - Savage Sword of Conan #3 (Curtis)

The Savage Sword of Conan #3 was first published in December of 1974. The cover, inspired by Bjorn Nyberg's short story “The People of the Summit” (more on that in a bit), was painted by Mike Kaluta. The first pinup, which again is probably inspired by Nyberg's story, is penciled by Alfredo Alcala. 

The book's first story is “At the Mountain of the Moon-God”, a sequel to Robert E. Howard's “Black Colossus” story that first appeared in Weird Tales in 1933. That story was adapted to comic form in the second issue of The Savage Sword of Conan by Roy Thomas, who takes the writing reigns to pen this sequel to Howard's original story. The art was created by both John Buscema and Pablo Marcos. 

After the events of “Black Colossus”, Conan and a Khoraja princess named Yasmela are enjoying each other's company. However, a messenger climbs through the window carrying a warning that Yasmela's brother, King Khossus, is being held prisoner in Ophir. The messenger dies but passes a scrawled map of Khossus' whereabouts – the Mountain of the Moon-God. Conan makes the decision to journey to Ophir to liberate Khossus despite the qualms of a Prince of Stygia now serving Yasmela. Unfortunately, Yasmela's servant steals the map and delivers it to the King of Koth. The King of Koth wants to capture Khossus as well so he leads a badass named Sergius to the Mountain of the Moon God. Thankfully, Conan arrives and there's a three-way tussle to free Khossus. 

This was an entertaining story perfectly penned by Thomas to incorporate so many elements and layers to this otherwise standard search-and-rescue tale. The artists create two formidable foes in Captain Geballus and Sergius, both possessing facial expressions that would stop a clock. The story's ending puts to rest this chapter of Conan's life. 

“The First Barbarian: Chronicles of the Sword Part II” follows next. It is a continuation of the essay written by Lin Carter dating the sword-and-sorcery origins and Howard's acknowledgment of Clark Ashton Smith. He cites Smith's Atlantis stories as an inspiration on King Kull. 

The next story continues Gil Kane's Blackmark novel with “The Testing of Blackmark”. The first two issues of Savage Sword of Conan introduced this post-apocalyptic hero. In this story, Blackmark is hurled into savage gladiator games by King Kargon. The main event is a highly touted match between Blackmark and the Flame Lizard. I enjoyed the story and liked the connection to a character from Blackmark's childhood. Kane's art is always delightful as he introduces another element to Blackmark mythos with a silver rocket. That will be the highlight of the next Blackmark adventure.

Next is “Kull of Atlantis”. The editors explain that in the early days of the Conan comic-magazine (I assume they are referencing Conan the Barbarian), Barry Smith and Roy Thomas toyed briefly with the idea of a Kull of Atlantis comic book. What follows is seven pages of Smith's artwork with quotes taken from Robert E. Howard's “Exile of Atlantis”. It is interesting to see that Smith draws Kull just like the early issues of Conan the Barbarian, complete with the same face and horned helmet. I'm fairly certain some of the character's poses and positioning were repurposed for Conan the Barbarian or vice-versa. Conan the Barbarian's first issue was in 1970 and this magazine was published in 1974. It would depend on what the editors are referring to as “the early days of the Conan comic-magazine”. My guess is that these drawings of Kull came after Conan the Barbarian's debut. 

The last story is an adaptation of Bjorn Nyberg's “The People of the Summit”, originally published in The Mighty Swordsmen in 1970 by Lancer. Roy Thomas changed the title to “Demons of the Summit” and the artist is Tony deZuniga. 

"Demons of the Summit” features a twenty-something Conan taking a job as a mercenary to serve King Yildiz of Turan. Conan is provided the role of makeshift sergeant and ordered to lead a small army of Turanians into the Khozgari Hills in hopes to bribe and threaten the restless tribesmen from raiding Turan's lowlands. 

The Khozgari are brutal barbarians and they ambush the Turanian force leaving only Conan and a fellow soldier named Jamal alive to escape. The two are spotted by the daughter of a Khozgari chief, Shanya, and Conan takes her hostage to secure a safe pass back to a Turanian city. But, to avoid any unnecessary engagement, Conan decides to take the trio across the Misty Mountains. The chief's daughter begins screaming at Conan's decision and swears they will all be killed by the mysterious people there. 

I read and reviewed Nyberg's short story recently and found this adaptation by Thomas a much better narrative. The inclusion of a ghastly leader named Shangara vying for control of Shanya really enhanced the story. Conan's fights with the hideous creatures is worth the price of this whole issue. de Zuniga's use of pitch black pencil shading cleverly leaves a little for the imagination. This was an excellent adaptation to what is otherwise an average Nyberg story.

The last pages of the issue advertises “Iron Shadows in the Moon” is included in the next issue. There is also a great advertisement for the seventh issue of Savage Tales featuring Ka-Zar. 

Conan - Savage Sword of Conan #01 (Titan)

Robert E. Howard's Conan licensing is a moving target in the comics industry. Many associate the character with Marvel based on the success of the 1970s Conan the Barbarian comic and the Savage Sword of Conan magazine. However, the character was a dominant force when Dark Horse comics purchased the license, only to lose it to Marvel decades later. Recently, the entertainment studio company Heroic Signatures purchased the licensing and offers their IP to anyone with a thick wallet – like British publisher Titan Comics.

Titan began publishing their series, Conan the Barbarian, in August of 2023 through a licensing agreement with Heroic Signatures. In February, 2024, the inevitable The Savage Sword of Conan black and white magazine was published. Like any respectable Conan fan, I bought two copies of the first issue in hopes that I can wallpaper my future grandchildren's home in thousand-dollar bills. I hope to review more modern Conan publications so I thought I would begin here with the first issue of The Savage Sword of Conan by Titan Comics. 

My issue features the cover created by Joe Jusko, an astounding artist that painted Conan the Barbarian trading cards in the 1990s. In other Conan-related works, he provided interior illustrations for the Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed RPG and Dynamite's Red Sonja. The other Jusko cover associated with this issue is the FOC cover which is the full panel with no fonts or title. The cover is also featured in black and white in the inside to accompany a Conan short-story titled "Sacrifice in the Sand" by Jim Zub, which was inspired by Jusko's art. 

Roberto De La Torre is an important artist in modern Conan. De La Torre was an active contributor on the Conan the Barbarian (2019-2021), King Conan (2021-2022), and Conan: Exodus and Other Tales (2021) titles that were all published by Marvel. I really enjoy his artwork and his amazing Conan pin-up is on page three. Additionally, Rebeca Puebla (007: King and Country, Bettie Page) provides a pin-up of Belit on page six. Fans of the 1970s Conan the Barbarian comic will enjoy artist Howard Chaykin's pin-up of Solomon Kane on page 77.

As you open the magazine, the first thing that really stands out is a personal introduction by Conan royalty, Roy Thomas. He provides a brief history of Conan in the comics and the pains and triumphs of the character in print. Thomas also adds that he was invited by Titan to write more Conan stories for this magazine – an offer he is apparently taking them up on.

The issue's main story is "Conan & The Dragon Horde". It was written by John Arcudi, a veteran comic storyteller that wrote in Savage Sword of Conan issues #150-152, 158, 165, 182 and also penned stories for Savage Tales. Arcudi is a dynamic, all-around author that has contributed to hundreds of comic titles since 1986. The story's art was created by Max Von Fafner. He created the cover for Conan the Barbarian #3 (2023), Conan: Battle of the Black Stone #2 (2024), and a variant cover for this Savage Sword of Conan issue. 

In the story, Conan is serving as a general in a Hyrkanian cavalry division headed to a large fortress in the Hyrkania desert. Conan is leading a band of soldiers, bandits, and mercenaries that are assisting an ousted prince in returning to the fortress to seize a lucrative treasure hold. There are twin soldiers serving the prince (who totes around two lions) that immediately piss Conan off when they insult a Turanian woman, Ineah, serving as a weapons engineer. 

Soon, Conan beds down Ineah and Von Fafner leaves nothing to the imagination. She is gorgeous. But, she proves to be a capable fighter and a brilliant mastermind in terms of weapon placement and use. The bizarre part of the story is when a dinosaur – yes a dinosaur – breaks from the fortress and attacks Conan's men. Thankfully, Ineah saves the day with her ballista. 

When Conan and company make camp outside of the fortress, they are surprised that no one from within the compound has bothered to attack them. As the days continue with no activity, Conan uses his thief background to climb into the city to determine what is actually happening there. 

I felt that the story was just okay. The artwork leads the way, as usual, and Conan's mannerisms and leadership is par for the course. There's nothing to dislike about Arcudi's writing, but it didn't wow me like a traditional first issue's lead story should. 

The aforementioned “Sacrifice in the Sand” short story by Jim Zub followed. Honestly, I just skipped it to jump into the Solomon Kane story, “Master of the Hunt”. This is the first of a promised trilogy of stories that places Kane on the hunt for a monster terrorizing a village. The story and art is by Patrick Zircher, a veteran that has worked on numerous Marvel and DC titles like Action Comics, Detective Comics, Superman, Captain America, Avengers, and Iron Man just to name a few. I love Solomon Kane so I was anxious to see what he could do with the character.

The story is set in Glamorgan, Wales on All Hallow's Eve. A blind man drinking ale in a bar explains that this night is when the gateways between worlds is very thin. Outside the tavern, readers are treated to small panels showing some sort of monster attacking and killing sheep. The next day Kane arrives and sees the monster's tracks. He chances upon a woman and her son living in a small farmhouse. The woman explains that her husband has embarked on the “great hunt” with other villagers in search of the monster.

I can't give too much away here due to spoilers, but this was a well-written, fast-paced narrative that excellently “got” REH's Kane character. There are scenes of Kane praying as well as dialogue emphasizing Kane's commitment to God to rid the world of evil. Although the twist ending could be seen a mile away, it didn't detract me from the story and art. The promised sequel should take the characters and monster in a new direction and I'm looking forward to that. 

More Solomon Kane is included at the end with an excellent essay penned by Jeffrey Shanks explaining the character's publication history and failure to equal the popularity of Kull and Conan. 

Overall, The Savage Sword of Conan #1 was pretty good. There's nothing to complain about, but at this point there is just so many Conan comics, books, collections, ebooks, and stories being published that the market is completely saturated. You could read nothing but Conan your entire life and never get through it all. With that being said, my failure to be overly stimulated by this new version of Savage Sword can partly be blamed on too much too fast. I have the same issue with Batman. It's an embarrassment of riches available to anyone anytime.

Get this issue plus the following two issues HERE.

Wolfshead

If I may take some liberties here, I'm introducing my review of Robert E. Howard's horror tale “Wolfshead” with a fun tidbit of how this story became published. I'm summarizing pages 76-77 of The Last Celt: Bio-Bibliography of Robert E. Howard, specifically the chapter “Lone Star Fictioneer” by the book's editor Glenn Lord.

After Howard's first two published stories, “Spear and Fang” (Weird Tales, July 1925) and “In the Forest of Villefere” (Weird Tales, Aug 1925), Howard went to work writing “Wolfshead” (a sequel to "In the Forest..."), a supernatural narrative featuring a werewolf terrorizing an assortment of characters in a castle. Weird Tales accepted the story and paid Howard $40. The plan was for “Wolfshead” to be the lead cover story for the April 1926 issue. While artist E.M. Stevenson was completing the cover art, he discovered that he had either misplaced the story or simply lost it. Weird Tales editor Farnsworth Wright contacted Howard and asked him to mail a carbon copy of the story as a replacement. Unfortunately, Howard never made one so he had to re-write the story from memory. Eventually the original manuscript was found prior to publication and Wright paid Howard an additional $10 due to the mistake.

That is a goofy way to begin my review of “Wolfshead”, but on that introduction you have learned that “Wolfshead” was the lead story for the April 1926 issue of Weird Tales and it was only the author's third story to be published (outside of his local school paper). And...what a story it is!

In first-person narration, an unnamed individual is explaining to a group of soldiers that despite their adventures on wind-lashed seas they have never experienced “hair-raising, horror-crawling fear”. To demonstrate that the narrator has seen terror first-hand, he recounts a time that he was invited to a castle.

Dom Vicente sends an invitation for the narrator to join him and a gathering of guests to a vacation on the African coast. Here, Vicente had cleared the jungle and built a huge castle, complete with storehouses and a nearby village of slaves and workforce. The narrator accepts the invitation and joins the guests at the castle for a few days of flirting and drinking. With his Spanish friend de Seville, the narrator explains that upon first impression he dislikes a man named De Montour. He feels that the man isn't trust worthy and may have a hidden agenda of some kind.

That night, De Montour enters the narrator's bedroom and kindly warns him to lock his bedroom door at night. Things are apparently amiss in the castle. The next morning the narrator and guests learn that a villager was ripped to shreds by some sort of animal. Suspicions are aroused when a guest is attacked in the house. The narrator places his bets that De Montour isn't all that he appears to be. As the narrative continues, the killer is revealed with a backstory on lycanthropy.

While some may disagree, “Wolfshead” is an entertaining, fleshed-out tale that captures the imagery and imaginations of several genres – horror, swashbuckling, action-adventure, locked-room mystery, and even fantasy (to a minor degree). The suspect is pretty easy to pinpoint but the fun is just getting to the reveal and explanation of the attacks. While there is an isolation among the prey, the castle halls are still frenzied with accusations and suspicions. When the reveal is made, the story makes an advancement into sword-fighting and minor military campaign. Overall, just a versatile story that should appeal to readers in the broadest of terms. I didn't read "In the Forest of Villefere", but I feel like the events in that story were relayed here. 

Roy Thomas penned a 1999 comic adaptation of this story for Cross Plains Comics. Kull the Conqueror #8 (May 1973) features an adaptation of the story with Kull inserted as the main character. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the werewolf horror film series Howling used this story as an obvious blueprint for the fifth installment, Howling V: The Rebirth (written by Clive Turner), which is a fantastic film and a real highlight of that otherwise sub-par series.

You can get the Lancer paperback collection, which includes and is titled after this story, HERE

Conan - Savage Sword of Conan #02 (Curtis)

The Savage Sword of Conan #2 was published in October, 1974. For a complete history of the making of this magazine title, including reviews of the contents of issue one, check out my review HERE. This installment of the series has an awesome Neal Adams cover and once again features content inspired by the works of Robert E. Howard. This issue features:

“Black Colossus” - Roy Thomas/John Buscema and Alfredo Alcala
“Chronicles of the Sword” - Lin Carter/Al Milgrom, Alan Weiss, Joe Staton
“Black Mark Chapter II” - Gil Kane
“The Beast from the Abyss” - Steve Englehart/Howard Chaykin 

In addition to the stories and articles, this issue's stand-alone panel is illustrated by Mike Zeck.

The lead story is “Black Colossus”, a 36-pager that is broken down into three parts. The inspiration is Robert E. Howard's story, which originally appeared for the first time in Weird Tales, June 1933. It has been reprinted numerous times in print format with and without the minor edits made by L. Sprague de Camp. To my knowledge this issue features the first adaptation of the story in comic format. The adaptation was reprinted again by Marvel in their Marvel Treasury Edition #15 as a colorized edition. I won't go into the details of the story because I already covered it in great detail HERE. 

The story's short intro is simply “Black Colossus”, the second chapter of the story is titled “Hordes of the Veiled One” and the last chapter is “Chariot of the Man-Demon”. Each title insert is a one-page panel carefully constructed by Buscema and Alcala. I love the title page to chapter two with Princess Yasmela, partially clothed, crawling towards the darkness of the pit-spawned incubus. It is just an incredible mix of light and dark with a lot of lines in the foreground to make it look more chaotic as the scene shifts to the dark right corner. As I mentioned in my review of Dark Horse's first issue of Conan, “Out of the Darksome Hills”, that Cary Nord's depiction of an armored Conan slightly resembles page 18 of this issue as Conan is fully decked out like a gladiator. 

The story stays true to Robert E. Howard's version and it's a great read. This is on par with “The Frost Giant's Daughter” (reviewed HERE) in terms of this magazine's most iconic moments. I may sound like a broken record but the art is just spectacular. Page 27's Thugra Khotanlike on the skeletal black camel is awe-inspiring and seems to draw influence from the 1865 painting by Gustave Dore, “Death on the Pale Horse (Revelation)”. This story gains a sequel in the next issue. 

Some fans dislike author Lin Carter, but I have genuinely enjoyed his literary work and the contributions he made to science-fiction and sword-and-sorcery/fantasy. His informal history of the sword-and-sorcery genre, “Chronicles of the Sword”, is just fascinating. Carter points to early literature like Beowulf and Hercules mythology as a catalyst to what would eventually form sword-and-sorcery. He also examines Lord Dunsay's “The Gods of Pegana” and “The Sword of Welleran” among others, citing the “at the Edge of the World” as a sort of gyroscope utilized for the genre”. Obviously, Carter delves into the works of H.P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard and their impact on the Weird Tales publication. 

The second chapter of Blackmark continues in this issue. As I alluded to in my review of the first issue, this content was originally published in the 1971 Bantam paperback Blackmark. The smaller graphic novel pages have been formatted to magazine size and the book's contents were spread over the first four issues of Savage Sword of Conan. 

In this portion of the story, Blackmark looks to be about 10 years old and has began practicing swordplay in between working for his father Zeph. While Blackmark is away from the village, an armed group of horseback riders attack and begin slaughtering the citizens. When Blackmark sees the smoke he runs to the village to see his father fighting the men with a staff. After his father is murdered, Blackmark is forced to watch his mother being raped and killed. The men leave Blackmark as a survivor so he can tell others about their strength and dominance. Later, Blackmark is captured by slave raiders.

This was a real turning point in the story and sets up Blackmark's adolescent years and subsequent arena fights as a slave (featured in the next issue). Again, Gil Kane is a phenomenal artist and his storytelling skills propel the narrative in a smooth and unforced way. While a lot has happened to Blackmark, from birth to jaded young man, the narrative is spread enough to allow readers to imagine and fill in the gaps in these characters' lives off the page.

Up to Kull's appearance in this issue's story, “The Beast from the Abyss”, the character had appeared numerous times in comic format. The hero is seen in Conan's vision in the very first issue of Conan the Barbarian in July, 1970. He later appeared in Creatures on the Loose #10 (Mar1971),  Monsters on the Prowl #16 (Jan 1972), Conan the Barbarian #25 (Jan 1973) and #37 (Jan 1974), Tomb of Dracula #26 (Jul 1974). Of course he had his own short-lived title as well, Kull the Conqueror #1-10 (1971-1973) and Kull the Destroyer #11-28 (1973-1978) prior to “The Beast from the Abyss”. 

“The Beast from the Abyss” is adapted from the story “Black Abyss”. This work was left unfinished by Robert E. Howard with Lin Carter finishing the story (beginning with Chapter 3) and it was first published in the Lancer paperback King Kull in 1967. I enjoyed that story immensely and I was happy it was adapted into comic form by Steve Englehart (Batman, Daredevil, Doctor Strange) and drawn by Howard Chaykin (Star Wars, Batman, Punisher)

Kull is in Kamula on business and enjoying a dance routine with Baron Ergon. Kull's friend and confidant Brule, the Pictish Warrior, storms into the room and advises that his tribal brother Grogar has been captured from somewhere in the palace. The duo venture back to the place the man was last seen and discover another corpse. From inside the wall they hear a strange piping sound - “the sort of music dead men dance to on the scarlet floors of Hell!”. 

The two journey through the wall's secret passageway and descend stairs into a macabre scene of the Baron, half-naked women, a piper, and Grogar laid on an altar awaiting a ghoulish fate. These crazed people are worshiping a giant slug-like creature called Zugthuu the Slitherer. The creature isn't actually named by Chaykin in the story, but the name appears in the magazine's TOC. Kull and Brule get to work fighting Zugthuu, eventually killing the monstrosity and escape with Grogar. 

The adaptation stays true to the story and successfully visualizes the demonic scene of the piper on the altar. This story borders the horror genre closely (don't they all?) and Chaykin's drawings capture the creepy vibes so well. I was really pleased with how this turned out considering the strength of the original material. 

This was another fantastic issue and one that is often cited as a real highlight of the series. It is definitely worth your time to pursue it in whatever format you prefer – trade, digital, individual issues, hardcover. Recommended! 

Buy a copy of this book HERE

Conan - Savage Sword of Conan #01 (Curtis)

At one time, Curtis Magazines was Marvel Comics' distributor and an affiliated company. Under this imprint, Marvel launched a number of magazine formatted titles that weren't regulated by the Comics Code Authority. It was Marvel editor-in-chief Editor Stan Lee's vision to enter the black-and-white magazine market to compete with Warren Publishing, a company that had found success with more taboo themes (bare butts and breasts) in their Eerie, Creepy, and Vampirella titles. 

The first of the Curtis books was Savage Tales, published in May 1971 – complete with a John Buscema cover of Conan holding a severed human head. Publisher Martin Goodman (founder of Timely/Marvel) didn't want to publish these types of books and insisted that Savage Tales cease publication after just one issue. Goodman left Marvel in 1972, setting the stage for Roy Thomas and the company to revamp their magazine line, launching more Savage Tales issues in October 1973 as well as a Marvel Monster Group brand with titles like Tales of the Zombie, Dracula Lives!, and Monsters Unleashed. 

This brings us to the focus of this review, Conan the Cimmerian, which was created by author Robert E. Howard. When Savage Tales began republication in October 1973, the title's second issue through the fifth (1973-1974) all featured Conan stories and the character on the front page. Due to the success of the character in these books, and the Conan the Barbarian color comic that launched in 1970, the company decided that Conan's market worth supported his own magazine. 

The Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian was launched in August 1974 and ran consistently until July 1995. There were 235 issues and one annual during the book's impressive 21 year run. The series, especially the early issues, have all been collected in massive trade and omnibus editions from Marvel, Dark Horse, and even Titan. While I don't condone scanned copies, you can easily find the entire run scanned for digital devices for a few bucks if you don't want to bend and turn your purchased paper collections. Additionally, I see the used magazines in comic shops and book stores for $5-$20 each. I'm just saying they are around if you want to read them. 

The Savage Sword of Conan #01 has a Boris Vallejo cover and features seven sections:

“Curse of the Undead-Man” - Roy Thomas/John Buscema and Pablo Marcos
“A Hyperborean Oath” - Roy Thomas
“Red Sonja” - Roy Thomas/Esteban Maroto/Neal Adams/Ernie Chua
“Conan's Women Warriors” - Fred Blosser
“The Birth of Blackmark” - Gil Kane
“An Atlantean in Aquilonia” - Glenn Lord
“The Frost Giant's Daughter” - Roy Thomas/Barry Smith

In addition, three pages of artwork - Alfred Alcala/Esteban Maroto/Roy Krenkel.

In "Curse of the Undead-Man", Roy Thomas freely adapts Robert E. Howard's horror story "Mistress of Death" into a Conan offering. The Cimmerian hero is in Zamora waiting to join "some teetotaling general's army" and finds a trio of painted ladies looking to party. He is encouraged to look for gold in the city (read that as stealing) and is ambushed by three mysterious robed figures. A moment later he is attacked again by four ruffians and Red Sonja comes to his aid. 

Sonja explains that earlier that day the King of Zamora ordered a public execution of a sorcerer named Costrano. After the death, Costrano's apprentices schemed a way to resurrect the sorcerer. Conan stumbles on the sorcerer's severed jeweled-finger in the alley and throws it on the ground. The finger makes its way to Costrano's corpse and he is resurrected by the power of the ring. 

Later, Conan and Red Sonja team to fight Costrano and rescue a young woman he is attempting to sacrifice on an altar. The story ends with some playful joking between the two heroes.

This was an average Conan story with the typical ingredients - sorcerers, thieves, and swordplay. I'm not familiar with Howard's story, so I can't compare the two. For these pages, I specifically enjoyed the darker inks on page seven and the facial expressions on page ten. The gatefold pages on 18-19 of Conan leaping at the enraged Costrano is absolutely beautiful and worth the price of admission.

"A Hyperborean Oath" serves as an introduction to the magazine courtesy of Roy Thomas. He explains that the magazine will mostly consist of comic adaptations of REH stories.

"Red Sonja" begins with a recap of the events from Conan the Barbarian #24 (1972). In that story, "The Song of Red Sonja", Sonja tricked "a northern barbarian" named Conan into helping her gain the Serpent-Tiara. However, the jewelry was transformed into a giant dragon-thing that forced the two to team together to defend themselves. 

In this "Red Sonja" story, the narrative continues as the she-devil returns the Serpent-Tiara to the man who hired her to retrieve it, King Ghannif of Pah-Dishah. However, instead of paying Sonja for the job, he imprisons here to be part of his harem. Through the story, Sonja initially tries to fight for her freedom, but eventually conceives a plan to seduce Ghannif. After killing the King, she fights to the death with his loyal follower, a swordsman named Trolus.

This was an entertaining story that featured far better illustrations by Maroto, Adams, and Chua of Red Sonja than Barry Smith's version. She looks much younger here and more athletic. Plus, Smith's weird silver chain mail is replaced with more of a swimsuit attire. This would be the same look that artist Frank Thorne would use in 1978. The fight scene was great and I loved the dialogue between the two warriors. It was an early dive into Red Sonja's character and her efforts to avoid killing Trolus. She attempts to convince him to do the right thing and understand a better future. But, these things always end in death. 

In "Conan's Women Warriors", Conan devotee Fred Blosser provides a written commentary on the various women that have appeared in Conan literature and the Conan the Barbarian comics. The article contains paragraphs on Valeria, Belit, Yasmina, Salome, and of course, Red Sonja. 

Gil Kane's Blackmark was originally published by Bantam in 1971 (S5871) as a 119-page graphic novel paperback. It was scripted by Archie Goodwin and sold for .75 cents at the time. Some consider it to be the first American graphic novel, but I think Fawcett Gold Medal's 1950 paperback Mansion of Evil earns that award. The publisher had a limited number of copies they produced to test the waters for a graphic novel paperback. The book failed to make a splash and was shelved. Its contents was formatted to stretch to magazine-size pages (basically three paperback pages on one magazine page) and made it into the Savage Sword of Conan. The first part appears in this issue.

The author explains that Earth was devastated by nuclear weapons years ago. A new Earth has been formed from the ashes consisting of wastelands sprinkled with nomads, gangs, and small kingdoms housing castles and farms. The wealthy have a power source that allows travel by boat. The poor are left to travel on foot, often contending with harsh elements and even harsher humans. There are also mutants, monsters, and telepathic beings in this new Earth. 

The story begins with a couple, Marnie and Zeph, traveling by horse and wagon across the precarious landscape of Demon Waste. When they stop for the night, Zeph leaves to find supplies and Marnie is left to her thoughts of being infertile and the possibility of motherhood escaping her. 

Out of the darkness two men ride up on horseback, one of which is a wounded leader named King Amarix. They explain to Marnie that Amarix had been cast out by his own people due to believing old science can make Earth live again. As Amarix lay dying by the firelight he psychically uploads all of his knowledge and thoughts into Marnie. He tells her that she can take the knowledge, and his money, and spread into the community in hopes for a better future. He also magically makes Marnie fertile again. 

Later, Zeph and Marnie make it to a farming town and have a child. But, Zeph realizes that Marnie was "cursed" by Amarix, a man he feels is nothing but a demonic witch. Zeph calls the baby Blackmark and this portion of the book ends. Next issue it continues with "Death and Destiny..."

I really enjoyed this portion of the book and loved the smaller panels of artwork. Gil Kane is a legend in the comic book world and his art never ceases to amaze me. The story is ripe with Christianity tones. Marnie is a Virgin Mary, being blessed by God (Amarix) to birth a Messiah that will save the world. The idea that Amarix was shunned by his own people is reminiscent of Israel's failure to obey God, casting him out in favor of endless idols and pagan worship. I'm anxious to see where the story goes from here.

Glenn Lord's "An Atlantean in Aquilonia" is an essay on Robert E. Howard's Kull. This is a great history on the character with an emphasis on Kull's influence on Conan's conception. I actually used a lot of this article in my review of King Kull and also the podcast episode dedicated to the character. You can listen HERE. 

The final story here is a reprinting of "The Frost Giant's Daughter" from Savage Tales #1. You can read my review of Howard's story HERE. This may be the most popular adaptation of the story in comic format. Barry Smith's pencils are just superb and perfectly illustrate the savageness of the fight on the icy tundra. The fight with Hymdul in the opening pages and the first up-close look at the Frost Giants on page 70 are real highlights of the entire issue. This is an iconic piece of Conan literature and the adaptation is awesome. I do have to say I love Cary Nord's art in the Dark Horse version as well. Both are fantastic.

There you have it. The first issue of The Savage Sword of Conan. The two original stories here were enjoyable, but the reprinting of the Blackmark and "The Frost Giant's Daughter" were real highlights. From a Conan collector's standpoint, additional written commentary from Glenn Lord on Kull and the conception of "The Phoenix on the Sword" was a great addition as well.

Next up is issue two featuring "Black Colossus", a King Kull story, more Blackmark, and a history of sword-and-sorcery by Lin Carter. See you there! 

Get a copy of the giant omnibus collecting these early issues HERE.

The Adventures of Red Sonja - Volume 01

In the pulp magazine pages of Magic Carpet’s January 1934 issue readers will discover Robert E. Howard’s sword-mistress Red Sonya of Rogatine. She is the star of Howard’s short story “The Shadow of the Vulture”, described as a tall Russian warrior woman who fights with a dagger, two pistols, and a sabre. While writing for Marvel, Roy Thomas obtained a copy of the story from Glenn Lord, the literary agent for Robert E. Howard’s estate. Thomas, collaborating with artist Barry Smith, modified the story to introduce a new red-haired swordswoman, Red Sonja, in the pages of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian #23 and #24 (1970). The rest is history.

To celebrate the early era of Red Sonja, Dynamite Entertainment acquired the rights to some of the character’s appearances in Marvel. These appearances are collected in a three-volume set titled The Adventures of Red Sonja. I borrowed a digital copy of Vol. 1, which collects the character’s appearances in Marvel Feature #1-#7, all published in 1975, plus the “Red Sonja” story from Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian #1 (1974). Up until the Marvel Feature issues, the character had only appeared nine total times – five in Conan the Barbarian (1970), twice in The Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian (1974), and twice in Kull and the Barbarians (1975). So, in essence, this collection feels like a terrific landing spot for new Red Sonja readers.

The collection begins with a three-page introduction written by Roy Thomas explaining how he created the character from Howard’s original “The Shadow of the Vulture” story. This intro is a great timeline of the early appearances of Red Sonja and Roy’s collaborations with artists like Neal Adams, Barry Smith, Ernie Chan (Ernue Chua), Dick Giordano, and of course, Frank Thorne. 

Roy’s commentary is followed by the eight-page story “Red Sonja”, which was originally published in Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian #1 (1974). The original story was black and white (reprinted in color in Marvel Feature #1), and this new version is colorized by Glass House Color Design. I like all three presentations, but I find myself enjoying this new colorized version (why do I feel guilty though?). The artwork by Esteban Maroto, Neal Adams, and Ernie Chan is really something special. The story has Red Sonja on a mission to earn money working for King Ghannif in a teeming city state in Hyrkania. But the King wants to add the fiery-haired She-Devil into his harem, which backfires in a big way. Sonja is also forced into a fight with the King’s albino musclebound bodyguard. 

Marvel Feature #1 follows with Thomas using an unfinished Robert E. Howard manuscript called “The Temple of Abomination” to frame his eponymous Red Sonja story. That story, originally published in the 1974 Donald M. Grant hardcover Tigers of the Sea, featured Howard’s Conan-like hero Cormac Mac Art. But, Thomas’s version has Red Sonja in a rural stretch of Nemedia forest when she stumbles upon an abandoned temple. Inside, she frees an old man chained to the wall and battles a small army of man-goats (yes man-goats!) that are sacrificing people to a slithering monstrosity in a pit. The art was created by Dick Giordano, which according to Thomas, was a guy who loved drawing women.

Some of Red Sonja’s best presentations are through the creative hands of artist Frank Thorne. He collaborated with Bruce Jones on Marvel Feature #2 “Blood of the Hunter”, #3 “Balek Lives”, #4 "Eyes of the Gorgon”, and #5 “The Bear God Walks!”. Of these stories, I found “Eyes of the Gorgon” to be the best of the bunch. Thomas returned for #6 “Beware the Sacred Sons of Set” and that story's continuation in #7 “The Battle of the Barbarians”. This last story features Red Sonja competing with Conan and Belit on a quest to recover a page from the coveted Book of Skelos.

The major complaint this volume receives is that the last story, “The Battle of the Barbarians”, ends with a cliffhanger. The story isn’t continued in this volume because Dynamite didn’t have printing rights to Conan the Barbarian. The story was continued in Conan the Barbarian #68, published by Marvel in 1970. That story, which also featured Howard’s hero King Kull (and Brule), wrapped up the arc introduced by Thomas in Marvel Feature #6. So, it’s quite a letdown to get this far into the volume and discover it unfinished. But the second volume of The Adventures of Red Sonja features a written recap of those events.  

Overall, I’m delighted with his volume and found it a nostalgic and enjoyable romp through the ages with Red Sonja. If you are interested in more, The Adventures of Red Sonja Volume 2 features Red Sonja #1-#7 (1977) and Volume 3 features issues #8-#14. Dynamite also released a volume titled The Further Adventures of Red Sonja which features more appearances of her in later issues of The Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian.

Buy a copy of this book HERE.

Solomon Kane - The Skull in the Stars

One of Robert E. Howard's most iconic characters, along with Bran Mak Morn, Conan, and Kull, is Solomon Kane. The character's first published appearance was in a short story called “Red Shadows”, which was published in the August, 1928 issue of Weird Tales. Mixing sword-and-sorcery and horror, Howard's Solomon Kane stories feature a late 16th century Puritan who adventures around the world fighting evil. 

My introduction to the character is the January, 1929 issue of Weird Tales which features a Solomon Kane short called “Skulls in the Stars”. In the story, Kane is departing a small town in England and is faced with two separate roads to reach his next destination, a village called Torkertown. In the opening paragraph, Howard offers one road as a shorter, more direct route for Kane across a barren upland moor and the second option as a longer tortuous route through a dreadful swamp. Debating the decision, a boy passing by warns – downright prohibits – Kane from taking the moor road. He urges that Kane avoid the moor road because it is haunted by some sort of foul horror that claims men for his victims. Naturally, the adventuring Kane decides to travel the moor road.

Providing any additional insight into this story may spoil your enjoyment, so I'll stray from further plot points. But, Howard's story is just an exceptional blend of supernatural horror and the traditional monomyth of a hero's journey through danger. The author's descriptions of horrifying things lying in wait along the isolated, non-traveled road is superb. I love this:

“Then the thing began to take on shape, vague and indistinct. Two hideous eyes flamed at him – eyes which held all the stark horror which has been the heritage of man since the fearful dawn ages – eyes frightful and insane, with an insanity transcending earthly insanity. The form of the thing was misty and vague, a brain-shattering travesty on the human form, like, yet horribly unlike.”

What I really like about the Kane character, which I'm introduced to in this macabre tale, is his use of two long pistols as well as a rapier sword. There is a unique dynamic approach to the hero's skill-set, which will introduce yet another weapon to his repertoire – a magical staff – in future stories. He's a Puritan, with an eye for injustice and evil and a heart dedicated to the power of all things good. 

With just one story as my trial size, I can see why this character receives so much admiration and loyalty. “Skulls in the Stars” is one of the finest stories I've read this year. Highly recommended!

Buy a copy of this book HERE.

Conan - Conan

Many of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Cimmerian short-stories were out of print for decades, or had steep auction house pricing that prevented casual fans from reading them. Aside from one Ace paperback, and a series of Gnome Press hardcovers, these previously published stories existed in back-issues of Weird Tales. 

Beginning in the late 1960s, Lancer began publishing affordable paperbacks collecting these original Robert E. Howard published Conan stories. In addition, these collections also included unpublished Conan manuscripts and new material edited or authored by Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp. You can journey down any pulp sword-and-sorcery rabbit-hole and read more about the development of these Lancer paperbacks, the discovery of manuscripts by Howard heirs' literary agent Glenn Lord, and both the praise and criticism of Conan pastiche writing, which is included in these Lancer editions. 

I want to simply highlight the stories including in each paperback, beginning with the very first Lancer edition aptly titled Conan. The collection was first published in 1967 and features a Frank Frazetta cover. The paperback, weighing in at just 221 pages, includes two of Howard's most respected and well-known Conan stories, “The Tower of the Elephant” and “Rogues in the House”, with the latter selection influencing the book's cover art. 

“Introduction” - As I alluded to earlier, the development of the Lancer paperbacks is a much talked about event that populates the sword-and-sorcery community. In this five page introduction, author L. Sprague de Camp introduces readers to Robert E. Howard with a brief biography. He also cites a specific letter that Howard wrote to fellow author Clark Ashton Smith explaining how the Conan character was created. In addition, de Camp analyzes the term “heroic fantasy” and how it came to fruition. 

“Letter from Robert E. Howard to P. Schuyler Miller” - This is four and a half pages showcasing a letter that Howard wrote to the science-fiction writer and educator Miller. In the letter, Howard explains the Hyborian nations and comparisons to medieval Europe, Asia, and Africa. The letter also displays Howard's explanation of Conan as the king of Aquilonia for many years. This letter was originally published in the The Coming of Conan hardcover by Gnome Press in 1953.

“The Hyborian Age, Part 1” - Howard's 14-page essay outlining the entire Hyborian kingdom and the rise and fall of the various cultures that make up the sprawling landscape. This was originally contained in the The Phantagraph in 1936, and subsequently in the volumes The Coming of Conan, King Kull, and Skull-Face and Others.

“The Thing in the Crypt” - Some find fault that this book, which is a celebration of Robert E. Howard's Conan creation, offers a non-Howard work as the first fictional story in the collection. “The Thing in the Crypt” was authored by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, but the reason it is the first actual story in the collection is because the books, edited by Carter and de Camp, are a road map of Conan's chronological life. This story features Conan as a teenager who just escaped a slave pen after being captured after a raid in Asgard. Later, there is a story that Bjorn Nayberg authored (with assists from Carter and de Camp), “Legions of the Dead”, that predates the events in this story. It is found in Conan the Swordsman. In “The Thing in the Crypt”, Conan finds a cave containing a mummified corpse holding a sword. When he takes the sword, the mummy comes to life and the two battle. This story also influenced a similar scene in the Conan the Barbarian film. “The Thing in the Crypt” first appears in this story collection. 

“The Tower of the Elephant” - This first appeared in the March, 1933 issue of Weird Tales. A young Conan arrives in Arenjun and overhears a conversation about the wealth and riches contained in a tall structure deemed The Tower of the Elephant. Always looking for thieving opportunities, Conan climbs the tower with the help of another thief, Taurus. Conan discovers cosmic horror inside the tower and fights to escape. Howard’s endless imagination just flows onto the page with this wild, action-packed adventure. It quickly pulls you into the story with just a few opening paragraphs. The author's prose is just so smooth and stimulating, providing excellent plot development and pacing.

“The Hall of the Dead” - This was a fragmented Conan the Cimmerian document created by Howard and then re-worked by L. Sprague de Camp. This version was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science-Fiction's February 1967 issue. Like many other stories, the era of “The Hall of the Dead” is set during Conan's thieving years, around 18-20ish. It picks up when Conan enters an abandoned, ancient city called Larsha. In a hot-pursuit is a group of Zamorian soldiers who have been assigned to arrest Conan for theft. As Conan explores this abandoned city, he teams up with another thief as the two fight giant slugs and other baddies that are protecting gold within this abandoned city. There's nothing to really dislike about “The Hall of the Dead”, but loyalist complaints favor Howard's original version, which is shorter and features some differences in Nestor's actions in the story and the disappearance of the giant slug. In essence, I felt the story as a whole, regardless of writer, effectively placed Conan in a gloomy post-apocalyptic setting of an abandoned city, albeit a very short visit, and that was very rewarding. 

“The God in the Bowl” - This Robert E. Howard story wasn't published in the author's lifetime. It was rejected by pulp magazine Weird Tales, and after Howard's death, went undiscovered until 1951. It was then edited by L. Sprague de Camp and first published in Space Science-Fiction's September, 1952 issue. The premise reveals that “thief” Conan accepts a job from Nemedia's Governor's son to break into an antique house to steal a precious diadem. This diadem is being kept in a sarcophagus that was apparently discovered in the dark realm of Stygia. However, there is a monster lurking in the house and and the overnight clerk is found dead. The story has a really unique flavor for a Conan story and nearly borders on detective-fiction. Overall, I can recommend “The God in the Bowl”, but there are plenty of other Conan stories you should be reading before this one.

“Rogues in the House” - This story first appeared in the pulp magazine Weird Tales in January, 1934. That same year, it was also featured in a short story collection, Terror by Night, published by Selwyn and Blount. The premise has Conan being assisted by an aristocrat to escape prison. In a series of wild events, Conan, the aristocrat, and a priest are trapped inside of a large house. The house contains a number of deadly traps used to enslave and kill the priest's political rivals. But, this story also influenced the Conan paperback's front cover with Conan battling Thak, an ape-like creature that prowls the house. This story is one of my all-time favorites by Howard and is filled with political intrigue, action, and savage violence. A must read.

“The Hand of Nergal” - Originally a fragmented story authored by Howard  in the 1930s, Lin Carter completed the manuscript and titled it. Along with appearances in Conan, “The Hand of Nergal” was also featured in The Conan Chronicles and Beyond the Gates of Dream. In the story, Conan is a mercenary serving Turan. In the heat of battle, Conan is battling these crazy giant bats when he nearly falls unconscious. Thankfully, Conan had discovered a strange amulet days before, which helps to repel the bats. Conan meets a female warrior and the two of them journey to the city of Yaralet to battle the sorcerer responsible for conjuring up these crazy bats. I really enjoyed this story and found Carter's stroke of science-fiction and fantasy a great blend with the more “on the nose” carnage that Howard's Conan typically creates. The Carter and Howard blend worked well, in my opinion, on the Kull stories, and you get that same sense of adventure, dark sorcery, and utter doom in this story.

“The City of Skulls” - This paperback collection is the first appearance of this story, which was originally titled “Chains of Shamballah” in the first printing's table of contents. This is one of only two stories in the collection that is authored by both Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp, void of any Robert E. Howard writing. In this story, Conan's military unit is massacred, leaving only himself, his friend Juma, and a princess alive. The three are taken captive and forced across mountains, through bitter cold winds, and into a warm jungle called Shamballah, the City of Skulls. It's an epic story with Conan and Juma eventually sold into slavery aboard a ship and the princess being promised to a Toad-God-Thing. The story locations are described so well and thrust these characters – unwillingly – into the heart of madness with high altitudes and low temperatures. Mix in the ruthless rowing expedition as testaments to Conan's internal fortitude to soldier on. That's why we read these harrowing adventure tales. Carter and de Camp can tell a great story and I feel like “The City of Skulls” is a worthy addition to this stellar Conan collection. 

Buy a copy of this book HERE.

Conan - The Castle of Terror

Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp teamed together to author “The Castle of Terror”, a short story starring Robert E. Howard's Conan. The story was first published in the Lancer paperback collection Conan of Cimmeria (1969), which was later reprinted by Ace. Additionally, the story was featured in Sphere Books omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles (1989). The story was adapted into comic format in Marvel's Conan the Barbarian #105. That comic story was also collected in Dark Horse's The Chronicles of Conan Vol. 13: Whispering Shadows and Other Stories (2007).

What I enjoyed about this story is that the authors wanted to expand on Howard's “The Vale of Lost Women”, which was never published in the author's lifetime. This era of Conan's life begins after “The Queen of the Black Coast”, with the titular hero in the jungles of Kush. It is here that he becomes the tribal chief of the Bamulas, which is outlined in “The Vale of Lost Women”. Carter and de Camp further explore that concept in the beginning of “The Castle of Terror”.

In the story's opening pages, Conan is on the run across the flat prairies of Kush. It is revealed that Conan was the Bamula tribal chief for approximately one year. But, a harsh drought occurred in the region and the tribe felt that Conan was the reason for the hardship. Ousted from power and forced into exile, Conan now finds himself with dwindling supplies and chased by lions. At dusk, Conan stumbles onto a strange scene, a crumbled Gothic-styled castle atop a stretch of dead grass. The pursuing lions stop their pursuit and refuse to go near the old house. Hoping to escape the rain, Conan goes inside.

While Conan is seeking shelter in the house, a band of Stygian slave raiders is also seeking shelter from the elements. They too go inside the cavernous house. Inside, Conan has an experience of astral projection, seeing himself outside of his body. Spiritually, he's attacked by hundreds of ghosts before awakening from his trance. At the top of a staircase, Conan witnesses the slaughter of the Stygians by a hideous hundred-headed spider-like creature. Escaping the house, Conan is forced to kill the remaining Stygian.

“The Castle of Terror” includes Conan reflecting on the old stories he heard as a child about King Kull of Atlantis, one of Robert E. Howard's other characters, the prototype for Conan. Conan recalls the stories of Serpent People inhabiting the land prior to mankind, an element that plays into the Kull mythos, including the very first sword-and-sorcery story in the US, “The Shadow Kingdom”, featuring King Kull. Additionally, the idea of natives refusing to follow Conan across a type of forbidden or sacred ground was used in Howard's “The Black Stranger”, which later was morphed into Treasure of Tranicos. But, instead of natives, “The Castle of Terror” uses lions. Arguably, the Kull short story “Skull of Silence” has comparisons as well, complete with Kull charging into a monolithic black house reportedly haunted by a cosmic horror.

This may be one of my favorite stories by Carter and de Camp. I love the eerie atmosphere and its similarity to an old Hammer Horror or Universal vampire flick. The concept of weary travelers attacked by a supernatural entity in a dark castle is sometimes overused, but in this story it works really well. The descriptions of the house, the creepy atmosphere, and the sense of urgency placed on the character to escape the lions was perfectly crafted. It's a remarkable combination and a mandatory read for fans of dark fantasy and horror.

Buy a copy of this book HERE 

Conan - The Hand of Nergal

The Conan paperback published by Lancer in 1967 is a treasure trove of excellent short stories starring Robert E. Howard's brawny hero Conan the Cimmerian. Along with Howard shorts like “Rogues in the House”, “Tower of the Elephant”, and “The God in the Bowl”, the book also features stories outlined or half-completed by Howard and finished by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter. One of the second to last stories in Conan is “The Hand of Nergal”. It was originally a fragmented story authored by Howard  in the 1930s. Lin Carter completed the story and titled it. Along with appearances in Conan, “The Hand of Nergal” was also featured in The Conan Chronicles (1989) and Beyond the Gates of Dream (1969). 

What I really enjoy about Conan stories and novels is that the environment and time period is variable. Conan could be a thief, soldier, gladiator, or royalty. In this story, Conan is a mercenary warrior fighting in Turan's civil war. Serving Turan, Conan is thrust into a planned battle to defeat rebellious forces led by a guy named Khan. In the heat of the fight, an army of large, demonic bats swoops down to the battlefield and begin to attack the Turan forces. 

Among the chaos of death and destruction, Conan locks into a fierce battle with one of the bats. Magically, the bat nearly places Conan into a cold-induced coma, but a strange amulet that the hero picked up days before seems to repel the creature. Later, Conan meets a bloody and battered female and they are ushered to the city of Yaralet to assist with killing the rebel leader Khan. 

Through a sorcerer, Conan learns that Khan controls these bat creatures using a precious stone known as Hand of Nergal. Conan and others eventually find Khan's throne room, deep in the bowels of a cave system hidden under the city, and a final battle ensues. There's a touch of cosmic horror and a lot of magic as Conan's forces eventually break Khan's curse and free Turan (I think). 

I really enjoyed this story and found Carter's stroke of science-fiction and fantasy a great blend with the more “on the nose” carnage that Howard's Conan typically creates. The Carter and Howard chemistry worked well, in my opinion, on the Kull stories, and I got that same sense of adventure, dark sorcery, and utter doom here. The balance of brawn and pure strength contending with magic is a recurring theme in Conan literature, and this story is a showcase of that strong storytelling. 

Many Robert E. Howard readers and fans aren't thrilled with the pastiche authors like Carter and de Sprague, but I'm definitely enjoying my voyage through all of these old paperback collections. It is pure escapism and I'm loving it because of stories like “The Hand of Nergal”.