Conan The Barbarian #24 - A Review

It would be fair to say that I haven't been enjoying the monthly Conan The Barbarian title of late. Indeed, Dark Horse Comics's adaptation of the final portions of Robert E. Howard's Queen of the Black Coast left me feeling largely bored.  That has changed with Conan The Barbarian #24.  Now I am royally cheesed that I spent money on this final story arc.


The artwork by Riccardo Burchielli has gone to hell in a hand-basket.  Whereas in previous months the pencils were competent, Burchielli's figures this month are so misshapen and over-detailed as to defy all the laws of basic aesthetics.  His hyenas look less like slathering hell-hounds and more like a watercolor of a dog where the colors ran and mixed together into a brown misshaped mess. 


Bad as the artwork is, I still find it preferable to the story.  I said several months ago that Brian Wood's scripts butchered the original Howard text like Conan himself slashing through a horde of Stygians.  I was too kind, for the term butchery implies some level of skill and precision. 

What Brian Wood has done here is hack work.  For he is a hack of the highest order.  A butcher would have cut apart Howard's original text willy-nilly.  Wood has completely missed the point of the story, removing the teeth and claws from one of Howard's most powerful and memorable heroines!  No more does Belit defy death itself to save her beloved with a spectral attack on the same beast that killed her..  Now she just appears before Conan - a vision of loveliness to inspire him, with no sword in hand nor fight in her eyes.

This comic sucks.  It holds no value save offering further proof of Brain Wood's misogyny.  Please read the original story or Roy Thomas' much better comic book adaptation.  Avoid this, whatever you do! 

Conan The Barbarian #17 - A Review

Conan The Barbarian #17 continues the tale of Conan and his lover, the pirate queen Belit, sharing a vision while strung out on Yellow Lotus.  Their shared vision is lavishly illustrated by artist Davide Gianfelice and colorist Dave Stewart.  The later paints a vivid palette across the intricate designs of the former, giving us visions of Conan and Belit's past that are both horrible and beautiful in equal measure. 


The script by Brian Wood focuses a bit more on Belit this time around, showcasing her own internalized fears and personal conflicts in the wake of recent events.  Wood deserves high praise for devoting so much of this series toward showing things from Belit's perspective.  Of course the tale is Conan's and it is his name in the title of the book but we already know well of Conan's thoughts and feelings of his time with Belit based on the original Howard story Queen of the Black Coast.  And while Howard did write a fair bit about Belit's perspective and thoughts (Indeed, Belit is easily one of Howard's most well-developed heroines) the fact remains that Conan dominated their time together on the page, despite their relationship clearly being one of equals.  


My comments on last month's issue remain equally valid this month.  The artwork by Davide Gianfelice and Dave Sewart looks amazing but your enjoyment of the story will be entirely dependent on your ability to enjoy psychodrama in the realm of Hyboria.  Those who can get past the fact that this story takes place entirely with the realm of dreams and feelings will find their blood-lust sated, for this issue has action and adventure aplenty.  It just happens to also have Conan and Belit trying to work past their relationship problems at the same time.

Conan The Barbarian #16 - A Review

Your enjoyment of this month's Conan The Barbarian may be dependent on your feelings on psychodrama in a sword-and-sorcery story.  Those who have disliked Brain Wood's more spiritual take on Conan in recent months will find little to like in this month's issue.  Similar to recent issues which had our heroes experiencing psychic dreamscapes and prophetic dreams, the focus of this issue is upon Conan and Belit - currently at leisure in the Ophirean equivalent of Plato's Retreat - deciding to drop yellow lotus together and experience a shared dream. 


Whether it's because Dark Horse Comics refused to show something positive coming of recreational drug use or because a comic showing two stoned barbarians dry-humping each other while having a shared erotic dream would be rather difficult to keep within the parameters of a 16+ series, things do not go smoothly.  Conan starts having a bad trip, including visions of the zombie corpses of the companions he betrayed to join Belit's pirate crew.  And that's just the first of many waking nightmares for our favorite Cimmerian as the issue progresses.  Wood's script is well-written but I suspect that many Conan fans would like to see Conan and Belit face a foe of flesh and blood, who cannot be outwitted or bargained with.  Let us see the blood and thunder a story set in Hyboria should have - not another psychodrama!


Thankfully, the artwork of Davide Gianfelice is enjoyable even if you are sick of these story-lines based around battles in the mind.  The artwork is a perfect complement to Wood's script.  I enjoyed Gianfelice's work on Daredevil: Reborn and his work here is similarly dark and atmospheric.

Personally, I found this to be an enjoyable issue of Conan The Barbarian.  I dare say this would be a good jumping-on point for new readers, though I would warn away those who turn to Conan expecting mindless action stories.  There's very little action to be had in this issue and there's nothing mindless about it.   

Conan The Barbarian #13 - A Review

Conan The Barbarian #13 marks the first issue to feature Serbian artist Mirko Colak on the penciling and inking duties.  To call his work here phenomenal would be an understatement.  Simply spoken, it's been a long time since a Conan book has looked this good.  Just look upon this final splash page and tell me this isn't a poster-worthy piece of work.


I wish I could heap as much praise on the writing but Brain Wood's take on the world's most famous barbarian leaves me conflicted. Now, I can appreciate anyone attempting to add depth and unexplored dimensions to a character who has frequently been reduced to a grunting savage by poor writing in the past.  That being said, I can't see Conan vomiting at the revelation that he just orphaned two baby deer after mistaking a doe for a stag.  For that matter, young and inexperienced as he is, I can't see an experienced woodsman like Conan mistaking a doe for a stag.


Thankfully, there are other character building scenes that are more effective.  The best of these features N'yaga (the shaman on Belit's ship) and N'Gora (Conan's closest friend among the crew), discussing their plight as they are left stranded on the coast in a hostile land, with Belit having disappeared to pay a visit to the city of her birth and Conan wandering after her.  And all of these complications come before Conan is forcibly conscripted into the army laying siege to the city...


If you've never read Conan before, this issue is a fine one to start with.  The artwork is amazing.  The script is far more action-packed than my selected scans would indicate and there's many fine character moments.  I disagree about how true some of them are to the core concept of who Conan is but there's nothing so jarring here as to offend my sensibilities completely. 

Conan: Queen Of The Black Coast Motion Comic!

I usually don't like motion comics, but by Crom this is good!