Conan, Vol. 3: The Tower of the Elephant and Other Stories

Conan: Dark Horse Collection

by Kurt Busiek, Cary Nord (Illustrator)

Eisner award-winning writer Kurt Busiek (JLA/Avengers, Astro City), Eisner award-nominated artist Cary Nord (Daredevil), and Eisner award-winning color artist Dave Stewart (Ultimate Fantastic Four, The New Frontier) continue their groundbreaking run on Dark Horse's best-selling Conan series with an adaptation of one of Robert E. Howard's greatest Conan tales, "The Tower of the Elephant"! Fed up with both civilization and mysticism, Conan travels to the infamous City of Thieves to take out his frustrations. When a bar fight uncovers the legend of the impregnable Tower of the Elephant, he becomes determined to rob it, setting out on a quest unlike any he's undertaken - one that will involve new comrades, sudden death, horrifying creatures, and gruesome unsettling fates for both gods and men.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Sword and Sorcery, Comic Book

168 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2006

About the author

Kurt Busiek is an American comic book writer notable for his work on the Marvels limited series, his own title Astro City, and his four-year run on Avengers.

Busiek did not read comics as a youngster, as his parents disapproved of them. He began to read them regularly around the age of 14, when he picked up a copy of Daredevil #120. This was the first part of a continuity-heavy four-part story arc; Busiek was drawn to the copious history and cross-connections with other series. Throughout high school and college, he and future writer Scott McCloud practiced making comics. During this time, Busiek also had many letters published in comic book letter columns, and originated the theory that the Phoenix was a separate being who had impersonated Jean Grey, and that therefore Grey had not died—a premise which made its way from freelancer to freelancer, and which was eventually used in the comics.

During the last semester of his senior year, Busiek submitted some sample scripts to editor Dick Giordano at DC Comics. None of them sold, but they did get him invitations to pitch other material to DC editors, which led to his first professional work, a back-up story in Green Lantern #162 (Mar. 1983).

Busiek has worked on a number of different titles in his career, including Arrowsmith, The Avengers, Icon, Iron Man, The Liberty Project, Ninjak, The Power Company, Red Tornado, Shockrockets, Superman: Secret Identity, Thunderbolts, Untold Tales of Spider-Man, JLA, and the award-winning Marvels and the Homage Comics title Kurt Busiek's Astro City.

In 1997, Busiek began a stint as writer of Avengers alongside artist George Pérez. Pérez departed from the series in 2000, but Busiek continued as writer for two more years, collaborating with artists Alan Davis, Kieron Dwyer and others. Busiek's tenure culminated with the "Kang Dynasty" storyline. In 2003, Busiek re-teamed with Perez to create the JLA/Avengers limited series.

In 2003, Busiek began a new Conan series for Dark Horse Comics, which he wrote for four years.

In December 2005 Busiek signed a two-year exclusive contract with DC Comics. During DC's Infinite Crisis event, he teamed with Geoff Johns on a "One Year Later" eight-part story arc (called Up, Up and Away) that encompassed both Superman titles. In addition, he began writing the DC title Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis from issues 40-49. Busiek was the writer of Superman for two years, before followed by James Robinson starting from Superman #677. Busiek wrote a 52-issue weekly DC miniseries called Trinity, starring Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. Each issue (except for issue #1) featured a 12-page main story by Busiek, with art by Mark Bagley, and a ten-page backup story co-written by Busiek and Fabian Nicieza, with art from various artists, including Tom Derenick, Mike Norton and Scott McDaniel.

Busiek's work has won him numerous awards in the comics industry, including the Harvey Award for Best Writer in 1998 and the Eisner Award for Best Writer in 1999. In 1994, with Marvels, he won Best Finite Series/Limited Series Eisner Award and the Best Continuing or Limited Series Harvey Award; as well as the Harvey Award for Best Single Issue or Story (for Marvels #4) in 1995. In 1996, with Astro City, Busiek won both the Eisner and Harvey awards for Best New Series. He won the Best Single Issue/Single Story Eisner three years in a row from 1996–1998, as well as in 2004. Busiek won the Best Continuing Series Eisner Award in 1997–1998, as well as the Best Serialized Story award in 1998. In addition, Astro City was awarded the 1996 Best Single Issue or Story Harvey Award, and the 1998 Harvey Award for Best Continuing or Limited Series.

Busiek was given the 1998 and 1999 Comics Buyer's Guide Awards for Favorite Writer, with additional nominations in 1997 and every year from 2000 to 2004. He has also received numerous Squiddy Awards, having been selected as favorite writer four years in a row from 1995 to 1998,

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

"OVERWHELM HIM! DRAG HIM DOWN! KILL HIM! HE'S JUST ONE MAN!" -- first aggressor

"One man? Aye, one man . . . BUT A CIMMERIAN!" -- Conan, quickly besting five assailants

Writer Busiek and artist Nord team up again to present everyone's favorite barbarian in a multi-story collection, which also features two tales that were originally authored by character creator Robert E. Howard. More so than the previous two volumes, this time there's a distinct horror movie vibe with Conan battling four demonic creatures that undoubtedly smelt of the fire and brimstone, a hulking slug-like monster which devours hapless folks in single slurp, and - possibly the most disturbing segment, especially if you have a touch of arachnophobia - a spider that is (to quote actor/director Woody Allen) "the size of a Buick." The best adventure was the extended narrative finale 'The Tower of the Elephant' (one of the two written by Howard), with a determinedly thieving Conan being put through his paces when ascending a fabled gleaming obelisk to pilfer a legendary jewel.

[Edward Gwynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite Howard stories here.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The rules of man and the rules of nature are different and Conan doesn’t like that. He finds the liars and schemers to be more off putting than the lions or raging waters- I love these stories, this is the type of fantasy that I can really get lost in. Imagining myself walking through wilderness and encountering bandits or possibly demons.

The elephant tower is possibly the best Conan story. I have read it a handful of times, the mix of pain and power is just enthralling. Conan actually has a heart!

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite volume of the series so far, mainly due to the Tower of the Elephant adaptation. I think Marvel adapted this story both for its color Conan comic as well as the black and white Savage Sword series. This adaptation wasn't really the best, but it's just one of my personal favorite Conan stories. The other stories are good as well. Dark Horse did a good job with Conan while they had the rights.

[Tomáš Drako · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conan sa nám zase zamotá do riadnych hovadín. A ako vždy, bavil som sa kráľovky.
U poviedky veža zo slonoviny je krásnym dôkazom, aký boli Howard a Lovecraft kamoši.

[Koen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing stories yet again!

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first Dark horse outing with Conan I ever read, and ultimately it's a decent enough book. Each Story needs it's own individual rating in order for this TPB to be fairly judged.

Story number 1: The Horror of Uskath Hill
When we last left our brave barbarian, he had successfully triumphed over Thoth Amon's avatar, told the Bone Woman to piss off, and not only earned a healthy amount of Gold from Kalanthes for all his troubles, but also hooked up with his friends from issue 9, who are heading east into Corinthia. The previous issue ended with Conan proudly declaring that he could now handle anything civilization threw at him. So naturally Conan is promptly proven wrong when his so called friends not only make off with his gold while getting him drunk, but also left him to pay the bill, which is hefty I might add. Conan is understandably pissed, so he takes his anger out on the poor innkeeper, tries to track his friends down, and when that fails, vents his anger on a kid, and than promptly decids to sleep on Uskath hill which is nearby, dismissing warnings that it’s haunted. Sure enough, the townspeople are proven right and Conan finds himself in the fight of his life against four hungry demons who are finally glad to have real food after 200 years of beating each other up to pass the time.

Analysis: One of the common complaints against Howard's creation is that he's a gary stu who does everything perfectly. This story helps put a nail in that coffin admirably. Despite having just come out of a brutal battle with the deadliest dark wizard alive, Conan is still pretty green behind the ears, and has a lot to learn. The fact that he is able to realize that his behavior towards the little boy and the innkeeper shows a more human side that increases his likability. The exposition of how the demons came to be is servicable (Basically there was this mage ingus kutha, who kept sacrificing virgins to fuel magic. Eventually the family's of all these girls had enough, formed an angry mob, and killed the bastard, but not before he was able to partially summon the four demons). The dialogue is a little forced at times, and the way conan triumphs (he finds a dagger that still has Ingus Kutha's essence on it) is sort of contrived, but all in all it's a perfectly good story that easily sets the stage for new adventures.

Story number 2: The City of Thieves

Conan has come to the city of thieves hoping to learn the tricks of the trade. Eventually he finds a contact, who attempts to double cross him. Big mistake. Conan manages to replace the guy as his partner, hooks up with the guy's mistress, and than leaves town to beat the shit out of the innkeeper from the previous issue.

Analysis: Storywise there was nothing terribly wrong. Conan's struggles to make his way in the city, and the difficulties he encountered were very well done. He makes believable mistakes considering that he's from a barbarian tribe that doesn't really teach much about commerce and thieving) and the way he turns the tables on the guy planning to double cross him is awesome, if a little cold. The only problem was the fact that the contact, Raffik, looks a lot like the stereotypical hooked nose jew, which created a lot of unfortunate implications.

Story number 3: The crown of Tiamat

Conan's luck has reversed, and now he's fairly comfortable. He has a steady flow of income, a hot girlfriend....) it seems good. One day, while he and his girlfriend are out they see the high priestess of tiamat parading through the city, as well as the hounds of marduk, hunting for the bastard who stole their god's sacred treasure (hint, it's conan). Conan, deciding that he wants to have sex that night, and realizing that his girlfriend is more open to the idea when given something nice, decides to steal the priestess's crown. On the way out he runs into one of the guys who ripped him off (Jiara), and she persuades him to hear her out. Conan decides to leave her with some money, with the idea being that he will believe her if she doesn't take it. He also leaves the tiara. the girlfriend returns, the monster that comes to reclaim the crown wipes out the guards of marduk, and Conan hooks up with Jiara

analysis: This is sort of problematic. Howard's stories where never entirely palatable by modern standards (the guy grew up in the early 1900s in the deep south, it's kind of expected) but honestly, considering that later writers have at least tried it's irritating to see something so fucking shallow. the first girl, Tianna, is portrayed as a golddigging harlot who will fuck anyone who gives her nice things. Jiara is also a gold digger, who survives only thanks to Tiana arriving and being eaten by the eldritch abomination that came to get the crown. The art's good, but the sexism is kind of egregious.

Story 4: The Tower of the elephant

This story covers multiple issues, and is easily the best in the whole book. Conan decides to raid the tower of the elephant (home to the most evil wizard in the city) and make off with the man's treasure, the heart of the elephant. On the way in, he meets another thief, taurus of nemedia. They form a truce to try and get the jewel, but Taurus gets killed by a giant spider inside. Conan finds the jewel.......and this elephant alien from space. The alien tells conan his story, which is pretty damn cool, than asks Conan to kill him pour his blood on the jewel, and enact a spell on Yara for imprisoning him and making his life a living hell. Conan does this, and escapes the tower thanks to the elephant killing all the guards.

Analysis: this story is awesome. The dialogue is good, the artwork is good, and the characters are good. Conan and Taurus's interactions are golden, and Yag-Kosha (the elephant god thing)'s story is both moving and tragic. You can actually see him being reduced from a powerful but benevolant god to the slave of a monsterous wizard interested in power. Hence Conan helping him take Yara down is infinately satisfying. The sexism that plagued the last story is non existent, which is also good.

All in all, it's not as good as the previous installmant, but it's a damn good read nonetheless, provided you can stomach some rather unfortunate implications in two of the tales.

[OmniBen · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Zero spoiler review) 4.25/5
When you go through the greatest hits of Conan / Robert E. Howard, you are gonna get to The Tower of the Elephant sooner rather than later. I remember reading this in the Original Marvel Years omnibus' a few years back, and was immediately struck by the maturity, the mysticism. The sheer touching beauty of it all. It stood in stark contrast to the balls to the wall sword and sorcery that had come before it. Not that there is anything wrong with balls to the wall sword and sorcery, mind. It was a rather poignant and pivotal tale, and really left an impression on me. And whilst this adaptation might not quite reach those lofty high's of the original, perhaps losing a little something as well due to already being familiar with it, and it losing that 'good god, what did I just read' surprise of its initial consumption, but this is still really, really good stuff. The other issues included here are really good stuff, too, Making for one hell of a collection of Conan stories. Read the original of course, but make sure you read this one as well. 4.25/5


OmniBen.

[Omni Theus · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 out of 5 stars

[iliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

My introduction to Sword and Sorcery. This is it! This is what I was looking for in fantasy! Will continue reading more

[Bill Riggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this collection Busiek mixes his own original ideas with Robert E. Howard’s original stories to create an all new enthralling tale of Conan. Conan faces the perils of the “civilized” world, dark alleys full of thieves, a demon-haunted tomb of an ancient sorcerer and finally horror on a cosmic scale that reveals worlds beyond the reach of human knowledge. Nord’s art is a perfect match for Busiek’s writing and together they have created a groundbreaking adaptation of the classic character.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars - I really liked the retelling of "The Tower of the Elephant" and the artwork throughout was gorgeous... but still there is just something about these comics that doesn't work for me. I suspect it must just be the characterization of Conan. I feel like he's just not being taken seriously enough.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Know, O Prince" etc.

I was glad when I saw the title of this book because The Tower of the Elephant is my favorite Conan story. I was really looking forward to seeing it depicted in graphical form, and I wasn't disappointed. Conan enters the chamber of Yag-kosha, the last of the elephant-headed people of Yag on Earth, and finds a withered, crippled creature with an oversized head on a thin and broken body. But when Yag-kosha tells of his people's past, of their flight through the Outer Dark to Earth and their long years in isolation, the art shows them powerfully-muscled, with wide wings and proud bearings, a far cry from broken Yag-kosha alone on his couch.

I mentioned in my last review how I liked Conan's response to the titular god in the bowl, but I love his interaction with Yag-kosha. He thinks the Yaggite is a statue, and then freezes when he realizes that it is alive:

That he did not instantly explode in a burst of murderous frenzy is a fact that measures his horror, which paralyzed him where he stood. A civilized man in his position would have sought doubtful refuge in the conclusion that he was insane; it did not occur to the Cimmerian to doubt his senses. He knew he was face to face with a demon of the Elder World, and the realization robbed him of all his faculties except sight.

He was able to kill the god in the bowl before fleeing, but Yag-kosha is older by far than that, and from another world entirely. And Yag-kosha is nothing but kind, seeking only release from its torment and revenge on its captor, and Conan obeys its orders without question. Conan, who earlier murdered a man for pushing him in a bar, and who later kills a judge for daring to pass judgement on him.

One of my favorite parts of H.P. Lovecraft's world is the sense of cosmic time, that there are civilizations that rose and fell before the ages of man. The Yaggites have that quality in a way that ancient cities like Xuthal of the Dusk or even the city of the winged ones in Queen of the Black coast, coming as that they do from worlds beyond Earth. "Tower of the Elephant" is really the only time Conan, who has no trouble fighting demons in a berserk frenzy, is frozen with terror for any length of time, and it's all because of what Yag-kosha represents.

There are two original stories in The Tower of the Elephant and Other Stories, one I liked and one I did not. In the first one, Conan is cheated by the merchants he traveled with and decides to sleep in the hills despite hearing that they are haunted. There he confronts the remnant's of an ancient sorcerer's spells--summoned demons. But they're demons from Christian imagery, with horns, red skin, and leaping flames, a far cry from the bat-winged furry demons of the Outer Dark Conan fights in the stories. In the second, Conan comes to Zamora and begins a career in thievery, stealing a bowl sacred to Mitra and a diadem sacred to Ishtar. Both of those draw a response, from the Hounds of Mitra, partially-inhuman guardians who travel in packs, and from a nameless, amorphous, tentacled horror from the temple of Ishtar. The horror wipes out the hounds--more evidence that ancient things are stronger than humanity--and devours Conan's then-girlfriend when she tries on the tiara before returning back to the temple with its prize. That's more to my taste than the story of red-skinned demons. The intimation that even gods thought of as benign are beyond human comprehension and their true nature may be nothing like their priests and worshippers believe is a part of the Hyborian Age I'm really fond of.

Plenty of cosmic horror in the book, and that's something I'll never turn down.

Previous Review: Conan, Vol. 2: The God in the Bowl and Other Stories.
Next Review: Conan, Vol. 4: The Halls of the Dead and Other Stories.

[Steve Dilks · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main thing about this book is the art. At least, it is in the stories written by Kurt Busiek. Cary Nord brings a Frazetta like stylism to the proceedings, perhaps not as lushly detailed as that latters paintings but close enough, nonetheless.
As for the writing, I don't think Busiek has a rounded grasp of Conan's character. In this collection's opening story, 'On Uskuth hill', he makes him something of a volatile bully. Conan may have been blunt and rough mannered but his brute force was seen as something to be admired, not reviled. In this he is just plain unlikeable- a fault I found with the 2011 CONAN movie. Despite this, the second story, 'The City of Thieves' has some good moments and brings that city to squalid, splendorous life. It warms us up nicely before bringing us to the main feature, 'The tower of the elephant.'
Now, I've read both Roy Thomas' scripted versions of this story for Marvel - the one drawn by Barry Smith and the other, later, by John Buscema. Of the three, I found this to be the best. It nails the atmosphere and darkness of Howard's original yarn and drags you on in morbid wonder. Cary Nord's painted art plays a huge factor here. The story is told in two parts and is well worth the admission. A must for Conan comic fans.

[H.C. Harrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Immersive and engaging

*Disclaimer* This review is only for The Tower of the Elephant and not the other short stories in this collection (to which I don't have access).

This was my first Conan read, and I was quite impressed. I like the Conan movies and find the Barbarian trope a nice change of pace in the Fantasy genre. I knew this one was short, and I had some time to fit it in before finishing reading some longer works of fiction.

The details in the setting and characters near the start of the book set the mood very well. A sort of stranger comes to town story. He doesn't know what to expect from the city's people, and they certainly underestimate Conan. I like the way the writer gives little details during their dialogue. He slides little snippets of "tell" that might not otherwise work in many other books, but they work here.

I was pleasantly surprised that this was more than just a quest of "Hero gets the gold" and there is a lot more to it. Was into the monologue by the mystery character near the end of the story where he had been and what he had seen during his long lifetime.

I plan to read more Conan short stories when I can fit them into my reading schedule.

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having not read the original Robert E. Howard story this is based on, I can't rate this on how well of an adaptation it is, but I can say the twist in the final issue got me. This volume of the Dark Horse era of Conan features the Cimmerian traveling to the City of Thieves to learn the art of thievery. Conan takes to the skills naturally, easily incorporating his speed as he sneaks his way around the city stealing things for no reason but the challenge. When he hears about a special treasure locked away in the Tower of the Elephant, Conan is unable to help himself and takes on the deadly mission.

The story moves at a great pace, with each issue feeling like a rather self-contained adventure that all builds towards the Tower of the Elephant job. This ability to discretize a story for serialization is definitely an artform being slowly lost amongst contemporary comic writers, but Busiek is no novice to the form. Cary Nord's artwork continues to be strong as well, and guest artist Michael WM Kaluta delivers some magestic sequences with the limited pages he gets in the final issue.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume finds the youthful Conan in "The City Of Thieves" in Zamora learning the trade (Though I don't know why anyone with anything of value would live close to a place that has acquired such a nickname).
After a number of missteps stealing religious artifacts that are too recognizable and dealing with unscrupulous individuals, Conan hears of a priceless gem located in the nearly impregnable "Tower Of The Elephant", lair of the evil wizard Yara. This takes us to the title story...
I'm beginning to enjoy the auxiliary material in these books as much as the recounting of Howard's stories. Where I first was aghast at the idea of them going "off script", I realize that they are trying to merely embellish the timeline that the fans of Robert E. Howard, and Howard himself set down in letters way back in the 1930s.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Underneath all the hacking and slashing and buxom wenches lies a deeper theme in Howard's Conan stories. That of "Barbarism" vs "civilization." The "savage" Conan finds the "civilized" world less than civil.

So in this collection of stories from Conan's early life, he tries to out-bastard the bastards and become a thief in the City of Thieves. Howard's writing (interpreted here by Busiek) is always strong and the artwork is kinetic.

But even young, arrogant, Conan begins to learn that those among civilization might know a thing or two that he does not. So his growth as a character continues in a rewarding fashion.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tower of the Elephant & Other Stories. Ah, here's the story of Conan the Thief, surrounding a three-part "Tower of the Elephant". The new thief stories aren't of much note, other than "The Crown of Tiamat", which is a wonderful little story of Conan's women and thieving and what happens when they intersect. Then we get "Tower of the Elephant", which is a wonderful Howard story with its deconstruction of the trope of the sorcerer's demon, adapted well here ... though it's a pity that the adaptations are getting longer and longer when single issues were Busiek's strength in some of his earliest tales. [4+/5].

[Bill Coffin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kurt Busiek and Cary Nord team up for an exceptionally good take on Conan, retelling his tales in chronological order, based on hints dropped by Robert E. Howard and his correspondents, and filling in the gaps between with new tales that feel very much at home in type and tone. Busiek's writing is pitch-perfect, and Nord's artwork, helped in no small fashion by color artist Dave Stewart, is transcendant. Know, O Prince...there was an age undreamed of...but here, we truly see it come to life.

[Chris Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fine entry in this run. Great characters grow, and I liked how Conan's compassionate side was shown this time. Man, there were a lot of text boxes to read this volume: modern comic readers might need some conditioning before attempting. I had forgotten how integral those boxes used to be in driving the story. Guess I have become lazy.

[Hanussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Další skvélé pokračování. Titulní povídku si ještě trochu pamatuji a myslím, že se atmosféru podařilo zachytit parádně. Jsem taky rád, že jako bonusy jsou doplněny různé texty o Howardovi a jeho díle, které rozhodně stojí za přečtení.

[Alessandro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must say I am a bit disappointed. I liked the adaptation of "The Tower of the Elephant" but I didn't like the Busiek's original stories.
IMHO, Busiek work was excellent in Vol. 0 and Vol.1 but not so great in Vol. 2 and in this volume.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. Gorgeous art. Excellent translation of the cosmic horror I remember from the original story. My favourite of the TPBs thus far.

[Chris Fielding · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent Graphic Novel depiction of the Conan series. Every issue is done with great care and beautiful artistry.

[Tuesday · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saw the movie and now listened to the audiobook

[Γιώργος Μπελαούρης · Rating 5 out of 5]

tower of the elephant is one of the best comic arcs i have ever read
nuff said
beautifully done!!!

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Know, O Prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the years of the rise of the sons of Aryas, there was an age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars....Hither came Conan the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of Earth under his sandaled feet...."

Thus the world was introduced to Conan back in the days when his stories were first appearing in the pulp magazines, and so too are we introduced to the character in Dark Horse's ongoing comic series. The idea with Dark Horse's series was to throw out all Conan material that did not come from Robert E. Howard (the original author), leaving just the original stories. These stories would then be set in chronological order and tied together by new material, forging a unified narrative that would be faithful in spirit and in detail to Howard's saga. The art is rough but well suited to the world of Conan. I especially like that the narration is all carried out in a font reminiscent of the typewriter on which Howard would have set down his Conan adventures.

When we last left Conan he had seen Kalanthes safely home and been rewarded with a large amount of gold before hooking up with a merchant and his lady friends heading for new and interesting parts of civilization. Needless to say, they took off with his money...and needless to say, Conan is not okay with that. In attempting to track them down, Conan finds himself camping alone at night on a hill the locals warn him is cursed. Judging these soft, civilized beings to be wimps and cowards, Conan disregards their advice. He'll soon wish he hadn't....After his adventure on Uskath Hill, Conan decides he does not know enough about civilization, so he resolves to start learning from the bottom up--starting with the least civilized city he can find: Zamora's infamous City Of Thieves. On the whole this was an enjoyable book, and it includes at the end their adaptation of the orginal Howard story The Tower Of The Elephant. This is one of my favorite Conan stories, as it was the first I ever read. I am a huge fan of this ongoing series, and hope it continues well into the future!

This isn't a kid's comic, folks! This series sets out to be faithful to the orginal Conan stories, and that means you're in for a violent, bawdry time! Conan hews more than a few people with his mighty blade, and there is the resultant flow of blood you would expect. Conan also loves the ladies. There is sexual innuendo, including implied prostitution. There is also a fair degree of scantily clad women, and in this volume even a little nudity in the background. This really shouldn’t surprise anyone familiar with Conan in any of the media he has been presented in. I understand they allow greater degrees of this sort of thing later in the series, once they have established that this is a comic for adults. Language isn't as much of an issue, since that really wasn't something you could do in the pulps where Conan was originally published and they are doing their best to match that tone.

[Chip Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion, this one actually kicks it up a notch from the relatively disappointing The God in the Bowl. For most of volume three, the writing and artwork both are back up to the expected awesomeness that is the reason I read this series. Each of the original stories here is excellent, fitting in nicely with the Conan universe and staying true to the feel of what Conan tales are meant to be. This faithful rendering of "The Tower of the Elephant" does credit to the original, bringing new life to one of the most popular of REH's short stories. As in every Conan book ever written, this one if full of beautiful women, mundane and supernatural dangers, and strange places. As Conan makes his way to Zamora, and begins to reach true mastery of his thieving skills, he'll have to avoid all kinds of pitfalls. Conniving and deceitful women (always a weak spot for Conan), magical guardians, and unscrupulous robbers get in his way, and all are faced down and beaten.

The end of this book contains a fascinating piece of fan mail, that details the chronology of Conan's life, as well as some original sketches used in the book, and a rough map of the realm inhabited by Conan. Also, I believe that the final version of this book has a different (and much nicer-looking) cover than the one pictured here on Amazon. At least the version I have shows Conan battling a huge lion, and is a great looking cover.

What is best in life?
Conan: "To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women."

[Brandon]

This book follows Conans' adventures in the city of thieves were we find him stealing various items and entering the Tower of the Elephant. These stories begin to show the a development in the character of Conan, adding depth to the barbarian. It begins with the Cimmerian, once again, in a tavern after a heavy night of debauchery brutalizing an innkeeper. This is a story featuring the brutal northerner, a man who is uncivilized and barbaric. he uses his strength and the mountain/frontier justice to resolve issues. The 'Tower of the Elephant' paints a different picture though. In this story, which also begins in a tavern, Conan ends up on an adventure that requires him to break into an impenetrable tower. To this he joins up with a college, the prince of thieves none the less, and with his guidance Conan is able to break into the tower were surprise await and his sword his kept in check. Although the stories are still of an adventurer cutting a bloody trail through his world the change in pace in the second tale indicate that R.E. Howard wanted more than simple pulp from his most famous character. There are still scantily clad women and duplicitous 'civilized' folk in these tales but the Lovecraftian flavor of the main story and the comic touches through out paint the character in deeper colors and veer him away from the two dimensional characters that populate the world of pulps.