“Having left behind his departed love in the last issue, Conan finds himself alone on the Black Coast. The vulnerable Cimmerian is captured by the Bamulas, where he is set to be sacrificed to a massive spider in the name of the Kushite god Ekku! But secretly Conan has a plan…and a challenge ensues for leadership of the tribe!”

(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, #101.)

By WALLY MONK – Paint Monk’s Library Editor

It’s hard to top the previous issue of Marvel’s original Conan series, and the next three or four issues – this one in particular – are a bittersweet denouement to the Queen of the Black Coast storyline. As the tale begins, Conan is alone at a campfire, mourning the loss of Belit and preparing to cook a meal.

It’s easy to imagine Roy Thomas working hard (struggling, perhaps) to come up with good Conan stories following the epic run from issues #57-100. Many readers of classic Marvel Conan consider them to be the best tales of the entire series.

Now, Conan is alone, still in foreign territory, carrying the heavy emotional burden brought on by the death of the she-pirate and his entire crew of Corsairs. The Cimmerian, effectively, is back to where he was before the Belit storyline began – alone, broke, and with no companions in sight.

I wonder as a reader if Roy Thomas and the Marvel bullpen were prepping for the changes to come, as Thomas will walk away from Conan with issue #115 and J.M. DeMatteis will assume the narrative reins. While this was a good and fitting tale to follow Conan the Barbarian #100, many of the next fifteen issues struggle to find their footing.

Review: Conan the Barbarian (Vol. 1) #101

As Conan cooks the leg of some unfortunate wild beast over a campfire, he looks into the flames and ponders a burning ship named the Tigress being put to sea with the body of Belit laid out in a manner befitting a queen. His reflection doesn’t last long, as his contemplation is interrupted by an arrow and soon an entire Bamula war band.

During the conflict, Conan kills the Bamula war chief, but trips over a protruding tree root and is beset upon by the remaining warriors. He is carried back to their village, where it is announced he will be thrown into a pit and sacrificed to a massive spider.

Before the Cimmerian can be sacrificed, however, the Bamulas need to choose a new war chief. The two contenders are a violent, aggressive tribesman named Yorubo, and another Bamulan named Mulla. Mulla presses Yorubo over Conan, saying that the Cimmerian will not be sacrificed until a new chief is chosen. Yorubo responds by gutting the challenger with a spear.

Conan, who speaks more Kushite languages than the villagers know, takes the opportunity to challenge Yorubo for leadership of the Bamulas, in accordance with their tribal laws. The challenge is a battle to the death on a log which spans the massive spider pit!

For a brief moment, it seems as if Yorubo has the upper hand. But Conan, who is knocked down, kicks the Bamulan, sending him flying into the pit where the hungry arachnid awaits. Horrified, Yorubo’s wife jumps into the pit brandishing a dagger to save her husband.

Ever having a soft spot for women, Conan jumps into the pit to to do battle with the spider. Several beautiful pages of combat are lavishly illustrated in the book, much to the credit of penciller John Buscema, and ultimately Conan emerges victorious.

Yorubo isn’t down for the count just yet. The fall from the log didn’t kill him, and he prepares to land a lethal blow to our barbarian as he recovers from his battle with the spider.

Yorubo’s cheap shot falls short and the Cimmerian ends the life of his challenger in short order. It appears that Conan has lost his Black Corsairs, but is the new war chief of the Bamula tribe.

CAPSULE REVIEW: This is good story to bring closure and a new direction to Conan following the events of the previous forty-three issues. Roy Thomas didn’t wait long to put Conan in charge of another tribe or group of warriors, and this new arrangement will set the stage for upcoming tales.

John Buscema and Ernie Chan”s depictions of the tribesmen are first-rate, and the battle sequences with the giant spider are commendable. For the first time, though, I do have some issues with Buscema’s depiction of the spider’s face – it’s not intimidating at all. He looks like Sesame Street’s Oscar the Grouch.

Colorist George Roussos continues his work, making the Buscema/Chan team continue to shine.

On a scale of 1-10, I’d rate this issue a 7. I’d give it a 7.5, but the Sesame Street spider deserves a small reduction.