The Savage Sword of Conan Volume 8 [Paperback]

Volume 8 of Dark Horse's Savage Sword of Conan chronicles a period when the book was slightly aimless. None of the stories were linked and they occurred during an indeterminate time in Conan's life, although clearly after his entry into civilization and before his term as king. They don't particularly feel like Robert E. Howard stories either and, in the case of two villains, they begin to veer into more typical super-heroics. Consequently this Volume is a mix of bad to entertaining.

The opening two-parter could have been an excellent story if Gil Kane did the whole thing but the inkers just kill it. The art was allegedly lost in the mail and required several inkers to get it prepared to meet publication. It has no visual flow and the inkers almost seem to be fighting Kane's storytelling. Plus someone changes the hair color of the lead female between the two issues. Definitely one of the dregs of SSOC.

Once you get through the dreck, the volume has some fun stories. The Armor of Zuulda Thaal is a tour-de-force for the Fleisher, Buscema and Chan team. The Isle of the Hunter is a perfectly adequate version of The Most Dangerous Game, but probably would have looked better if Nerbes didn't soften Buscema's pencils. This would have been a great solo Buscema story. The Gamesmasters of Asgulan is a bit silly and saved by Alcala's lush art. The Devourer of Souls is one of the stand-out stories. It's a gripping adventure and introduces one of the great Marvel Conan villains, the Devourer. I remember wanting to see more of this imposing character and was delighted to see him return a few months later. Forest of Fiends demonstrates two things: 1) a good Conan story need not focus entirely on the Cimmerian as several supporting characters all play important roles and get plenty of page time; and 2) if you're not going to have Buscema inked by Chan, Alcala or himself, you'll get pretty good results if you at least pair him with someone with a stronger inking style like Pablo Marcos. Nerbes and Redondo unfortunately blunt the impact of Buscema's work with their softer inking and Marcos is more than willing to deliver that impact even if he overpowers it. The Jeweled Bird features the return of my favorite Marvel Conan villain - Captain Bor'aqh Sharaq, the most ruthless and indomitable of Conan's human enemies. Bor'aqh was already in a rarefied club of returning human enemies but he cheated, stole and killed his way to the top very quickly. Mind you, the giant cat and moth and the rotating inkers make the story a little goofy ....but Bor'aqh's hatred and vileness provides sufficient balance. Lastly, you have The World Beyond The Mists which features the introduction of Conan's alternate world double Konar as well as the return of the most inept clan of assassins this side of The Hand - The Brotherhood of the Falcon.

In retrospect, it's amazing to see the breadth of Fleisher's stories. He has pastches of classic stories, soul devouring monstrosities, two stories featuring twin woman warriors, alternate worlds, magic armor and ... a giant cat whose gazes turns you to glass. While some of the stories lack the artistic excellence of previous volumes, you're sure to be entertained.

Almost forgot one disappointment. Dark Horse reproduces some double-page pin-ups but my volume has a lot of gutter loss because of the glued binding. It's a bit of a drag but they don't interfere with the stories.

› Go to Amazon.com to see the review  3.0 out of 5 stars