|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 1, 2015 17:58:46 GMT -5
I must admit I chose that particular image because it's the best of the entire issue...
Regarding Conan's sister, she was only seen in SSoC #119 (and she died therein). Some kind of brother was also encountered later, but his origin was extremely confused as he wasn't in Cimmeria and seemed to be an eastern sorcerer... But as I recall, he was created by Larry Yakata, who wrote pretty good stories that bore only the most superficial resemblance to anything written by Howard.
|
|
|
Post by berkley on Jan 1, 2015 18:13:45 GMT -5
Oh, so Conan's sister was a Roy Thomas not a Robert E Howard creation, I take it.
Or, after looking up Conan #119 on comics.org, a JM deMatteis creation, I suppose.
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 1, 2015 21:28:23 GMT -5
Oh, so Conan's sister was a Roy Thomas not a Robert E Howard creation, I take it. Or, after looking up Conan #119 on comics.org, a JM deMatteis creation, I suppose. Actually, she's a creation of Don Kraar. The story of the death of Conan's family isn't much to my liking, but I credit Kraar with not including any reference to the Conan movie in his tale!
|
|
|
Post by paulie on Jan 1, 2015 21:53:48 GMT -5
The star of Khorala
Script by Roy Thomas Art by Sal Buscema and Tony DeZuniga Adapting the Conan pastiche of the same title, written by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter. This story is a sequel to Shadows in Zamboula, adapted in SSoC#14. .... This strongly suggests that Conan's mother is still alive at this time. If SSoC #119 is set after this issue, he will discover that she has died while he was away, along with his entire family apart from his sister Siobhan and a cousin. Note that because of the influence of the John Milius Conan movie, some writers at Marvel claimed that Conan's parents had died while he was a child; this statement here contradicts that. Now if more of the DeZuniga-inked SSoC stories looked like this panel I'd like them much better: here we have more detailed and subtle shading, lending a more rounded, 3-dimensional feel to the images. Too often, I find his SSoC work looks like coloured comic book art without the colour, everything flat and washed out. A better cover from Larkin this issue, though still not really to my taste. If I couldn't read the signature I might have guessed that that Marshall Rogers illustration was by Howard Chaykin. I don't think I ever knew Conan had a sister. Does she feature prominently in any stories? I really dislike DeZuniga's inks as well. I'm about to settle in for the night with SSOC 40-42 and I'm already feeling annoyed knowing he takes so much away from Big John's pencils. Buy Roy used him time and time again... on Arak... on All-Star... on Infinity...
|
|
|
Post by berkley on Jan 1, 2015 23:05:01 GMT -5
Now if more of the DeZuniga-inked SSoC stories looked like this panel I'd like them much better: here we have more detailed and subtle shading, lending a more rounded, 3-dimensional feel to the images. Too often, I find his SSoC work looks like coloured comic book art without the colour, everything flat and washed out. A better cover from Larkin this issue, though still not really to my taste. If I couldn't read the signature I might have guessed that that Marshall Rogers illustration was by Howard Chaykin. I don't think I ever knew Conan had a sister. Does she feature prominently in any stories? I really dislike DeZuniga's inks as well. I'm about to settle in for the night with SSOC 40-42 and I'm already feeling annoyed knowing he takes so much away from Big John's pencils. Buy Roy used him time and time again... on Arak... on All-Star... on Infinity... I don't hate his stuff, and it doesn't look as bad in colour, I find, but the black and white format really showed up his deficiencies. I think he was fast and reliable, though, which might be why Roy Thomas liked him a lot. And I've seen him produce much more interesting art when he perhaps had more time to work with.
|
|
|
Post by foxley on Jan 2, 2015 1:15:54 GMT -5
I really dislike DeZuniga's inks as well. I'm about to settle in for the night with SSOC 40-42 and I'm already feeling annoyed knowing he takes so much away from Big John's pencils. Buy Roy used him time and time again... on Arak... on All-Star... on Infinity... I don't hate his stuff, and it doesn't look as bad in colour, I find, but the black and white format really showed up his deficiencies. I think he was fast and reliable, though, which might be why Roy Thomas liked him a lot. And I've seen him produce much more interesting art when he perhaps had more time to work with. I always thought DeZuniga's inks over Dick Ayers' pencils in Jonah Hex looked amazing.
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 3, 2015 15:35:01 GMT -5
Savage Sword of Conan #45, October 1979 Cover by the great Nestor Redondo, who would grace this mag with a few more paintings. That being said, while Conan strikes a very heroic pose here, he looks a bit more like Alfredo Alcala's Voltar than like Conan the Cimmerian. And the two skeletons in the background look a bit goofy. And the girl looks very drunk! Table of contentsThe gem in the tower, a Conan adventure Chains and fetters, an article on slavery in the Hyborian age A Conan quizMaster of shadows, a Red Sonja adventure
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 3, 2015 16:11:42 GMT -5
The gem in the tower
Script by Roy Thomas Art by John Buscema and Tony DeZuniga Adapting the short Conan pastiche of the same title by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter Not to belittle Sal Buscema's style, (Sal pencilled last issue with inking by DeZuniga), but this page here shows how his big brother John's artwork is more suited for the Conan titles. John's art is very smooth and organic, with a tone reminding one of N. C. Wyeth's illustrations for Treasure Island. That guy in the forefront, putting his back on pushing the boat ashore, looks like he's really straining; the one at the back is really pulling hard. I love it. DeZuniga's inking over anything makes it look like DeZuniga's art first and whatever else second, but here John's layouts are obvious and look pretty good; there are a few excellent illustrations in this admittedly minor story. Storywise, this "gem in the tower" could be resumed in one sentence: Conan travels to a treasure island where he kills a monster. The main reason for writing it was to show how Conan got to be a captain among the Barachan corsairs, but between you and I we had already read a "gain of captaincy" story written by Howard ( The pool of the Black one)... and it was far more dramatic and interesting. Here deCamp and Carter do S&S by the numbers, missing only a damsel in distress. They also don't seem to grasp the Cimmerian's character as well as they should. In Pool, Conan joins a pirate crew despite the hostility of the captain; he quickly makes friends because of his happy-go-lucky attitude, his love of wine, fun and gambling, and his forgiving of his shipmates' debts. Whatever he does, wherever he goes, Conan usually rapidly evokes admiration and trust. Here, second mate of a Barachan ship, he acts haughtily and earns the rancour of a few of his mates, who complain that he acts as if he were captain. He also does a bit of sucking up to the captain, which is a little surprising. But anyway... that changes quickly as the story unfolds. The plot is simple. A certain wizard named Siptah lives on a high, doorless tower in a small tropical island. He's filthy rich, because a certain magical gem allows him to control the weather; he uses that to run a protection ring among sea merchants. Learning that it's been weeks since Siptah collected his tribute, the captain of the ship on which Conan serves believes that the wizard must have died and intends to be the first to plunder his tower (and to get the magical gem). The crew reaches the island, which seems to be quite deserted. However, there is at least one guardian present: a bat-like creature that kills a few of them, including the captain. Certain that the creature dwells in the tower, Conan leads the men into building a huge bonfire at the base of the tall building to smoke the devil out. The winged creature attacks the men on the ground, and as Conan grabs it by the neck it flows back to the top of the tower. The two clash, and the Cimmerian drives a knife deep into the chest of the guardian, who collapses. Leaving it behind to explore the tower, Conan discovers that Siptah is indeed dead, his body all dried up and mummified. The great jewel is right there in front of the body, but before Conan can grab it the bat-creature is back! (Hard to kill, that one). More blows, including a skull-crushing one with a heavy chair, fail to kill it... suggesting that the magic animating it will keep it going no matter what its opponent does. Running out of weapons, Conan throws the jewel at it; the creature ducks, and as the stone hits the wall it shatters, causing the spell that powered the creature to end. It collapses in little heaps of dust. Conan collects what treasure he can and rejoins the other pirates, taking over as captain. As a generic Conan story it's not bad; it also has that small bit of continuity that de Camp almost always insisted on. Notes:- Conan had claimed at the end of "The horror from the red tower" (SSoC #21) that he intended to try his hand at being a pirate again; this is what we see here as he joins the Barachan pirates. There are three main groups of pirates on the western ocean in Howard's stories: the corsairs from the Baracha islands, who are mostly from the country of Argos, the Zingaran buccaneers, and the Black corsairs from the Silver Isles to the south. They're all more or less in competition, even if you'll usually find a few Zingarans among the Barachans and a few Argosseans among the buccaneers. - Conan is about 35-36 in this story. - Conan's ship is called The Hawk.
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 3, 2015 16:35:06 GMT -5
Chains and fetters, a study of slavery in the Hyborian age, part Iby Jim Neal An interesting and well-referenced study of that heinous business as it was practiced in the East, Kush and the Black Kingdoms, Stygia and the barbarian nations. (No slaves were held in Cimmeria, Vanaheim and Aesgaard, so TAKE THAT, CONAN MOVIE!) A Conan quiz, by Jim Neal Fun and games and trivia, Hyborian style. Master of shadowsScript by Christy Marx Art by John Buscema and Tony DeZuniga again This Red Sonja story was supposed to be eventually published in her own colour comic (as a stand-alone, it would have been a fill-in issue) but the mag got cancelled before it could see print. It fits SSoC just as well, though, especially as it's drawn by the same artists who did the main story of this issue. Sonja is just mindind her own business, when ruffians attracted by her obvious charms make their unwanted attention known. Not taking "no" for an answer, they get beaten up. Their big brother (and the leader of their house, of some local renown as a family of highly-paid assassins) acknowledges that Sonja was in her right but warns her that she'd better leave town before his siblings try to pay her back for their humiliation. Strong-headed as usual, she makes a point of staying overnight. A nightly attempt on her life fails when her would-be assassin makes just a little too much noise, and in the dark she stabs him; a quickly-lit candle reveals him to be the youngest of the brothers. Resolving to leave town after all, Sonja finds her horse dead in the stables; then a cat who eats a morsel from her breakfast before she has a chance to taste it also keels over. Sonja barges into the assassins' house to demand payment for her horse, and while the eldest of the brothers would agree (he says the youngest was an incompetent if he failed, and that Sonja is indeed the injured party), his three surviving brothers storm out, swearing revenge. It takes a few pages for the three of them to try and make good on their oath and getting their one-way ticket to Hades, and when Sonja returns to the assassins' house to try to call a truce the elder brother decides he must now avenge his family's honour. Sonja kills him too, and resumes her sunbathing. Quite a good one-shot, actually!
|
|
|
Post by paulie on Jan 4, 2015 17:25:54 GMT -5
I don't think Our Pal Sal was suited as an inker for Barry Smith either. He lacked, I don't want say 'elegance', but he lacked maybe the delicate,subtle, touch required to depict REH's vision adequately.
Sal might be the most underrated superhero illustrator of all-time but he wasn't suited for Hyboria.
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 4, 2015 17:33:10 GMT -5
I don't think Our Pal Sal was suited as an inker for Barry Smith either. He lacked, I don't want say 'elegance', but he lacked maybe the delicate,subtle, touch required to depict REH's vision adequately. Sal might be the most underrated superhero illustrator of all-time but he wasn't suited for Hyboria. Agreed. I didn't mind his inking on Smith, myself, but I agree that it wasn't as good as Adkins' (or as good as Smith's himself, naturally).
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 4, 2015 17:48:33 GMT -5
The savage sword of Conan #46, November 1979 Starting things on a high note: a powerful cover by Earl Norem! How could the eye not be attracted to this? (Whether the eye in question belongs to someone who enjoys tales of big muscled guys fighting giant snakes while a helpless lady cowers in the background is another thing, but this is pulpy goodness in all its glory). Table of contentsMoon of blood, a Conan adventure The savage swordbooks of Conan, reviews on two then-recent books on Conan This sword for hire, a Hyborian Age tale of humor and monetary scams. The issue's frontispiece art is provided by Kerry Gammill, who before he turned into a popular Superman artist drew many interesting Conan pieces.
|
|
|
Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 4, 2015 18:08:03 GMT -5
Moon of bloodScript by Roy Thomas Art by Ernie Colón and Tony DeZuniga Adapted from the Conan pastiche written by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter As in many of the previous issues, this is a story first published in the Bantam paperback "Conan the swordsman". Until the publication of "Conan and the spider-god" and then the publication of dozens of pastiches by TOR books, these paperbacks had a certain aura of authenticity to them; they felt that they belonged to some "real" Conan canon. Especially since the names of de Camp and Carter were on the cover of all the Howard Conan books at the time... Here, the two gentlemen do what they did on many occasions for their pastiche work: write a sequel to a Howard Conan story, and basically tell the same story over. In this particular instance, we get "de Camp and Carter do Beyond the Black River". A new Pictish shaman is pushing the Picts into invading the Westermarck, a new blond Aquilonian acts as Conan's comrade-in-arms (no dog this time around, though), an Aquilonian no-good traitor is in cahoots with the Picts (that's taken from Wolves beyond the border, in fact) and Conan manages to save the day by killing the Pictish wizard. In this case, though, unlike what (more realistically) happened in Beyond the Black river, he does stop the Pictish invasion. The comic-book adaptation is a lot of fun, with action aplenty and good frontier adventure. I'm only bitchin' because de Camp and Carter were recycling a Howard plot by making superficial changes to it. Continuity-wise, this is supposed to show us how Conan went from a frontier scout to an Aquilonian general (he shot through the ranks after his brilliant work against the Picts at the end of this issue), which put him in a position to take over the Aquilonian throne from its current owner, King Numedides. The art is a mixed bag: what seem to be excellent pencils by Ernie Colón are overpowered by Tony's inking. The result is serviceable (as was the art by the same duo in early issues of Arak, son of thunder), but I can't help think that Ernie's cartoony approach is ill-served by Tony's realistic style. Ernie did lovely work in the S&S field when he inked himself, or when a compatible inker worked with him; his one-shot back-up story in the Star-Lord Super Special is especially good. But here the two artists sometime seem to work at cross-purposes instead of complementing each other's work. You still get a few clear Colón touches here and there, as with the lush forest above or the snake decorative motif in this image: Next issue, we'll see how Conan's generalship turned out...
|
|
|
Post by paulie on Jan 4, 2015 18:17:06 GMT -5
I don't think Our Pal Sal was suited as an inker for Barry Smith either. He lacked, I don't want say 'elegance', but he lacked maybe the delicate,subtle, touch required to depict REH's vision adequately. Sal might be the most underrated superhero illustrator of all-time but he wasn't suited for Hyboria. Agreed. I didn't mind his inking on Smith, myself, but I agree that it wasn't as good as Adkins' (or as good as Smith's himself, naturally). I too prefer Adkins. That issue that he only inked half of (19) is sublime. I like the job Sal did on #10.
|
|
|
Post by benday-dot on Jan 4, 2015 18:36:55 GMT -5
I don't think Our Pal Sal was suited as an inker for Barry Smith either. He lacked, I don't want say 'elegance', but he lacked maybe the delicate,subtle, touch required to depict REH's vision adequately. Sal might be the most underrated superhero illustrator of all-time but he wasn't suited for Hyboria. I agree Paulie, as do I with RR's preference of Adkins on Smith's pencils. On the other hand there was a quantum leap in stylistic development in Barry Smith's own pencils from Conan the Barbarian #1 through to #24. I think Smith himself was still somewhat immersed in his Marvel house style (aka Kirby style, a style I am actually rather fond of in its own way) mode in those early CtB issues. Partly Sal might have been holding Smith's incipient look back, but partly Smith himself was a work in progress.
|
|