(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, #92.)

By ANDY MAGLOTHIN – Paint Monk’s Library Writer

Roll back the Hyborian clock as we visit a never before seen tale (at least in comics) of a young Conan. Based loosely on the works of L. Sprague deCamp and Lin Carter, the story is inspired by their tale “The Thing in the Crypt”. Those of you who have seen the Conan the Barbarian movie from 1982 might recognize a few things.

Conan recently left Brutheim, and wolves have been chasing him for two days. The pack is exceptionally hungry and would have given up were it not for the long, dark winter.

As a wolf attacks, Conan swings a chain, significantly injuring the animal. The other starving wolves catch up and feast on their fallen friend. Conan reflects how he started out fighting alongside raiders from Aesgaard, was captured by the Hyperboreans and subsequently escaped.

The wolves continue their pursuit and a desperate Conan rushes across a frozen pond as another wolf catches up with him. During the skirmish, they both fall through the ice. The Cimmerian frantically swims to an opening in the ice and finds himself at the base of a small mountain. Our freezing barbarian climbs to the top where he finds a cave in which he takes shelter.

Conan hides just inside the entrance of the cave and sees the wolves at the opening – strangely, they will not enter. He decides to venture deeper into the cave, and the floor is uneven, requiring him to slowly move along the walls. Along the wall, Conan discovers some hieroglyphics and a shorter entrance to another area. The larger chamber features handmade items, which he discovers by accident when he falls over a rotting chair. Conan finds a dilapidated chariot then quickly gathers up other small pieces of wood, some stones, and metal from the chariot, preparing to make a fire.

The flames reveals the enormity of the room, and Conan soon recognizes the stench of death in the air. He has the eerie feeling he is not alone and turns around to find the rotted remains of a being sitting on a stone chair.

Conan’s surprise is short lived as he notices a stunning sword lying in the corpse’s lap. Conan swings the blade, imagining both the origin of its creation and his future use of it in battle. But the barbarian’s excitement quickly fades when he hears the creaking noise of the corpse rising from the chair.

The giant body lumbers toward Conan, and the Cimmerian evades it, attempting to fight back with his new-found sword. Our hero hacks off the creature’s right arm and then strikes the mid-section, causing the zombie to hit the floor.

To Conan’s surprise, the corpse lurches at him yet again. The Cimmerian wildly swings the sword, missing the corpse and allowing the living dead to claw his right shoulder. Conan chops at the head and torso of the zombie to no avail: how can one kill what is already dead?

In a desperate move, Conan slashes at the creature’s left leg then with a massive swing of the sword shatters its lower jaw. Conan stumbles back as a severed hand grabs his left ankle. The corpse seizes the opportunity, grabbing Conan’s neck. The barbarian leans back, and flips the zombie over him and into the fire. Due to its dried out clothing and skin, the beast quickly goes up in flames but still lumbers out in an attempt to get the Cimmerian. It quickly falls to the ground, nearly burned to ash.

Conan finds his way out of the caves and heads southward.

CAPSULE REVIEW: The cover and interiors of this issue are drawn by Sal Buscema, younger brother of John Buscema, and there’s no drop in quality. They both have very similar styles and I think it is more apparent with Ernie Chan’s inks. The cover reveals the unsettling, enormous corpse who attacks Conan. The interior pages show a younger Conan in a snowy forest on the run from wolves. The detail of his journey through the forest, into the cold waters then the dank caves leaves the reader empathetic to Conan’s plight and endurance in the tough climate.

Conan’s appearance indicates the story takes place in an earlier time – according to a note on the first page of the comic, the events in this story take place between Conan the Barbarian #2 and #3. The Cimmerian is dressed like the Barry Windsor-Smith version of Conan from those classic issues – sandals, necklace and the infamous yak helmet. The biggest annoyance I have with this issue is Conan’s helmet staying in place throughout the chase scenes in the forest. Even worse is the helmet staying on as he swims through the icy water. Perhaps the helmet has “magical properties” after all…

The best part of the comic is the battle between the dead warrior and Conan. The images are creepy, as Buscema and the colorist do a great job depicting rotting skin and clothes. Conan’s struggle against the creature is demonstrated through his actions and facial features. The unrelenting attack of the zombie creates an intense scene and the artistic pacing helps set the tone.

Roy Thomas effectively rewinds the timeline to present a hidden tale of Conan’s past. This issue is unique because Conan does not interact with anyone else. There are very few spoken moments, and the story is mostly told by an unseen narrator. I really enjoyed the stand alone, action packed story, and more’s the mystery as we never learn “why” the corpse came back to life.

This issue is unique based on the timeframe, delivery of the story and detailed artwork, I give it 8 Aquilonian Luna out of 10.

Living life my own way – Andy from Aquilonia