“Erfu is wounded and Conan is worried he is losing too much blood. One of the mysterious wood-witches appears, offering to help heal his friend. But a dark fiend is looking for this white-haired woman. Will saving Erfu be her last act of kindness before the fiend can find her? Or can Conan save the woman and her young companion?”

By ANDY MAGLOTHIN – Paint Monk’s Library Writer

(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) #113.)

This issue opens with Conan and Erfu on horseback riding through a forest on their way to Akkharia when they are suddenly attacked by robbers. One of the men shoots an arrow into Erfu’s left shoulder, causing him to fall off his steed. Still on his horse, Conan quickly kills a few of the attackers and chases off the others.

After Conan fends off the men, he attends to Erfu. The wound is deep and Erfu needs attention before they can get to Akkharia. Erfu and Conan decide to call upon the help of a Wood-Witch. Conan recalls Cimmerian shaman stories of the Wood-Witches appearing after burning the liver of a stag. After killing a large buck, Conan cooks the liver, but Erfu will not eat and finally, they both lie down for some rest.

Sleeping lightly, Conan notices a woman and a small child approach: Moraga and Naj. Moraga states she is a Wood-Witch and along with her young son they plan on providing care to Erfu. Moraga boils some water as Naj disappears to retrieve some herbs Moraga needs. Erfu’s concerned about being watched and their safety, yet the Wood-Witch states they are committed to assist.

Conan vows to protect them as Moraga describes her past. She was exiled by her village because they thought she was a witch. A group of them chased her away and as they were after her, a large ominous figure killed the villagers yet left her alive. The experience frightened her to the point it made her hair white and left her in exile with only Naj. Erfu’s fever finally breaks, so Moraga and Naj leave Conan and the still sleeping Stygian.

Another day passes to night and Erfu is more alert, asking Conan to recount the occurrences over the past few days. Conan updates Erfu, but they are interrupted by Conan sensing they are being watched. A set of red eyes and demonic voice are all Conan and Erfu can discern from the dark woods. The creature announces it is looking for the woman, warns Conan to not interfere and takes off in the same direction as Moraga and Naj.

The demon’s hooves leave easily discernible footsteps which Conan follows to find the demon confronting Moraga and Naj. Conan tosses his large torch to Moraga so she can protect herself then using his sword, attacks the demon.

During the course of the battle, Conan’s sword breaks against the demon’s hide, leaving him with the hilt and a jagged piece of the blade. The demon grabs Conan who uses the remaining portion of the blade to cut the demon’s face and squirm loose from the grip. The demon lunges at Conan who swiftly dodges the attack and the demon hits the ground hard.

With the demon on the ground and vulnerable, Conan lifts a large rock to smash the demon but it grabs Conan’s leg and again the Cimmerian is in the demon’s grasp. Erfu arrives, splashes a potion on the beast and sets it ablaze with a torch. The demon scrambles off between gaping boulders which miraculously close after he enters.

Conan, Erfu, Moraga and Naj are safe and Moraga reveals the demon is Naj’s father. Erfu opts to stay with Moraga and Naj to serve as a father figure to the boy. Naj will someday be torn between his demon and human heritage; but that is a story for another day.

CAPSULE REVIEW: I always start with the cover, which is an essential piece to any comic and this one certainly delivers the goods. It is a moonlit night, with Conan attacking a demon and Moraga and Naj in the background. As with most good covers, the action scene grabs the reader’s attention and was certain to have stood out on the newsstand back when the issue was released. My only gripe is a slight one, but the moon is just a white circle…no shadows, color chang or features. Maybe a wispy cloud would have helped…I’m no artist, but that just sticks out as odd. Again, minor detail, but no work of art is perfect right?

Story-wise, this has it all…character detail, a demon who battles Conan and a bit of teamwork to defeat the foe in the end. Featuring a collaboration between Christy Marx and Roy Thomas, the pacing, character development, scene changes, and narrative are enough but not too much. I really enjoyed Conan’s frustration with Erfu’s ongoing rambling. Erfu’s non-stop commentary kept Conan from noticing the robbers at the beginning of the story and was a source of frustration when the demon found them later in the tale.

Why are comics great forms of entertainment? Artwork like what’s featured in this issue….that’s why. Buscema and Chan continue their reign as the best team for the Cimmerian with this issue. The settings, characters, weapons, accessories…it all fits and it engages the reader, pulling them right into the mythos of the Hyborian Age. The battle between Conan and the demon was intense, and Conan using his broken sword to attack the demon was a nice touch.

Another quality issue from the consistent creative team and should be part of any Conan collection.

On a scale of 1-10, I give it 7 Aquilonian Luna.

Living life my own way – Andy from Aquilonia