Comics Bulletin logo
Search
  • Columns
    Random
    • Why Do *You* Read Comics?

      Zack Davisson
      July 27, 2004
      The Panel
    Recent
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 2

      Daniel Gehen
      December 4, 2020
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 1

      Daniel Gehen
      October 30, 2020
    • Comictober 2020: DRACULA MOTHERF**KER

      Daniel Gehen
      October 27, 2020
    • What Looks Good
    • Comics Bulletin Soapbox
    • The Full Run
    • Leading Question
    • Top 10
    • The Long-Form
    • Jumping On
    • Comics in Color
    • Slouches Towards Comics
  • Big Two
    Random
    • Exclusive Marvel Preview: "The Vision" #3

      Zack Davisson
      December 31, 2015
      Marvel Comics, Previews
    Recent
    • 4.5

      DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

      Daniel Gehen
      January 22, 2021
    • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

      Daniel Gehen
      December 3, 2020
    • Stan Lee

      nguyen ly
      November 7, 2020
    • DC Comics
    • Big Two Reviews
    • Marvel Comics
  • Indie
    Random
    • Review: "Low" Vol. 1 - This Book is Rough, Beautiful and Fun - A Heart Punch of a Story

      Zack Davisson
      July 1, 2015
      Image, Reviews
    Recent
    • Review: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist

      Daniel Gehen
      December 14, 2020
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 2

      Daniel Gehen
      December 4, 2020
    • 4.5

      TMNT: The Last Ronin #1 Lives Up to the Hype (Review)

      Daniel Gehen
      October 29, 2020
    • Reviews
    • Archie Comics
    • Boom! Studios
    • Dark Horse
    • IDW
    • Image
    • Oni Press
    • Valiant
  • Reviews
    Random
    • 2.0

      Black Panther: The Man Without Fear #516

      Zack Davisson
      April 5, 2011
      Reviews
    Recent
    • 4.5

      DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

      Daniel Gehen
      January 22, 2021
    • Review: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist

      Daniel Gehen
      December 14, 2020
    • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

      Daniel Gehen
      December 3, 2020
    • Singles Going Steady
    • Slugfest
    • Manga
      • Reviews
    • Small Press
      • Reviews
      • ICYMI
      • Tiny Pages Made of Ashes
  • Interviews
    Random
    • David Hine: From an Asylum Reborn to Eyes Without a Face

      Zack Davisson
      November 11, 2009
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview: Jon Davis-Hunt Talks SHADOWMAN

      Daniel Gehen
      June 8, 2020
    • Interview: Becky Cloonan talks DARK AGNES and Her Personal Influences

      Mike Nickells
      March 4, 2020
    • Simon Roy

      Interview: Simon Roy on His Inspirations and Collaborations on PROTECTOR

      Mike Nickells
      January 29, 2020
    • Audio Interview
    • Video Interview
  • Classic Comics
    Random
    • Classic Comics Cavalcade: Valiant Masters: Harbinger

      Zack Davisson
      May 1, 2015
      Classic Comics Cavalcade, Columns
    Recent
    • Countdown to the King: Marvel’s Godzilla

      Daniel Gehen
      May 29, 2019
    • Honoring A Legend: Fantagraphics To Resurrect Tomi Ungerer Classics

      Daniel Gehen
      February 15, 2019
    • Reliving the Craziest Decade in Comics History: An interview with Jason Sacks

      Mark Stack
      January 2, 2019
    • Classic Comics Cavalcade
    • Classic Interviews
  • News
    Random
    • Kickstarter Spotlight: Fist of Justice #7

      Zack Davisson
      November 11, 2014
      Kickstarter Spotlight, News
    Recent
    • 2020 Ringo Awards Winners Announced

      Daniel Gehen
      October 26, 2020
    • BAD IDEA Announces 2021 Publishing Slate

      Daniel Gehen
      September 29, 2020
    • A Full Replay of NCSFest 2020 is now Available

      Daniel Gehen
      September 15, 2020
    • Press Release
    • Kickstarter Spotlight
  • Books
    Random
    • Review: 'Kickstarter for the Independent Creator: A Practical and Informative Guide To Crowdfunding'

      Zack Davisson
      September 14, 2015
      Books
    Recent
    • Collecting Profile: Disney Frozen

      CB Staff
      November 22, 2019
    • Collecting Profile: NFL Superpro

      CB Staff
      August 31, 2019
    • “THE BEST OF WITZEND” is a Wonderful Celebration of Artistic Freedom

      Daniel Gehen
      September 15, 2018
    • Review: ‘Machete Squad’ is a Disappointing Afghan Memoir

      Jason Sacks
      July 31, 2018
    • Review: ‘Out of Nothing’ is the Antidote to Our Sick Times

      Jason Sacks
      July 23, 2018
    • Review: ‘Bizarre Romance’ Shows Rough Edges in the Early Days of a New Marriage

      Jason Sacks
      July 10, 2018
What's New
  • Collecting Profile: If I win Powerball, I will buy Amazing Fantasy 15
  • DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)
  • Collecting Profile: Batwoman
  • Collecting Profile: Daredevil
  • Collecting Profile: Floronic Man
  • Review of Cheetah in Wonder Woman 1984
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Contact Us
  • Write for us!
  • Visit Video Game Break!
Home
Reviews

Conan: Road of Kings #6

Zack Davisson
June 25, 2011
Reviews

Oh yeah! Now this is some Conan! After the disappointing issue #5 of Conan: The Road of Kings, where Conan didn’t really do anything but run after the Zamorian rogue Fharos and the kidnapped Princes Olivia, the battle finally comes to a head and Conan gets to do a little of what Conan does best; hacking people to pieces with his sword while rescuing a girl.

Roy Thomas’s return to Conan, the character he made great during his run on the title for Marvel, has so far been a mixed-bag. Thomas has a definite style with Conan, more high-fantasy and humor mixed with the standard adventure tales. This is Conan in a different vein from the recent Dark Horse series that stuck very closely to Robert E. Howard’s original stories and style. I like Thomas’s take on Conan, probably because that is what I grew up with, and reading this Conan series has been nostalgic fun. But writers like Kurt Busiek have matured the character since Thomas worked on him, and this style of Conan seems like a regression.

Regression or not, Thomas still has flair and style with Conan. He gives us some fantastic scenes of Conan kicking some serious ass. In the Hyborean Age, a bunch of palace guards coming up against Conan is the equivalent of a pack of muggers running into Batman. They all think they have a chance, until they are shown otherwise. A guard with a long spear comes at Conan saying “My reach is longer than yours, Barbarian…” to which Conan replies “But your spear does not go where you want it. My blade does!” Cue guardsman head being sliced open. Props to Thomas for showing actual swordfighting technique in that exchange, with Conan using his sword to control the point of the guard’s spear.

The real issue with Conan: The Road of Kings isn’t Thomas’ writing, though; it’s Mike Hawthorne’s art. He just doesn’t draw very well. His proportions are all wrong, and the man cannot draw a three-quarters view human face to save his life. And his artwork is simplistic. Undetailed. The end-game boss of this issue, Gamesh, is supposed to look like a horror badass with a sword stitched onto a bloody stump for one hand, and a head with the skin flayed off leaving exposed muscle and bone. But Hawthorne draws him so clean that he looks like a plastic action figure, not a frightening horror for Conan to overcome.

With this series, and the shitty Conan: Island of No Return, Dark Horse is getting further and further away from the formula that made their Conan series such a hit. Bringing back Roy Thomas was a good idea, but he should have been paired with an artist that could do justice to his storylines. In those marvelous days of yore, Thomas was paired with Barry Windsor-Smith and produced some of the best Conan comics ever made. Mike Hawthorne is no Barry Windsor-Smith, and the comic suffers for it.

Dark HorseMike HawthorneRoy ThomasZack Davisson

Share On:
Tweet
Gene Colan, 1926-2011
Every Stunt Is New Again

About The Author

Zack Davisson

Related Posts

  • A New Look at HAPPINESS WILL FOLLOW From BOOM! Studios

    Daniel Gehen
    July 1, 2020
  • Dark Horse Presents: THE ART OF ASSASSIN’S CREED VALHALLA

    Ashley Hurst
    May 30, 2020

Latest Reviews

  • 4.5

    DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    January 22, 2021
  • Review: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist

    Daniel Gehen
    December 14, 2020
  • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

    Daniel Gehen
    December 3, 2020
  • 4.5

    TMNT: The Last Ronin #1 Lives Up to the Hype (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    October 29, 2020
  • 4.5

    Micro Review: Commanders in Crisis #1

    Jason Jeffords Jr.
    October 12, 2020
  • 3.0

    Review: GHOST WRITER Fights the Spectre of Unevenness

    Daniel Gehen
    September 3, 2020
  • 3.5

    Review: Strange Skies Over East Berlin

    Yavi Mohan
    August 11, 2020
  • DRAWING BLOOD: A Hyper-Stylized, Fictional Autobiography

    Ben Bishop, Brittany Peer, David Avallone, Drawing Blood, Kevin Eastman, Tomi Varga
    August 9, 2020
  • 3.0

    Alien: The Original Script #1 – This One’s For The Fans

    Jason Jeffords Jr.
    August 7, 2020
  • Singles Going Steady: Why? Lettering!

    Daniel Gehen
    July 28, 2020
RSSTwitterFacebookgoogleplusinstagramtumblr

Comics Bulletin is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, audible.com, and any other website that may be affiliated with Amazon Service LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate, Comics Bulletin earns from qualifying purchases.

All content on this site (c) 2018 The Respective Copyright Holders