“In this reprint from Savage Sword of Conan #3, Roy Thomas adapts Björn Nyberg’s The People of the Summit alongside the pencils of Tony Dezuniga. A fill-in story continuity-wise, Conan comes face to face with hairless apes, a strange group of masked sorcerers, and meets the beautiful Khozgari chieftain’s daughter, Shanya.”

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Welcome to The Classic Conan Countdown, a series of reviews focusing on the original 275 issues of Marvel Comics’ Conan the Barbarian, which were published from 1970 to 1993. This is a review of Conan the Barbarian (Vol. 1) #87.)

By BOB FREEMAN – Paint Monk’s Library Writer

Once upon a time, deadlines were met in the comic book industry, or if not, well, editors were creative. They either published trunk stories or, as was often the case with Conan the Barbarian, they reprinted a story from Savage Sword and quickly slapped some color on it (and, on occasion added or subtracted splash pages). Whatever it took to get the issue out on time. Why? Because they were professionals and had a job to do

Such is the case with the issue I am reviewing for you now. Originally appearing in Savage Sword of Conan #3, “Demons at the Summit”, Roy Thomas’ adaptation of Björn Nyberg’s The People of the Summit, is a passable story, but, when I was 12 years old, I was upset that a) I’d already read it; and b) I had to wait another month to find out what was going on with Conan, Belit, and Zula.

So, would it have been better to have no Conan that month rather than a reprint? The answer is no. Marvel was able to not only deliver a color version of “Demons”, but we also got a back-up reimagining of Howard’s Hyborian Age essay, and a Buscema/Chan cover that was a lot of fun.

The Hyborian Age essay alone erased my disappointment then, and rereading it now for the first time since 1978, it does so again.

REVIEW: Conan the Barbarian #87

Conan and his companion, Jamal, are being pursued by Khozgari after narrowly escaping their camp when their fellow soldiers, acting as bodyguards for a king’s emissary, were cut down and beheaded.

Noticing they were being watched, the Cimmerian grabbed the spy only to discover it was Shanya, daughter of the Khozgari Chieftain. He and Jamal take the girl hostage in hopes of guaranteeing safe passage back to Samara. Traveling through the Misty Mountains, their captive warns that no one has ever entered those lands and returned, but of course, Conan does not heed her pleas.

Soon after, the party is attacked. A boulder kills Jamal as Shanya is ensnared and hoisted upwards to the overhanging cliff. Their attackers attempt to do the same with Conan, but he climbs the rope and butchers the savage, hairless apes.

Following their scent to a mountain citadel beyond a graveyard of ancient Turanian chiefs, the Cimmerian discovers Shanya the captive of a strange sorcerer and his entourage of bodyguards, all wearing a peculiar see-through mask.

Conan cuts a path through them, taking one of their masks from a corpse. Then, the sorcerer releases a strange mist, blinding the barbarian. He sees these guards donning the masks and senses they can see him despite the thick vapor. Conan dons the mask he’d taken and sees their quick approach and makes short work of them, killing all of their number.

The sorcerer, bemoaning the end of his race, unleashes an ancient creature, akin to a giant beetle. Rescuing the girl, Conan shatters his sword against the insectoid’s shell. Desperate for a weapon, he hefts up a rune covered stone and smashes the aberration with it before bringing down an avalanche, allowing he and the girl to escape.

Thankful for the rescue, Shanya agrees to be the Cimmerian’s companion rather than hostage and promises he’ll pass through without question.

CAPSULE REVIEW:  This issue is rather rough, to be honest. Illustrated by Tony Dezuniga, I was able to compare these reprint pages with the originals and several panels were altered, and not always for the better. Of the two, I much prefer the Savage Sword issue. Dezuniga’s line is looser, but more compelling, but you could see how that would have been a challenge to color from the grayscale wisps of the original.

The weak-spot here, however, lies in the writing. This is one instance where I wish Thomas would have been less faithful to the original tale. There were too many coincidences for my taste, from the clear masks to the runic spellstone Conan just happened to toss at the beetle thing, which I might add, was clearly drawn as a spider on the cover by Buscema and Chan.

On a scale of 1-10, I’d rate this issue an 6. On eBay, this issue generally is available for less than $10, as low as $6 in may cases. recommended only to completists. You’d be better served to read the story in Savage Sword.

Alba Gu Brath – Bob Freeeman (aka The Occult Detective)