Conan the Barbarian #63 – “Death Among the Ruins” – Roy Thomas/John Buscema/Steve Gan
This one continues from last issue, with Makeda leading Conan and the Watambis to the ruined city where Amra plans to marry Bêlit. Conan is so focused on saving Bêlit, he doesn’t know (or doesn’t care) that Makeda cast a spell to raise the dead of the lost city. Bêlit doesn’t want to be Amra’s mate, but he’s not giving her a choice. He shows his battle prowess by killing a lion with a knife when it threatens Bêlit, but Conan also kills a lion (with a sword) on the way to the city, so it seems the two titans are evenly matched. But Makeda’s spell has taken effect and the undead creatures rise up from beneath the city, dragging Bêlit down into the catacombs. Conan and Amra
both head into the depths of the city to find Bêlit and end up fighting side by side against the undead hordes. Bêlit soon joins them, after freeing herself from her bonds and the three of them kill so many undead that the rest of them flee back into the bowels of the earth. Since Conan and Amra both want Bêlit, they have no choice but to fight. They really are evenly matched, but after a tough fight, Conan wins. The city begins to crumble around them and they get out just before it collapses. They run into Amra’s main lion (Sholo) outside, but instead of attacking the lion seems to acknowledge Conan’s defeat of Amra 
before taking off. The Watambis tell Conan that he has inherited the mantle of Amra and will henceforth be known by that name among the tribes of the Black Coast. This is a pretty good story, with the fight between Conan and Amra as the obvious highlight. Amra was an obvious Tarzan analogue, so it was cool to see two pulp icons going toe to toe. Since this is Conan’s comic we knew he was going to win, but Amra acquitted himself well and Conan showed some regret over killing him, saying that they might’ve been friends under different circumstances. And now we know how Conan came to be called Amra during his time as a pirate.
Conan the Barbarian #65 – “Fiends of the Feathered Serpent” – Roy Thomas/John Buscema/The Tribe
If you’re wondering what happened to issue 64, I’m following the Chronicles of Conan trade paperbacks which leave that issue out since it doesn’t fit in the current storyline. Issue #64 was a reprint of a story from Savage Tales magazine (“The Secret of Skull River”) that was set between issues 44 and 45. Apparently, inker Steve Gan “fell in love” with John Buscema’s original pencils and refused to ruin them by inking them … at least that was the story Roy Thomas was told at the time. Since the inking was being done in the Philippines, there was no way to confirm the story, so
they were forced to run a reprint. I don’t have that issue and don’t feel like tracking it down, so I’m just continuing with the next story in the Chronology. This story starts with the Tigress heading back to Messantia to sell the booty Bêlit and Conan have accumulated to Publio, a shifty merchant with whom Conan is already acquainted. Bêlit says Publio is the only merchant who will deal with her and her crew, because black pirates are thought to be cursed ever since the death of Ahmaan the Merciless. When some Stygian ships come after them, 
they’re forced to put out to sea, which worries Bêlit’s crew. This part of the ocean is where Ahmaan disappeared many years ago and the crew think it’s tainted with dark magic. Their attitude doesn’t get any better when the ship sails through a dark fog and finds a forbidding island. Bêlit leads a party ashore and they find signs of habitation, including a medicine man’s hut near the coast. Inside they discover the well-preserved body of a giant man, whom the crew assumes is Ahmaan even though he died a century ago. The crew start arguing over Ahmaan’s axe but none of them can lift it … except Conan. As they’re leaving, they’re confronted by a pygmy army who knock them out by
pounding a hammer against a gong. The pygmies are surprised that Conan has the axe and don’t try to take it from him even as they tie him and the others up and drag them back to their city. They meet the leader (Tezcatlipoca), who tells them he’s the one who killed Ahmaan all those years ago before taking over the island. He has Conan thrown in a dungeon (after taking the axe from him), but wants Bêlit as a sacrifice. She breaks free and stabs Tezcatlipoca, freeing N’yaga and sending him to look for the rest of the crew. Bêlit gets to the dungeon in time to arm Conan so he can kill the feathered serpent that’s 
attacking him. They’re confronted by Tezcatlipoca, who tells them a mere knife can’t kill him. He proves that when Conan stabs him repeatedly without result. But his men call from outside that Ahmaan has risen from the dead and seeks vengeance. When Tezcatlipoca looks, he’s shocked to see the animated corpse of his old foe standing in the jungle threatening him. The distraction is enough for Conan to get Ahmaan’s enchanted axe and kill Tezcatlipoca with it, which precipitates the ruin of the castle. Conan and Bêlit get out just in time and find that N’yaga and the other corsairs were the ones “animating” Ahmaan’s corpse. Still, Conan can’t help wondering if there was something more … . This is a pretty good story, although it kind of feels like filler. It’s based on one of Robert E. Howard’s “James Allison” tales (although the
main character was actually named John Garfield) where a modern man recalls a previous life as some kind of adventurer. This particular tale (“The Thunder Rider”) had the modern man remembering his life as an Apache warrior, so Roy had to change quite a few details to fit it into Conan’s current storyline. It’s cool to see Conan claim Ahmaan’s axe because he’s worthy of it, kinda like Thor with his hammer. Our first look at Ahmaan’s corpse is interesting; it reminds me of the cover of H. Rider Haggard’s novel “Red Eve”.