King Conan #2 - Marvel Comics

KING CONAN No. 2, March 2022

Somewhat surprisingly splitting this twenty-page periodical’s plot between the swashbuckling exploits of the titular character upon a zombie-infested island and King Conan’s strange decision to suddenly exile his son from Aquilonia “until you can bring me a tale from every land on the map”, Jason Aaron’s narrative for “A Barbarian Father’s Lament” must have caused many within its audience to scratch their heads in bewilderment. True, the Cimmerian’s team-up with Thoth-Amon provides this comic with some truly scintillating swordplay, especially when the Stygian Wizard is seemingly about to be treacherously sacrificed to the relentless horde of Undead simply to buy his vengeful, grey-bearded nemesis a chance of survival.

But arguably bibliophiles can only take so much depiction of putrescent cadavers being carved into pieces of still wriggling, decaying meat, before the relentless slaughter becomes a bit stayed and regrettably tedious. Indeed, the flashbacks concerning a bored monarch and his worries as to Conn’s ability to retain the throne after the aging adventurer is dead, debatably soon becomes a far more fascinating storyline than the one depicting the heavily muscled hero swinging his great blade through yet another revenant; “With all respect, your highness. Are you going to tell me why we rode all the way out here while our army is marching back to Tarantia?”

Happily however, the Alabama-born author does finally inject some much-needed tension into the elderly Conan’s seemingly deadly predicament towards the end of the comic, when having been pained by his decision to abandon Thoth-Amon, he pens the barbarian returning to save the black magic-user from a gruesome demise at the last moment. This demonstration of the Cimmerian’s famous code of honour certainly captures the essence of the character originally devised by his creator Robert E. Howard, and agreeably also leads to a moment of true treachery when the Stygian ungratefully stabs his rescuer in the thigh and leaves the wounded warrior to the tender mercies of the ghouls who were only moments before about to eat him.

Easily this book’s biggest asset though is the artwork of Mahmud Asrar, which provides the sword and sorcery hero with plenty of memorable moments repeatedly scything his way through a steady stream of rotting opponents. Likewise, the Turkish illustrator does a first-rate job pencilling the sheer frustration emanating off Aquilonia’s King once he realises that he’s done such a good job in ruling the empire that he has few enemies to battle and can’t simply prowl “the countryside looking for a fight.”

The regular cover art of "KING CONAN" #2 by Mahmud Asrar & Matthew Wilson