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Tweak says, "What if god was one of us?"

colonel_green (colonel_green) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-04-11 22:21:00

Entry tags:

char: conan the barbarian, creator: roy thomas, title: the savage sword of conan

Who could ask for more?

Conan the Barbarian reminds us all what's important in life.

Right on, Conan!

From The Savage Sword of Conan #23.

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	dr_hermes 2009-04-11 08:35 pm UTC (link)
	Too bad for the hard-working honest merchants just trying to provide for their families, of course. They'll get their throats cut and their bodies tossed to the fishies while Conan and his pirates laugh and divide the loot. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	colonel_green 2009-04-11 08:50 pm UTC (link)
	Thomas is pretty careful to always depict the people Conan's men rob as being jerks or unsympathetic. Even in this particular issue, which contains one of his more outright villainous actions (murdering the ship's captain to take his place; though, again, the ship's captain was an evil-looking dude). (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

dr_hermes
2009-04-11 09:09 pm UTC (link)

Come to think of it, I think Robert E Howard used the same technique. Conan always seemed to be robbing a fat greasy merchant who was shown beforehand to be unscrupulous.. making Conan look better in comparison. When Conan was leading a band of pirates or hill bandits or whatever (he took over quite a few outlaw gangs in his day), there was mention of towns being pillaged and burned. But we never saw the innocent people begging for their lives, the girls being raped, the jewelry being yanked off still-warm bodies. It does make Conan seem romantic and dashing and devil-may-care. I suppose the glamorization of gangsters is nothing new.

You could make a case that the big Cimmerian is just acting according to the morals of his times, but that doesn't wash. All the farmers and blacksmiths and carpenters and innkeepers aren't doing these things.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

colonel_green
2009-04-11 09:18 pm UTC (link)

All the farmers and blacksmiths and carpenters and innkeepers aren't doing these things.

Only because they aren't as badass as Conan.

One of my favourite moments in SSoC is when Conan arrives in a city while a pillaging is in progress; he happens upon a thief killing some helpless merchant and stealing his jewels, then kills the thief, and keeps the jewels for himself, figuring he might as well.

In another instance, after saving a town from some monster (which destroys quite a bit of it), he purposefully vows to leave them alone to rebuild and head elsewhere.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	proteus_lives 2009-04-13 02:28 pm UTC (link)
	Another one is when he kills some assassins that were attacking priests on the road. He then robs the priests. Hey, he needed a horse and some clothes! (Reply to this) (Parent)

proteus_lives
2009-04-13 02:44 pm UTC (link)

You're right about the glamorization of outlaws. It makes much more sense if you read about REH's life.
Conan didn't rape or kill women/children but did he condone it? I remember several scenes where stopped such activity when he saw it but would he overly concern himself about the behavior of his men outside his view? I don't think so. Conan, (mostly under REH) is a mixture of rough morals and a view of "if they're strong they'll survive. If they aren't, they won't."
The character of Conan is complex, he can be viewed a lot of different ways.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	icon_uk 2009-04-12 05:31 am UTC (link)
	Yeah, I got that vibe quite a lot in "Pirates of the Caribbean" too. Sorry, but being "pirates" does not automatically make you dashing or heroic, it makes you a PIRATE! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	retro_nouveau 2009-04-11 09:12 pm UTC (link)
	What is best in life? To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women! I would ask for a Shemite pirate captain. Conan/Bêlit OTP! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	volksjager 2009-04-11 09:17 pm UTC (link)
	When I was a kid I thought it was "lamination" of the women. I never could figure out what he meant, LOL. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	dr_hermes 2009-04-11 09:21 pm UTC (link)
	It's a great image, though, all these laminated women walking around. I'm surprised this community hasn't done as retrospective on Belit, come to think of it. A fierce pirate queen who was Conan's one true love, and she was Jewish, too (or a "Shemite," the Hyborian Age's equivalent). You'd think Belit would have some fans here. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kitty_tc_69 2009-04-11 09:35 pm UTC (link)
	Weren't there some laminated women in the Logan's Run film? I seem to remember a bunch of them dancing around in what looked like clear plastic outfits. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	volksjager 2009-04-11 09:55 pm UTC (link)
	exactly. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	foxhack 2009-04-11 10:51 pm UTC (link)
	Shit. I KNEW I should've picked up that VHS tape when I had the chance! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	gwalla.livejournal.com 2009-04-12 01:55 am UTC (link)
	WE ARE DYSLEXIC OF BORG, YOUR ASS WILL BE LAMINATED (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	icon_uk 2009-04-12 05:32 am UTC (link)
	Win! :) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	dorksidefiker 2009-04-11 09:20 pm UTC (link)
	No no no. It's soft toilet paper. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	dr_hermes 2009-04-11 09:24 pm UTC (link)
	Hear, hear. Also a comfortable pair of sensible shoes. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	ulf_boehnke 2009-04-11 09:40 pm UTC (link)
	False teeth. Don't forget false teeth. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	icon_uk 2009-04-12 05:32 am UTC (link)
	Damn, you beat me to it! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kamino_neko 2009-04-11 09:21 pm UTC (link)
	What is best in life? To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women! I was hoping this would be what was posted! Now I'm sad. A sad, sad barbarian. (Was that invented for the movie, or did it appear in any of the novels or comics first?) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	retro_nouveau 2009-04-11 09:31 pm UTC (link)
	I heard a long time ago that it was taken from a quote attributed to Genghis Kahn and cleaned up for the movie. Google shows a lot of hits, so I think it's probably true. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	proteus_lives 2009-04-13 02:36 pm UTC (link)
	Before I forget, your icon rules! ;) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	retro_nouveau 2009-04-13 02:53 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks! Bruce Timm rules my art world... (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kitty_tc_69 2009-04-11 09:25 pm UTC (link)
	I'm kinda partial to Conan/Sonja myself, especially as it's so clear who'd end up wearing the pants in that relationship. It'd be worth it just to hear Conan say "Yes, dear, by Crom!". :D (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	retro_nouveau 2009-04-11 09:46 pm UTC (link)
	Crom, Mitra and Set! Your senses must have been overtaken by the Black Lotus! Conan shall never have known one better than the raven-haired warrior princess... :) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	dr_hermes 2009-04-11 10:08 pm UTC (link)
	It would be like a Hollywood marriage between two egomaniacs (that is, like most Hollywood marriages). Short, tempramental and steamy. (The Red Sonja character never seemed as "real" as Belit to me, to be honest.) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	proteus_lives 2009-04-13 02:31 pm UTC (link)
	By the Fangs of Set! Belit was first love but Red Sonja is the perfect match for Cimmeria's favorite son! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	colonel_green 2009-04-11 09:50 pm UTC (link)
	Among the chicks in SSoC, I always liked the Devi; she had more initiative than most, and got way more time since her story ran through several issues. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	dr_hermes 2009-04-11 10:05 pm UTC (link)
	Was she in "The People of the Black Circle?" One of Howard's most creative and energetic Conan stories. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	colonel_green 2009-04-11 10:09 pm UTC (link)
	That's the one (adapted in SSoC #16-19). (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	proteus_lives 2009-04-13 02:32 pm UTC (link)
	Devi was a bad-ass. I liked how she returned Conan's boast and challenge at the end. (Reply to this) (Parent)

jlroberson
2009-04-12 06:33 pm UTC (link)

To be honest, I have never understood the appeal of Conan, except the art(and even then, I've been shocked by the difference in quality of art between "Red Nails"--which looks great--and Smith's art on Conan prior to that, which, er, doesn't---it always seemed just the adventures of the kind of jock guy I've always loathed in real life. But then, I was always more of an Elric guy. Well, Elric as interpreted by P. Craig Russell & Michael T. Gilbert.

I do understand that part of his success had to do with being an alternative to superheroes in 70s mainstream comics, as TOD and HTD were. Except those are more my speed than this.

(Reply to this)

	Great Panel! proteus_lives 2009-04-13 02:46 pm UTC (link)
	CG you have inspired me to do my own Conan posts after work tonight! I love SSoC! Crom on his Throne! (Reply to this)