Now we rejoin the weary blogger, resuming his quest to justify buying a pretty "rando" stack of older issues from a back issue bin barely one rung above the landfill. What treasures, if any, did he recover? Read on . . .
Conan the Barbarian! By Crom, and whatnot.
I've never been a huge Conan fan. I didn't encounter the movies until I was old enough to laugh at them and I never got absorbed in Howard's literature as a young reader. (I was more into John Carter, tbh) The bit if appreciation I have for the character comes by way of his comic legacy, namely the Marvel run that saw so many legendary artists come into their own doing full-on fantasy stories, and shedding some of the superhero stuff that seemingly hindered them. For guys like John Buscema, methinks, the capes and cowls never fit as will as leather armor or a wolf pelt.
The issue I came across most recently was the ultimate "whim" of a buy. A stark red cover with a rough and tumble image of Conan by Erni Chan front and center stood out like a sunburst amidst the darker Batmans and X-Mens. The interior art is by the aformentioned Buscema, gracefully and powerfully bringing a pot boiler fantasy tale by scripter Michael Fleisher to life. Conan #163 (cover dated October '84) is a neat little one-shot story, with a Twilight Zone or 60's Trek-like twist.
"Cavern of the Vines of Doom" begins with Conan and his one-armed battle buddy Fafnir riding into town and rescuing a "witch" from a mob intent and burning her at the stake. Sexy and submissive, the young would-be witch is little more than a sheath for a man's sword. She brings out the manly urges in Fafnir and beguiles her rescuers with a strange curse. Her true power, and the origin of the "curse" involve a supernatural turn that is a staple in any Conan adventure, and once you read it, my comparing it to Twilight Zone and Star Trek earlier will make much more sense.
The economy of storytelling here is this issue's best feature. Conan and Fafnir have made off with the witch by page four, and by page ten Conan has fought a bear and watched Fafnir bare his soul to the witch. A scant few pages later, an encounter with a group of dopplegangers with a strange connection to the witch leads to some of the most rapid escalation in a comic story this side of the Silver Age. The race of mold people who menace the heroes in the third act are shambling monstrosities that look more like rejects from The Herculoids than traditional Conan beasties. Nevertheless, Conan and Fafnir have a complete "get captured, escape, lead a coup" adventure in 22 perfectly paced pages. No wasted effort here. The veteran storyteller in Buscema shows through, and every single panel moves the story forward. Textbook.
Existing where it did in Marvel's publishing line at the time, that is to say, a little left of center, this comic features some other non-Marvel Universe books in its house ads and Bullpen Bulletins pages. Dreadstar and Dr. Who are suggested reading from the publisher, as if the assumption is that Conan readers demand a deeper fidelity to their comics, and a stronger creative vision.
Other neat little thangs in this time capsule of an issue include: An add for the upcoming Buckaroo Banzai film, 1984 Olympics trading card hype, and a pretty wild Jim Starlin story from editorial that I'm kind of surprised saw print. There are also ads for fantasy novels and roleplaying games books, in greater numbers than you'd usually see advertised in say, Spider-Man or Hulk.
If this is typical of the kind of stuff Marvel published in its various Conan series, I'm down to dip my toe in and try a few more. I love one-shots, and I love fast-paced stories that cut to the chase. If I get over my general disinterest in the character and setting, I'll be good to go.
No comments:
Post a Comment