It’s amazing the things that corrupt the youth of today. For the last decade we’ve been training a bunch of blood crazed killers to either fill us full of lead or drive over innocent members of the public in stolen cars all through the use of overly graphic computer games. Of course, in the late 90s and early 2000s it was clear that hip hop would lead to a generation of dope smoking, gun toting gangsters who would otherwise have become lawyers, doctors, and other useful members of society. Before that, Judas Priest and various heavy metal stars spent their time trying to get their fans to kill themselves in reverse. Probably they had all played Dungeons and Dragons, a game that was going to lead to us all being slaughtered by devil worshippers.
And what scandalous act led to one person declaring in 1790 that it “poisoned the mind and corrupted the morals of many a promising youth and prevented others from improving their minds in useful knowledge”? Tobacco? Cannabis? Alcohol? No. Reading novels. Put that in your limited edition, slip-cased, sprayed edge pipe and smoke it.
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In America, in the mid-50s, there was one concern that really stood head and shoulders above the rest. The true scourge of good and purity. Comic books. The youth of the country had to be protected, and so the Association of Comics Magazine Publishers created the Comics Code Authority. A set of rules and guidelines that, in theory, was wholly voluntary, but in reality not signing up could destroy a publication. This guide stopped disgusting ideas reaching young and susceptible minds. Ideas such as police being anything but good, or bad guys actually occasionally winning. Thank goodness that this code, so strict that it prohibited the word ‘terror’ appearing in a comics title, was clear cut and iron clad. There was no way around it, no way that publishers could possibly spread their ungodly filth.
Unless they made comics that were slightly bigger than usual. Because then they would be magazines. And magazines didn’t have to follow the code.
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Thus in 1974, Marvel Comics, through its imprint Curtis Magazines, started publishing the now legendary title Savage Sword of Conan. It was glorious. Building on the popularity of the title’s hero, and printed in black and white, the stories tended towards the hero being older than the concurrently published comic Conan the Barbarian. Unrestrained by the code it was able to be more explorative in its story telling. It was also an anthology publication, featuring other Howard creations such as Krull and Solomon Kane.
The title has now returned, with this exciting relaunch from Titan Comics, who also publish Conan the Barbarian, itself relaunched seven months ago. If issue one is anything to go by, we’ve a lot to be excited about. With an introduction from the legendary Conan writer Roy Thomas there is an instant ‘safe hands’ feel.
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John Arcudi and Max Von Fafner deliver a corker of a tale with ‘Conan and the Dragon Horde’, a self contained and satisfying adventure. Next there is a short story from current Conan the Barbarian writer Jim Zub, whose ‘Sacrifice in the Sands’ manages to give him more breathing space to show off his flair for satisfying, pulp-style hack and slash. It’s excellent. Finally, continuing the traditions of the title, there’s a Solomon Kane tale, with story and art from Patch Zircher. It’s this story that really feels like it’s earning it’s place as a successor to the ‘no code’ Savage Swords of yesterday, with a truly satisfying helping of horror and gore. Hopefully you’ll be left eager for part two.
A fantastic title with a thrilling debut, it’s great to see there’s so much life in the old barbarian yet.
The Savage Sword of Conan #1 is out now from Titan Comics.
