Review: Conan the Barbarian #19

The latest issue in the monthly Conan the Barbarian series continues the story of Conan and Bêlit that started in Queen of the Black Coast. I didn’t write a review of issue #18, but you can read my combined review of issue #17 and the TPB release of Queen of the Black Coast if you want to know what I thought of those. While the Brian Wood run of Conan has had its ups and downs, Conan’s adventures with Bêlit are shaping up to be one of the more memorable Conan story arcs in recent years. Brian Wood continues to prove that he can write good Conan comics, even though he often strays very far from Robert E. Howard’s original work, and the ever-changing lineup of artists keeps the series interesting. Paul Azaceta does the artwork, with colors by Dave Stewart, as Conan and Bêlit wander into a mysterious village and encounter a bloodthirsty cult in issue #19: Black Stones – Part One.

What makes Brian Wood’s Conan so different isn’t just the style and his interpretation of the character, but how his work has successfully diverged from Howard’s established story. In previous Conan comics, other characters only appear for a few issues before their path takes them elsewhere, or they die (mostly the second option). In the current series, readers can become more invested in characters other than Conan himself, as Bêlit and her crew are presented as fully-formed characters that lend their own perspective to the Cimmerian’s travels. 

Actually, these comics take place in the middle of Howard’s original Queen of the Black Coast; only the first three issues of Brian Wood’s run are directly adapted from Howard’s work so far. The rest is original material, though I imagine that the final issues of the series will conclude the adaptation Howard’s story. Brian Wood’s stories have been a mixed bag, but they stay true to the spirit of Conan for the most part. He clearly knows the character, and he wants to present those sides of Conan that haven’t been explored before. I didn’t really like the subplot with the impostor in Volume 14: the Death, but Conan’s ongoing relationship with Bêlit is always interesting, and from the first issues she quickly became one of my favorite characters in this series.

Paul Azaceta’s artwork in this issue is excellent. As with many of the other artists that have worked on the current Conan run, his style is unusual for Conan, just as Brian Wood’s writing is. Azaceta’s style is interesting, presenting characters and places with realistic features doing so by providing minimal details in rough lines of ink littering the page.

As for the events in this issue, I’m not really going to talk about them any more than I already have. This issue is the start of a new subplot in Conan’s ongoing travels with Bêlit, but there isn’t much aside from the artwork to make this issue stand out, for better or worse. If you’re already following Conan the Barbarian, you can pick up this issue for the cover price of $3.50. If you’re not reading this series but what I’ve said intrigues you, start with Queen of the Black Coast. This is a Conan series that differs significantly from previous comics, and so far the results have been mostly positive. I just hope that the ending stays close to Howard’s original story.

Danilo Culibrk, aka Augustus, is a staff writer for the Red Shirt Crew. He wonders why people think it’s such a great idea to poke around in cursed villages. You can follow his raids along the western coasts on Twitter at @Augustusing.