The Chronicles of Conan, Volume 14: Shadow of the Beast

The Chronicles of Conan

by Roy Thomas, John Buscema (Artist)

Conan faces his most arduous adventure yet as he matches his wits and brawn against the very forces of nature itself - no small task, even for a man who's done battle with wizards, otherworldly beasts, and ancient gods. But will the strength of steel really be enough against such powers? All this plus the tenth anniversary story by Roy Thomas and John Buscema, this volume marks the end of an era - collecting the final issues of Roy Thomas's celebrated run on Conan the Barbarian. Featuring completely re-mastered color, this volume is a must for fans of classic sword and sorcery

Genres: Comics, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Sword and Sorcery

160 pages, Paperback

First published March 18, 2008

About the author

Roy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.

Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.

Reviews

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume wrapped up the initial run of Roy Thomas, who wrote the book for ten years straight. I enjoyed this volume, but for a few reasons it wasn't quite as good as most of the previous. Here are a few reasons why: Conan wearing bat ears, a talking dog, and Red Sonja's Hyborian Perm. John Buscema's original drawings of Red Sonja with her flowing red hair made her look absolutely gorgeous, but this new hairstyle made her look like a different person. Also, I can't see Conan ever considering trading the life of Red Sonja to bring back Belit, even knowing how much she meant to him. (You'll need to read the volume to get specifics of what I mean.) Other than the mentioned issues the story and art were great, and I am still loving this series.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found Roy Thomas' last written Conan works ( for a while at least comic book-wise ) pretty entertaining with a decade of writing Conan under his belt and moving onto DC. This volume opens with Conan and Diana getting to know each other better and coming upon the man-eaters of Darfar in a story titled "The Moon-eaters of Darfar" so as not to offend young children and parents. They are joined in a fight with the man-eaters by previous Conan antagonist Thutmekri and his band which also includes minor Stygian wizard in the Peter Lorrie-like role, Erfu. It is decided that Conan and Erfu submit to the man-eaters so the others can escape with their lives intact. The two eventually escape and head to Sukhmet to retrieve Diana from Thutmekri, but find she prefers instead to stay with the cad and Conan and Erfu leave.
Next is the 4 part "Sons of the Bear God" storyline which Thomas adapts from a Norvell W. Page novel of the same name with hero Prestor John in the role that Conan occupies. Thomas had prior adapted Page's "Flame Winds" novel completing those adaptations to Conan lore. I always liked this odd storyline of dwarves, bear ear accessories, an army of complacent Aesgaardians, and a deceptive duo to boot.
"A Devil in the Family" and "The Shadow of the Beast" follow. Neither did too much for me as Conan yarns. The first serves to get Erfu off the board without having him killed by having him decide to travel with a woman and her half-breed son and the second is a rather silly tale involving a wizard, his pet mastiff, and the inevitable haunted tower. Very cookie cutter Conan saved by the terrific Buscema/Chan artwork.
The final story and more or less the gem of the book is "A War of Wizards" which is Thomas' last tale for a bit so he throws everything into it from a call back to wizard Zukala requesting Conan's assistance in bring priest Karanthes to him and Conan's initial refusal to meeting Red Sonja who is also looking to join King Sumuabi's army for employment. The two even have a short skirmish ending with Conan notching a win and the spoils of Red Sonja herself. He decides not to deflower her and storms off having enough of Sonja's chiding over Belit. Sonja herself was not aware of Belit's death and feels bad about her actions, but the barbarian is gone by this time. Drunk and at wits end Conan decides to take Zukala up on his offer to bring Karanthes to him in trade for Belit's promised resurrection by the wizard. Sonja intervenes at Karanthes palace, but Conan nonetheless takes a knocked out Sonja and the priest to Zukala's Lovecraftian abode. Another call-back in the form of demon Jaggta-Noga who is summoned by Zukala occurs and Karanthes is the one who takes out the demon not Conan. Conan does end up beheading Zukala and Karanthes explains that Belit would have come back had Conan given Sonja's life for hers but that she would have been undead and nowhere near the original Belit. Sonja departs and Conan grabs Karanthes as the tower crumbles. What is it with crumbling towers in fantasy ? Conan rides off and so does Thomas with his Conan the Barbarian writing duties.
A decent enough collection. No where near prior volumes, but still worth of the time and effort. I remember buying these issues off the spinner rack at the time each and every month and after reading #115 feeling totally unsure how the book was going to proceed without Roy Thomas writing it. I found out 30 days later.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Sword Crunching! :D Action and Adventure! :D Brilliant Crisp High Five Review to Come! :D

[Will Hoover · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 14th volume of Darkhorse Comics' The Chronicles of Conan is actually a bittersweet farewell to the first full decade of Conan stories penned by legendary Marvel Comics scribe, Roy Thomas. Other than Robert E. Howard, the creator of the Conan character, Thomas has probably written or adapted more stories about perhaps THE most famous brawny hero in the history of the Sword and Sorcery genre than any other author to date.

One can only assume, therefore, that a gradual decline in the overall quality of Conan the Barbarian stories is sure to begin in Volume 15 of the series. Although it probably really is a good thing that Roy Thomas did finally defect to DC Comics at this particular stage in the history of the periodical, because even though Thomas rarely (if ever) offered up a poorly conceived or adapted story about everyone's favorite Hyborian Age barbarian, his stories did, arguably, start to slip just a bit towards the end of that first ten year run.

Again, my own opinion in the matter is definitely arguable, given that many readers really seem to appreciate the extended period of the comic series which featured Conan's much longer than usual relationship with his beloved pirate captain/queen, Bêlit, the vaunted warrior "goddess" who commanded a crew of black African corsairs who, along with Conan serving as first mate (literally, being that he was Bêlit's one true love) mostly just traipsed up and down the Black Coast of Africa, looking for Stygian (Robert E.Howard's Hyborian Age code-name for Egyptian) sailing ships to attack and loot.

Which was all fine and dandy, of course, given the backstory provided, which conveniently established the fact that Bêlit was actually the disenfranchised daughter of a Shemitish King whose realm had been usurped by the greedy, power-hungry Stygians who replaced her unfortunate father with a wicked puppet ruler in a daring palace coup. Only with the aid of Belit's black African mentor and surrogate father figure, was she able to escape this calamitous affair when she was still but a child. And that, of course, later gave Conan's fierce lover all the reason in the world she needed to continually seek revenge aboard her pirate ship, the Tigress, by slaughtering almost every Stygian she and her black corsairs happened to encounter on the high seas.

And of course, this relatively lengthy period in the legendary life of Conan is definitely REH certified, because the famed barbarian's creator did establish in his early 20th century pulp magazine stories that Bêlit had once played a very important part in the buccaneer era of the hero's life, but I for one really didn't get nearly as much enjoyment out of those issues as I usually do when reading his more numerous solo adventures, which take place both before and after his somewhat tortuously long romance with Bêlit. No, it wasn't that the raven-haired beauty wasn't especially easy on the old eyes. In fact, John Buscema, who, next to Barry Windsor-Smith, was the artist who penciled more issues of Conan than any other in the series' initial ten year run, always did an outstanding job of depicting the vengeful warrior "goddess."

And no, it's not that almost all of the stories from that particular part of Conan's life take place in and around the continent of Africa, and therefore feature mostly black African tribesmen characters and the like, but rather that I for one think that Conan tends to get into much more exciting and interesting adventures when he isn't tied down. And not necessarily tied down to a single woman, mind you, but when he's not stuck on board a ship for literally years at a time. Not to mention the fact that, when I really want to read about the amazing adventures of a "bronze skinned" (aka, suntanned) non-African hero and his mate who lord over a bunch of African tribesmen, I usually prefer to just go back to the original source material; the adventures of Edgar Rice Burroughs's Tarzan.

And that's not to say that Roy Thomas committed any sort of literary blasphemy when he not only had the Conan character do battle with the Hyborian Age equivalent of Tarzan within the pages of the comic, but our brazen barbarian even ended up taking the place of the much revered Hyborian Age jungle lord after besting him in combat, and then even inheriting his mystical African sobriquet, "Amra." Because admittedly, all of this had already been more or less established (or at least hinted at) by Conan's creator before writer Roy Thomas was ever even born.

What's more, fellow Missouri native, Mr. Thomas, handled that entire period in Conan's life extremely well in most respects. This particular reader simply didn't get near as much enjoyment from the Marvel Comics run of Bêlit-centric stories as I tend to get when the barbarian periodically runs into other interesting young ladies, or even and especially his true equal, the one and only Red Sonja. Who, by the way was only loosely based on REH's own Red Sonya (the girl whose name was spelled with a Y, not a J), the character who didn't even live in Howard's long lost Hyborian Age, but much, much later, during the 16th century. And sometimes I think I actually like Red Sonja even more than I like Conan himself. And for that I definitely have one of my all time favorite authors to thank for creating her; the one and only Roy Thomas.

So, a very big NO, and a polite sorry (but certainly not very sorry at all) to the current crop of "political correctness" obsessed folks who simply cannot stand to read classic literature anymore without pronouncing judgment over anything contained therein that may not necessarily jive with current socially acceptable norms.

As if... this entire, newfangled social trend towards labeling everything and everyone alive as either "racist" or "sexist" were actually the fiery mandate, the first and foremost commandment even, of some sort of all new and improved "social justice" deity, some immortal Marxist spirit in the sky that miraculously emerges from the dramatically parting clouds to summarily strike down any and all socially insensitive sinners who might even so much as DARE to read, enjoy, and even HIGHLY RATE and RECOMMEND books and comics that were actually written long before all this vicious fear-mongering ever got started in the first place!

Because, honestly, Roy Thomas and REH's most famous hero, Conan the Barbarian, are in no way, shape, or form unnecessarily "racist" or negative in their depiction of any group of people from any particular part of the ancient world. Oh sure, there are all the usual tropes on display in the Hyborian Age which readily represent the prehistoric versions of Egyptians, Arabs, African tribesmen, Asians, Norsemen, and the like, but in most cases, only some representatives of those ethnic groups and/or regions are depicted as particularly bad.

In fact, many of the Stygians and Africans that Conan encounters are either not so bad, or they are actually downright really, really good people - such as the aforementioned elder black man who saved Bêlit's life when she was a defenseless child. Likewise, the fair-haired Nordic characters that Conan encounters are only sometimes good people, too. Only a few are really rotten people, and there is almost always some solid, plot-driven reason for them being the nasty people they eventually turn out to be.

But... unfortunately, if, in this sad age we now live in, where so many folks are hawkishly ever on the lookout for something or someone to scream BLUE BLOODY HERESY about, there actually is a race of dwarfs in one story arc in this collected edition of The Chronicles of Conan who really are up to just plain no good. But really, it's just THE LEADERS of the city of dwarves who are actually bad guys, as we end up learning later on in the story.

You know, like how we don't hate all North Koreans, but we (hopefully) recognize that Kim Jong-Un isn't necessarily the best sort of guy. And sorry (NOT SORRY), but he doesn't automatically get let off the hook just because he's not a white male, and actually looks rather pathetic, given that he's morbidly obese and walks with a pronounced gimpy shuffle. Also, PSST! Kim's people are pretty much all Asian too, but that doesn't stop him from lording over them, or from periodically firing test missiles over the fearful heads of his naturally none too appreciative Japanese neighbors either. But hey! "Fatty Kim III" (as he is colloquially known in neighboring China) is quite the champion of "socialism," and he's not even a dreaded "old white male," to boot. But then... isn't it kind of... you know... "RACIST" to constantly, obsessively be keeping a running tab of everyone's race, sex, sexual orientation, nationality, ethnic origin, AND political persuasion like that? Guess it takes one to accuse one, eh?

Ahem.

But yeah... Conan does, reluctantly of course, end up having to dispatch many of the aforementioned dwarf warriors with his mighty sword, but... come on, people! IT'S ALL FICTION. And it's REALLY GOOD FICTION, too. Besides, to make all the folks who may happen to be of markedly diminutive stature hopefully feel just a bit better, after dispatching the shorter than average people in the four part story about the giant Bear God worshiped by the little people (a story that wasn't even originally penned by REH, but was a book by one the many writers who tried to cash in on the success of Conan, and which Roy Thomas merely cleverly adapted and fashioned into four issues of the comic series), our hero then, later on, takes up with a rather "height challenged" Middle Eastern fellow who eventually turns out to be the real hero who saves the day when even the brawny barbarian himself is all but beaten by a demonic entity! And to think, before that, I thought Conan was unnecessarily prejudiced against wizards and any old cut-rate magic user. Huh.

So, come on! RELAX, folks. Because life is really short, you know.

Too short, one would tend to think, to continually wax so INQUISITIONAL when it comes to literature that was written well before the current witch hunt mentality to label everything and anything under the sun automatically "racist" or "sexist." Sorry, kids, but Conan's NEITHER racist OR sexist. Roy Thomas isn't inherently racist or sexist either. Heck! He even went to the trouble to create a black African hero (Zula) who never even appeared in REH's Conan stories, and who ends up fighting alongside the barbarian for several issues. And perhaps most important of all, Robert E. Howard wasn't especially racist or sexist either. Like all of us, he was merely a product of his times. And doggonit, the man really loved his mother, too! Eh! Look it up, all you holier-than-thou smarty-pants people. Look it up.

Sorry if any of the above disappoints anyone thirsting for the blood of any and all pseudo-miscreants who would dare desecrate the precepts of a whole "new" age of would-be do-gooders, but... that's just the way it REALLY is in the Real World, see. You know, all the places that exist well beyond the hallowed halls of Marxist theory fueled academia, the cloistered, pampered, elite mansions up in the lofty heights of the Hollywood Hills, and the media-driven propaganda factories, ever working feverishly to churn out Fake News to make everybody get as outraged as they possibly can on a daily basis. Because there WILL be something new to be upset about tomorrow, you know. Of course there will be, silly!

Psst! That's just how the "modern" outrage mob craze works, you know.

Okay... yeah, yeah, the word "wench" can be found more than a few times in the pages of a classic Conan book (though I think it's much more interesting that SOMEBODY or other within the pages of Thomas's interpretation of Conan is always calling someone else a "dog"), and when our barbarian hero encounters individuals with particularly obvious physical characteristics, he does tend to make no bones about it. But by the same token, when various characters meet up with him, they also tend to call him "black mane," "north born," or "bronze skin," all terms that really do accurately describe his immediately discernible outward appearance. Yet in most cases, despite being a certified "barbarian," Conan tends to be extremely kind to women. In fact, what really gets the big guy in trouble most often is that he tends to lose his mind and start swinging a sword (or his fists) when he sees any woman (or any defenseless person) being bullied or otherwise mistreated.

Therefore, my advice is to just read your books and other assorted media, including this wonderful 14th volume of The Chronicles of Conan lovingly produced by Darkhorse Comics, and just RELAX, and enjoy the ride. WITHOUT, that is, being unnecessarily JUDGMENTAL about all the literally hundreds of thousands of human generations that have come before little old you and me. Who knows, we might all even learn something from our wise forebears, and the way they thought and lived in their own times. Just maybe. Yeah... yeah, I really do think.

[Drew Canole · Rating 2 out of 5]

Contains issues 108-115.

Much of it is an adaption of the novel "Sons of the Bear God" by Norvell W. Page which wasn't the best... I think the novel is just in the style of Conan. Adapting a novel just lets Roy Thomas get away with a lot of descriptive language - I assume just pulled from the original text.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

This edition has a very nice Jeffrey Catherine Jones cover artwork.

[Jim Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sort of sad to get to the end of Roy Thomas' involvement with the series (for ten years or so at least).

[Emre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kılıç, büyü, fantezi yazıları

Bu seriyi okurken kapılıp gidiyorum her defasında. İçine çekiyor. Unutulmuş zamanlarda, teknolojinin ne olduğu bile bilinmeyen, ilkel ama kaliteli insanların olduğu, büyücüsünden şeytanına, hilkat garibelerinden adını sanını bile duymadığınız yaratıklara her şeyin karşınıza çıkabileceği bir dünya burası!

Conan hayatına Belit olmadan devam etmek zorundadır. Onun yokluğunu kabul etse de bir insan olduğu için anıların daha geç öldüğünü bilmektedir. Şehirden şehre yolculuk yaparken ayı ile savaştığını görüyoruz. Tanrılaştırılmış bir ayı. Cücelerin bilinmez oyunları ile dolu! Conan yayına büyücü Efru almıştı. İlk defa bir büyücü ile yolculuk ettiğini gördüm. Bu büyücü diğerlerine göre daha makul biriydi. Conan burada eski arkadaşlarının bile cüce krala ve ayıya hizmet ettiğini görünce sebebini öğrenene kadar işin peşini bırakmadı.

Hikayenin son sayısında Red Sonya konuk oluyor. 10. yılına özel bir sayı çizilmiş. Red Sonya kılıcını hiçbir erkek karşısında indirmeyen, kızıl saçlı bir savaşçı kadındır. Çağının aksine tüm erkekleri yere serecek kadar ustalaşmıştır. Conan eski arkadaşlardan birinin görmenin keyfini yaşasa da uzun sürmüyor. Zukala isimli bir büyücü ona Akkharia'ya gitmemesini söyler. (Ona ruh gibi yeşil bir renkte bulutumsu gözükür) Conan'ı yaşadığı Ghaza şehrini çağırır. Başka bir büyücüyü ona getirmesini ister. 1 yıl önce Belit'in tekrar hayata döndürüleceği yalanı ile aklını bulandırılır. Sonya'yı görünce de Belit aklına daha fazla gelince büyücüyü alıp ona götürür. Hatta kadın ruhu için Sonya'yı da kurban etmek istese de Conan gerçek kimliğinin bunları kabul etmeyeceğini anlayarak büyücünün kafasını uçurur. Keza büyücü-rahip- Karanthes(öldürülmek istenen büyücü) işe biraz oyun katmıştır ve rakibini kolayca alt etmiştir. Conan gariplikler içinde yolculuğuna devam ederken Red Sonya kendi yoluna gitmeyi tercih etmiştir. Belit ise olması gerektiği gibi ölü kalmıştır. Geri gelen ölüler gittiği gibi olmazlar!

[Timo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mysterious fun. High on conspiracy and finally the death of Belit hit Conan at least a bit. But it would not be Conan, if he would grief too long. Just a bit.