My younger brother Ken came along with my grandparents and I on that trip to Ed’s Coins and Stamps in the Sun-Vet Mall. And accordingly, he wound up buying a couple comic books as well. Ken was never as into the medium and the characters as I was, but like any kid of that era, he dabbled here and there whenever something caught his fancy. At this time, he’d been picking up stories featuring Conan for a couple of months, so his first purchase was this older issue of the title. I don’t know what in particular drew him to this issue in specific, as Ed had a wide assortment of back issues at that time. But for whatever reason, this one came home with us, and eventually wound up with me.
I’ve mentioned many times before that Conan simply wasn’t for me as a kid. And even today, I’m a bit lukewarm when it comes to the Cimmerian’s adventures. I didn’t care a thing about the old-time world the series was set in, nor I found could I easily root for a character who was as morally ambivalent as most of the things that he wound up fighting with. Conan seemed to be a feature steeped in a culture of “might makes right”, which is to say that Conan was our hero not because of any excellence in his qualities but because he was simply stronger and tougher than anybody he came up against. As I wasn’t anything like this, I had a hard time getting behind this approach. Conan somehow always felt like the sort of comic book that the jock assholes who would trouble me from time to time would read (and indeed, that was perhaps part of its widespread appeal in the 1970s.)
That said, even at the time, I could appreciate that this was a well-drawn comic book. John Buscema provided the pencil breakdowns as usual. He was very much in tune with Conan and made the character his own. Buscema packs a lot of story into this isue, expertly crafting nine-panel pages that somehow don’t feel cramped or without impact. Here, he’s inked by Ernie Chan, who was still operating under the name Ernie Chua thanks to an immigration snafu. Chan brought a nice sense of texture and completeness to Conan’s world without overwhelming Buscema’s style as much as other such as Alfredo Alcala would do. It was a good pairing for this material. Also, this being a slightly older issue, the heft of the paper stock and the precision of the printing seemed better to my eye, even back then.
The story I wasn’t much interested, though it holds a bit more attraction for me today. It’s adapted from a story by Conan’s creator Robert E. Howard by writer/editor Roy Thomas. Thomas had become an aficionado of Howard’s prose, and so he tried as much as possible to employ segments of it in any story that he adapted directly from Howard’s work, such as this one. The whole thing tended to make CONAN THE BARBARIAN feel a bit more literary than the typical comic book of the period. It was a critical darling as well, winning fan awards regularly since its inception.
The story this issue centers around a woman by the name of Arlinna, who is blackmailed by Baron Takkim into stealing the Dragon Head of Koblar-Zann from a merchant by the name of Lun-Faar, or else he’ll turn her over to the authorities as the killer of a Khitan Ambassador. (Right there, this story felt like a word salad to younger me–all of these places and people tried to sound important, but it all just seemed like nonsense devoid of context.) Takkim gives Arlinna a counterfeit amulet that will allow her to pose as a noblewoman as well as a sleeping pellet to use on the merchant, and sends her on her way. In the back alleys of the City of Thieves, however, she’s accosted by a trip of cutpurses. Fortunately, she’s bailed out by Conan, who is in search of some feminine companionship for the evening. This sort of plays today like trading one terrible situation for another, but Arlinna winds up clubbing Conan over the head with a nearby vase before he can get down to business and escaping.
A pause here for the second half of this issue’s two-page The Hyborean Page letters pages, which carried a missive from future Eclipse Comics founder Dean Mullaney. It focuses heavily on the artwork of John Buscema and analyzes the techniques that he brings to bear on the series every issue. The book also included a Marvel Value Stamp featuring the Falcon, which was thankfully intact in this copy. Those Value Stamps are the bane of collectors, as many of them were clipped from the issues, resulting in a flaw that can’t be immediately detected in bagged back issues.
At the shop of Lun-Faar, Arlinna plays her role, and is shown among other things, a colossal stone statue of a gargoyle. She makes a bid ripping off the Idol head in question, but is stopped by the attentive Lun-Faar, who beats the crap out of her for the attempt. Reasoning from his interrogation that there is someone behind Arlinna’s attempted burglary, Lun-Faar uses sorcerous means to bring the gargoyle statue to life to hunt down the true perpetrator and dispatch him. Meanwhile, Conan comes across Arlinna as she’s readying herself to leap from a rooftop ledge to her death, having no other way out. She tells Conan the whole story, and he resolves to help her out despite her having clocked him. She guides him back to where she is to meet Baron Takkim, but as she arrives, the Baron finds himself under attack by the stone gargoyle. Hearing the commotion, Conan rushes to the girl’s aid, only to come face-to-face with the monster.
So we get to the action portion of the issue, as Conan battles the four-armed gargoyle. And he puts up enough of a fight that he breaks the concentration of Lun-Faar. Freed from the sorcerer’s influence, the gargoyle, which had been imprisoned in the form of a stone statue, races back to the merchant’s shop and promptly disposes of Lun-Faar. Having been liberated from both death and blackmail, Arlinna seems more than happy to go to bed with Conan at the story’s end, which is framed as a happy ending. But it’s all pretty messy, and didn’t make me any more interested in following Conan’s exploits, sexual or otherwise, further.
The Tom Brevoort Experience 
John Buscema’s art was the big draw (no pun intended) to Conan for me. From the late 1970’s to the late 1980’s (roughly from ages 8 to 18 for me). I still rank it as my fave, though Liam Sharp’s recent rendition in “Savage Sword” was definitive on it’s own. And Roberto de la Torre’s darker homage to J.Buscema’s Conan was a great treat. I did like Cary Nord’s in Dark Horse’s series over 20 years ago, now, ably steered by Kurt Busiek’s faithful scripts. Cary’s really recalled Frazetta’s covers for me.
I think I empathize with Tom’s rejection of Conan, or repulsion from him. My impression of the character was that although he was rough, he had an innate sense of right and wrong. Maybe “chaotic good”, might describe his personal morality. He could be a Hyborean a-hole, but he seemed to choose to be one to other Hyborean a-holes, who were shown underserving of our sympathies. There were numerous stories where Conan took up for some weaker characters. Especially mistreated women or maligned innocents.
He was coarse (the coarser corsair), blunt, and capable of being brutal. But rarely cruel. Especially not just for the sake of being mean. I found these traits in the character in the writings of most of his scripters. Thomas, Fleischer, DeMatteis, Jones, and definitely Owsley. James Owsley (Christopher Priest for over 30 years) maybe have written my fave Marvel Conan. But it’s neck & neck with Roy’s, since he defined so much of the comics character was, for decades.
So I don’t share Tom’s near total dismissal of the character. I’ve liked too many well done stories and terrific art not to have a soft spot for the sword swingin’ savage. But he was always more human than most other characters he crossed paths with. He just didn’t have time for the weaker traits of human beings, like fear.
Not that he wasn’t ever afraid. But his self-preservation and independence often drove him on past any self-doubt he may have had. Not a bad example, as long as we didn’t prey on the weak, or in general act like Hyborean a-holes
LikeLike
Sorry, that should’ve been, “He was always more humane than most other characters he crossed paths with”. Hmmm. Maybe “almost always”. 😉
LikeLike
Tom, don’t know if it was the interior that appealed to your young brother or the cool looking Gil Kane drawn 4-Armed Gargoyle on the cover that looks much better than the one in the issue. Like the giant 1960s monster Droom does on the cover of Tales to Astonish#9 ( May 1960 ) and is the image used in later appearances instead of the interior art version of Droom.
LikeLike
Con the Barbarian ( Wikipedia – Personality and Character ): He roamed throughout the Hyborian Age nations as a THIEF, OUTLAW, MERCENARY, and PIRATE. Conan’s adventures often result in him performing heroic feats, though his motivation for doing so is largely to protect his own survival or for personal gain ( Didn’t see personal gain here since he had no way of knowing that helping Arlinna would lead to sex. Plus he put his own survival at risk by getting involved for no known reward ).
LikeLike
Should have added this ( from Wikipedia ) since it applies to this story: Conan is characterized as CHIVALRIC due to his penchant to save DAMSELS IN DISTRESS. Hey Tom, he possesses great strength, combativeness, intelligence ( So not just a brute ), agility, and endurance.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The 5th panel on the second page depicted here is uncharacteristically awkward for John B. At a glance it looks like Conan has an unnaturally long torso and is sitting on the guy he just clobbered…. as opposed to the legs actually belonging to the clobbered guy. Since his legs are the same tint in this panel but not the others I presume the colorist was also confused.
LikeLiked by 1 person
David, my first glance made me think Conan’s feet & lower legs were in the foreground, almost like he had his legs up on a piece of furniture, and they look wonky. But looking again, Conan’s only shown from the wait up. The legs folded backwards belong to the guy Conan had picked up, upside down and slammed into a wall.
You can see the guy’s green tunic below his feet, “between” his legs. I’m not sure what’s keeping that guy from completely falling over. The top of his body is presumably crumpled against the ground, off panel.
His footwear is similar to Coan’s, further contributing to visual confusion. Maybe there was some unspoken jealousy or disagreement as to who wore them better. 😉
LikeLike
Yeah… they’re definitely supposed to be the clobbered guy’s legs but it’s awkward regardless. As I mentioned… I think the colorist thought those were Conan’s legs since he colored them accordingly which contributes to it being visually unclear along with the similar boots. There’s just enough info to suss out how it’s supposed to read but it’s a funny one regardless.
On a separate note: I don’t think I ever purchased a Conan comic other than the 1st issue of King Conan (which didn’t grab me) and the pocket version that collected the first 6 issues… that I do remember liking well enough.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve never been that fond of Ernie Chan’s inks, but this issue looks particularly good, and makes me think (as the credits suggest) that John B. did full pencils for the issue. That splash page of the marketplace is really rich in depth and detail, and the faces are terrific, through.
That’s not a nearby vase she’s clobbering Conan with (at an angle you wouldn’t think she could hit him very hard from, but never mind), it’s the jug of hooch he’s been drinking from. So maybe that helped with the unconsciousness.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Big John packed in a lot of stuff in many of those opening Conan pages. The right inker made so much difference. Personally, no one inked his Conan better than himself. My second fave inker for John’s Conan was Bob Camp. I really like Al Williamson’s inks over John Buscema’s drawings in the first “Wolverine” ongoing monthly series. I don’t know if Williamson ever inked any of J.Buscema’s “Conan”, but I’d be really surprised if it wouldn’t have looked amazing. And Klaus Janson inking John’s drawings on anything, but definitely “Kull”, and the “Wolverine” feature in “Marvel Comics Presents”.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think Conan getting knocked out with his booze bottle is a pretty effective bit. A) He’s clearly staggering when he shuts the door, and B) in a Marvel Comic a sucker punch to the back of the head always gets a knockout.* The impact shot is way less smooth than the setup and the aftermath.
*has it never?
LikeLike
“was simply stronger and tougher than anybody he came up against”
I think it’s the toughness that makes him work. In his debut story, “Phoenix on the Sword,” the climax has King Conan wounded, surrounded, outnumbered and knowing none of his guardsmen can get to him. He pulls himself up, snarls “Who dies first?” and does his best to make sure it’s them,
I don’t see him as a bully. He might steal from someone weak but he’d steal from someone tough and dangerous just as willingly. As Poul Anderson said, he was probably a good king because a)he recognizes the idea of having “enough” and isn’t going to squeeze people so he can have “more.” b)he’ll hire good administrators for the boring but important parts of running the kingdom.
LikeLike
I think Conan in comics of this era has a similar problem to The Punisher – being a character from the “men’s adventure” genre who doesn’t fit well into the constraints of the comics hero. These characters don’t have any code against killing, in fact they aren’t even bothered by the idea of immediately attempting to use deadly force on villians who attack them. This tends to make them be perceived as “bad guys” in a context where a hero is expected never to kill under any circumstances.
LikeLike
I don’t have a problem with that in the Hyborian Age. It was a little shocking in that one what if where Conan winds up in the present and applies similar policies.
LikeLike
Conan left me cold and Roy Thomas was hit or miss for (until the end of his DC days when he hit miss nd stayed there) so it was buscema who had me coming back when I had extra coins. Not that I recall how I got them since I bough a lot. Chua never appealed to me but no one could diminish Big John’s strengths so that was no big.
LikeLike
Never understood the attraction of Conan. I was already not big on the character and then I discovered the “Mad Lib” novels, where they changed non Conan Howard stories into one by changing names and places. Completely turned me off the character by exposing how simply they were written.
LikeLike
I was a teenager in the 1970’s and Conan (and Conan/REH related comics/mags) was one of my favorite titles along with the Warren Mags (Creepy, Eerie, Vampirella, and The Spirit), E-Man, National Lampoon (with the incredible Vaughn Bode, Shary Flenniken, and Jeff Jones), Heavy Metal (MOEBIUS!!!), Byron Priess produced items, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko comics, and Vaughn Bode and Richard Corben underground comix. Howard Chaykin, Jim Starlin’s Warlock and The Legion of Super-Heroes under Cary Bates and Jim Shooter were also in my must buys.
I started with Conan on issue #12 and was hooked from the start. I loved the Barry Windsor-Smith art and Roy Thomas was always one of my favorite writers (still is). My grandmother had a couple of the Lancer Conan volumes as well as the King Kull PB that I discovered on her farm shortly after and I became a huge Robert E. Howard fan from that point on. Stories like “Tower of the Elephant”, “Red Nails”, and “Beyond the Black River” shine like polished gems.
I now only buy one current comic, Love and Rockets, and any new Nexus volumes as they are released. I find much more enjoyment in spending my time reading prose by folks like J.R.R Tolkien, Roger Zelazny, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, Frank Herbert, Jack Vance, Clark Ashton Smith Leigh Brackett, Catherine Moore, Alfred Bester, Michael Moorcock, and Fritz Leiber. If they still produced comics as good as this issue of Conan I would still be buying.
Anyway, I do love these looking back articles on old comics that you write and thank you for taking the time to share with all of us. Take care and best wishes.
LikeLike
I didn’t collect Conan comics back then either, but I had friends/classmates who did and they were more akin to what eventually became known as “D&D nerds” rather than muscular jocks. These kids were simply attracted to stories featuring wizards and dragons rather than spaceships and rayguns, and trust me, they were bullied by our school’s big bruisers just as much as those of us who read Superman and Spider-Man.
LikeLike