Sad to see that this is the last issue of Conan the Cimmerian - though, thankfully, our favorite barbarian will be showing up in a new series (and various mini-series). I've been a big fan of Dark Horse's version of Conan since the beginning, and writer Tim Truman has done an outstanding job guiding those adventures - in fact, this series was #6 on my "Top Ten for 2009" list.
This issue wraps up the adaptation of Iron Shadows in the Moon - not one of Howard's best stories, but even his average stuff is a cut above the rest.
This story will actually read better in the collection, because the events here lean on the incredibly tense lead-in from last issue, where Conan was captured by pirates and bound to a pillar in some ancient ruins, just as the light of a full moon was about to bring an army of statues - iron demons - to horrible life.
As this issue begins, Conan is racing for his life and carrying the obligatory helpless female, Olivia, when he's confronted by a monstrous ape. He battles for his life while the pirates faced the demons.
The art by Tomas Giorello is terrific - dark, detailed, sinister and brutal. It's a bit gory for young readers, but I suppose you can't have a Conan comic without spilling some blood.
It's great to hear that Roy Thomas is returning to Conan, but I have to admit he'll have to work hard to maintain the high level of storytelling we've been seeing on this series.
And considering Thomas started the whole "Conan in comic books" thing, that's saying something.
Grade: A-
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3 comments:
Very exciting to see this reviewed! I am looking forward to getting my copy tomorrow. I am sad to see this team end their run on CtheC, but I am looking forward to their new series.
You'll want to add a facebook button to your blog. I just bookmarked this article, although I had to complete it manually. Simply my $.02 :)
- Robson
Robson, thanks for the post. I'd put it on Facebook, but that would require me actually starting a Facebook account. I've been meaning to, but I already spend too much time online. But you're not the first one to ask, so I should crawl into the present and get that done. Soon.
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