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Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection: The Original Marvel Years
Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection: The Original Marvel Years, Vol. 1: The Coming of Conan
Collects Conan the Barbarian (1970) #1-13, material from Chamber of Darkness (1969) #4.
The greatest saga in sword-and-sorcery history begins! Born on a battlefield in the frozen lands of Cimmeria, Conan has spent his life fighting his way across the untamed Hyborian kingdoms — sparing no man, woman or wizard his wrath. His adventures will become legend. He will become king. He is - Conan the Barbarian! Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith brought Robert E. Howard's iconic creation to four-color life with work that set new standards for comic book storytelling. Now, Marvel is honored to present their epic sagas — painstakingly restored to match the majesty of the original editions. In these early exploits, Conan ventures from his homeland for the first time, honing his skills as a thief and mercenary — and above all, a warrior!
The greatest saga in sword-and-sorcery history begins! Born on a battlefield in the frozen lands of Cimmeria, Conan has spent his life fighting his way across the untamed Hyborian kingdoms — sparing no man, woman or wizard his wrath. His adventures will become legend. He will become king. He is - Conan the Barbarian! Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith brought Robert E. Howard's iconic creation to four-color life with work that set new standards for comic book storytelling. Now, Marvel is honored to present their epic sagas — painstakingly restored to match the majesty of the original editions. In these early exploits, Conan ventures from his homeland for the first time, honing his skills as a thief and mercenary — and above all, a warrior!
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 4, 2020
55 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,521 books274 followersRoy 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 1, 2023
Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection: The Coming of Conan collects Conan The Barbarian #1-13 plus material from Chamber of Darkness #4.
I'm a pulp fantasy guy and avid comic reader from way back but I've read less than ten Conan comics total in the last few decades. Amazon had a three for two sale and this was one of the books I picked.
The first story is unrelated to Conan but must have been Barry Smith's tryout for the book, the tale of a fantasy writer bent on killing off his creation, Starr the Slayer, a Conan knockoff. Things don't go well and it ends EC style. It was a decent story but seemed like filler. It was interesting that Starr had the same helmet Conan wears for the bulk of this volume.
Thomas and Smith hit the Hyborian highway running. Conan barely gets any breathing room, going from battle to battle, fighting swordsmen, dragons, gorillas, and even an octopus. Thomas' writing is evocative of Robert E. Howards but a little too purple for me at times.
Barry Smith's art was the reason I originally threw this on my wishlist. It's amazing to see his art in its embryonic state, maturing with each passing issue. Some of it is barely publishable at the beginning with flashes of greatness. By the end of the book, he's a heavy hitter. Some of the style is on par with what he'd do on Archer and Armstrong in the early 1990s.
It's a decent read but I wanted to like it more than I did. I've read all of Robert E. Howard's Conan tales and I feel like Roy Thomas' writing and the comics code held this back quite a bit. Thomas' Conan is a little too nice and Smith's Conan is a little scrawny compared to the Conan of REH's pulps. Still, I'll probably get the next volume, if for nothing else to see Barry Smith's art mature and maybe see some Gil Kane or John Buscema on art.
Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection: The Coming of Conan is a good collection that lacks a little of the fire of Robert E. Howard's original Conan tales. Three out of five stars.
I'm a pulp fantasy guy and avid comic reader from way back but I've read less than ten Conan comics total in the last few decades. Amazon had a three for two sale and this was one of the books I picked.
The first story is unrelated to Conan but must have been Barry Smith's tryout for the book, the tale of a fantasy writer bent on killing off his creation, Starr the Slayer, a Conan knockoff. Things don't go well and it ends EC style. It was a decent story but seemed like filler. It was interesting that Starr had the same helmet Conan wears for the bulk of this volume.
Thomas and Smith hit the Hyborian highway running. Conan barely gets any breathing room, going from battle to battle, fighting swordsmen, dragons, gorillas, and even an octopus. Thomas' writing is evocative of Robert E. Howards but a little too purple for me at times.
Barry Smith's art was the reason I originally threw this on my wishlist. It's amazing to see his art in its embryonic state, maturing with each passing issue. Some of it is barely publishable at the beginning with flashes of greatness. By the end of the book, he's a heavy hitter. Some of the style is on par with what he'd do on Archer and Armstrong in the early 1990s.
It's a decent read but I wanted to like it more than I did. I've read all of Robert E. Howard's Conan tales and I feel like Roy Thomas' writing and the comics code held this back quite a bit. Thomas' Conan is a little too nice and Smith's Conan is a little scrawny compared to the Conan of REH's pulps. Still, I'll probably get the next volume, if for nothing else to see Barry Smith's art mature and maybe see some Gil Kane or John Buscema on art.
Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection: The Coming of Conan is a good collection that lacks a little of the fire of Robert E. Howard's original Conan tales. Three out of five stars.
January 9, 2021
As per most things Conan, this was a blast. I love seeing the old Conan stories told again and again, different depending on the person telling it, it always gives a fun lens to look through. And with that, as one of the smallest of the Conan Epic Collection, this baby is DENSE.
Not all of the stories collected in this volume are from the original Robert E. Howard texts, some being original and very Marvel (not that I've read all of Conan, so some of the stories might be from the original). But old original and new original work hand in hand to tell the story of a young Conan.
Not all of the stories collected in this volume are from the original Robert E. Howard texts, some being original and very Marvel (not that I've read all of Conan, so some of the stories might be from the original). But old original and new original work hand in hand to tell the story of a young Conan.
February 17, 2022
Roy Thomas believed comic books could have success in other genres than superheroes (and certainly did at various points in history). So, he decided to license a popular preexisting fantasy character: THONGOR THE BARBARIAN! Well, that deal fell through so he licensed Conan the Barbarian instead. It was interesting to see him try to balance the sex and violence of the original stories with the stringent Comic Books Code of the Seventies.
We see a general mix of Roy adapting the early Conan the stories and adding original material. Its great stuff and there's a reason that the original Conan: The Barbarian run is a legendary one in comic book history. I recommend if you do decide to read these stories that you pick up BARBARIAN LIFE which is basically Roy Thomas discussing issue by issue the entirety of his run.
As for the stories, there's a lot of Conan robbing wizards and slaying monsters. I especially liked his companion Jenna, who is just awful to him and works wonderfully for it. Especially when Conan finally gets fed up and (literally) dumps her. What else can you ask for?
We see a general mix of Roy adapting the early Conan the stories and adding original material. Its great stuff and there's a reason that the original Conan: The Barbarian run is a legendary one in comic book history. I recommend if you do decide to read these stories that you pick up BARBARIAN LIFE which is basically Roy Thomas discussing issue by issue the entirety of his run.
As for the stories, there's a lot of Conan robbing wizards and slaying monsters. I especially liked his companion Jenna, who is just awful to him and works wonderfully for it. Especially when Conan finally gets fed up and (literally) dumps her. What else can you ask for?
Read
February 21, 2022My first time reading the original Marvel Conan run, and I can see exactly why it was such a touchstone for so many, not least a certain former president*. Barry Smith (no Windsor yet) brings the punchy solidity of Kirby to the art, while also depicting humans who actually look like human beings who might conceivably move, rather than blocky friezes. Likewise, Roy Thomas distils the savagery and weirdness of Robert E Howard's originals into a more digestible form, keeping the uncanny adventures and strange exclamations but freeing the story from all that Weird Tales prose (and I say this as someone who likes Weird Tales prose). Our hero is still generally nude but for a loincloth and sandals**, so you wouldn't have to look too hard for homoerotisicm***, but all the same it has definitely been dialled down in favour of greater emphasis on all the scantily clad maidens and betrayers who – for some unaccountable reason – never seemed to interest REH in the same way. There's the occasional false note – Conan exclaiming "Crom's devils!" when a clinch is interrupted is one thing, but following that with "Do doors mean nothing in this place?" seems less young barbarian, more Leonard Rossiter. And there's the bit where a group of subterranean slaves are so startlingly pale that Conan initially takes them for spectres, despite their skin being exactly the same colour as his, which is made doubly obvious by one of his limbs crossing one of theirs. But these are minor objections; overall, this is up there with the Star Wars comics a few years later as an example of the knack Marvel had around then for finding licensed properties which played to their strengths, and vice versa.
*Despite every fucker spending the past few years making jokes about Biden being old, I haven't seen anybody else hit on the one about how Obama chose him because he was excited at meeting someone with first-hand memories of the Hyborian Age.
**OK, and the helmet on the cover, which looks a bit like a stumpy version of sixties Loki's, and which is probably my least favourite thing here, but which is mercifully lost a handful of issues in.
***Especially in the story where Conan teams up with two thieves who look straight out of a seventies gay bar, who whisk him away from his female companion, making vague plans to meet later at the Temple of Anu – now, why do I feel like there's a letter missing? The rendezvous is set for the back door, at that. And if you think that name is daft, the subsequent issue has a character called Ch'unda.
*Despite every fucker spending the past few years making jokes about Biden being old, I haven't seen anybody else hit on the one about how Obama chose him because he was excited at meeting someone with first-hand memories of the Hyborian Age.
**OK, and the helmet on the cover, which looks a bit like a stumpy version of sixties Loki's, and which is probably my least favourite thing here, but which is mercifully lost a handful of issues in.
***Especially in the story where Conan teams up with two thieves who look straight out of a seventies gay bar, who whisk him away from his female companion, making vague plans to meet later at the Temple of Anu – now, why do I feel like there's a letter missing? The rendezvous is set for the back door, at that. And if you think that name is daft, the subsequent issue has a character called Ch'unda.
December 23, 2023
رحلة طويلة كلها سحر و أشرار و خوارج عن المألوف..
كلها في مواجهة لص...بلا قيود أخلاقية...بلا أي قيود من أي نوع..قيود قبلية...قيود قلبية...عهود...مش النوع البطل...و مش بيسعى يبقى واحد...
كل ما تصيبه قبضته يصبح ملكه... الحياة بتلك البساطة... إن كان في كده أي بساطة 😅
العنصر النسائي في قصصه مثير للجدل
عجبني الرسم جدا... الألوان جداً
كنت اتمنى اقرا منها النسخة الورقية الأصلية 😍
كلها في مواجهة لص...بلا قيود أخلاقية...بلا أي قيود من أي نوع..قيود قبلية...قيود قلبية...عهود...مش النوع البطل...و مش بيسعى يبقى واحد...
كل ما تصيبه قبضته يصبح ملكه... الحياة بتلك البساطة... إن كان في كده أي بساطة 😅
العنصر النسائي في قصصه مثير للجدل
عجبني الرسم جدا... الألوان جداً
كنت اتمنى اقرا منها النسخة الورقية الأصلية 😍
December 20, 2021
I enjoyed this way more than I thought I would , great Bronze age stuff.
December 6, 2020
These EPIC collections are beautifully packaged. The colouring is so much nicer than it was in the reprints of the 90s onwards. The extras in these books make purchasing them worthwhile as they contain some great background items.
This book itself doesn't need me to review it. The artwork is crude but BWS certainly was a lesson in watching a man learn his trade as the Conan saga progressed and I remember buying his artwork from his self-publishing company Gorblimey Press - so much more beautiful than these early Conans! But the book still stands up as the stories are certainly entertaining and Conan's journey across his world mean many sorts of encounters. Great fun. Comics for 10 years olds that many of us wish our grandkids could get more of.
This book itself doesn't need me to review it. The artwork is crude but BWS certainly was a lesson in watching a man learn his trade as the Conan saga progressed and I remember buying his artwork from his self-publishing company Gorblimey Press - so much more beautiful than these early Conans! But the book still stands up as the stories are certainly entertaining and Conan's journey across his world mean many sorts of encounters. Great fun. Comics for 10 years olds that many of us wish our grandkids could get more of.
July 14, 2021
Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection, Vol. 1 collects the first 13 issues of the legendary Conan the Barbarian comics written by Roy Thomas and illustrated by Barry Windsor-Smith.
The Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection will eventually be a complete collection of all 275 issues of Conan the Barbarian. It remains to be seen if it will also encompass the parallel adult-oriented black and white Savage Sword of Conan, which ran concurrently from 1974-1995. The era referred to as the "original Marvel years" spanned 1970-2000 before the series moved to Dark Horse in 2003.
These graphic novels have been digitally recolored to make the whole series feel consistent. Purists object to this, but I find it necessary. Early 70's comics were colored the same way as Sunday newspaper comic strips -- somewhat grainy and faded.
I actually prefer the soft, muted color palette that Dark Horse used in their 2003 reprints which was heavy on blues and purples. Marvel uses a brighter, more garish color scheme heavy on greens and reds. The Marvel coloring is a restoration of the originals (Dark Horse appears to have just recolored Windsor-Smith's drawings from scratch, which is one of the reasons I chose to read the Marvel reprint series.)
Highlights of this collection include:
"The Sword and the Sorcerer" from Chamber of Darkness (1969) #4 . Features Starr the Slayer, a proto-Conan character before Marvel got the rights to Conan. He was introduced as a way to gauge the appetite for a sword and sorcery character. Starr looks like Conan, but the story is not very good and it does not fit the series continuity. An interesting artifact but not canon.
Conan's debut in issue #1 "The Coming of Conan" (1970). We are introduced to a young Conan in his first battle as a hired mercenary. He is captured by a powerful sorcerer who predicts Conan will one day become King of Aquilonia. The sorcerer shows visions of the far past (a glimpse of another Robert E. Howard character King Kull of Atlantis) as well as the far future (scenes of ancient Egypt and even man's eventual journey into space).
Issue #4 "The Tower of the Elephant" (1971). The comic hits its stride when it adapts one of Robert E. Howard's best Conan short stories. Nominated for a Best Story award by the Academy of Comic-Book Arts.
Issue #7 loosely adapts Howard's story "God in the Bowl". It is not one of the better Conan prose stories to be begin with, but the comic adaptation omits the best parts--Demetrio investigating a crime for which Conan stands accused, and then Conan fighting the city guards in an attempt to escape.
Issue #8 "Keepers of the Crypt" is a faithful adaptation of an untitled Conan story synopsis by Howard. (The story was eventually written as a novelette by L. Sprague de Camp and published as "The Hall of the Dead". This was the title also used by Dark Horse when they readapted this same story in a 3-issue arc in 2006.)
Issue #10 "Beware the Wrath of Anu" contains my favorite scene in the entire book. It is a set of five panels in which Conan slowly turns in the foreground toward the perspective of the reader and howls in rage as his friend dies on the scaffold behind him. Most of the plot elements of this issue came from the opening page of Howard's story "Rogues in the House" and indeed it sets up the direct adaptation of that story in issue #11.
Some issues feature loose adaptations of Robert E. Howard's non-Conan stories that have been reworked to make Conan the hero: Issue #3 "The Barbarian vs. The Grim Grey God" is an adaptation of "The Grey God Passes". Issue #5 "Zukala's Daughter" is an adaptation of the poem "Zukala's Hour". Issue #9 "The Garden of Fear" is an adaptation of the short story of the same name. Issue #13 "Web of the Spider God" (story idea by John Jakes) incorporates Howard's spider god of Yezud, which was mentioned off-hand in one of his stories but never explored at length.
Bonus features include:
- The original story outline for the inaugural issue, with Thomas' handwritten notes
- Facsimiles of many Windsor-Smith original and unused drawings
- Articles by Thomas from various magazine publications over the last fifty years describing his process of adapting Conan for these early issues
- The complete run of Conan Classic reprint covers (1994-1995)
The Conan the Barbarian Epic Collection will eventually be a complete collection of all 275 issues of Conan the Barbarian. It remains to be seen if it will also encompass the parallel adult-oriented black and white Savage Sword of Conan, which ran concurrently from 1974-1995. The era referred to as the "original Marvel years" spanned 1970-2000 before the series moved to Dark Horse in 2003.
These graphic novels have been digitally recolored to make the whole series feel consistent. Purists object to this, but I find it necessary. Early 70's comics were colored the same way as Sunday newspaper comic strips -- somewhat grainy and faded.
I actually prefer the soft, muted color palette that Dark Horse used in their 2003 reprints which was heavy on blues and purples. Marvel uses a brighter, more garish color scheme heavy on greens and reds. The Marvel coloring is a restoration of the originals (Dark Horse appears to have just recolored Windsor-Smith's drawings from scratch, which is one of the reasons I chose to read the Marvel reprint series.)
Highlights of this collection include:
"The Sword and the Sorcerer" from Chamber of Darkness (1969) #4 . Features Starr the Slayer, a proto-Conan character before Marvel got the rights to Conan. He was introduced as a way to gauge the appetite for a sword and sorcery character. Starr looks like Conan, but the story is not very good and it does not fit the series continuity. An interesting artifact but not canon.
Conan's debut in issue #1 "The Coming of Conan" (1970). We are introduced to a young Conan in his first battle as a hired mercenary. He is captured by a powerful sorcerer who predicts Conan will one day become King of Aquilonia. The sorcerer shows visions of the far past (a glimpse of another Robert E. Howard character King Kull of Atlantis) as well as the far future (scenes of ancient Egypt and even man's eventual journey into space).
Issue #4 "The Tower of the Elephant" (1971). The comic hits its stride when it adapts one of Robert E. Howard's best Conan short stories. Nominated for a Best Story award by the Academy of Comic-Book Arts.
Issue #7 loosely adapts Howard's story "God in the Bowl". It is not one of the better Conan prose stories to be begin with, but the comic adaptation omits the best parts--Demetrio investigating a crime for which Conan stands accused, and then Conan fighting the city guards in an attempt to escape.
Issue #8 "Keepers of the Crypt" is a faithful adaptation of an untitled Conan story synopsis by Howard. (The story was eventually written as a novelette by L. Sprague de Camp and published as "The Hall of the Dead". This was the title also used by Dark Horse when they readapted this same story in a 3-issue arc in 2006.)
Issue #10 "Beware the Wrath of Anu" contains my favorite scene in the entire book. It is a set of five panels in which Conan slowly turns in the foreground toward the perspective of the reader and howls in rage as his friend dies on the scaffold behind him. Most of the plot elements of this issue came from the opening page of Howard's story "Rogues in the House" and indeed it sets up the direct adaptation of that story in issue #11.
Some issues feature loose adaptations of Robert E. Howard's non-Conan stories that have been reworked to make Conan the hero: Issue #3 "The Barbarian vs. The Grim Grey God" is an adaptation of "The Grey God Passes". Issue #5 "Zukala's Daughter" is an adaptation of the poem "Zukala's Hour". Issue #9 "The Garden of Fear" is an adaptation of the short story of the same name. Issue #13 "Web of the Spider God" (story idea by John Jakes) incorporates Howard's spider god of Yezud, which was mentioned off-hand in one of his stories but never explored at length.
Bonus features include:
- The original story outline for the inaugural issue, with Thomas' handwritten notes
- Facsimiles of many Windsor-Smith original and unused drawings
- Articles by Thomas from various magazine publications over the last fifty years describing his process of adapting Conan for these early issues
- The complete run of Conan Classic reprint covers (1994-1995)
April 27, 2021
It’s great for me to finally see these comics in clear, vibrant colour and perfect registration, having only ever owned stained, dog-eared and torn copies of some of the original releases from the ‘70s.
Collated here in an affordable softcover format, this first collection contains some very entertaining stories by Roy Thomas, including adaptions of tales by Conan’s creator Robert E. Howard. Thomas almost always exhibits a fine sense of epic storytelling in his impressive writing/editing, and Barry Windsor-Smith’s art is quite satisfying (and often ornately excellent) once he’d found his feet with this character and world. However, I’ll always dislike the horned helmet he gave Conan in the early stories – it’s visually unappealing, and would thankfully soon be dropped.
The included 48 pages of extras are rather interesting: Issue 1’s plot notes for the artist; reprints of three illustrated ‘Roy’s Rostrum’ articles from the Marvelmania fanzine; sketches, pencils and inked artwork; launch advertising; production photostats; notes and synopsis for ‘Web of the Spider-God’; and plenty of cover art. These are all good bonuses that add value, and are perfect for readers new to Conan in comic form, who are surely a key target for such a publication.
Collated here in an affordable softcover format, this first collection contains some very entertaining stories by Roy Thomas, including adaptions of tales by Conan’s creator Robert E. Howard. Thomas almost always exhibits a fine sense of epic storytelling in his impressive writing/editing, and Barry Windsor-Smith’s art is quite satisfying (and often ornately excellent) once he’d found his feet with this character and world. However, I’ll always dislike the horned helmet he gave Conan in the early stories – it’s visually unappealing, and would thankfully soon be dropped.
The included 48 pages of extras are rather interesting: Issue 1’s plot notes for the artist; reprints of three illustrated ‘Roy’s Rostrum’ articles from the Marvelmania fanzine; sketches, pencils and inked artwork; launch advertising; production photostats; notes and synopsis for ‘Web of the Spider-God’; and plenty of cover art. These are all good bonuses that add value, and are perfect for readers new to Conan in comic form, who are surely a key target for such a publication.
August 25, 2020
Good reprints of the original comic material, but they left out anything but the main stories from each issue which is a bit disappointing.
The Conan stories included here go up to issue 13. You get to see Barry Windsor Smith’s growth as an artist and storyteller, which is notably improved by the end of the volume. Roy Thomas is, of course, a brilliant writer who would continue to carry the series and others with his excellent writing and adaptations, and that skill is on full display here as he fought to get the new series off the ground and into acceptable profitability.
The Conan stories included here go up to issue 13. You get to see Barry Windsor Smith’s growth as an artist and storyteller, which is notably improved by the end of the volume. Roy Thomas is, of course, a brilliant writer who would continue to carry the series and others with his excellent writing and adaptations, and that skill is on full display here as he fought to get the new series off the ground and into acceptable profitability.
January 23, 2022
From the time when Marvel could really write a good story!
Roy Thomas is a good storyteller. As was R. E. Howard. The stories throughout this volume are excellent. A joy to read. Conan is characterized well. He's a noble character with flaws. He is fearless and headstrong, loyal and brave. I can't wait to read more.
Roy Thomas is a good storyteller. As was R. E. Howard. The stories throughout this volume are excellent. A joy to read. Conan is characterized well. He's a noble character with flaws. He is fearless and headstrong, loyal and brave. I can't wait to read more.
January 24, 2023
A must for Conan fans, Marvels origin Conan run from Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor Smith. People comparing this to Robert E Howard's Conan need to remember this came out as a comic in the 70s at marvel so it was never going to have blood, gore and all that in it.
Thomas's storytelling is fantastic, so pure and a joy.
Thomas's storytelling is fantastic, so pure and a joy.
February 19, 2021
Early Barry Windsor-Smith comic art, yet still as awe-inspiring as it was when my 12- or 13-year-old self read them straight off the newsstand's wire racks. Roy Thomas has never written as heroically as he did in the early days of Conan the Barbarian.
June 2, 2021
3.5 stars. For a 1970s era comic this is extremely well done and each issues contains a lot of content. However compared to modern day writing, it's just ok with the Bull God issue being one of the highlights.
Overall, it's a fun read, not perfect, not bad, simple and enjoyable.
Overall, it's a fun read, not perfect, not bad, simple and enjoyable.
November 20, 2025
It featured some of the most iconic Rober E Howard stories, came to life by the work of Roy Thomas. But was not a fan of the art of Barry Smith, I have heard improvement of his work later on. Would just have to wait until next volume to find out.
June 8, 2022
Love some classic sword and sorcerery. There’s some real poetry here, too! A fun start to a legendary character in comics
August 4, 2023
There's one page where Conan silently watches his friend be hanged and it is a comic masterpiece.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 15, 2025
I love old school Conan and this collection didn’t disappoint. Fantasy from the 70s and 80s is a special kind of fantasy. I highly recommend.
October 19, 2025
Je to správne patetické a barbarské so 70kovou marvel kresbou. Prekvapený, ako veľmi ma to bavilo.
January 31, 2023
Komiksové legendy a Conan od Semicu mě minuli, a tak jsem dlouho plánoval, že si některé ty Komiksové legendy s Conanem koupím. Čistě ze zvědavosti. Proto mě potěšilo, že se Comics Centrum pustilo do těchto archivních kolekcí. Doufám, že s nimi budou pokračovat a dočkáme se i Conanů kreslených Johnem Buscemou.
Zpočátku jsem se bál, že koupě této knihy byla chyba. První příběhy mě vylekaly, že tohle bude retro k nepřežití. Potom ale přišel “Soumrak sivého boha” a “Sloní věž”, a já jsem se do toho začal dostávat. Nemůžu říct, že bych pak byl ze všeho bezuzdně nadšený a do dalšího čtení mě poháněla hlavně zvědavost. Byl jsem zvědavý, jak se scénárista Roy Thomas vypořádal se známými příběhy, které jsem četl už od Dark Horse anebo od francouzských scénáristů, a jak dokázal napsat příběhy nové. A nejsem zklamaný. Je to zkrátka Conan. Zvědavý jsem byl ale také na výtvarné zpracování. Pozoruji u sebe totiž v poslední době slabost pro kresbu takovýchto starých komiksů. Zvláště kresba komiksů z EC comics se mi v poslední době zdá velmi zajímavá, ale to sem nepatří. Kresba tohoto retro Conana není vůbec špatná. Panely mají dobrou kompozici a často jsem si užil i rozložení děje na stránce. Těch vyloženě nepovedených panelů je tady málo. Dříve jsem byl silný zastánce barevných komiksů, oproti těm černobílým. To se však již dávno změnilo a byl bych velmi zvědavý na černobílou verzi této knihy. Především kvůli práci inkerů, v čele se Salem Buscemou. Zároveň ale musím připustit, že by to přineslo spoustu problémů.
Kniha obsahuje také velmi obsáhlou bonusovou část, ve které je spousta povídání Roye Thomase o cestě Conana do Marvelu, o výběru výtvarníků i o vzniku prvních sešitů. Roy mi přišel jako docela arogantní týpek, ale povídání je to zajímavé. Jsou zde také vynechané panely a stránky, ukázka námětu prvního sešitu psaná Royem Salovi (snad mu pak dodal i scénář…), návrhy obálek a samozřejmě také ukázka stránek bez vybarvení.
Když to shrnu, tak to není vůbec špatné. Je to zkrátka retro a pulp. Ducha a atmosféru conanovských příběhů to má. Nedokázal jsem tu knihu přečíst najednou a četl jsem ji několik dní po pár sešitech. Jeden se toho totiž snadno a rychle přejí. Ve výsledku jsem se však bavil.
Zpočátku jsem se bál, že koupě této knihy byla chyba. První příběhy mě vylekaly, že tohle bude retro k nepřežití. Potom ale přišel “Soumrak sivého boha” a “Sloní věž”, a já jsem se do toho začal dostávat. Nemůžu říct, že bych pak byl ze všeho bezuzdně nadšený a do dalšího čtení mě poháněla hlavně zvědavost. Byl jsem zvědavý, jak se scénárista Roy Thomas vypořádal se známými příběhy, které jsem četl už od Dark Horse anebo od francouzských scénáristů, a jak dokázal napsat příběhy nové. A nejsem zklamaný. Je to zkrátka Conan. Zvědavý jsem byl ale také na výtvarné zpracování. Pozoruji u sebe totiž v poslední době slabost pro kresbu takovýchto starých komiksů. Zvláště kresba komiksů z EC comics se mi v poslední době zdá velmi zajímavá, ale to sem nepatří. Kresba tohoto retro Conana není vůbec špatná. Panely mají dobrou kompozici a často jsem si užil i rozložení děje na stránce. Těch vyloženě nepovedených panelů je tady málo. Dříve jsem byl silný zastánce barevných komiksů, oproti těm černobílým. To se však již dávno změnilo a byl bych velmi zvědavý na černobílou verzi této knihy. Především kvůli práci inkerů, v čele se Salem Buscemou. Zároveň ale musím připustit, že by to přineslo spoustu problémů.
Kniha obsahuje také velmi obsáhlou bonusovou část, ve které je spousta povídání Roye Thomase o cestě Conana do Marvelu, o výběru výtvarníků i o vzniku prvních sešitů. Roy mi přišel jako docela arogantní týpek, ale povídání je to zajímavé. Jsou zde také vynechané panely a stránky, ukázka námětu prvního sešitu psaná Royem Salovi (snad mu pak dodal i scénář…), návrhy obálek a samozřejmě také ukázka stránek bez vybarvení.
Když to shrnu, tak to není vůbec špatné. Je to zkrátka retro a pulp. Ducha a atmosféru conanovských příběhů to má. Nedokázal jsem tu knihu přečíst najednou a četl jsem ji několik dní po pár sešitech. Jeden se toho totiž snadno a rychle přejí. Ve výsledku jsem se však bavil.
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