Conan Reviews: Conan the Barbarian 173, Conan the Barbarian 174

Conan the Barbarian #173 – “Honor Among Thieves” – Jim Owsley/John Buscema/Bob Camp

This one continues from last issue with a troop of 100 Zingaran soldiers searching the Pictish Wilderness for someone … probably the same someone that Zacharus came looking for. The Zingarans run into Tetra in her new warrior’s guise. She seems to have learned fighting skills very quickly, as she takes down two scouts rather easily. Conan stops her from killing the last one so he can find out their troop strength. Conan realizes the Zingarans must be looking for the same guy they are (Keiv), but when Zacharus hears about the soldiers, he heads straight for them, thinking them a link to civilization. His shouts bring a band of Picts who start fighting the Zingarans, which leaves Conan and Tetra free to get inside Keiv’s treehouse (which is much more elaborate inside). Keiv admits the Zingarans are after him because he stages raids in their territory with his Pictish allies. When Tetra shows him the treasure map her father brought, Keiv claims not to have the other half, but Conan intimidates the truth out of him. Keiv leads them out to retrieve his half of the map, but they don’t notice the Zingaran leader (Delmurio) following them. Not far away, the Pictish priest (Kawagne) goes to a cave to see someone who looks like a child but is actually a demon named Nostume. Kawagne tells the child-demon about Conan ruining the harvest sacrifice last issue and says Keiv is leading Conan here to his death. On their journey to the cave, Keiv tells Conan he doesn’t know where the treasure map came from and that he once possessed both parts of the map (and made a copy of the missing half). Keiv leads Conan and Tetra to Kawagne and the child-demon Nostume, where they’re grabbed by animated roots. Delmurio shows up to kill Keiv and puts an arrow into Nostume. Their fight distracts Nostume long enough for Conan to break free and go after Keiv himself. Nostume uses his powers to bring down the cave, but Conan, Tetra, and Delmurio get out before it collapses, thinking Keiv killed in the cave-in. Outside, Delmurio tells Conan how he was assigned to stop Keiv’s raids and was overwhelmed by Picts. He shows Conan the scars carved into his chest by Keiv, which Tetra recognizes as the missing half of the map. In the caves, Kawagne is worried about Conan using the map to find Nostume’s source of power, but Nostume says Conan will go mad when he reaches his destination and if he doesn’t, he’ll still have to face Nostume. To placate Kawagne, Nostume sends Keiv (who’s now been mutated into some kind of Swamp Thing-type monster) to kill Conan and Delmurio … a task Keiv is glad to undertake, since he blames them for his transformation into a monster. This is a pretty good issue with a certain Howardian feel to it, although Conan’s chivalrous attitude towards Tetra seems out of place. I’m pretty sure Howard’s Conan would be banging her without a second thought. I’m still not sure about Tetra’s sudden warrior skills, but she certainly does look good in the trappings.

Conan the Barbarian #174 – “Children of the Night” – Jim Owsley/John Buscema/Bob Camp

This one continues from last issue, with Conan, Tetra, and Delmurio riding into Zingara. They don’t know they’re being spied on by some kid, who goes to a camp full of other kids to report to a man named Santiar. Santiar reminds them that Zingarans from the east (like Delmurio) wiped out their village a couple of months back and now the survivors want revenge. Santiar leads the kids in an attack on Conan’s group, but they’re pushed back pretty quickly. Conan stops Delmurio from wasting one of the kids and the rest take off with Tetra as their prisoner. Some soldiers arrive from the nearby city of Sadoria led by an Aquilonian named Barabbus, who wants Delmurio to return to Sadoria to give a report on his activities. Conan leaves to find Tetra, but Barabbas sends a soldier to follow him. In the bandit camp, Tetra soon breaks free but Santiar calms her by introducing himself as crown-prince of Sadoria. In Sadoria, Delmurio is bothered by the destruction and the fact that in the current civil war over shipping rights, the Zingarans’ Aquilonian allies have been slaughtering their enemies wholesale. He meets General Aldo and learns the Aquilonians hold all the power in their alliance. Delmurio tells the general he’s resigning his commission to go after a vast treasure. Aldo refuses to leave with him, wanting to stay and look after the children, but neither of them realizes Barabbas has been listening to their conversation. At the cam, Santiar and Tetra are getting quite close, but they’re interrupted by Conan, who takes Tetra with him since she still has half of the treasure map. The soldier that followed Conan reports the location of the camp to Barabbas, who asks Aldo to sign the order to wipe out the bandit children. When Aldo refuses, Barabbas has him killed. Conan and Tetra bust in and Tetra is shocked to find Barabbas has killed Santiar and put his corpse on display in the courtyard. Conan wastes a bunch of Barabbas’s men, aided by Delmurio. Barrabas is ready to stab Tetra in the back, but the kids show up and kill him to avenge Santiar. Conan, Tetra, and Delmurio leave the city to the children and continue on their treasure hunt. This was a pretty good issue, with some political twists that are worthy of Howard. I like the fact that the kids killed Barabbas, although Tetra doing it would’ve worked too. I also liked Aldo standing up to Barabbas, even though it got him killed.