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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 2, 2016 13:10:13 GMT -5
SSoC #176 ------------- (The second death)Script by Charles Dixon Art by Flint Henry I first saw the art of Henry in a trio of detective comics issues; it was pretty cool, with something of a surreal Basil Wolverton feel to it... very appropriate for a horror story. And that's we have here, in an extremely Lovecraftian tale in which the Cimmerian meets another grisly fate!!! Conan, now a pirate, has once again lost a ship and is adrift in a lifeboat filled with corpses. Seven days lost at sea, on waters where dwell sharks and (apparently) tritons carrying barbed spears. Half mad with thirst, he finally reaches a port somewhere in Argos or Shem. Fog and depressing atmosphere make it look like a Hyborian age version of Innsmouth. As the Cimmerian makes his way to a gloomy tavern, you can almost hear the fish men song playing in the background (though in a much more sinister key). A waitress explains that things have been going poorly for a while, with something having chased the fish away and dread hovering over the place. (Damn, we could be in the Stuart Gordon film Dagon! (And in fact, we do meet a god named Dagon in this story). The girl and Conan spend part of the night together, until they are attacked in their bed by a horde of fish creatures! Conan kills the ones who oppose him, but while he’s preparing a Hyborian bouillabaisse, some of the monsters escape with the girl. The Cimmerian tracks them to a subterranean templ close to the sea, where in a great hall surrounding a deep pool, zombified people are chanting the name of Dagon. The girl is to be sacrificed to the deity, apparently! Dagon shows up in all its malefic appearance, and Conan tries to kill it according to his usual modus operandi. Well, perhaps it’s usually true that "if something can be cut, it can bleed" but in this case the Cimmerian’s courage isn't enough : a tentacle pokes a hole in his forehead, turning him into one of the mindless slaves of Dagon. Living death! A fate as terrible as can be for the freedom loving barbarian!!!
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 2, 2016 13:11:47 GMT -5
SSoC #176 ------------- (The third death)Art by Timothy Truman Well, well, look who we have here! None other than Tim Truman, who would later become the main writer of the Conan series at Dark Horse, as well as illustrate more than a few more tales! In this third doom-heralding scenario, Conan is the survivor of another bloody massacre. Waking to the sound of scavengers picking up what they can from the dead soldiers, he grows irate when he sees the ghouls actually feasting on the flesh of his brothers in arms as well as his enemies. Taking them on, he falls to superior numbers (uh! When does that ever happen?) and is speared and decapitated. Oh, what an inglorious but realistic fate once again! His three stories told, the wizard now prepares tor reveal Conan's fourth fate, picking the fateful fourth card from his magical tarot deck. However, he took so long with his cruel game that his spell's hold on the Cimmerian has had time to weaken! Managing to move one of his arms, Conan throws his dagger and kills his opponent. Upon death, the wizard’s body releases the spirits of a thousand unholy pacts, a maelstrom of angry spirits who briefly consider taking Conan with them but then decide to move on, since his time hasn’t come yet. Conan picks up the final card and looks at it… erupting with laughter! The card shows not a grisly fate at all... but a king!!! All in all, an excellent issue of Savage sword of Conan. Highly recommended, and it can be had for five bucks on Ebay! (Well, there's the shipping costs as well... but it's not a rare or expensive issue). Notes : - The prism of Khorshemish is a jewel of great magical power, and is the fortune stone of the capital of Koth. Apparently its owners had no idea of its might, and declined the wizard’s offer of power and wealth in exchange for it, which led to his stealing it. At the same time, he took the head of the lord of Khorshemish and that of his beautiful daughter. That lord of Khorshemish must be something like a mayor, because it obviously can’t be King Strabonus of Koth, who was alive both before and after this story. It is interesting that the daughter of the lord is hown as having African features, as did another Kothic lord met in Conan the barbarian : King Maddoc II of El Shah Maddoc. Koth, a Hyborian kingdom, is also a place where different cultures meet; eastern and southern influences and mingling are to be expected. - Dagon is shown here as a tentacled sea creature. Earlier in CtB #66, Dagon was shown as a tall black man. That partocular version might have been an alternate vision of the Shemite sea god Dagon, just as Derketa (Bêlit’s supposed mother) had also come from Shem, where her name was Derketo.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,042
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Post by Confessor on Apr 2, 2016 22:27:57 GMT -5
Cover by Earl Norem, illustrating this month's story. I like that cover a lot. I mainly know Norem for the equally beautiful painted cover that he did for Marvel Illustrated Books: Star Wars - World of Fire.
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Post by foxley on Apr 3, 2016 1:54:42 GMT -5
Savage sword of Conan #176, August 1990 Cover by Earl Norem, illustrating this month's story. Table of contents The three deaths of Conan, in which the stalwart Cimmerian dies! Not once, but three times! Pinup gallery by James Fletcher, with pictures such as this one, which I can’t quite link to a REH story. It still looks very fine. That pin-up looks like it might be a scene from one of REH's crusader tales, but it's been too long since I read them for me to say for sure.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 3, 2016 10:09:48 GMT -5
Savage sword of Conan #177, September 1990 Cover by Ovi. Conan still needs to eat more fiber! Table of contentsWell of whispers, in which Conan meets a character I wish we’d seen more of. King Kull, a portfolio by Carr and Williamson. Revenge of the Red Brotherhood, a Valeria adventure. The ties that bind, a short King Conan tale. Ernie Chan portfolio, several pages by the prolific artist. Many tales, but none of them has that bland “inventory story” feel. This is a well-rounded issue reminding me of the early years of the mag.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 3, 2016 10:15:41 GMT -5
SSoC #177 ------------- Well of whispersStory by Chuck Dixon Art by Luke McDonnell and Tony DeZuniga Luke McDonnell is an artist whose work I quite enjoy. I wasn’t that thrilled by his early Iron Man pages, which I thought weren’t up to the Romita Jr./Layton work that preceded them… but once McDonnell started developing a more stylized approach in books like Dreadstar or Suicide Squad, I became a fan. He has a great control of the human anatomy and gives his pages a convincing depth. It is maybe unfortunate that he is paired with DeZuniga here, because Tony’s strong inking style tends to overwhelm any penciler’s work and is more realistic than stylized (I had the same reservation about pairing Ernie Colon and Tony on Arak, son of thunder)… but nevertheless, the team delivers an enjoyable story. The story introduces a resourceful and determined dancer named Daria, the kind of character who steals the show and fairly demands another appearance! Alas, unless memory fails, I think this is the only time we see her in Savage sword. Great creation by Dixon, here. Shadizar the wicked is the capital of the eastern country of Zamora, and if we judge by the splash page it is also the twin of the monastery of Mount Saint-Michel in France. Captions tell us that the city is pretty much lawless, unless one excepts the rules of different criminal guilds: the guild of assassins and guild of thieves, among others. This works in the story, but contradicts Howard’s own words on the political situation of the country: Ali Achmed Kharri of the house of Tannimahr, a clan of thieves, is a man who enjoys a good time. As we begin, he is applauding the work of a professional dancer, Daria, who gracefully acknowledges the praise the rich man is lavishing on her. She changes her mind when Ali makes clear that he next wants to have sex with her. She protests that she’s not a prostitute and has to defend herself against the groping thief lord. You go, girl!!! Well done!!! It’s a good thing that the woman can take care of herself, for just as Ali manages to get back on his feet, a cadre of masked murderers bursts into the room, intent on slaying him. Ali is promptly killed, but Daria elbows one killer in the face and claws one across the face, tearing away his hood. She then succeeds in running across rooftops, leaving her pursuers behind. As she vanishes into the night the slayers’ leader, his face now badly bleeding, states that he has eyes all across the city and that the dancer must be found and killed because she has seen his face and could recognize him. Daria realizes that she finds herself in the midst of a dangerous political play, and ponders what to do next. (Notice the excellent work by McDonnell here. That’s a very natural and elegant pose). Daria walks into a bar where a certain Cimmerian in wrestling a Turanian for a fat purse, to the delight of the onlookers. Daria decides that the bull-necked youth would be a suitable protector (“Big. Savage. And, she thinks, stupid. He is everything she needs”). It is not difficult for her to attract the Cimmerian’s eye, and she asks him to accompany her to the House of Tannimahr, where she hopes to signal the murder of Ali Achmed Kharri by individuals she assumes are members of the guild of assassins. The House of Tannimahr might offer her protection in exchange for the information, and perhaps even give some monetary reward to Conan. It doesn’t take long for the pair to be attacked, and although Conan dispatches five opponents with relative ease, he realizes that he’s been tricked into a more dangerous mission that he’d been led to believe. At the House of Tannimahr, a bad surprise awaits Daria : the high ranking family member she meets, Nehmed, is the very man who directed Ali’s murder, his face still bearing the fresh wounds her nails inflicted! Nehmed has Daria secured, and Conan captured as well. The elderly Bakii, who outranks Nehmed, arrives at this moment and is informed of Ali’s death. The wise old man reflects that this event now makes him next in line to succeed the sheik of House Tannimahr, while Nehmed is right next to him. Since Bakii is old, Nehmed is then due to become Sheik pretty soon. Nehmed pretends not to have thought about that, and he insists that Daria and Conan must be agents of the guild of assassins. The Cimmerian, ever resourceful, manages to escape his guards before they have time to take him to the house’s dungeons. Feeling protective despite his earlier harsh words, Conan searches the place until he finds Daria, whom Nehmed intends to torture because he’s a sick bastard. Conan interrupts the proceedings and skewers several of Nehmed’s men, all wearing the same hoods as the guys who murdered Ali earlier. Daria and Conan give a good account of themselves but would eventually fall to superior numbers… until old Bakii shows up with more Tannimahr guards, drawn by all the tumult. The newcomers have to wonder why Nehmed’s own men are dressed like members of the guild of assassins, and Bakii must decide whether he trusts the version of events given by Nehmed more than the verison given by Daria. Bakii renders a sound judgement, and the fate of Nehmed is not a pretty one! Conan and Daria are let free, and when she asks Conan if he will warm her bed Conan promises to set it afire. A good, simple story that I enjoyed very much!
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 3, 2016 10:19:44 GMT -5
SSoC #177 ------------- Robert E. Howard’s King KullA portfolio by Steve Carr and Al Williamson, illustrating a few excerpts from Howard’s Kull stories. I still find Carr and Williamson’s art a bit stiff, but it’s still nice to look at. The revenge of the Red BrotherhoodStory by S. C. Ringgenberg and M. J. Jorgensen Art by M. J. Jorgensen Oooh, this kind of story is hard to judge fairly… on the one hand, it’s a honest and even enthusiastic adventure, and it’s starring Valeria, one of my favourite Howard creations. On the other hand, like the team’s earlier Pict story, it’s got the kind of errors that make me grind my teeth. So let’s just look at it the way a trial is held on Barsoom, mixing the good and the bad. Valeria is once again a pirate, first mate of the ship Eryx, which is moored in the sea port of Baqqa on the coast of Zimbabwe, where her crew has been hired to defend the city against bandits. Right there I have a problem. It’s not Zimbabwe, it’s Zembabwei! Zimbabwe is a real country (and a landlocked one, at that!!!) that inspired the Howardian imaginary kingdom of Zembabwei. I'll forgive its having sea ports, becausee while the Howard map showed it as being landlocked too, some fan maps and the extended one Marvel produced do place it on the eastern side of Africa, facing the Indian ocean. But wherever it’s placed, Zembabwei is clearly an African kingdom; here, its denizens are all shown as being milky white or oriental! Valeria and her crew push back the bandits attacking Baqqa, but are then locked outside its walls. The citizens apparently don’t want to let the victorious pirates back in town, for fear that they might turn on their patrons. What’s more, is it really necessary to pay them? A flight of arrows sends the pirates running into the forest (their ship being occupied by soldiers from Baqqa). Regrouping, the pirates ponder what to do next. That’s when we learn that Valeria, very uncharacteristically, is the lover of the ship’s captain, the slightly dumb Rovik. What in Crom’s name??? Is this the promiscuous Valeria written by Chuck Dixon? Is this tale set after Valeria abandoned her ambition of living her life as any other male sailor? Remember, it’s precisely because a captain wanted her to share his bed that she jumped ship just prior to the story Red Nails. Anyway… Valeria has an idea : take over the dam that controls the river flowing through Baqqa. Without water, the citizens would have to come to terms with the pirates. Taking the dam proves easy, but then Captain Rovik decides he also wants to sneak into town and appropriate Baqqa’s treasure. He slips into town with several of the surviving pirates, against Valeria’s advice. The pirates were expected, and the band is trapped in a house that’s set on fire. The ten last pirates who remained with Valeria thirst for revenge and conceive of another plan : they will close the dam, let the water build up in its reservoir, and then let a tidal wave innundate Baqqa. At the same time, they will send a few men recover their ship, which should ride out the deluge. The plan works; Baqqa is flooded and the Eryx sails free, its crew mostrly dead, but not forgotten. The ties that bindScript by Renée Witterstaetter Art by Ernie Chan A cute tale in which a tired King Conan falls alseep on his throne at the end of a long and boring day of kinging it. He dreams of his adventurous youth, seeing himself attacked from all parts by annoying dwarves; he then wakes up, finding himself surrounded and “captured” by children; they are young prince Conn and his friends, playing at being warriors trapping a giant. Conan hugs his son, admitting that he loves his life despite the boredom of his duties.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 9, 2016 13:55:51 GMT -5
Savage sword of Conan #178, October 1990 Cover by Joe Chiodo Table of contentsPillar of the sky, starring Conan Chains, a Red Sonja adventure.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 9, 2016 14:08:42 GMT -5
SSoC #178 ------------- Pillar of the skyStory by Chuck Dixon Art by Mike Docherty and Ernie Chan Conan has to face a god once again, and all for the meagre promise of a helmet-full of gold. Greed will kill you one day, Cimmerian! The setting in northern Brythunia and Southern Hyperborea. We learn that Nemedia has extended its influence over the northern border of Bythunia, probably by annexing lands from that country or from the Border Kingdom (Nemedia lies due west of Brythunia). Oddly enough, the Brythunian authorities seem to be fine with that... the presence of Nemedian legions in the northern part of their country has reduced the incursions by Hyperborean reavers. When Addelaus (the son of a famous Nemedian general) is captured by Hyperboreans, it is decided to offer a generous reward to anyone who can either free him or bring back the proof of his death. That seems preferable to sending legions into Hyperborea, something that would lead to all out war. Conan is serving incognito as a mercenary for the Nemedians in that region. We learn that this story is set six years after the time he served as a general in that selfsame army, helping defeat the Brythunians (back when he was the lover of Nemedia's empress Auraldia, in SSoC #147). He's now working incognito, given the rather strained relations between him and the authorities when he left the country... When the offer of a reward is made public, Conan is one of the first to decide to chase after the general's son. He and a handful of companions ride into Hyperborea. They are attacked by a band of savages whom they rout, capturing one of them. After some prompting, the wild man tells what he knows: the captured Nemedian was taken by priests of the god Bodisatva, who need him as a sacrifice. Luckily for the pursuers, the sacrifice is part of a complex ritual in which the victim must be willing, as well as covered by ritual scarifications. The time it will take to scar the young man and to break him enough to make him a convert to Bardisattva gives some time to Conan and his men. (The priests are an unsettling sort... called "the silent ones", they sew their mouths shut). The way to Bardisattva's sacred place goes through the territory of other Hyperborean wild tribes. Conan confronts the chief of one, pretending to be hunting mammoth. The Hyperborean doesn't believe a word of it but allows the Cimmerian and his men to pass. The road leads to a spectacular region where tall, slim towers are erected. One of them is so tall that it pierces the clouds. It is atop that tower that the priests reside, and where the sacrifice is to be held. The tower is hollow, its inner walls carved as stairs. Conan and the others start to climb, but their approach is detected by the priests who start unleashing their vicious arsenal against the intruders. First are long steel claws attached to chains that are quickly lowered and raised by means of a winch: several soldiers are impaled or thrown off the stairs. Conan garbs one of the chains and, pulling hard, manages to bring down the winch and the scaffold it was installed on (as well as a few priests). Next are giant blades that can cut a man in two with one stroke. Only Conan's panther-like reflexes allow him and a few comrades to survive the ordeal and reach the top of the tower. There they arrive just in time to stop the sacrifice before it begins: Addelaus is already bound to a big metal circle, waiting for the arrival of the sky god. Conan and his comrades slay priests left and right and cut the bonds of Addelaus, even if the lad tries to remain and be taken by his new-found god. Bardisattva doesn't delay, and shows up among the clouds.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 9, 2016 14:23:14 GMT -5
SSoC #148 ------------- His rescuers run down the stairs with him in tow, as Bardisattva, angry at being denied his sacrifice, tears the top of the tower apart. When Conan knocks out the struggling Addelaus, the god seems to dissipate, his link with our world lost. Reaching the ground at last, our heroes rejoice in having succeeded and in the prospect of the gold that awaits them. But it is actually a bad surprise that waits for them outside the valley of tall towers: the Hyperboreans followed them and are now barring the way. The chief and Conan engage in single combat. While they fight, Addelaus wakes up, stabs the man caring for him and runs back to the valley of Bardisattva. The god reappears when this willing servant returns to his sacred place, and with the help of a thunderbolt he incinerates him. While this is happening, Conan is about to be clubbed to death when his Hyperborean opponent is distracted by the appearance of his own god in the sky; Conan seizes the opportunity and kills him. The Cimmerian and his few surviving comrades realize they will not get the gold after all: all that remains of the lad they were looking for is ashes. They decide that the prudent thing to do is to simply forget about returning to the Nemedian army and find employment elsewhere. Notes: - This story is set in what I'd call "the Charles Dixon Conan universe", which is becoming more and more incompatible with the Marvel-established continuity as far as the timeline goes. This story is set six years after Conan helped conquer part of Brythunia for Nemedia. That previous period in his life was set after he had been a scout for the Aquilonians in Conajohara, which is supposed to have happened when he was 39-ish. This means Conan should be around 45 by now, an age at which he had already been king of Aquilonia for a good long while. - Conan proves to a comrade that he used to be a general by giving him a coin with his own likeness on it. Such a coin was seen before, also establishing that this Conan and that Conan were one and the same. Dixon's timeline might not mesh well with Thomas's, but it is internally consistent. - Empress Auraldia of Nemedia, Conan's once paramour, has been dead for some time. The new Nemedian "emperor" is named Vedalia. - Bardisattva is a new god in the pantheon. Most Hyperboreans worship Bori, the god conan encountered in person in CtB#3. - This is not the first time that Conan is about to be defeated in fair and square battle. Some readers complained about that in the letters section, but I for one am all in favour of it. Conan shouldn't be invincible, or then there's no point in rooting for him! ChainsStory by Sue Flaxman Art by Gavin Curtis and Keith Williams This Red Sonja story starts with Sonja disarming a fellow with whom she was dueling. Considering the rather effeminate way he holds a sword, I'm not all that surprised that the guy lost! He's a good sport in any case: he was trying to defeat Sonja to get a chance at bedding her, but being beaten he makes no excuse and pays what he wagered. Good lad. Notice what Sonja is wearing... If you thought a chainmail bikini must be uncomfortable, just wait until you've tried chainmail yoga pants! Ouch!!! Must be heavy, too. That being said, I much prefer Sonja in a pants & shirt look than in her infamous bikini. The feather she wears attached to an ear looks good, too. Sonja is approached by a certain Kayla, a noblewoman who wants to hire her services. The woman's sister Medora has been sold into marriage by their father, many years prior; that husband has the unpleasant custom of chaining his wife. Kayla wishes Sonja to help Medora escape her unwilling matrimony. Not liking the idea of a woman bearing chains, Sonja accepts. The two women travel to the estate where Medora lives and jump over the walls. Unnecessarily demonic looking dogs attacks them but are dispatched by Sonja. inside the house, both sisters are reunited (and boy! Medora must be wearing twenty pounds of chain)! But after blaming Kayla for having waited so long before coming to her rescue, the chained Medora states that she cannot leave. Right then a few guards show up, the first two carrying nothing more than a knife and asking if everything is all right. Sonja immediately runs them through without even telling them to stand down!!! A third man pulls his own sword after seeing his comrades collapse. Kayla comes at him from the back, stupidly renouncing the surprise effect by claiming "I raise my blade in defense of my sister... and myself!" The last guard strikes Kayla and slays her; he is, in turn, killed by Sonja. Medora's chidlren then show up, explaining why she couldn't leave her forced marriage: she now has a family and wants to care for it. Sonja departs, reflecting that we all carry our own chains and that it's hard to say which life is better. I find that last statement pretty offensive, to be honest. It seems to equate the fate of people forced into unwanted marriages with that of people freely choosing a life of adventure and the discomforts that come with it. Hardly equivalent, as far as I'm concerned! The art isn't bad, but is in need of some maturation. The writer uses completely unnecessary captions on at least two occasions : "Sonja's warrior-trained senses detect a noise from the darkness"... Yep, that's pretty obvious from a close-up of Sonja suddenly looking behind her. "Sonja exercises all of her warrior's caution..." Again, yep, that's pretty obvious since she's tip-toeing across a house she's invading. And what's a "warrior's caution"? How different is it from anyone else's caution?
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Post by Warmonger on Apr 9, 2016 18:31:19 GMT -5
Kinda fell off the Savage Sword wagon once Buscema left, but I have to admit that some of the artwork in these later issues is pretty damn great.
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Post by foxley on Apr 10, 2016 7:54:39 GMT -5
Arguably Sonja could have been referring to the conditions that the Lady laid upon her: the whole cannot lay with a man who has not bested her in combat and all that.
The art on the Sonja looks a bit sketchy for my taste. And I can't say I've ever heard of Gavin Curtis. But I do agree with you about the feather: it's a nice touch and gives her a certain raffish flair.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 10, 2016 10:32:43 GMT -5
Arguably Sonja could have been referring to the conditions that the Lady laid upon her: the whole cannot lay with a man who has not bested her in combat and all that. The art on the Sonja looks a bit sketchy for my taste. And I can't say I've ever heard of Gavin Curtis. But I do agree with you about the feather: it's a nice touch and gives her a certain raffish flair. I'm sure you're right about Sonja referring to her goddess's dictate, but I find Medora's fate far more restrictive. Sonja made a vow of never taking a lover who hasn't first defeated her in battle, but it's her choice to honour that vow or not. Medora doesn't have that luxury, having been essentially sold into matrimony. Her decision not to run away after that is not one that would affect herself only, as there are now children to consider, while Sonja would be the only one face consequences were she to take a lover over her goddess's opposition. And I'm not even getting into what I think of that stupid vow-turned-into-a-magical-curse thing! I much preferred the initial version, in which Sonja had apparently vowed not to take a lover because she wanted to be her own woman. (Though admittedly, that didn't last long).
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 11, 2016 18:25:22 GMT -5
Savage sword of Conan #179, November 1990 Cover by Earl Norem. I don't think we've ever seen (or would ever see again) so many named characters on one cover: Conan, Red Sonja, Valeria, Persephone, Marika, Soraya, Lupara and Kira! Conan should really have someone look at that wound : the man is pissing blood. Acting tough is fine, but one also wants to see the next sunrise, right? I always like a cover featuring a snowy terrain; I just wish, for credibility's sake, that the characters dressed for the weather! Sashes and bikinis look pretty, but they won't protect anyone from frostbite. Table of contentsFury of the iron damsels, in which Conan meets more than a half-dozen she-devils with swords! What dwells below, in which Conan kills a monster.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 11, 2016 18:26:22 GMT -5
SSoC #179 ------------- Fury of the Iron DamselsScript by Chuck Dixon Art by Gary Kwapisz Another fine, fine artistic performance by Kwapisz. The hands he draws may still look a bit odd, but the intricate backgrounds are spectacular! The use of gray tones also add a lot of depth to the pages. A lot of effort went into every page, and it shows! The plot once again involves a merry cast of rogues trying to outwit each other, with a few moments of depth that provide important character development. At the end of SSoC #170, we had left the reticent allies Conan, Red Sonja and Valeria as they were trying to make their way back south after an adventure far, far on the northern ice cap. As the curtain opens on this new story, Valeria manages to bring down a bear that should provide a welcome meal. After congratulating the she-pirate on her skill with a bow, Conan is taken aback when he realizes that the bear is but a cub and that where's there's a cub, there's a mother nearby! Sure enough, the angry parent shows up and proceeds to try and murder her cub's slayers. Sonja is swatted away by a hairy paw and the Cimmerian would in turn be crushed by the animal's embrace were it not for Valeria, sending the beast to join its baby in the ursine afterlife with the help of a well-placed arrow. The recriminations of all involved are cut short by the arrival of an Inuit tribe, the Nain. Conan knows of them, having met their brethren in Cimmeria when he was young. They are a peaceful sort, and he convinces them that he and the two women pose no threat to them. The Nain agree to join in their bear-meat repast. They furthermore agree to take the trio with them on their journey south toward a Vanir town. The Nain are on an important mission : an epidemic has decimated their people, and they need new blood to rejuvenate their population. Accordingly, they are carrying their fertility idol with them on a big sled... a massive statue of solid gold! The Nain are oblivious to the worth of the metal, but such is not the case of the greedy Valeria. Unknown to the peaceful tribe, the Nain are being followed by an armed band of Vanirmen, who are also well aware of what gold is worth. During the trip south, Valeria tries to convince first Conan, then Sonja, to steal the idol. Neither, however, wants anything to do with it; both claim the moral high ground. Arriving at an inn located near a river that's apparently an important commerce waterway, and after weeks of a frigid, lean and uncomfortable ordeal, Conan, Sonja and Valeria eat and drink to their heart's content in a big and rowdy common room. Civilization at last! Or at least it looks like it after so many weeks in the wild. Valeria promises to pay the bill with a pouch of gold she has astutely kept hidden from her comrades, but as Sonja retires to a warm and dry bed and Conan drinks and drinks and drinks some more, the she-pirate decides on a new agenda. She hires two men and their boat, and together they steal the golden idol from the Nain and proceed to sail downriver. Convinced her erstwhile comrades will soon follow her, Valeria is in a hurry to put as much distance as possible between her, Conan and Sonja.
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