The Savage Sword of Conan #2 Review!

The second issue of the black and white magazine has a painted cover by Dave Dorman. It has Conan raising his war axe about to cleave some demonic spider thing shambling over a pile of skulls! The first of the pin-up artwork by Rafael Kayanan has a grey, brooding Conan. “Leaving the Garden” is written by Jim Zub, who provided a short story last issue, and Richard Pace, the artist for Dark Horse Comics’ Robert E. Howard’s anthology series, Savage Sword #5-7. There ae sketchy panels of Conan struggling in darkness and trying to breathe. We see him about to be pulled into the gaping mouth of a skull ready to be taken by the Cimmerian god, Crom. He becomes angry, raging against his fate, and clawing through earth. A negative space hand reaches out. Surreal artwork. 

A powerful splash page has Conan pulling himself from his grave during a storm! Conan starts to drag himself since he has a spike in his leg, past a dozen mounds of his brothers in ams, and vows to avenge them before there is darkness! Next, we see Conan riding a horse next to a guard in front of a caravan of wagons. They are a company for Pesach the Plenty headed to Argos, the country nestled in the corner of Hyperborea. The artwork is much lighter except some shadows. This is in contrast to the dark beginning. The young son of Pesach asks Conan if his adventures are true. Conan says he will tell him more of his adventures. He rides off, but watches over the caravan. Pesach rides up to him and Conan says he is headed to Argos to pay off debts. Pesach mentions that his pay is generous. 

The Cimmerian doesn’t want to cause trouble, but his fellow guard, Maro, says he should stay the night. A very happy, welcoming guard and merchant for a Conan story. We know that this will drive Conan for his revenge! The sun sets at the merchant camp, Pesch points out the barrels he is selling, pitch from the jungles to the south, Kush. The artwork is loose sketches. Conan is goaded into arm wrestling Maro, “The Crush from Kush.” At the edge of the camp, a spear runs through a guard! Conan and Maro tell Pesch to get his family to the wagons. A two page spread has human-shaped horrors with fanged mouths that split open and white splotches pulling down the horses! Conan slashes through the first of this horde with his axe, the image from the cover.  A series of panels has the attack, the relentless horrors, Pesch tries to protect his family, but we see the headband of the son falling! 

Maro and Conan continue to fight, they struggle against the endless horde of creatures, Conan’s arm is battered by one of the creatures. The dark mass of bodies ovewhelm Conan and fists bash him senseless! Two of the creatures drag him to be buried. He hears their chittering, insect-like, as they wrap him up and bury him! We pick up with the heavy sketchiness of Conan dragging himself hand over hand until he falls into a ravine. Conan rests at the bottom of the ravine as the rain ends and morning begins. He passes out and then revives to hear something. Conan looks up to see a child in the dark woods. The boy runs off and walks from the forest to a river. He reaches a tree stump filled with axes, swords, and spears. He is friendly towards one of the creatures slumped down and moaning with a wooden spike in its head. 

The boy walks to a village, Tarif is greeted by a woman, who is wasting away with the splotchy disease of the creatures! Tarif says he wanted to see the “New Soil” and she says he is ignoring his chores. An insult to De’ahm. She sends him to ask for absolution at a larg building. He lies down in front of an insect-like thing in the shadows! Conan is in the dark he checks the spike in his leg and then rips it out before falling unconscious again! He wakens with a cup of water given by Tarif. The boy says it is clean and not from the swamp. Tarif offers some of his prayer meal to Conan. A boy caught up in a cult, kind, but the situation is still sinister. Tarif says he has never seen anyone climb out of the Great Garden of De’ahm. He explains that they are his Steadfast Swarm that gather food for De’ahm; souls of the dead. 

Tarif happily says Conan be like a warrior like hopes to be and leaves him. Alone at night, Conan prepares in his shelter starting a fire, and readying a spear and lashing spikes to his left arm. He waits as a pack of wolves approach catching the scent of his blood! Conan has set his spear to strike the Alpha wolf and tosses it into the fire. The other wolves close in. Another wolf attacks, but Conan runs his spiked gauntlet into it and bashes its head with a rock, he lets out a howl, and then stands. The wolves retreat. Over the days, Tarif helps Conan recover, and he has the coats of the wolves hanging on racks. He hides from the swarm until he is ready and summer ends. Over two pages we see glimpses of Conan’s adventures that he tells to Tarif; giants, othe monsters, riding with a cavaly, and a woman set against a pillar like Frank Frazetta’s painting, Egyptian Queen. Conan stands, now bearded and wearing the wolf coats. At night, he sees the spirits of the caravan rise from the Garden. Conan must ultimately face the thing called De’ahm with an incredible cost! 

A pin up by Gerardo Zaffino has Conan in armor wielding swords next to the coils of a giant serpent! “Master of the Hunt Part 2” continues with story and art by Patrick Zircher. Solomon Kane leads the way in a dark forest with a lantern. The blind storyteller, Gruffudd, is on Solomon’s horse. He tells of Cad Goddeau known as the Battle of the Trees, the Welsh poem from Taliesin. This was made into the “Duel of Fates” song in Phantom Menace (1999). He tells of the druid Gwydion searching the Otherworld, but the Lord of the Underworld, Arawn, sent knights to stop him. A closeup of the lantern. Gwydion gave life to trees and plants to fight the knights. A knight was invincible until Gwydion said his name and won the battle. Solomon finds tracks of the beast, but a clawed hand knocks down horse and Gruffudd! A massive, hairy beast, the Gawr, looms over Solomon and slashes at him! Solomon fires his wheellock pistol which strikes the shoulder of the Gawr and it retreats. Gruffudd is dying and gives Solomon a horn to protect him. There are even more supernatual dangers for Solomon Kane! The Savage Sword of Conan #2 tells tales of Conan taking spectral terrors and Solomon Kane’s encounter with the fierce Gawr!

Four Savage Swords out of Five! 

#SavageSwordOfConan, #LeavingTheGarden, #JimZub, #RichardPace, #PesachThePlenty, #Maro, #Tarif, #Deahm, #MasterOfTheHuntpartTwo, #PatrickZircher, #RafaelKayanan, #GerardoZaffino, #NickMarinkovich